Acceptance criteria state the project condition that must be met for an inspection to pass. An ITP should trace each criterion to the approved project source that controls the work.
Use the governing project source
Check the current contract specification, approved drawings, design notes, product instructions and accepted procedures. Record a section, clause or drawing reference that lets another reviewer find the requirement.
Write observable criteria
Describe what is checked and what evidence demonstrates conformity. Where the source provides a value, tolerance, method or frequency, transcribe it accurately with its units and context.
Do not invent a limit
If the controlling project documents do not provide a clear criterion, flag it for clarification by the responsible designer or project authority. Do not substitute a generic number from a template.
Illustrative example only
Teaching placeholder: “Verify [measured item] meets [value and tolerance from approved project source]; reference [document, revision and clause].” Bracketed text is deliberately incomplete. It contains no engineering acceptance threshold.
Record the result separately
The criterion describes what must be met; the field record captures the observation, result, date and responsible person's sign-off after inspection.
Replace vague criteria with traceable entries
| Weak wording | What is missing? | How to complete it |
|---|---|---|
| As per specification. | The outcome and where to find it. | State the actual requirement, then cite the specification document, revision and section. |
| Concrete meets the required strength. | The project value, test age, method and applicable acceptance rule. | Take these from the governing project documents and link the report to the pour or batch. |
| Membrane applied correctly. | The selected system, location and documented installation condition. | Identify the approved product instructions and the project requirement for the relevant check. |
| Test passed. | The criterion is confused with a completed result. | Write the requirement in the plan; record the actual observation and result in the site record after testing. |
When documents conflict or a value is missing
Record the documents and revisions involved, identify the unresolved field and seek a project instruction from the responsible party. Follow the project's agreed document precedence. Do not silently choose a different standard edition, the newest value or the stricter value.
A teaching example from a source to a record
Fictional teaching example, not a project instruction: a drawing labelled EX-PP-01, revision A, shows reinforcement positions in detail R2. The example below explains where that information belongs. It supplies no engineering dimensions, tolerance, test frequency or completed result.
| Field | Teaching entry | What your project needs |
|---|---|---|
| Inspection | Check installed reinforcement positions before placement. | The actual element and inspection stage. |
| Method | Compare positions with drawing detail R2 and record the observations. | The approved method, equipment and competent role where specified. |
| Acceptance | Installed positions correspond to the referenced detail; unresolved deviations require a recorded disposition. | The actual requirement and any specified values or tolerances. |
| Source | EX-PP-01, revision A, detail R2 — fictional. | The real document, revision and exact locator. |
| Frequency | [Enter project-defined frequency] | The applicable inspection or sampling schedule. |
| Responsibility and release | [Enter agreed performing role and release arrangements] | The actual parties and any agreed notice, hold or witness requirements. |
| Record | Blank observation, location, result, evidence and inspector fields. | The retained site record linked to the inspected element. |
In the pre-pour checklist, PP-06 provides a corresponding reinforcement-installation record. Keep its actual measurements, result and signature empty until the check occurs.
Further guidance
Construction Quality Australia's ITP guide explains inspection planning, project requirements, responsibilities and review. The templates and fictional examples on this page are Cavoren resources; they are not CQA's member template or project approval.
Continue with a template
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