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Ultramag Inspection Services Ltd is a market-leading, ISO 9001 and UKAS Accredited, independent Inspection Body providing inspection and testing services to a broad range of industries. Our main industries are Construction, Marine, Aerospace, Defence, Nuclear, Pressure Systems, Oil and gas, Power Generation and renewables. along with N.D.T. Training and Consultancy.
We have been providing a professional non-destructive and mechanical testing service for over 45 years. Our new facility is now open for N.D.T., Welder training, welding of test samples & mechanical testing of welder's test pieces. Our training department offers NDT courses, along with Welding Technology related courses and selected Safety courses.
Ultramag is a member of the British Institute of Non-Destructive Testing, Service Inspection Group, International Society for Condition Monitoring and an Associate Member of E.E.M.U.A. We hold Approvals from Lloyd's Register, Bureau Veritas, RINA, DNV-GL and the American Bureau of Shipping. Our inspectors hold qualifications for PCN, SNT, ACCP, CSWIP, NAS 410, EN 4179, AWS and IIW at Level 2 and 3.
Level 3 personnel ensure the smooth running of the facilities, with an I.I.W. Welding Technologist and Welding Specialists performing welding procedures, welder tests and welder training, along with guidance for RWCs of several clients on ISO 3834 standards.

A.C.F.M. is an electromagnetic technique used for the detection and sizing of surface-breaking cracks in metallic components and welds.
It can be performed through paint and coatings, up to 5mm thick and combines the advantages of the alternating current potential drop (ACPD) technique and Eddy Current Testing (ECT) in terms of defect sizing without calibration and the ability to work without electrical contact respectively.
The probe introduces an electric current locally into the part and measures the associated electromagnetic fields close to the surface. The presence of a defect disturbs the associated fields and the information is graphically presented to the system operator.
The ends of a defect are easily identified to provide information on the defect's location and length.

We also have portable Proceq and King Brinell equipment for hardness testing which means work can be performed both on and off-site. This equipment can be used for stock material identification, production verification on welded fabrications and for metal sorting.
Rockwell Hardness Test
The Rockwell hardness test method consists of indenting the test material with a diamond cone or hardened steel ball indent. The indenter is forced into the test material under a preliminary minor load F0, usually 10 kgs. When equilibrium has been reached, an indicating device, which follows the movements of the indenter and so responds to changes in the depth of penetration of the indenter is set to a datum position.
While the preliminary minor load is still applied an additional major load is applied with a resulting increase in penetration. When equilibrium has again been reached, the additional major load is removed but the preliminary minor load is still maintained. Removal of the additional major load allows a partial recovery, so reducing the depth of penetration. The permanent increase in depth of penetration, resulting from the application and removal of the additional major load is used to calculate the Rockwell hardness number.
Vickers Hardness Test
The Vickers hardness test method consists of indenting the test material with a diamond indenter, in the form of a right pyramid with a square base and an angle of 136 degrees between opposite faces subjected to a load of 1 to 100 kgf. The full load is normally applied for 10 to 15 seconds. The two diagonals of the indentation left on the surface of the material after removal of the load are measured using a microscope and their average is calculated. The area of the sloping surface of the indentation is calculated. The Vickers hardness is the quotient obtained by dividing the kgf load by the square mm area of indentation.

This form of testing is also sometimes called Liquid Penetrant Inspection (LPI) and is a widely applied and low-cost inspection method used to locate surface-breaking defects in all non-porous materials (metals, plastics, or ceramics).
The penetrant may be applied to all non-ferrous materials, but for inspection of ferrous components magnetic-particle inspection is preferred for its subsurface detection capability. DPI is used to detect casting and forging defects, cracks, and leaks in new products, and fatigue cracks on in-service components. Special applications are for the aerospace, defence and automotive industries.

Visual Inspections are also carried out on materials, looking for process defects or damage. Structural steel is tested to BS EN ISO 17637, ASME V, AWS D1.1, BS EN ISO 5817 or EN 1090.
Level 2 & 3 Inspectors are qualified to PCN, SNT, CSWIP, IIW AWS or ACCP.
International Welding Technologists and Welding Specialists provide consultancy and Welding Procedures and Welder Qualification Tests.
Another service under our UKAS Accreditation is Client witnessing and 3rd Party verification services, where we will verify materials, inspections or processes to client procedures and standards.

Positive Material Identification (PMI) or Alloy Verification (AV) identifies all ferrous and nickel-based alloys including stainless steels, Monels, Inconels, Hastelloys, aluminium alloys, and naval spec. alloys and exotic materials.
New alloy analysers have now replaced older-style metascopes. Modern instruments use X-ray fluorescence (XRF) therefore eliminating problems associated with isotopes, and burning on the surface of the part. These instruments cover a wide range of elemental analysis, plus new elements can be added and reports printed off.
Having portable equipment for positive material identification purposes means work can be performed both on or off-site, and, due to its versatility, large fabrications through small fasteners and fittings can be tested.
This equipment can be used for stock material identification, production verification on welded fabrications and for metal sorting.
The latest instruments also record light elements (LE) and are as accurate as a laboratory analysis.
Inspection reports can be issued listing many elements and identifying the material or product under test.