Start an NDT Company or New NDT Department
Congratulations! You’ve decided to take a step to either start an NDT company or you’re being asked to add NDT capabilities to your company’s portfolio. Either way, this can be a great adventure and opportunity for you.
There are quite a few “moving parts” to creating something new. We understand and that is why we are here to help. So, let’s dive right in!
First Things First
First, you’ll need to determine whether or not your NDT Technicians will need Formal NDT Certifications.
Here are a few questions to ask:
- Does your company or will your company work to ANY Codes or Standards, like ASME, AWS, API, or ISO? If you don’t know the answer to this question you’ll need to do some research.
- Does your company or will your company do work for the Federal Government or Military directly or indirectly?
- Do you or will you inspect components, parts, structures, etc. for clients other than your own company?
If the answer to ANY of the above questions is YES, you will need properly Qualified and Certified Technicians.
If ALL of the answers are NO, then you may be able to take a slightly different path than the one we are about to describe.
As always, if you have any questions as you go through this information, please send us an email through our “Contact Us” page or give us a call.
NDT Certification Requirements
The biggest piece of the puzzle related to getting started as a new NDT Company or department involves certifying technicians.
If you must have certified technicians to do the work, you will need a Level III to oversee the certification process.
Below, we’ll explain:
- How the Process Works
- Why You Need the Level III
- Company Certifications vs. Central Certifications
- Qualifications vs. Certifications
- What Type of Documentation You Will Need to Verify Certifications
- The Common Denominators for Certification
NDT Technician Certification – Overview
In this guide, we will explain how to become an NDT Certified Technician, based on ASNT, ASME, or NAS-410 Recommendations and Requirements.
This document does not cover all of the specific requirements for each type of certification, but will give you a broad view and basic understanding of the processes.
For many years, there has been a bit of confusion related to the requirements and documentation required to become certified in the NDT Industry. Requirements and documentation vary based on the Codes which govern the work that you do.
We will try to help you sort through the specific needs of your company or help you find a pathway for the industry you are wanting to certify technicians into.
2 Main NDT Certification Pathways
1) Company Certification
2) Central Certification
Since most companies in the United States issue Company Based Certifications, we’ll begin here.
Company-Based NDT Certification
Let’s start with a basic understanding of what a new NDT company will need in order to have a legitimate NDT Certification Program.
The short video below will give you an overview of the NDT Certification Process as outlined in ASNT SNT-TC-1a. Later, we are going to cover ASME and NAS-410 requirements, but for now, please watch the video, then come back to continue.
Fortunately, some of the requirements for certification are standard for all of the Code documents, so let’s start with these.
To start an NDT Company or New NDT Department, there are a few things you will need to put in place.
1) You will need a Level III Technician, either on payroll or on retainer, to oversee your certification program. Without the Level III, Auditor’s will not recognize the NDT technician certificates or the company’s work procedures to be valid.
The Level III’s responsibility is to:
- Create a Written Practice (The company document which outlines how your company qualifies and certifies all NDT Technicians)
- Verify that each certification candidate has been properly qualified according to the appropriate Code documents and the Company’s Written Practice.
(IMPORTANT NOTE – The Level III is NOT certifying the technician. The Company is the Certifying Agency. This is important to understand since it is the company that is legally responsible for the actions of their NDT Technicians, NOT the Level III.)
- Level III’s also create, review, and verify company written work procedures.
- The Level III must meet certain eligibility requirements based on the Code requirements.
- The Level III may hold multiple NDT Method certifications and must be certified in the methods being performed by the company. Example – If your company performs PT, MT, and UT, the Level III must be certified in each method in order to be able to sign off on certifications and procedures for those methods. If the Level III is only certified as Level III in PT and MT, you must find another Level III to sign off on the UT Procedures and certifications.
2) As mentioned above, The Company will need a Written Practice. The Written Practice is the document that outlines how the company’s NDT technicians are qualified and certified. This document is created by the Level III and must align with the appropriate Code(s).
For instance, if you are doing NDT inspection work related to most general codes or requirements, your company would most likely create a Written Practice which aligns with ASNT (The American Society for Non-Destructive Testing) guidelines.
On the other hand, if you are working to ASME (The American Society of Mechanical Engineers) Codes, you would need a company Written Practice aligned with the requirements of ASME Sec. V 2023. In this latest version, ASME has modified the ASNT Certification requirements.
If you are working in the Aviation Industry, your company Written Practice will align with the requirements of the National Aerospace Standard (NAS-410) document published by the Aerospace Industries Association of America, Inc.
International work is generally aligned with the qualification/certification requirements of ISO 9712, the International Standard for Qualification and Certification of NDT Personnel.
Each of these documents has its own requirements for Formal Training Hours, Test Scores, OJT Hours, Number of Test Questions, Method of testing technicians, etc.
3) Once the Written Practice is in place, the company must follow the requirements of the document in order to properly qualify and certify its NDT technicians. Auditors will require proof of qualifications and certifications for technicians before that technician is allowed to work on specific projects or job sites.
Let’s look at the things that are common to each pathway to certification.
NDT Certification – Qualifications
Qualifications are the components that lead to certification. Most of the Codes use the same Categories for the required Qualifications.
In each method the technician is seeking certification for, they must accumulate the following qualifications:
1) Formal Training Time – Classroom or Online
2) 3 Test Scores – General, Specific, and Practical
3) Documented OJT – On-the-Job Time/Training – Experience
4) Annual Vision Acuity and Color Blindness Test
These categories are the same for all of the Code documents, but Each of the Code Documents deal with these 4 Categories differently.
NDT Training Schools, Community Colleges, Universities, Trade Schools, etc. CANNOT CERTIFY TECHNICIANS!!
IMPORTANT NOTE – Because of the requirement for Documented OJT – On-the-Job Time, NDT Training Schools, Community Colleges, Universities, Trade Schools, etc. CANNOT CERTIFY NDT TECHNICIANS! These organizations can fulfill the requirements for Formal Training and Testing but are not able to document OJT. That is your Company’s Responsibility.
The Documents produced by NDT Training Center verifying class time, online courses, and test scores are used by the Level III to verify those qualifications.
Example Certification Pathway
Let’s pretend:
1) Your company has obtained a Level III who has certifications in PT, MT, and UT. These are all of the methods that your company provides NDT Services for.
2) Your Level III has created a Written Practice based on the appropriate Code requirements for your company.
3) You are hiring an individual as a PT, MT Technician. He/She has Level II Certifications with another company.
4) Your Level III will follow the requirements of your new Written Practice in order to verify the Qualifications/Certifications of the potential candidate.
5) The candidate will have to provide documentation to prove Formal Training Hours, 3 Test Scores and OJT Records for them to be Certified in your company. (Previous Certifications do not guarantee the candidate will automatically be certified into your company. They must prove competency to the Level III’s satisfaction and in accordance with the requirements of your Written Practice. That could mean having to pass written and hands-on tests.)
6) The Level III will review all of the documents provided by the candidate and report any deficiencies or requirements to you. The candidate may need more formal training, or possibly will need to pass written and hands-on tests. If the candidate has insufficient documentation for OJT, etc. the Level III may contact the previous employer to verify their status, etc.
7) The Level III will create a plan of action for the new candidate to complete the Certification Process.
8) Once all components of the plan or requirements are completed, the Level III will create and sign a Certification document and send it to you for Final Approval.
9) Remember, the Level III IS NOT CERTIFYING the technician. He has verified the Qualifications and followed the Written Practice. The responsibility of Certifying the candidate is left to the Company. Once the company representative has signed the certificate, it then becomes a formal Certification.
10) This process is followed for each method in which the candidate is seeking certification.
IMPORTANT – It is very important that all of the documentation mentioned above is kept in order and ready for review by auditors. It is possible that the job auditors will require to see not only the actual Level I or Level II Certificates for the technicians, but may also require a look at the backup documents to prove that your company has followed the requirements of the Written Practice and the appropriate Codes. If they do not find the documents in order, or that the proper procedures have not been followed, they may shut down the work being performed or your company will lose the work that you have been doing.
Also, if your company has been doing work with invalid Certifications, it is also possible that if something goes wrong with the components you have been inspecting, your company would be held legally responsible for damages.
Certification is serious business and must be treated accordingly.
Since the NDT Certifications are issued by your Company, when a technician leaves your company, they are no longer certified. Just as they had to provide documentation of previous qualifications and certifications to your company when you hired them, they must provide documentation for Formal Training, Test scores, and OJT to the next company’s Level III in order to become certified in that company.
Central NDT Certifications
Central Certification is offered by organizations like ASNT – The American Society for Non-Destructive Testing. The credentials are renewable every 3 to 5 years. They do not expire when a technician leaves one company and goes to another, but this does not guarantee that the technician will be automatically certified into the new company. The candidate may be required to retest based on the company’s written practice or the requirements of the Codes or Clients.
Central Certification requires submitting similar documentation to the certifying organization that is required for company-based certifications. This documentation is signed by the Level III to prove its validity.
The Central Certifying Organization will review those documents and give the candidate permission to take another set of General, Specific, and Practical Tests to become Centrally Certified.
When a technician leaves one company and goes to another, the Central Organization will have records that can be submitted to the next Level III.
SPECIAL NOTE – The 2023 ASME Sec. V now requires testing all new employees seeking first time certification in your company.
Common Components for Qualification and Certification
So, now you should have a basic understanding of the certification process that will take place as you start an NDT company.
Up to now, we have been discussing the things required by all of the common Code Documents.
The confusion happens because of the slight, and not-so-slight differences in the various Code Books and Qualification/Certification Standards.
So, let’s take a look at some of the specific differences between the Codes.
CLICK THE LINK BELOW WHICH IS MOST APPROPRIATE FOR YOUR SITUATION
ASNT Certification Requirements ASME Certification Requirements NAS-410 Certification Requirements
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