NDT Reliability in the Organizational Context of Service Inspection Companies

The focus of NDT reliability research in the past was in the field of two high risk industries: (atomic) power plants and aircrafts. The responsible organizations have been well aware of the risks and founded projects to understand and optimize critical steps during production, operation and maintenance. But the use of NDT is not limited to these two fields. The risks during operation of chemical plants, trains or windmills are different from the area above but evident. The coverage by legal regulations is relatively low. Instead of this owner responsibility, product liability and financial issues are the driving forces to do inspections and to use non-destructive testing. The different targets and financial issues influence the practice of NDT-inspections. A survey of this practice and its results are shown.