Comments on NDE

I have prepared some comments for some specific topics we touched upon yesterday. We have a lot to learn toward perfecting nondestructive testing in any area. The Federal Government of Germany has funded us for approximately five years. The Institute for Nondestructive Testing started experimental work about three years ago. We are covering different topics, mainly keeping in mind the application to heavy section materials--the nuclear industry, the steel industry--but to some extent, recently work has also been started on smaller sections and ceramics. We consider nondestructive testing not as just a method for depicting and describing defects, but more as a general method to judge the material, its structure, and the state of stress. Furthermore, the society to whom we belong (the Fraunhofer Society) is heavily devoted to technology aspects. That means that we must regard nondestructive testing as a technology and become involved in the more practical difficulties that arise. In practice, we follow the development of the technology until industry takes over. That is roughly the scope of work at our institution