Non-Destructive Testing
When buildings show signs of wear, leaks, or structural issues, immediate answers aren’t always visible. That’s where Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) comes in.
CANY provides a wide range of non-invasive diagnostic tools to assess hidden conditions without disruption—supporting everything from leak detection to structural steel analysis and historic facade restoration.
NDT saves time and money, making better use of resources and focusing efforts on complex jobs. It’s used to support everything from large-scale restoration and repair planning to intricate material assessment.
Who benefits?
· Building owners and managers
· Architects and engineers
· Restoration and construction teams
How?
Identify problems early
Provide targeted insight to complex issues
Minimize disruption
Save time and costs
Talk to us about how our NDT capabilities can help identify a problem with minimal disruption.
Why Non-Destructive Testing Matters
Conditions inside walls, beneath roof membranes, or within concrete slabs are often hard to see. Even experienced professionals usually need more information to fully understand these areas, but time, budget, and access constraints can limit what’s possible with traditional visual and probing methods. That’s where NDT helps fill the gaps.
It allows us to:
Test hypotheses about building failures
Collect clear, reliable data, minimizing destruction while doing so
Identify the extent of conditions
Determine next steps with confidence
Challenges NDT addresses:
Hidden leaks or water ingress
Building envelope thermal deficiencies (insulation, air leakage)
Unknown structural conditions
Difficult access or sensitive spaces
NDT helps reduce guesswork and quickly target repairs.
CANY’s Involvement
At CANY, three decades of experience have taught us how to recognize what we don’t know. We rely on our senses — sight, sound, and touch — along with a wide range of resources, but it’s that experience that helps us spot information gaps and choose the right tools and technology to fill them.
NDT can be highly effective, but only in the hands of people who understand how to use it to build a clear and complete picture that saves time and money.
Our work flow for implementing NDT:
Step 1: Site visit and visual inspection
Step 2: Form working hypothesis
Step 3: Apply appropriate NDT tools
Step 4: Interpret data and determine scope
Step 5: Recommend targeted repairs or further testing
Our toolbox includes:
Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR): Investigates concrete slabs and walls, identifying rebar, wall-ties, voids, and hidden utilities, without damaging the supporting infrastructure, utility conduits or hidden waterlines.
Metal Detection: Locates anchors, wall-ties and rebars; combined with GPR, it assesses their condition before minor destructive testing.
Leakage Investigation: Targeted spray and flood testing, in conjunction with infrared cameras detects leaks by temperature variations, points of water ingress and trapped moisture. Thermal anomalies are verified by moisture meters when access allows.
Thermal Analysis: Infrared thermography highlights insulation and fenestration failures and energy loss.
Acoustic Testing: Assesses structural integrity, from detecting terracotta spalls to evaluating steel corrosion, using hand-held ultrasound meters.
Borescopes: Small cameras access tight spaces, reducing disruption to occupied or sensitive spaces.
The Role of Destructive Testing: While NDT provides valuable insights, it is not absolute. Final confirmation often requires destructive testing to physically verify findings. Using NDT techniques, destructive observation methods can be reduced and targeted, saving time, money and disruption.
Key Benefits
Why Choose CANY’s Non-Destructive Testing Service?
· Backed by people with decades of hands-on experience
· Often provides real-time answers without major disruption
· Broader coverage than traditional methods
· Smart targeting of repairs and invasive testing
· Faster project timelines
FAQ
Is NDT always accurate?
NDT relies on the skilled interpretation of collected data. While no method is perfect, the information gained through NDT helps provide a clearer direction for a project.
How long does an NDT survey take?
Depending on the size and complexity of the project, an investigation can be performed in as little as a few hours or could be quite extensive. CANY has the experience to recommend the type and number of resources to accomplish the information gathering outcomes appropriate for the project.
Is NDT disruptive to occupants?
Not usually. Most testing can happen while the building is in use.
Do I still need destructive testing?
Sometimes, yes. NDT helps reduce the need—but it can’t replace seeing the issue first-hand in every case. When destructive testing is still necessary, NDT typically allows for a reduction in the amount of tests and more accuracy in identifying testing locations to more efficiently gather the remaining necessary information.
