Glossary

OPR, definition and guide for architects managing reception

OPR (opérations préalables à la réception) is the formal pre-reception inspection that precedes the handover of a construction project in France. It is conducted by the architect or lead designer (maîtrise d'œuvre), alongside the client (maître d'ouvrage) and the trades, who walk the site trade by trade to verify that the work matches the drawings and contract. It produces a record listing the defects (réserves) to be corrected before or after formal reception.

What OPR means in practice

In practice, OPR is the last full inspection of the site before the client formally accepts the building. The architect walks every zone and trade, compares the executed work against the drawings and contract documents, and logs each non-conformity as a located defect assigned to a specific trade.

Every defect identified during the OPR records its location, the trade responsible, the issue observed, and the deadline to fix it. The trades then have a contractually defined period to correct the items raised. The defect list produced by the OPR becomes the direct basis for the reception PV (handover record).

OPR is not reception. It is the step that prepares the client's decision: acceptance with no defects, acceptance with defects, or refusal of reception. For the architect, a structured OPR creates the dated record needed to document the condition of the works at handover.

Legal and regulatory context of OPR

Pre-reception inspections are set by the works contract. They appear in the CCAG Travaux for public contracts and are organized by the contract terms for private projects. The architect assists the client during the OPR, proposes reception, and draws up the OPR record listing the defects.

The reception that follows the OPR is the central legal act of a French construction project. Governed by article 1792-6 of the Code civil, it marks the client's acceptance of the building, with or without defects, and starts the statutory warranties: completion (1 year), proper functioning (2 years), and decennial cover (10 years).

Decennial liability, established by the loi Spinetta of 4 January 1978 and codified in articles 1792 and following of the Code civil, holds builders responsible for 10 years for damage that affects the structural soundness of the building or makes it unfit for its intended use. A rigorous, documented, traceable OPR is the first piece of the file that protects the architect across that period.

How Builddar handles OPR

Builddar is construction site reporting and defect tracking software. During the OPR, the architect opens an inspection workflow on the mobile app and walks the site zone by zone. Each defect is captured during the visit with its location, trade, photo, and deadline, then assigned to the responsible contractor.

When the OPR is done, the reception PV and inspection report are prepared from the data already captured, with no re-entry. When contractors participate, email follow-ups and replies stay attached to each item. Every observation keeps its timestamp and history.

Frequently asked questions about OPR

OPR (opérations préalables à la réception) is the formal pre-reception inspection that precedes the handover of a construction project in France. It is conducted by the architect, alongside the client and the trades, who walk the site trade by trade to verify that the work matches the drawings and contract. It produces a record listing the defects to be corrected before or after formal reception.
OPR is the inspection that prepares reception; reception is the client's legal decision. The OPR produces the defect list, and reception records the client's acceptance of the building, with or without defects. Reception, not the OPR, starts the statutory warranties, including the 10-year decennial liability.
The OPR is conducted by the architect or lead designer (maîtrise d'œuvre), who assists the client in checking that the work conforms to the contract. The client and the trades responsible for each lot also attend. The architect writes the OPR record and recommends to the client whether to accept the building.
The OPR produces a pre-reception inspection record and a list of defects detailed by trade and by location. These documents form the basis of the reception PV and of defect close-out tracking. They also serve as evidence kept for the duration of decennial liability.
The OPR is managed from the site walkthrough to the deliverable. The architect captures each defect on mobile with its location, trade, photo, and deadline, then tracks it to close-out. The report is prepared from the same data. When the contractor participates, replies stay linked to the item.

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