Sensor Systems & Nondestructive Evaluation (NDE)

Nondestructive Evaluation (NDE), also known as Nondestructive Testing (NDT), is used to inspect materials and components to evaluate their integrity, reliability and performance without impairing their intended use. NDT consists of a variety of sensing techniques to determine part geometry, detect internal or surface defects and assess material properties.

Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) collaborates closely with clients to select and apply practical and effective inspection methods that are tailored to each application. Our team of engineers, scientists and inspectors apply our expertise in technologies such as ultrasonics, acoustic emission, radiography, computed tomography, electromagnetics and guided wave ultrasonics along with our deep familiarity with industrial codes and standards to develop customized inspection solutions. We work across multiple industries including nuclear power, aerospace, shipbuilding, automotive, petrochemical, power generation and biomedical fields.

Whether through inspection services, custom system development, or engineering consultation, we are committed to delivering efficient, reliable and innovative NDT and NDE solutions to help our clients maintain performance, quality and safety.

Inspection Services

We offer a range of standardized and application-specific inspection and testing services, including:

Ultrasonic Testing
- Manual ultrasonic testing (MUT)
- Immersion ultrasonic testing (IUT)
- Phased array ultrasound (PAUT)
- Full matrix capture/total focusing method (FMC/TFM)
Eddy Current & Electromagnetic Testing
- Eddy current Array testing
- Remote field eddy current testing
- Stress measurement
- Nonlinear harmonics testing
- Clad thickness measurement
Guided Wave Ultrasonic Testing
- Magnetostrictive transducer (MsT) technology
- Electromagnetic acoustic transducers (EMAT)
Acoustic emission (AE)
Radiographic testing (RT)
X-Ray computed tomography (CT)
Visual testing/magnetic particle Testing/liquid penetrant testing

System Development

When an industry requires a specialized inspection capability that cannot be addressed with commercially available tools, we develop and produce a specialized inspection system to fit that need. We provide a full range of design services for first article inspection tools, including mechanical design, electronic design, software design, inspection procedure development, documentation and training.

We also produce unique systems using SwRI’s proprietary technologies.

Magnetostrictive Transducer Guided Wave Ultrasonic Technology
- MsSRv5 and MsSRv5M acquisition instruments
- MsT360 omnidirectional guided wave probe
- MsT 8x8 guided wave linear array full matrix capture
Application-Specific Inspection Tools
- Remote-field eddy current (RFEC) tool for non-piggable pipes
- Buried Storage Tank Inspection Robotics using EMATs
- Residual stress detection and characterization
- High speed multi-channel thick wall vessel inspection (EDAS)
- LiDAR and Video for monitoring wildlife interactions with infrastructure

NDT Engineering Support

We provide engineering consultation and support services to help our clients through:

Inspection procedure development using standard and custom tooling
Qualification and probability of detection analyses
Fabrication of calibration standards
Inspection simulation services

We are experienced in developing procedures to industry standards, including:

American Bureau of Shipping (ABS)
American Petroleum Institute (API)
American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) – B31.3 and BPVC Section VIII Div. 1-3
American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM)
American Welding Society (AWS)
British Institute of Non-Destructive Testing (BINDT)
Det Norske Veritas (DNV)
Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) – Tech Pubs 271, 1688, 278, and 248
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) – PRC-6503 and PRC-6506

Industry Applications

We serve clients across a wide array of industries. Our technologies are used to evaluate both infrastructure for manufacture and for evaluation of final products. Industries served include: