Nondestructive Testing of Infrastructure
Infrastructure sectors provide a wide range of employment opportunities for nondestructive testing (NDT) technicians. Whether a community needs a new building, replacement of an aging water system, or assurance that its bridges are safe, NDT roles are at the center of infrastructure safety.
Building and Maintaining the Foundations of Everyday Life
When we talk about infrastructure, we refer to the fundamental facilities, structures, and systems that support our everyday lives. Think about the buildings where we live and work. The roads, railways, and bridges we travel on. Pipelines that provide water and energy, and even carry our communications.
From our individual homes to the public spaces we share, infrastructure underlies everything we do. And it must be safe and reliable.
Infrastructure systems are in constant use and under constant stress, so effective NDT practices can enhance safety and reliability—even potentially preventing failures such as:
Bridge collapses such as the one that happened in 2007 on the I-35W Mississippi River bridge in Minneapolis.
Pipeline leaks such as those that led to the 2010 San Bruno pipeline explosion in California.
Building failures such as the collapse of the Champlain Towers South condominium in Surfside, Florida, in 2021.
NDT Technicians Ensure Infrastructure Is Safe and Reliable
Planned and recurring NDT inspections are essential for bridges, pipelines, buildings, railways, and roads. NDT helps mitigate risks through:
Detection of hidden flaws: NDT technicians leverage technologies that can detect internal defects in materials that are not visible to the naked eye.
Safety assurance: Regular NDT inspections ensure that structures like bridges, pipelines, and buildings remain safe for public use.
Compliance with standards: NDT ensures that infrastructure projects comply with industry standards and regulations that are required for public safety and project approval.
NDT Applications for Inspecting Infrastructure
Drawing from a common set of proven methods, NDT technicians apply experience, knowledge of materials, and technical know-how to test different types of infrastructure in vastly different conditions.
Bridges
NDT is essential for inspecting bridges for structural integrity and detecting corrosion or cracks in support structures and welds. For example, NDT technicians regularly inspect San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge using ultrasonic testing (UT) to ensure its structural integrity.
Concrete Inspection
Structural Connectors
Girders and Trusses
Supporting Structures
NDT is employed in pipeline construction, inspections, and maintenance to extend the safe operating life of pipe systems that convey oil and gas, water, wastewater, and communication cables or fiber optics. For example, NDT technicians on the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System must continually monitor the condition of the crude oil pipeline over its entire 800-mile (1287 km) length.
Welds
Pipe Thickness
Leak Detection
Monitoring Underground Pipelines
Pipe Stress
Buildings
Ensuring the quality of welds and structural components in buildings is an essential NDT function both during construction and throughout their operating life, particularly in high-rise buildings and critical infrastructure. For example, the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, is subject to frequent, regular inspections of welds throughout its framework.
Concrete Stuctures
Steel Frames
Building Facade
Roofs
Building Foundation
NDT plays a crucial role in maintaining rail systems, which require regular inspections of both tracks and the vehicles that travel on them to prevent derailments and ensure safe operation. For example, the Japanese Shinkansen, also known as the bullet train, is renowned for its safety, efficiency, and reliability—and NDT technicians are responsible for maintaining these high standards.
Tracks
Rail Inspection
Wheel and Axle
Weld Inspection
Railway Bridges and Tunnels
Roads
Evaluating the condition of roadways is essential for identifying voids, cracks, and critical defects in concrete and asphalt that can cause issues from accidents to catastrophic failures. One notable example of a roadway system that has benefitted from nondestructive testing (NDT) is the United States Interstate Highway System, which depends on continuous assessments to guide proactive maintenance and ensure the safety, durability, and longevity of its infrastructure.
Pavement
Tunnels and Bridges
Roadway Subsurface
Asphalt Compaction
Build Your NDT Career in Infrastructure with ASNT
Our fundamental systems and structures can’t function reliably and safely without NDT technicians watching over our vital infrastructure.
If you’re ready for a career that makes a meaningful difference every day, ASNT can help you get started.
Explore NDT career opportunities
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NDT Methods: Technologies and Techniques for Safer, Stronger Infrastructure
The ability to inspect infrastructure without taking it out of service is essential.
Proven NDT methods—using cutting edge technologies and techniques—make it possible for us to take for granted that the bridges, roads, energy sources, and buildings around us are simply there—safe, reliable, and always operational.
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NDT Certification and Training with ASNT
To do their jobs, NDT technicians in infrastructure inspection need to be on top of their game, every day.
That’s why ASNT is here. Explore the resources you need to build your NDT skills and knowledge.
