TEST NDT International completes 60th week of on-site training for wind turbine inspectors
10/02/2010
TEST NDT International recently completed the 60th week of on-site training for wind turbine blade inspectors.This training session was conducted in India and was the latest in a series of training courses hosted by TEST NDT International, which has seen seven TEST NDT International instructors perform NDT training and qualification examinations in manufacturing plants in six different countries around the world, ranging from Europe to North America and from India across to China. Over 130 inspectors have already passed through the specially developed courses for composite blade inspection.
TEST NDT International was brought in at an early stage to help to develop the inspection procedures in addition to the training, qualification and certification programme.
The inspection procedures used a combination of conventional ultrasonic techniques and also advanced phased array techniques for solving the peculiar problems caused by very attenuative composite materials and the complex geometries involved in modern blade manufacturing.
The training was based around the Olympus Omniscan instrument using both its conventional ultrasonic and ultrasonic phased array capabilities.
Being able to use the same instrument for both techniques is a big plus and helps in the transition process for the inspectors to move from conventional inspection technology to the more advanced phased array technology.
The phased array techniques developed can be used during blade manufacture and also for in-service inspection of the blades, where the portability of modern phased array instruments is another important asset.
www.testndt.com
