SOCIETYNEWS | SCOPE NEW AFFILIATE PROGRAM Affiliates of ASNT are divided into four levels: Contributor Associate Executive and Enterprise. Each level contains exclu- sive benefits and opportunities, such as priority points for exhibiting at the ASNT Annual Conference, the ability to send custom emails to ASNT’s member- ship list, receiving an advance copy of attendee registration lists, and getting logo recognition at ASNT events, as well as new fun perks like access to a VIP lounge at ASNT 2022: The Annual Conference in Nashville, Tennessee. The highest level of Affiliate—Enterprise— includes opportunities to contribute to thought leadership by authoring guest blog posts on ASNT’s blog, ASNT Pulse, participating in industry panel discus- sions, or presenting a session at the Annual Conference. “We are excited to work with industry organizations to customize their Affiliate program and help elevate their contri- bution to ASNT and its mission,” said Liming. To review the Affiliate benefits by level, go to asntmediaplanner.com /affiliate-program. To begin building your customized ASNT Affiliate Program, contact Holly Klarman of ASNT Media and Event Sales at holly.klarman @wearemci.com or 1-410-584-8576. Affiliates receive advanced notification regarding new sponsorship and recognition opportunities at ASNT conferences. | PARTICIPATE ASNT AFFILIATE PARTNERS* ENTERPRISE Olympus EXECUTIVE Advanced OEM Solutions/The Phased Array Co. Carestream Eddyfi Technologies VMI A Varex Company ASSOCIATE DÜRR NDT GmbH & Co. KG Ecutec FujiFilm North America Hellier Matec Instrument Cos. Inc. North Star Imaging UniWest Varex Imaging CONTRIBUTOR Gecko Robotics Jireh Industries Ltd. Teledyne ICM * AS OF 1 MARCH 2022 A P R I L 2 0 2 2 M A T E R I A L S E V A L U A T I O N 77
WHAT’S IN A NAME: 2022 EDITION Over the years, ASNT has received many questions regarding personnel who claim to be “ASNT certified” and about training courses that advertise that they provide “ASNT training.” Because of the evident confusion over the use of the ASNT name, this article will attempt to clarify who may be called what in regard to NDT certification and what courses may be claimed as providing “ASNT training.” To set the stage for these differentiations, a bit of historical background will be helpful. In 1968, the Society published the first edition of Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A: Personnel Qualification and Certification in Nondestructive Testing. This document was developed to provide guidelines for employers to use to set up their own employer-based nondestruc- tive testing (NDT) certification programs and listed three levels of qualification: Level I, Level II, and Level III. (On a historical note, the document name, which is now a household word among NDT personnel, derives from the fact that ASNT was once called the Society for Nondestructive Testing [“SNT”], and the number of the technical committee [“TC”] that devel- oped the document was “1A” hence, the name SNT-TC-1A.) In the initial document, the employer was required to develop a written prac- tice for the control and administration of NDT personnel training, examination, and certification. Personnel wishing to certify to Level I or II were required to satisfy three recommended requirements: obtaining a number of training hours in the applicable test method obtaining an amount of experience time using that method and passing certain phys- ical, written, and practical examinations related to the test method. Personnel who met these qualifications were eligible to be certified per the employer’s written practice meeting the requirements of Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A. A common misconception is that the employer certifies personnel to SNT-TC-1A. Personnel are certified to the employer’s written practice, not SNT-TC-1A. SNT-TC-1A is only a recommended practice, and it is up to the employer to develop a written practice that maps out the employer’s requirements. Certification is always the responsibility of the employer (there is no SNT-TC-1A–based certification without an employer’s written practice). For Level III status, personnel had to have documented a certain amount of time as a Level II (which varied depending on the amount of formal education the candidate had), and they also had to pass certain written examinations. These Level III personnel are commonly called “NDT Level IIIs” and have been certified in accordance with the employer’s written practice meeting the requirements of Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A. However, an alternate method of qual- ification was permitted, which allowed an employer to appoint a person as a Level III based on documentation of that person’s demonstrated ability, achievement, experi- ence, and education. While this paragraph was dropped from SNT-TC-1A in the 1988 and all subsequent editions, prior to 1988, this was permitted. In 1977, ASNT inaugurated the ASNT NDT Level III program, for which ASNT developed and administered its own written Level III examinations and began issuing an ASNT certificate upon successful completion of those exams. Personnel holding those certificates are called “ASNT NDT Level IIIs” to differ- entiate them from those personnel who took and passed employer-based examinations. When properly described, it doesn’t seem that difficult, so where then is the disconnect? Since ASNT develops and publishes Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A, many employers mistakenly assume that personnel whom they have certified using the guidelines of SNT-TC-1A are “ASNT certified” when in fact they have been certified “in accordance with the employer’s written prac- tice which may meet the guidelines in SNT-TC-1A.” Only personnel who have sat for and passed the examinations developed and administered by ASNT and have received ASNT certificates may call themselves “ASNT certified.” Using the letters “ASNT” by non-ASNT certified personnel is a misrepre- sentation of how that person was certified and is an unethical practice. Because ASNT examinations exceed the minimum recommended guidelines for examinations as listed in SNT-TC-1A, ASNT is very particular about this issue. To summarize, personnel certified by their employer are said to be certified in accor- dance with the employer's written practice meeting the guidelines of Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A. Personnel who have taken and passed the ASNT NDT Level III examinations are called “ASNT NDT Level IIIs” and those who hold ASNT Central Certification Program (ACCP) certificates are called “ACCP Level IIs” or “ACCP Professional Level IIIs,” depending on the level in question. Only those who have passed examinations administered by ASNT may be considered ASNT certified. With regard to NDT training, only courses that have been developed by ASNT and are administered by ASNT or an authorized representative may SCOPE | CERTIFICATIONQ&A 78 M A T E R I A L S E V A L U A T I O N A P R I L 2 0 2 2
Previous Page Next Page