Technical justification for non-destructive testing
The proceedings of a workshop on technical justification held in Petten, The Netherlands, have recently been published by the Institute for Advanced Materials of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre. Related publications on recommended practices and the implementation of technical justification for the qualification of non-destructive testing have also been issued. The workshop was organised by the European Network for Inspection Qualification (ENIQ) with the aim of exchanging information on the concept of technical justification, an important part of the European methodology for the qualification of non-destructive testing. It was attended by more than 50 participants from the EU and Eastern Europe and comprised a series of presentations from representatives of the electrical utilities industry, inspection vendors, plant manufacturers, qualification bodies and the European Commission. In addition, two ENIQ recommended practices have also been published on the recommended contents for technical justification and a strategy on the implementation of its concepts. The publications aim to assist those involved in inspection qualification of non-destructive testing in order to implement the concept of technical justification in a more harmonised way throughout the EU. The main objectives of the recommended practice are: - To explain the different purposes of technical justifications; - To indicate how the specific purpose or application of the technical justification may affect its purpose; - To give guidance on the relative weight given to test piece trials and technical justification, taking into account a number of factors such as level, available evidence and specific application.