Sonatest Ltd
Founded in 1958, Sonatest is the leading manufacturer of Ultrasonic inspection equipment. We are recognised and respected around the world for the quality of our rugged portable products which can be found in every industry and application. We operate from three company sites across the UK (Sonatest Ltd), USA (Sonatest Inc) and Canada (Sonatest AP). Our UK head office houses our global sales management, manufacturing, flaw detector research and design. In Canada our research and product development team designs advanced instrumentation such as phased array ultrasonics, whilst our USA office provides sales and product service and support for the region.
Company details
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- Business Type:
- Manufacturer
- Industry Type:
- Monitoring and Testing
- Market Focus:
- Globally (various continents)
- Year Founded:
- 1958
- Employees:
- 11-100
About Us
Whether it is conventional ultrasonics or advanced cutting edge phased array with TFM. Sonatest is your partner for Non-Destructive Testing solutions whatever your industry or application.
Our products are used by the worlds biggest and most innovative companies. Shell, Airbus, Siemens and Arcellor Mittal are amongst the thousands of customers who use Sonatest instruments to ensure that their products and processes are safe and reliable. Sonatest products are guided by the values of Simplicity, Capability and Reliability. Innovation is at the core of not only our design and development programmes but our whole way of working. We strive to provide an easy enjoyable experience when working with and being a part of the Sonatest family.
The market leading flaw detector WAVE has gained a reputation which is the envy of our competitors. Our user interface has set the industry standard. The advanced phased array Veo3 and Prisma reinforce our reputation for innovative product development of instruments focussed on providing the technician with an efficient user experience. The RSflite leads the world in composite inspection technology.
Sonatest has sold directly to 116 countries in the last 18 years with exports accounting for 85% of UK production. Sonatest currently has over 110 Distributors and Agents, operating in 77 countries, including 25 distributors in North America.
What is NDT?
As an engineering field, Nondestructive Testing (NDT) is a broad, interdisciplinary area playing a crucial role in society's assurance that structural features and systems are safe to perform their function, with standard or enhanced realiability; and with maximum cost effeciency. In adherence with global demands and standards set down by the organisations and companies across nearly all industrial sectors, Sonatest design, build and manufacture NDT equipment, mainly using ultrasonic technologies to carry out these critical tasks.
Inspection trials and tests are defined and implemented by NDT technicians and engineers who aim to identify, and define, the condition of materials and flaws/weaknesses such structures may contain. In doing so they locate weakness and problematic conditions that, if left and unidentified, would lead to catastrophic results - such as failing nuclear reactors, derailed trains, burst pipelines etc.
Due to the nature of NDT testing, Inspections do not damage or downgrade the functionality of the materials or subject being tested. Again the 'absence' of 'destruction' in this process heightens the level of quality control and demonstrates sound cost effectivenes for the end user/operating companies.