African Fusion June 2015

SAIW: NDT technician development

SAIW NDT manager Harold Jansen (right) ‘pulls up a chair’ to help outline his vision for a holistic NDT technician development pro- gramme that incorporates thebest of ISO9712and theemployer- based SNT-TC-1A NDT personnel certification schemes. Towards good quality NDT technicians

N DT can be defined as ‘an ap- plied science, which, through mastered skills and processes, provides the end-user with accurate information that entitles them to make engineering decisions related to compo- nent availability, productivity, remnant life predictions and consequent mainte- nance/refurbishment strategies’ . NDT not only provides a very impor- tant supportive role to engineering but it supplies the raw data to initiate and maintain comprehensive engineering practices. Should NDT not be able to fulfil this role, then its usefulness in the production and maintenance chain is questionable. While NDT equipment, procedures and the inspection envi- ronment play a significant role in the accuracy of results, the quality of NDT inspection is mostly dependent on hu- man resources and the competency of the NDT Technician. Paths to NDT qualifications Two paths to NDT technician qualifica- tion are applicable: • Personnel Central Certification Schemes, also referred to as third party conformity assessment schemes, mandated through the international ISO 9712 standard. • Employer Based Certification Schemes, also referred to as first or secondparty conformityassessment schemes, described in the recom- mended practice SNT-TC-1A and implemented via a written practice (referred to as a quality manual in ISO 9712) These have long been regarded as mu- tually exclusive systems, with the one option superseding the other depending on the industry, historical backgroundor code requirements. Superficially both of these systems address the qualification and certifica- tion of NDT personnel and since the

tion Body or AQB: the SAQCC NDT Exam Panels. Approved Training Bodies or ATBs are companies that have been audited by the PCB and approved as training providers for the relevant scheme. ISO TR 25108 and ISO 25107 form the foun- dation of this approval process with ad- ditional requirements stipulated by the SAQCC regarding resources and training procedures. Since NDT also relies on ‘mastered skills andprocesses’ amentoringenvironment is required in which technicians can apply their basic knowledge and skills learned within an industrial environ- ment. Training and assessment based on company specific procedures and processes, as applied to industrial com- ponents, are critical towards qualityNDT results. The employer generates income by supplying a service to the end-user. The company takes full responsibility for the product that is delivered and by au- thorising a technician to test on their be- half, indicates compliancewith aQuality Manual and the Written Practice, based on an industrial mentoring and assess- ment programme loosely adopted from the recommended practice SNT-TC-1A. Within this scheme, company au- thorisation and certification ismanaged by a responsible Level 3 Inspector. The key advantages are that indus- trial experience and company related training and mentoring are embedded in SNT-TC-1A and mandated by the written practice. The system ensures technique specific skills are mastered based on company-specific quality management systems (QMSs) for that company’s industrial components and environment. It ensures that the level of knowledge and skills of a technician is benchmarked within a specific com- Employer-Based Certification Schemes

apparent outcome appears tobe similar, companies tend to adopt either the one or the other, with some aspects of the ‘eliminated’ system being retained. Careful and systematic analysis of these two systems however reveals that each system focus on a different outcome which is crucial when creating a quality NDT Technician. Since NDT is an ‘applied science’ , a minimum personnel qualification and skills level are required. The interna- tional standard that describes the basic qualification and certification of NDT personnel is ISO 9712. While ISO 9712 mainly focuses on the Qualification and Certification of NDT personnel, it does refer to ISO technical reports, which relate to training bodies and course contents specified in ISO TR 25108 and ISO TR 25107. Key advantages of this system include: the international platform it provides for the harmonisation of ba- sic knowledge, codes and standards, specifications and the application of practical skills. The ISO 9712 system ensures the basic level of knowledge and skills is comparable worldwide. In addition, the independent nature of personnel assessment, reduces the risk of biasedoutcomeswhenqualifyingNDT personnel. A major disadvantage, compared to the SNT-TC-1A system, is that indus- trial experience and company related training or mentoring is not properly addressed. The SAQCC-NDT (Southern African Qualification and Certification Com- mittee) scheme is controlled by an in- dependent ISO17024 SANAS-accredited Personnel Certification Body or PCB: SAIWCertification in South Africa, which is supported by an AuthorisedQualifica- Personnel Central Certification Schemes

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June 2015

AFRICAN FUSION