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WATCH THIS SPOT for your next NDT Myth, kindly put together for us by Council member Hannes Barnard.
E-Mail address for SAINT -
DOWNLOAD OLD MYTHS AND NEWS
The Presidents report to the 41th annual general meeting -
Myth No: 6 – NDT Technicians do not get paid enough.
Whenever there is a group of NDT technicians together, the main topics of discussion would usually consist of working hours, difficult customer relationships, persons in charge and salaries. Please note that the list of topics has been censored somewhat!
As a technician, it is easy to demand more money for your services. Like many qualified people in South Africa, Non Destructive Testing technicians think that they have the right to be paid for their qualifications and not for what they actually do. As we are all aware, this is one of the reasons why municipal services in general, roads, hospitals etc. are in such a poor condition. It is because there are people in charge of those services that get paid for the qualifications that they have (or should have), not for the work that they do.
As a Non Destructive Testing technician and for that matter any other technician, before you demand your next salary increase, just ask yourself the following:
• Is my logbook up to date (for those who have one)?
• Do I know my company’s “Written Practice” and Method Procedures?
• Do I really follow my company’s “Written Practice” and Method Procedures?
• Have I read and understood the Specifications/Codes I am working with?
• How do I look after the equipment I am working with?
• How do I drive company vehicles?
• Do I have respect for my fellow technicians?
Not many of us will pay our gardener R500-00 for a Saturday’s work. The work they do for us simply does not justify such a pay. If you answered negatively to any of the above, then ask yourself:
Are you a gardener for your company?
Bridge collapses after years of warning.
For more information on the International Committee on Non-Destructive Testing and its activities -
ICNDT is a non profit association devoted to the international development of the science and practice of Non-Destructive Testing, in conjunction with individual already existing NDT societies and recognised Regional Groupings of NDT societies.
SAINT wins prize for the best stand at the 10th ECNDT held in Moscow recently.
Pat Garland (SAINT member), Deidre Hancke-Haysom (18th WCNDT conference organiser)and Manfred Johannes (SAINT President and President of LOC for 18th WCNDT)
Myth No: 7 – Dye Penetrant Testing and pre-cleaning.
One of the myths in Non Destructive Testing is that Dye Penetrant Testing is being phased out.
Modern day technology advancements such as, Smart phones, GPS, Flash drives, HD TV, voice recognition devices, Terabyte, Bluetooth and many more, are sometimes not fully understood by all of us. For some of us it is even difficult to learn how to use these devices. But once we know how to use them it is difficult to go back to the “old school” like using dial phones, paper maps, monochrome screens and writing letters by hand. A lot from what we have used and learnt in the past is becoming redundant and in the process forgotten.
With technology also comes a more efficient means of doing things. Gone are the days of typing out letters or department memos and hand delivering them, we rely heavily on electronic mails, in fact what business would survive today without computers, emails and the internet?
In Non Destructive Testing, technology advancements are just as noticeable, if not continuous, as one manufacturer tries to out to do the next with a smaller, quicker and easy to use UT machine, or new NDT methods are been developed, to improve on the “old school” methods, digital radiography, tomography, thermography and phased array to name but a few. The question is will the “old school” NDT method of Dye penetrant testing become redundant, forgotten and replaced with a technology advanced method?
The honest answer to that question is we don’t know, but where we are at the moment in our technology advanced era dye penetrant testing still has a very strong foothold. Many power stations, mines, pulp manufacturing plants and the like are rapidly aging and require fatigue crack detection regularly, what other method besides the reliable dye penetrant testing method? Dye penetrant testing still remains one of the most trusted NDT methods on site, and has many advantages over the latest technologies available like:
Cost effectiveness.
Testing on most alloys.
Ease of training personnel.
Visually positive.
Testing of complex geometry parts.
One of the issues with Dye Penetrant Testing in our high tech life styles is the time required to perform a reliable test and because of that, pre-cleaning is the most neglected or under rated step in the whole process.
So why pre-clean the part before the inspection? Most of us will say it is to ensure that the indication is not covered by dirt or that the indication is not clogged up with dirt, thus preventing the penetrant from entering the defect, correct! But take a minute and ask yourself “why else is pre-cleaning so important?”
Here are some other reasons for pre-cleaning parts before inspection.
Pre-cleaning is mostly done on site by wire brushing followed by solvent or detergent cleaning. This whole process is done by hand and thus “forces” the technician to do a visual inspection on the part to be tested.
Pre-cleaning also ensures an improved wetting ability on the surface that allows the penetrant to spread better over the test area.
False indications could arise, if not cleaned properly
Manfred Johannes, Mr Herelli - President of the Tunisian NDT Society, Patrick Qwabe
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE "NEW" LEVEL III'S in passing their exams recently.
TC 135 Non-destructive testing Japan (JISC)
TC 135/WG 3 Harmonization of personnel certification standards -
Study of EN 473:2008 and ISO 9712:2005 Japan (JISC)
SC 2 Surface methods South Africa (SABS)
SC 3 Ultrasonic testing Germany (DIN)
SC 4 Eddy current methods France (AFNOR)
SC 5 Radiation methods Germany (DIN)
SC 6 Leak detection methods Japan (JISC)
SC 7 Personnel qualification Canada (SCC)
SC 7/WG 7 Performance based qualification and certification USA (ANSI)
SC 8 Infrared thermography for non-destructive testing Korea (KATS)
SC 8/WG 1 Terminology and vocabulary Korea (KATS)
SC9 Acoustic emission testing Brazil (ABNT)
SC 9/WG 1 Metallic materials Austria (ASI)
SC 9/WG 2 Composite materials Brazil (ABNT)
SC 9/WG 3 Leak detection Argentina (IRAM)
SC 9/WG 4 Acoustic emission technology Japan (JISC)
Structure of the TC135 groups
