About QC-Federal

About the Author

David Stiebel has worked in construction since before graduation, following a path that was neither direct nor easy. After completing his university education, he began building custom homes as a carpenter in St. Louis, steadily moving up through the ranks before relocating overseas for 34 years.

In 1999, David accepted a Quality Control position with Baran Engineering at the Nahshonim Dry Storage Base in Israel, where he worked for 2.5 years. From there, his career expanded across a wide range of roles and industries, including:

• Starting as a finish inspector on a $125M contract in 1999, and progressing to steel and concrete inspector.
• Gaining extensive knowledge of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) standards while working with multiple contractors, including one year directly with USACE in Beersheva, Israel.
• Holding positions in aerospace construction for General Dynamics and Rolls Royce, focusing on AS9102 first articles and in-process inspections.
• Expanding into European projects.
• Returning to the U.S. in 2020, completing various projects while preparing for retirement—this site being part of that ongoing endeavor.

Over the years, David has learned many facets of project management first-hand, working directly with government contracting representatives in the field. He also understands that learning never stops.

Recognizing a need to guide both newcomers and mid-career professionals in the industry, David shares practical methods and tools for:

• Establishing work ethic for the project.
• Establishing standard layouts across contracts (for both QC and admin teams).
• Writing daily reports that are concise yet informative—without oversharing.
• Managing submittals, including gathering complete information from subcontractors, formatting requirements for foolproof reviews, and ensuring smooth approval processing.
• Developing and tracking RFIs.
• And much more.

This site is dedicated to providing useful tools and advice for “best practices” as experienced by the author. While David shares his methods, he encourages open discussion in the site’s Forum—professionally and respectfully—since there are always new ideas and better ways to improve QC.

Ultimately, inspections and daily reports are the backbone of Quality Control. Combined with strong preparatory meetings and consistent field presence, they create a smoother construction process. David emphasizes collaboration with the COR, SSI, SSHO, PM, and directors to resolve issues early and implement improvements effectively.

                                                                                           David Stiebel 1999