Since writing my last note for October, I have been traveling yet again, to Spain, Morocco and, of course, the Midwest. I flew into Detroit three times since writing that column, attending the MS&T show at the end of September, a Powertrain Engineering and Manufacturing Alliance (PEMA) press conference in October, and finished the year with a computed tomography lab open house in December.

Apparently my Michigan trips have not gone unnoticed. Though I live in Chicago, I recently received a membership card to an association’s Detroit chapter. (I was registered for their conference under the address of our headquarters, based in Troy, MI.)

I also ventured a little further to attend the ASNT show in Las Vegas in November, where I had a chance to meet many new people. If I didn’t get a chance to meet you at the show, I hope I will get a chance sometime this year.

I do my best to meet as many new NDT people as possible-last year I went on 10 business trips, visiting five states and two countries (the United States and Canada).

I went to Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Florida and Michigan, and spent the most time in Florida, going to Miami once and Orlando twice. I flew into the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport three times last year-for visits to Detroit, Brighton and Troy. I also went to Albany, NY; Mt. Holly, NC; and Quebec City, Canada, where I was the only passenger in the security line. Apparently, I didn’t need to allow so much time to get through the airport on that one.

As 2008 begins, the NDT staff will begin scattering across the country to visit conferences and plants. Our Quality NDT conference is also on its way. It will take place in Clearwater, FL, April 28 to May 1, in conjunction with the Quality Measurement Conference 2008. For more information, visit http://bnpevents.com/NDT.

Wherever NDT takes you this year, I hope you enjoy the trip.

Of course, NDT affects so many aspects of our lives that it isn’t necessary to get on a plane to see its effects. Whether you work in the field or simply use products tested by these methods, NDT is an undercurrent to so many activities that we take for granted.

This month’s NDT section features ultrasonics, eddy current and metrotomography, along with a surface analysis showcase, news, products and an application article. Visit www.ndtmag.com to learn more. And while you’re online, check out the completely redesigned www.qualitymag.com.

The 2008 NDT schedule features a variety of NDT topics, and next month will bring computed tomography, magnetic particle inspection and leak testing. If you have ideas or suggestions for future issues of NDT, please let us know.

Otherwise, I will see you around-especially if you live in Florida or Michigan.