Know More About Us Advance NDT and Engineering

The ability to acquire information to support the continued Fitness for Service (FFS) of an asset without taking it out of service can provide enormous direct and indirect savings to industry. By not interfering with production the operator can continue to attract is normal revenue stream whilst the inspection is undertaken which attracts a direct saving. The knowledge taken from the in- service inspection can be used to inform the planning or a forthcoming shutdown which indirectly saves money. FTI is able to deliver a diverse portfolio of Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) technologies that can be applied to collect data on-stream to include storage tanks, piping, pipeline, pressure. vessels and other assets.

Some of the technologies used for online NDT, to detect in-service defects can also be used to support the build quality of new fabrications. Here NDT tools such as Phased Array and/or TOFD can be deployed to demonstrate the quality control, in a direct replacement of the more traditional radiographic methods, whilst still meeting code and requirements as set out in ASME B31.1, ASME B31.3 and other Global Standards.

Through FTI you can be assured that the most pertinent and cost-effective NDT solution is matched to your application. Added value can be delivered by the Advanced Engineering Analysis of the data acquired to include FFS, Remaining Life Assessment (RLA), RBI and beyond.

Software applications such as the auditable Integri-Tech™ from iDEAS Engineering, can be applied. Integri-Tech™ is an ideal predictive maintenance & monitoring technology that will quantify your current and future Plant Integrity, answering at any time the crucial questions,

‘Is your Plant Safe and for how long? – How do you know? What is the rate of deterioration and how/where will it fail?

Integri-Tech™’s methods quantify the Integrity of the Critical Plant unlike techniques such as RBI. On New or Ageing Plant, Integri-Tech™ can be used for periodic or permanent monitoring of critical systems where accurate and continual assessment of current and future plant integrity is vital to meet the ever increasing demands of the Pressure Systems, HSE, COMAH or other Regulators.

Pipeline Integrity for lines that you do not want or cannot use ILI Pigging for can be achieved using methodologies such as Internal Corrosion Direct Assessment (ICDA) and External Corrosion Direct Assessment (ECDA) which are fully supported by NACE derived Standards. Here data can be collected and analyzed to underpin the assessment of the line again in-service without interfering with production.

Overview NDT

Non Destructive Testing (NDT) is the examination of an object or material with technology that does not affect its future usefulness. NDT can be used without destroying or damaging a product or material. Because it allows inspection without interfering with a product's final use, NDT provides an excellent balance between quality control and cost-effectiveness. The term "NDT" includes many methods that can, Detect internal or external imperfections, determine structure, composition, or material properties or measure geometric characteristics. NDT can and should be used in any phase of a product's design and manufacturing process, including materials selection, research and development, assembly, quality control and maintenance.

Where

Why

When

NDT is used where we need to ensure the serviceability of a specimen. That may be the use of a raw material such as a casting, the use of fabrication such as welding, or the use of a finished part or completed system. We apply NDT where we cannot afford the cost of a failure of the specimen because failure would be financially unacceptable or cause harm to us. The NDT may be cheaper than scrapping a machined part because the machined opened an unacceptable void in the raw material; cheaper than repairing a defective part somewhere away from the site of manufacture; and cheaper than replacing an entire machine because some component failed and ruined the whole thing before acceptable service was complete. Many NDT tests exist to prevent injury or death to the human user of the tested item. This reason becomes more important in our increasingly litigious society, where anyone can bring suit against anyone for almost any reason.

We use NDT because it best solves the problem of usefulness, and because it makes good sense to use it. Potential good reasons include economic advantages, avoidance of physical injury, freedom from liability damages, and the desire to be known for producing goods of the highest quality. We all want what we produce or what we purchase to perform without failure for a reasonable period of time. NDT helps us do that. Destructive testing can provide neither the answer nor give us the certainty of the usefulness of a part. The highest quality of materials, fabrication, and workmanship cannot guarantee the suitability of part or system, nor produce it at a reasonable cost. NDT saves money, material, time, and even life when it is properly applied. Would you want to travel into space in a vehicle built by the low bidder, when the vehicle has not had extensive NDT? Or even use a part in an important system if there was no reason to believe that the part would function properly? Probably not! Again, we apply NDT where it makes good sense: for economics, quality, and safety. Good reasons for us to use NDT.

NDT is used both before and after production of raw materials such as ingots and castings, before and after fabrication, and before and after assembly of parts into a completed system. Yes, some of the "afters" are the same test as the "befores" but sometimes it is a duplication because of storage, shipping, or change in specifications or use. Using NDT "before" prevents a substandard material or part from wasting time and increasing scrap production. Considerable cost occurs when a defective material or part is further machined or fabricated, only later to be junked. The cost of the NDT must, however, be balanced against the cost of the wasted time and materials. The proper balance yields profit, quality, and safety. The "when" is right if profit, quality, and safety are the result of using NDT.

Conclusions

NDT may be as simple as looking at a part or counting the number of screws going into a package before it goes on to a consumer. NDT may be far more sophisticated and expensive when the specimen is also, and especially so when the specimen is highly complex. That is the where, why, and when for performing neutron radiography of the lunar lander to be certain that the rubber O-rings were properly placed inside its shock absorbers. The cost was high but so was the need. Besides, there is not a shock absorber repair shop on the moon, and one of the shock absorbers was reported to be unsatisfactory by neutron radiography! Money well spent, I believe, and I was not one of the astronauts. NDT can give us better quality and safety, and save money too! But we must be careful with the what, where, why, and when for NDT to do so.

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