GE Brings Digital Solutions to Nondestructive Testing (NDT) Industry

April 28, 2016
It is introducing Mentor UT, a new digital solution to improve asset reliability, reduce maintenance costs and downtime.

LEWISTOWN, PA. – April 27, 2016 — Volatile oil prices, global competitive pressure, and the costs and challenges associated with corrosion and erosion mean that oil & gas production and refining operations need to operate more reliably than ever and at lower costs. GE Oil & Gas is introducing Mentor UT (www.mentorut.com), a new digital solution to improve asset reliability, reduce maintenance costs and downtime.

Mentor UT and other nondestructive testing (NDT) products, software and techniques provide inspection professionals the solutions needed to properly inspect and evaluate the properties of critical industrial materials. Today’s NDT and inspection managers face a complex and ever-changing environment, including:

  • Increasing complexity of inspections
  • Loss of domain expertise from departing or retiring inspection experts
  • More demanding codes and standards
  • Constant drive for improved detection and productivity
  • Pressure to reduce asset downtime

The Mentor platform of connected NDT portables from GE features the latest developments in flaw detection, user interface and wireless connectivity. Today, asset owners and inspection companies can choose from a variety of digitally optimized GE instruments to meet their ultrasonic (UT), electromagnetic (EM)  and visual inspection (RVI) needs.

The most recent product innovation from GE is Mentor UT (www.mentorut.com), an ultrasonic array flaw detector optimized for corrosion and erosion mapping of process piping, tanks and vessels in the field. Mentor UT allows users to customize and download inspection applications (“Apps”) that guide users through inspection procedures, much like a smartphone app.

Tools such as Mentor UT will help the industry improve inspection productivity, reduce training costs, and provide excellent probability of detection, which reduces inspection time and helps get assets back online faster. Like GE’s other Mentor products the interface is an intuitive touch screen which makes it easier to adopt/get started with for the new generation of NDT inspectors.

“Corrosion and erosion are costly problems for Oil & Gas and Power Generation companies,” said Tim Humphrey, senior product line manager for portable inspection. “Mentor UT addresses this issue by providing a complete digital corrosion mapping solution for this application.”

Mentor UT provides excellent ultrasonic performance with the power of array corrosion mapping and a conventional UT channel. Guided inspection apps and the touch-screen interface improve inspector productivity, lower training costs and get new inspectors on-the-job faster.

Mentor UT will be on display at Control 2016 in Stuggart, April 26 – 29, at the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston on May 2 (booth 3765), at Corrosion Technology Day in Houston on May 5, and at the World NDT Conference on June 13, 2016 (booth B96).

Mentor UT is field-ready out of the box with inspection workflows already installed or available for wireless download from the InspectionWorks Store.

For more details about the GE Mentor UT and Mentor product line, please visit:www.gemeasurement.com.

About GE

GE (NYSE: GE) imagines things others don’t, builds things others can’t and delivers outcomes that make the world work better. GE brings together the physical and digital worlds in ways no other company can. In its labs and factories and on the ground with customers, GE is inventing the next industrial era to move, power, build and cure the world. www.ge.com

About GE Oil & Gas

GE Oil & Gas works on the things that matter in the oil and gas industry. In collaboration with our customers, we push the boundaries of technology to bring energy to the world. From extraction to transportation to end use, we address today's toughest challenges in order to fuel the future. Follow GE Oil & Gas on Twitter @GE_OilandGas.