Practical Lessons from the Field
CASE STUDY / LESSONS LEARNED
By Kyle Rossignol
Colorado, USA
Abstract
The accelerating adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) across the construction and project management sectors has generated both optimism and skepticism, especially among practitioners responsible for risk management, scope definition, and preconstruction planning. While headlines often focus on large-scale automation, predictive scheduling, or digital twins, one of the most practical and immediately valuable applications of AI lies in a much simpler but universally relevant domain: augmenting the plan review process before mobilization. Construction documents—regardless of project size, location, or industry—remain one of the single greatest sources of hidden risk. Conflicting dimensions, incomplete details, uncoordinated notes, ambiguous callouts, and cross-discipline inconsistencies frequently lead to RFIs, change orders, rework, and schedule delays once work begins. This challenge is amplified on complex or remote sites, where terrain, logistics, regulatory requirements, and environmental factors interact in nonlinear ways, increasing the consequences of minor oversights.
This article examines how AI-assisted plan review can materially reduce that risk by serving as an additional analytical layer—one capable of rapidly reading entire multi-disciplinary plan sets, identifying patterns that human reviewers may overlook, and surfacing inconsistencies that would otherwise remain invisible until construction is underway. Drawing on real-world examples from residential, civil, and specialty projects in the mountainous regions of Colorado—including engineered onsite wastewater treatment systems (OWTS), custom home builds, and a 4,000-square-foot monolithic dome structure—this article explores the specific categories of design and coordination issues that AI consistently uncovers. These range from missing sheet references and structural callouts that point to nonexistent details, to elevation discrepancies between civil and architectural drawings, to ambiguous mechanical or electrical specifications that require clarification before procurement or mobilization.
While the article references the author’s practical workflow using modern AI tools, the objective is not to promote any specific product or company, but to present a balanced, evidence-based assessment of how AI can function as a meaningful partner in professional judgment rather than a replacement for it. Emphasis is placed on the role of AI as “augmented intelligence”—a tool that enhances human capability by enabling broader, deeper, and faster cross-sheet analysis, while leaving interpretation, decision-making, constructability assessment, and regulatory understanding firmly in the hands of experienced practitioners.
The findings demonstrate that AI-assisted document review improves the clarity and completeness of RFIs, enhances communication between contractors, designers, and owners, and supports better preconstruction alignment—leading to fewer surprises during execution. In remote or high-risk environments, where field adjustments may carry significant logistical and financial consequences, the value of uncovering hidden inconsistencies early becomes even more pronounced. This article concludes that as project complexity increases and industry expectations for speed and accuracy continue to grow, AI-supported plan review is poised to become an integral component of modern project management practice. Far from reducing the role of the expert, it strengthens it by providing the analytical breadth required to make better-informed decisions upstream, ultimately contributing to higher quality outcomes, stronger partnering relationships, and more stable project execution.
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How to cite this article: Rossignol, K. (2026). AI-Augmented Plan Review: Practical Lessons from the Field, PM World Journal, Vol. XV, Issue I, January. Available online at https://pmworldjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/pmwj160-Jan2026-Rossignol-AI-Augmented-Plan-Review-lessons-learned.pdf
About the Author
Kyle Rossignol
Colorado, USA
Kyle Rossignol is the Owner and Founder of Tri-Lakes Contracting and Apex Excavation, two Colorado-based firms specializing in civil construction, custom homebuilding, onsite wastewater treatment systems (OWTS), and high-alpine land development. With more than a decade of experience working in Colorado’s mountain regions, he has managed projects ranging from remote telecommunications infrastructure and complex site development to ground-up residential and commercial construction.
Kyle began his career in commercial civil construction and later became a Comtrain-certified Radio Frequency Technician, building, upgrading, and troubleshooting communications systems on some of the tallest tower structures in the state. This background strengthened his technical problem-solving abilities and shaped his approach to construction in challenging environments.
Today, Kyle oversees full-service projects from raw land through completion, with specialized experience in soil evaluations, geotechnical coordination, grading, utilities, excavation, septic system installation, and water infrastructure for rural and off-grid properties. He holds multiple professional licenses issued by the Colorado licensing board, including B-1 Commercial General Building Contractor, Class C Residential Home Builder, Licensed OWTS Installer, and Licensed Excavation Contractor.
In addition to general contracting, Kyle develops resilient water-supply solutions for remote mountain properties and leads one of the only construction teams in Colorado specializing in fire-resistant Monolithic Dome construction. He is an active member of several industry organizations, including the Associated General Contractors of Colorado (AGC), the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC of America), Colorado Professionals in Onsite Wastewater (CPOW), and the National Onsite Wastewater Recycling Association (NOWRA).
Across all projects, Kyle focuses on precision, clear communication, and practical risk management. His professional experience with multi-disciplinary plan sets and high-constraint construction environments has informed his interest in AI-supported preconstruction workflows and their potential to improve clarity, coordination, and quality outcomes in the project lifecycle. He can be contacted at Kyle@trilakes.co.
