Services Provided SEMI & NON-DESTRUCTIVE TESTING FOR REINFORCED CONCRETE / STEEL STRUCTURES
Inspection, testing and data collection for quality control and structural integrity assessment
It is often necessary to test structures (concrete/steel) to determine whether the structure is suitable for its designed use. Ideally such testing should be done without damaging the structures. The tests available for testing concrete/steel range from the completely non-destructive, where there is no damage to the concrete, through those where the concrete surface is slightly damaged, to partially destructive tests, such as core tests and pull-out and pull-off tests, where the surface must be repaired after the test. The range of properties that can be assessed using non-destructive tests and partially destructive tests is quite large and includes such fundamental parameters as density, elastic modulus, and strength as well as surface hardness and surface absorption, and reinforcement location, size, and distance from the surface. In some cases, it is also possible to check the quality of workmanship and structural integrity by the ability to detect voids, cracking, and delamination.
Non-destructive testing can be applied to both old and new structures. For new structures, the principal applications are likely to be for quality control or the resolution of doubts about the quality of materials or construction. The testing of existing structures is usually related to an assessment of structural integrity or adequacy. In either case, if destructive testing alone is used, for instance, by removing cores for compression testing, the cost of coring and testing may only allow a relatively small number of tests to be carried out on a large structure which may be misleading. Non-destructive testing can be used in those situations as a preliminary to subsequent coring.