Measurements and inspections

Complex structures are designed to perform millions of operation cycles throughout their work life, ensuring seamless stability and safety, but how to deal with the existing ones that have already passed millions of cycles? 

Our clients often ask if we could assess the actual capabilities and safety of a structure after many years of work, and if there are any ways to extend its life. Also, often the dimensions and other data are outdated or incorrect. Even in such cases, we offer a solution. We do structural calculations according to industry standards based on the finite element model, which is a precise copy of your structure and is built based on the actual dimensions/drawings. If the drawings are not available (or not all) — we do the required measurements on-site and use them for building the model:

• structural dimensions;
• weights;
• natural frequencies;

The FEM model is used to represent the actual behavior of the structure at all possible real load situations based on the following:

• specifications of the mechanical components;
• speeds;
• accelerations;

Although these items are generally available in the standard specifications and structure documentation, we do the measurements of their values on site and implement this data into the digital model.

Learn more about engineering FEA projects SDC Verifier Engineering Department complete for our clients in different industries.

When the structure is verified according to industry norms, we define all possible weak spots for inspection. The structures are large, while the weak spots are typically localized areas to be only checked to make sure the current state of the structure is acceptable, which saves an enormous amount of time!

The inspection on-site covers all critical areas based on the calculations and typically consists of the following:

• visual inspection of the area;
• visual inspection of the connection;
• weld check (NDT, crack growth analysis if needed);
• bolts preload check;
• corrosion influence (thickness reduction);
• deflection check if takes place;
• step-by-step inspection of all mechanical components;

In case of any design problems based on verification and inspection, we do a Design check and optimization to solve them and extend the structure’s lifetime.

The extensive reports help to store all the calculation results as well as inspection results with conclusions and recommendations.