Tender Drawings vs IFC Drawings: Differences, Uses and Approval Checks

Tender drawings and IFC (Issued for Construction) drawings are not interchangeable. Tender information helps bidders understand the proposed scope and price the work; an IFC issue is a controlled construction deliverable released under the project’s document-control procedure. The exact status, contractual priority and approval wording always come from the project contract, employer’s requirements, specifications and document register.

At a glance

Question	Tender drawings	IFC drawings
Primary purpose	Define the design intent and scope sufficiently for tender pricing and clarifications.	Provide the controlled design information released for construction under the project’s approved process.
Typical timing	Before or during procurement and tender clarification.	After the relevant design coordination, tender addenda and approvals required by the project.
Main user	Bidders, estimator, procurement and the client’s tender team.	Contractor, subcontractors, site engineers, inspectors and construction management.
Typical uncertainty	Quantities, interfaces, details or design development may still need clarification.	Construction information should be coordinated to the stated issue status, but later revisions, RFIs and field conditions can still change it.
Controlling evidence	Tender package, addenda, clarifications and contract conditions.	Document register, transmittal, revision block, approval/status code and subsequent controlled revisions.

What are tender drawings?

Tender drawings are issued to communicate what the client intends to procure. They normally show the scope, arrangement, key dimensions, design assumptions and enough information for bidders to develop a comparable price and programme. They may be supported by specifications, schedules, bills of quantities, geotechnical information, design criteria and tender addenda.

Tender drawings should be clear about what is known and what remains to be developed. A bidder should not silently convert an unresolved design assumption into a construction instruction. Questions, exclusions, qualifications and alternative proposals should be recorded through the tender clarification process.

What does IFC mean in construction?

IFC means Issued for Construction. In a controlled project system, an IFC issue identifies the drawing revision that the project has released for construction use. It is normally accompanied by a transmittal or document-register entry that identifies the document number, revision, date, status and recipients.

IFC does not mean that every drawing is universally approved for every purpose. A structural drawing may be released for construction while a related shop drawing, temporary-works design, material submittal, authority approval or specialist calculation remains subject to a separate review. The project’s status codes and contract hierarchy govern what the issue permits.

How tender information becomes construction information

The transition is controlled rather than automatic:

1. The design team issues the tender package and records its revision.
2. Bidders submit questions, qualifications and alternatives.
3. The client/design team issues addenda or clarifications where required.
4. The selected contractor is appointed and the contract documents are reconciled.
5. Design disciplines coordinate geometry, interfaces, specifications and schedules.
6. Required reviews, authority submissions and design approvals are completed.
7. The document controller records the construction issue, transmittal and recipients.
8. Site teams withdraw superseded copies and work only from the current controlled issue.

Some projects use “AFC”, “Approved for Construction”, “conformed”, “for construction” or another status instead of IFC. Do not infer equivalence from the acronym alone. Read the project document-control procedure.

Key differences in purpose and responsibility

Pricing versus execution

The tender set supports estimating and commercial comparison. The IFC set supports construction planning and execution. A contractor may use tender information to prepare a bid, but should not use a superseded or tender-only drawing to build when a later controlled issue is required.

Design development and coordination

Tender drawings can contain design assumptions or interfaces that are not yet fully coordinated. IFC deliverables should reflect the coordination level promised by the project, including discipline interfaces, schedules and relevant details. They still do not replace the need to review site conditions, approved submittals, RFIs and specialist design responsibilities.

Revision and contractual control

The drawing number, revision, status, date, title block, approval/signature fields and transmittal are as important as the geometry. A revision issued after construction starts may supersede the previous IFC issue, but only when it is formally transmitted and the change is incorporated into the work-control process.

Approval is project-specific

The approval path can involve the designer, consultant, client, authority, contractor’s responsible engineer and specialist subcontractor. “Reviewed” may not mean “approved”; “approved with comments” may carry restrictions; and a code or authority approval may apply to only part of the design. Record the status exactly as issued.

IFC drawing approval checks before construction

Use this checklist before a site team relies on an IFC issue:

• Confirm the drawing number, title, revision, issue date and status code.
• Check the document register and transmittal for the intended recipient and work package.
• Confirm that the revision is the latest controlled issue and that superseded copies are withdrawn.
• Check that the drawing is consistent with the current specification, schedule and approved design basis.
• Review interfaces with architectural, structural, civil, MEP, façade, fire and specialist drawings.
• Confirm that dimensions, levels, grids, openings, penetrations and reference details are coordinated.
• Check that RFIs, addenda, design changes and approved substitutions have been incorporated where applicable.
• Confirm that associated shop drawings, calculations, samples and method statements have the required status.
• Verify authority or third-party conditions that apply to the work package.
• Record any discrepancy before work starts; do not resolve a design conflict by site assumption.

Practical example: a tender-to-IFC change

Suppose the tender set shows a plant-room opening in an indicative position. During coordination, the structural opening moves to clear reinforcement and the MEP route changes. The construction issue should show the coordinated location, related details and the documented revision. The contractor should not price the tender assumption and then build the old opening after the IFC revision has been transmitted.

If work was already installed, the response may require an RFI, site instruction, nonconformance assessment, design change or as-built record. The correct action depends on the contract and responsible designer; the drawing label alone does not authorize an unsafe alteration.

Common mistakes

1. Treating an IFC stamp as a universal approval for every associated document.
2. Building from a tender PDF because it is easier to find than the controlled issue.
3. Ignoring addenda or revision clouds after award.
4. Failing to coordinate shop drawings and specialist calculations with the design issue.
5. Assuming that “reviewed” and “approved” have the same contractual meaning.
6. Leaving superseded prints at the work face.
7. Solving a drawing conflict in the field without a documented technical decision.
8. Updating the drawing but not the transmittal, register, schedule or affected method statement.

FAQ

Can tender drawings be used for construction?

Only if the project’s controlled document system expressly gives them that status for the relevant work. In normal practice, tender drawings support pricing and are superseded or developed into construction information. Confirm the status with the document register and responsible design authority.

Is every IFC drawing final?

No. An IFC issue is a controlled release status, not a promise that no future revision or RFI will occur. Construction changes must be formally reviewed, approved and recorded under the project procedure.

What should a contractor do if the IFC drawing conflicts with a shop drawing?

Stop the affected work if necessary, identify the exact revisions, check the document hierarchy and raise the required RFI or technical query. Do not choose a drawing based only on the date or a verbal instruction.

Related EngineersBlog reading

• What does IFC drawing mean in the construction industry?
• IFC drawing versus shop drawing
• IFC drawing versus as-built drawing
• Stages of drawings in the construction lifecycle

Technical limitation

This article explains common document-control practice. The contract, employer’s requirements, authority conditions, project document-control procedure and professional design responsibility govern a particular project. It is not a substitute for the approved drawing register or a designer’s instruction.