Let's put some clothes on the Emperor

I do worry that, having past a certain age, my memory is starting to deteriorate. Yesterday I started to relate to my daughter an incident that had happened earlier in the day. Luckily, I had only just started the first sentence when I realised that she had been present at the time of the incident! Of course, when it is just your family who notice these failures it is not too bad. However, I have to be a bit more on my guard writing these columns because I run the risk of many more people observing any repetitions in the content. Of course, the longer I go on the easier it is for me to forget what I have written before.

One thing I have referred to before is the children's fairy story of the Emperor's Suit of Clothes. It may surprise you to know that this was back in June 2004, so my memory can't be that bad. At the time I stated that if I had a free hand, I would write a column entitled the Emperor's Suit of Clothes and in it I would highlight the obvious that is being concealed behind spin, manipulation, apathy and fad. Again, you may say that this is another characteristic of old age and just me being a grumpy old man. And maybe I am. But I feel that on the issue of highlighting the obvious, I am justified. The reason why I am raising it again is due to an incident that happened the other day which illustrates how insidious is the attitude illustrated by the Emperor's Suit of Clothes.

It was mid-morning and coffee break time. I just fancied having a drink of milky coffee instead of the normal instant white coffee I make in the office kitchen. So, running the risk of looking like a candidate on The Apprentice, I went over to the local coffee bar and ordered a latte to go. Imagine my horror when the woman behind the counter opened a bottle of skimmed milk to make the drink. Now, you may say that if I was worldly wise I would have known about a skinny latte. I had heard the phrase but had not given it a passing thought until now. Think about it. Latte is Italian for milk. A latte is a coffee made with milk, not water. But milk is mainly water. Semi-skimmed milk is a poor but acceptable substitute on health grounds alone but skimmed milk is just white water. So a skinny latte is not a latte at all but a conventional white coffee which was the standard fare before cappuccinos, mochas and espressos came on the scene. So really when people ask for a skinny latte, they are actual asking for a non-milky, milky coffee! They should be laughed out of the coffee bar!

So, where in our own profession are we falling into the trap of the Emperor's Suit of Clothes and drinking skinny lattes? I would like you to put forward some suggestions but I will offer a thought to hopefully stimulate some discussion.

I would consider NDT to be a mature discipline and, whilst it is accepted that NDT is a service, I do not believe that we have a consistent approach to what that service should entail. A quick look around the industry illustrates the inconsistencies. Some inspections are still performed without a written procedure. Others are performed without a clear statement on the inspection's objective nor on the defects that are being sought. Inspection qualification requires a defect specification as a starting point and risk-based inspection identifies the defects of concern so that this situation is not as bad as it was in the past.

It has become accepted in many quarters in recent years that NDT is, in QA terms, a special process. Again in QA terms, special processes should be validated. Inspection Qualification is applied to in-service inspections in the nuclear industry and is finding more application in the oil & gas industries with the more challenging inspection requirements and the use of non-invasive inspection. Qualification of manufacturing inspections of plant is resisted but the aerospace primes instigated their own system, NADCAP, for ensuring the quality of the application of special processes within the supply chain including NDT.

It is generally accepted that written procedures are approved by a Level 3 operator. But what does that signify? By adding the signature, what is the Level 3 taking responsibility for? Why is there not a statement of what has been approved on the procedure?

In my opinion there should be an agreed and consistent 'product' for the NDT industry. I propose that this is the application of the NDT special process. This product is described by the inspection procedure (or associated documents?) and is supported by validation evidence showing that the procedure, equipment and personnel are fit for purpose. This validation evidence, along with the analysis of the results, is the intellectual property which is paid for, bought or sold. As with copyright, the ownership of the evidence should lie with the organisation that generates it unless it is explicitly sold. A procedure cannot be applied without access, either through the vendor, the plant owner or third party, to this evidence. The Level 3 approval signifies that the evidence has been reviewed and is an appropriate demonstration of fitness for purpose.

So that is my suggestion for the NDT Emperor's suit of clothes. Do you have a different one?

Please note that the views expressed in this column are the author's own personal ramblings for the purpose of encouraging discussion within the NDT Newspaper. They do not represent the views of the IVC, Serco Assurance or the HSE who funded the PANI projects.

Letters can be mailed to The Editor, NDT News, Newton Building, St George's Avenue, Northampton NN2 6JB. Fax: 01604 89 3861; E-mail: ndtnews@bindt.org or e-mail Bernard McGrath direct at Bernard.McGrath@sercoassurance.com