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British firm builds its own future
nDT UnTEtR,.nRTRIDnRLnEUS 1 Diamonds Ltd and Star Diamond Co Ltd. The diamonds are now readily available for dosimetry. T h e diamond probes are linked to instrumentation basically similar to other dosemeters and can supply outputs for chart records, print-outs or further electronic processing. Equipment of this kind can be used for medical, clinical, nuclear and power application or in industry including ndt. So far dose rated from 1 - 1 0 l ° mR h -~ can be detected with diamond probes but they have no intrinsic upward limit. The diamond probe has been observed to stay steady, reliable and undamaged to 109 R of absorbed dose. The probe can be down to 2.5 mm diameter and it is temperature independent. Electron
Diamonds L td, 63-66 Hatton Gardens, London ECIN 8LE, UK
British firm builds its own future Sonatest, a British ndt manufacturer has now moved into a factory and headquarters built by a construction company it formed itself. The company previously manufactured equipment in an old Northampton shoe factory of a little over 400 m 2. The present 1800 m 2 factory houses the plant as well as the head office and training school from various locations in England. The whole company, except local representatives and overseas branches, is now centralised (Fig.4). The change corresponds with a large increase in business, partly due to last year's agreement with the Belgian company Balteau. Balteau,
The TEl 0 thickness gauge, one of Sonatest's most successful instruments, is now made at the factory in Milton Keynes
which manufactures x-ray equipment, sells Sonatest equipment in much of the world and Sonatest is Balteau's British agent. American ultrasonics sales are through a joint subsidiary, Balteau-Sonatest Corp of Stamford, Connecticut, and Swiss sales are through a Swiss subsidiary Sonatest AG. The changes are of far reaching significance; a few years ago less than a fifth of output was exported, today it is over a half. The move meant employment and training of new staff, now increased to about 75, as well as disruption to servicing. Building delays and the winter power crises made the move a protracted upheaval for the staff. All the facilities are now, however complete. The Sonatest construction company was set up to design and build the firm's own factory. This novel enterprise was reported to be the cheapest way of doing it. The factory is, of course, exactly custom built and can be doubled in size in the future. There are offices, a storage space, workshops, a laboratory, a class room and an x-ray facility with lead shielding for 200 kV. Higher rated x-ray sets can be tested using extra shielding. The whole
company is now working as fast as it can on equipment manufacture and development, automatic testing and equipment servicing. The Group Chairman Bill Henderson, said he expected a general growth in demand for ndt equipment rather than any particular fact, such as oil exploration or nuclear investment, predominating.
Sonatest Ltd, Old Wolverton Road, Milton Keynes, North Bucks, UK
Gauge looks through glass American gauge makers have developed an x-ray gauge to measure thickness of hot flat glass made by the float process. A float line can typically produce 4000 m 2 of 6mm thick glass at 3.3m wide at 1 ms-1 . The gauge gives immediate information on hot glass near the furnace controls (Fig.5). Otherwise a 2 5 - 3 0 min time lag is interposed between stable readjustment and micrometer checking of the cold glass product. Molten glass is drawn from a furnace in the float glass process and made to float across molten tin through annealing leers to give a good finish.
Fig.4
Fig.5
A salesmanalters the setting on an x-ray thickness gauge waiting shipment to a float
glass line
NON-DESTRUCTIVE TESTING . DECEMBER 1974
287
Diamonds L td, 63-66 Hatton Gardens, London ECIN 8LE, UK
British firm builds its own future Sonatest, a British ndt manufacturer has now moved into a factory and headquarters built by a construction company it formed itself. The company previously manufactured equipment in an old Northampton shoe factory of a little over 400 m 2. The present 1800 m 2 factory houses the plant as well as the head office and training school from various locations in England. The whole company, except local representatives and overseas branches, is now centralised (Fig.4). The change corresponds with a large increase in business, partly due to last year's agreement with the Belgian company Balteau. Balteau,
The TEl 0 thickness gauge, one of Sonatest's most successful instruments, is now made at the factory in Milton Keynes
which manufactures x-ray equipment, sells Sonatest equipment in much of the world and Sonatest is Balteau's British agent. American ultrasonics sales are through a joint subsidiary, Balteau-Sonatest Corp of Stamford, Connecticut, and Swiss sales are through a Swiss subsidiary Sonatest AG. The changes are of far reaching significance; a few years ago less than a fifth of output was exported, today it is over a half. The move meant employment and training of new staff, now increased to about 75, as well as disruption to servicing. Building delays and the winter power crises made the move a protracted upheaval for the staff. All the facilities are now, however complete. The Sonatest construction company was set up to design and build the firm's own factory. This novel enterprise was reported to be the cheapest way of doing it. The factory is, of course, exactly custom built and can be doubled in size in the future. There are offices, a storage space, workshops, a laboratory, a class room and an x-ray facility with lead shielding for 200 kV. Higher rated x-ray sets can be tested using extra shielding. The whole
company is now working as fast as it can on equipment manufacture and development, automatic testing and equipment servicing. The Group Chairman Bill Henderson, said he expected a general growth in demand for ndt equipment rather than any particular fact, such as oil exploration or nuclear investment, predominating.
Sonatest Ltd, Old Wolverton Road, Milton Keynes, North Bucks, UK
Gauge looks through glass American gauge makers have developed an x-ray gauge to measure thickness of hot flat glass made by the float process. A float line can typically produce 4000 m 2 of 6mm thick glass at 3.3m wide at 1 ms-1 . The gauge gives immediate information on hot glass near the furnace controls (Fig.5). Otherwise a 2 5 - 3 0 min time lag is interposed between stable readjustment and micrometer checking of the cold glass product. Molten glass is drawn from a furnace in the float glass process and made to float across molten tin through annealing leers to give a good finish.
Fig.4
Fig.5
A salesmanalters the setting on an x-ray thickness gauge waiting shipment to a float
glass line
NON-DESTRUCTIVE TESTING . DECEMBER 1974
287