With the advancements of many manufacturing processes, computed tomography (CT) and digital radiography (DR) are continuing to expand into new sectors of nearly all industries. Historically, these nondestructive testing (NDT) methods were primarily used for inspection of critical components, however, we are seeing an increasing number of companies extensively applying these technologies beyond just inspection work. The value these technologies bring to the development of new processes and products is proving to be extremely valuable. Companies are gaining a better understanding of the true monetary value of reducing time to market for new products. Applying CT early on in new development work provides the advantage of not only quickly identifying problems, but also of having enough information to genuinely understand the root cause of product and process failures that negatively impact a product launch schedule.
The old phrase “We don’t know what we don’t know” really drives the point home that maybe we should consider where it is most prudent to take the time to look deeper. When we do, we often find out not only just where there are opportunities for improvements, or where there are potential catastrophic failures in waiting, but also we provide confirmation of what we are doing really well, where our manufacturing processes are in control, basically, where our strengths are. Both sides of this information can be vital to success. As powerful as DR has been in helping provide pieces of this knowledge, CT provides exponentially more useful information to help remove the factors of what we can’t see, or of what “We don’t know we don’t know.” This knowledge not only helps us produce higher quality and higher performance products, but it helps us drive down manufacturing costs by providing the necessary information for real process improvements.