FRA GRANTS FIVE-
YEAR WAIVER
TO EXPAND
AUTOMATED
TRACK INSPECTION
TESTING
The US Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA)
Railroad Safety Board has approved a new tempo-
rary waiver permitting US railroads to broaden
field testing of automated track inspection (ATI)
technology, US Transportation Secretary Sean P.
Duffy announced on 5 December. The decision
enables the industry to collect additional safety data
and evaluate the potential of emerging inspection
technologies.
The five-year waiver gives railroads expanded flex-
ibility to demonstrate how ATI systems can supple-
ment traditional visual inspections by detecting
track defects or hazards that inspectors may not
easily spot. According to the US Department of
Transportation (DOT), ATI technology is intended to
enhance—rather than replace—the existing manual
inspection process.
“The new waiver will allow US railroads to comple-
ment visual track inspections with innovative tech-
nology that will identify issues on our rail before they
become a serious safety threat for rail passengers
and crew,” Duffy said.
FRA Administrator David Fink said the waiver
supports the agency’s commitment to evaluating
new tools that can strengthen rail safety. “ATI tech-
nology is designed to enhance already effective
visual inspections by catching things that human
eyes miss,” Fink said.
The FRA’s Railroad Safety Board, composed of
technical experts within the agency, determined
that the expanded testing will operate similarly to
earlier ATI pilot programs conducted by freight and
commuter railroads. The primary changes under the
new waiver include additional data collection and
information-sharing requirements, which will help
FRA assess the technology’s practical benefits and
any potential limitations.
The Association of American Railroads has
expressed long-standing support for the waiver,
citing technology as a key avenue for advancing
systemwide safety improvements.
More information on the waiver approval
can be found at regulations.gov, in Docket
No. FRA-2025-0059.
AIA RELEASES NAS 410
UPDATE FOR AEROSPACE
INDUSTRY PROFESSIONALS
On 1 December 2025, the Aerospace Industries
Association (AIA) and Accuris released the newest
NAS 410: Nondestructive Testing Personnel
Qualification and Certification standard (Revision 6).
This critical update for nondestructive testing (NDT)
enhances inspection reliability, supports safer aircraft
operations, and opens new career pathways for
aerospace professionals.
“NAS 410 Revision 6 marks a significant advance-
ment in aligning safety, innovation, and workforce
readiness,” said Chris Carnahan, AIA Assistant
Vice President of Standards. “This update not only
strengthens and clarifies nondestructive testing certi-
fication requirements, but also supports the devel-
opment of a more resilient and skilled aerospace
workforce by introducing a new pathway to Level III
qualification through the competency-based credit
system outlined in Appendix D.”
NAS 410 is the standard used across the aero-
space sector to qualify and certify personnel
performing NDT on aircraft components. This
revision reflects the latest industry practices,
technological advancements, and workforce
needs, ensuring continued safety and quality in
aerospace.
SCANNER
A BNSF coal train
eastbound in the
Cascade Mountains of
Washington State in
November 2022. US
railroads are preparing
to expand testing of
automated inspection
technology under
a newly approved
Federal Railroad
Administration waiver.
8
M AT E R I A L S E V A L U AT I O N • J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 6

NAS 410 Revision 6 introduces a new
Appendix D, creating an additional
pathway to Level III qualification. Under
this framework, Level II personnel can
complete designated NDT activities
that earn points toward qualification.
Once the required point thresholds are
achieved across the various NDT activity
categories, individuals become eligible to
sit for their initial Level III examination.
A webinar highlighting the NAS 410
development process and offering
a comprehensive, section‑by‑section
review of all changes introduced in
Revision 6 can be viewed on-demand
at https://accuristech.com/resource/
nas410-revision-6-critical-changes-and-
development-process-webinar.
GERMAN RESEARCH
CONSORTIUM
ADVANCES SMART
MONITORING FOR
BRIDGES, DAMS, AND
TREATMENT PLANTS
How can the condition of bridges,
dams, or sewage treatment plants be
monitored reliably and in real time? This
question guided the research project
“ImaB-Edge — Intelligent, multimodal,
and autonomous structural inspection
using edge computing,” funded by the
German Federal Ministry of Research,
Technology, and Space (BMFTR) for
around €5.6 million (US$6.5 million). At
the project’s closing event on 30 October
2025, researchers from the Fraunhofer
Institute for Nondestructive Testing IZFP
and their partners presented the results.
Following a welcome by Dr. Hans-
Georg Herrmann, member of the Institute
Management Board at Fraunhofer IZFP,
Jürgen Barke, Minister for Economic
Affairs, Innovation, Digital Affairs, and
Energy of the Saarland, delivered a
keynote emphasizing the importance of
projects like ImaB-Edge for the safety and
sustainability of infrastructure. Dirk Koster,
Chief Scientist at Fraunhofer IZFP, then
presented the project outcomes before
guests explored the various technologies
at demonstration stations.
The September 2024 collapse
of the Carola Bridge in Dresden,
Germany—involving a large section of
the bridge falling into the Elbe River—
emphasized the need for proactive
assessment of buildings and critical
infrastructure. Early detection protects
lives and reduces costs. In the ImaB-
Edge joint project, materials researchers,
hardware and software developers,
construction companies, and infrastruc-
ture operators collaborated to develop
an electronic system for continuous
structural monitoring. The goal was to
precisely track the condition of bridges,
sewage treatment plants, and dams to
identify risks early and take targeted
measures.
“Especially in the case of heavily traf-
ficked bridges, closures can quickly
cause millions in damage. With our
modular on-site system, structures can
be monitored continuously, allowing
us to respond flexibly. This not only
increases safety, but also helps to signifi-
cantly reduce maintenance costs,” said
Dirk Koster, scientific project manager
and Chief Scientist of Sensor Intelligence
and Microelectronics at Fraunhofer IZFP.
Intelligent sensors installed in new or
existing structures continuously record
measurement data. This information is
collected and preprocessed in an edge
gateway, where AI evaluates it directly
INDUSTRYNEWS
|
SCANNER
DATAFACTS |
GLOBAL PASSENGER EV SALES BY MARKET
Global sales of electric vehicles (EVs) continue to rise and are projected to account for
one in four cars sold in 2025. As EVs continue to replace traditional combustion-engine
vehicles, the need for effective nondestructive testing (NDT) techniques has become
exponentially vital. NDT is poised to play a pivotal role in ensuring the future safety of
EVs, particularly in areas such as battery performance, structural integrity, and electrical
systems. Techniques used in EV manufacturing include ultrasonic testing, terahertz
time-domain spectroscopy, thermal/infrared testing, radiography/computed tomography,
and eddy current testing.
Note: Includes battery electric and plug-in hybrid passenger vehicles. 2025 is
BloombergNEF’s forecast for the year.
Source: BloombergNEF, MarkLines, JATO Dynamics https://about.bnef.com/insights/
clean-transport/electric-vehicle-outlook/#overview
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025e
25
20
15
10
5
0
China Europe US Canada Southeast Asia Japan
South Korea Australia India Brazil Rest of world
J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 6 • M AT E R I A L S E V A L U AT I O N 9
Millions