OUR PREDICTIONS FOR 2024
Background
NDE 4.0 was coined in 2017 and defined
as “cyber-physical nondestructive evalu-
ation (including testing) arising out of a
confluence of Industry 4.0 digital tech-
nologies, physical nondestructive testing
methods, and business models to
enhance inspection performance, integ-
rity engineering, and decision-making for
safety, sustainability, and quality assur-
ance, as well as provide relevant data
required to improve design, production,
and maintenance.”
In terms of NDE 4.0, the nondestruc-
tive testing and evaluation (NDT/E) sector
is getting ready to (a) address new chal-
lenges associated with things like additive
manufacturing and factory automation
(b) exploit these digital technologies
to speed up the inspection process,
enhance NDE reliability, and reduce
inspector stress (c) gain insights about
asset design, production process, service
life performance, life cycle costs, and so
on and (d) create new business models
around data, which may not have been
possible up until now.
Progress Up Until Now
ASNT, DGZfP, ICNDT, and several other
national and international bodies have
dedicated platforms for conversation,
learning, and guidance and showing the
latest digitized gadgets and digitalized
processes at their conferences. With the
massive number of technologies demon-
strated and discussed, it can sometimes
be challenging to know which ones are
ready to be applied.
Outlook for 2024
During 2023, we had an opportunity to
closely observe the digital transforma-
tion journeys of over a dozen entities
across the ecosystem around the world.
In addition, we conducted our annual
market research to update our three-year
plan. We are now ready to share our
predictions for 2024 in these three areas:
Research and Development, Application,
and Leadership.
Research and Development
Ñ Standard data formats: This
continues to be a key challenge
limiting connectivity of machines
and fusion of data from multiple
sources. Several different formats
have emerged lately, each offering
their own value proposition. 2024
will see a strong debate on which
one to accept and adopt. We do
not expect a consensus to happen
anytime soon. However, larger NDT
OEMs with broad portfolios of
devices will tend to dominate the
conversation.
Ñ Visualization: With data becoming
the new high-value material, the
need to visualize it after some
meaningful processing becomes
important. The advances in
eXtended Reality (XR) are offering a
whole new worldview of processes
and outcomes. We are likely to see
several new applications reach the
field validation stage in 2024.
Ñ Artificial intelligence: Research
will attract more funding and
continue to reveal new opportuni-
ties. Validation will show increasing
promise. However, the NDT commu-
nity is not yet ready to embrace it
for any serious decision-making or
content creation. Regulators will be
open to conversation, but lack of
field experience substantiation will
hold them back. Within NDT, we are
not yet where we could say “resis-
tance is futile.”
Ñ University engagement: University
research projects will further expand
and cut across multiple traditional
departments. However, the educa-
tion side is still slow to conceive
any new meaningful graduate-level
programs in digital transformation.
We are likely to see a few certif-
icate programs at some of the
industry-leading schools.
Applications and Field Deployment
Ñ Drones, robodogs, and more
automation: Workforce shortages
and hazardous inspection condi-
tions are driving the acceptance of
robotic dogs and snakes. Drone
SCANNER
|
NDEOUTLOOK
NDE Outlook focuses on possibility thinking
for NDT and NDE. Topics may include technology
trends, research in progress, or calls to action. To
contribute, please contact Associate Technical Editor
Ripi Singh at ripi@inspiringnext.com.
14
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technology has significantly matured
with adequate communication
range and battery life. With costs
plummeting, it makes so much more
sense to deploy drones to save
time and money, while improving
inspector safety.
Ñ Tablets and workflow automa-
tion: On the softer side of things,
we will see increasing automation in
planning and guiding the workflow,
particularly for outage management.
Mobile devices (mainly tablets), with
QR codes on applications, will see a
surge in usage, offering speed, effi-
ciency, and data integrity.
Leadership and Management
Ñ Leadership realization: Digital
transformation is often a topic of
discussion at the company board
level. They are being compelled
by market forces to address the
threats and opportunities. Several
executives have come to realize that
(a) the traditional annual strategic
planning cycle is not effective in
planning for transformation, and
(b) the lean mindset is not enough
to create opportunities from the
current revolution. In 2024, they will
be more likely to look to external
sources for help with long-term
planning, without losing sight of
operational excellence.
Ñ Acceptance: Senior management is
now becoming increasingly aware
of digital penetration and its impact
on internal processes and business
metrics. They struggle to visualize
synergistic values in digital connec-
tivity and its impact on customer
engagement. They can feel the
skills gap in addition to lack of
financial muscle to execute. In 2024,
we can expect to see considerably
higher budget allocation for two
areas: technology acquisition and
staff upskilling. For certain organi-
zations, the transformation toward
smart manufacturing is driving
the bus and asking inspections to
follow suit.
Ñ Thought leadership: ICNDT’s
special interest group on NDE 4.0
will continue to promote collabora-
tive development of the subject and
dissemination through several highly
attended conferences. We are likely
to see more special sessions and
journal issues on the topic from
various national bodies around the
world and a buildup of momentum
toward the Third International
Conference on NDE 4.0, which will
take place in early 2025 in India.
Ñ NDT personnel certification:
There is a clear need for new skills
(digital) through additional training.
Recent discussion at the ASNT
Annual Conference revealed that
although there is an awareness
of such a need, the community is
not yet ready to accept the addi-
tional effort required to train and
certify to another track or another
level. They are already questioning
current certification processes. One
idea floated was ASNT Level IV or
a Level IIID (“D” for digital). The
debate will continue and the like-
lihood of anything happening in
2024 is low.
Wrap-Up
Digital transformation is picking up fast
for almost all sectors and companies that
are not digital-native. The NDT commu-
nity will, unfortunately, continue to lag
other sectors, for historical reasons and
sometimes even functional necessities.
The good news is we can observe other
sectors to gain insight into where to invest.
Disclaimer: These are forecasts, and
the authors are not responsible for what
actually happens in 2024.
AUTHORS
Ripi Singh, PhD: Inspiring Next, Cromwell,
CT ripi@inspiringnext.com
Johannes Vrana, PhD: Vrana GmbH,
Rimsting, Germany johannes@vrana.net
|
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