Flaw Detection (NDT)

Flaw detection is the branch of non-destructive testing concerned with finding internal and hidden discontinuities — cracks, voids, inclusions and lack of fusion — without cutting into or damaging the part. It is fundamental to weld inspection, in-service integrity checks and manufacturing quality control, where an undetected defect can lead to failure under load. Ultrasonic methods do this by sending high-frequency sound into the material and timing the echoes returned by a flaw, allowing inspectors to locate and size defects that no surface examination could reveal. Checkline Europe groups the portable instruments for this work under ultrasonic flaw detectors.

Reliable results depend on the right probe, calibration and sizing technique, and on inspecting to a recognised procedure. For the pulse-echo principles and sizing methods such as DAC, TCG and DGS that underpin the discipline, see the Flaw Detection (NDT) Knowledge Base; when you are ready to specify an instrument, work through the Flaw Detection (NDT) Selection Guide.