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save time on ndt analysis
While becoming increasingly necessary, digital radiography
and computed tomography need not be a time intensive
and expensive part of non-destructive testing
The most common complaints you’ll hear
about digital radiography and computed
tomography are that they are
complicated, expensive and time-consuming.
The reality is that digital radiography (DR)
and computed tomography (CT) are becoming
necessary techniques in aerospace. The
factors pushing increased adoption of DR and
CT are the same factors that affect everyone
involved in aerospace — time, talent, and
above all, cost.
The amount of air traffic through 2040 is
expected to grow at a compound annual
growth rate of 4%, without even taking into
account the growth of the space launch
industry at over 17% through 2026. Due to this,
the demands on the industry are going to
grow by leaps and bounds. Time is already a
precious commodity and it’ll be squeezed
even further, just as quality requirements will
become stricter, especially as the
lightweighting trend continues. Traditional
film-based radiography or even computed
radiography will not be fast enough to keep
up with demand. Automated systems like VJT’s
robotic based solutions will be absolutely
critical to meet quality and time demands.
VJT’s CT solutions can compare scan data
to CAD models (actual-nominal comparisons)
and reconvert scan data back into CAD for
FEA and other stress testing greatly reduces
the time spent in the prototyping stage.
Slicing through projections, running
automated wall thickness/metrology and
systems
porosity tests, checking on fiber orientation
for fiber-composite parts, greatly reduces the
amount of time spent cutting open parts and
running measurements and innumerable
microscopic and visual examinations.
The dearth of skilled workers is an issue
affecting seemingly every industry, not just
aerospace. However, the aerospace industry’s
requirements are more demanding than most
other industries, and thus, the challenge of
finding and subsequently training this talent
is incredibly difficult. Additionally, regardless
of training, there’s tendencies for all people to
get comfortable in a role or in a process, and
then possibly miss something, and if there’s a
radiographer looking at x-ray images for 8 - 10
hours, eye fatigue is a significant concern
and has been proven to be a serious issue.
Therefore, VJT’s specialized and automated
Vi3 software suite with the ability to force and
ensure compliance to ASTM or prime
standards is not just a luxury, it’s also an
absolute necessity. ADE-N, the newest
development of the ADE filter with Noise
Reduction will enable enhancement of the
image while reducing some of the noise that
can get enhanced.
The capital cost of DR and CT is usually
seen as a big number, but the reality is that
most people fail to look at the total value
that’s provided by DR and CT equipment. For
example, one of VJT’s customer was
inspecting a casting that was about 22”
cubed and would take 2.5 hours using a filmautomated
102 MARCH 2020 \\ AEROSPACETESTINGINTERNATIONAL.COM
based technique. Using an automated DR
system designed by VJT, this customer was
able to bring the inspection time down to 21
minutes. As production ramped up, the
customer was able to save on radiographers,
as traditionally one shift would only be able to
inspect three parts, and now they were doing
close to three parts per hour, and 22 parts per
shift. Going from multiple inspection bays
down to one machine and going from five
radiographers down to one provided huge
cost-savings and ensured that the ROI for the
VJT DR machine was under 11 months.
Another VJT customer was taking seven
hours to inspect a casting, and VJT was able
to use a DR technique augmented with
Region of Interest CT down to 92 minutes —
reducing total inspection time by a factor of
over 4x. \\
FREE READER INQUIRY SERVICE
VJ Technologies
1 // CT cross-section of a
turbine blade showing
wall thickness
measurements
2 // Acquired image then
VJT’s ADE and ADE-N
filters are applied to show
the capabilities of the
image processing.
For more about this advertiser, visit www.magupdate.co.uk/pati
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