Old School Detection
Simon Bladon
28/07/25
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Protovale once produced instrumentation, the “Imp”, that worked on mild and stainless steels, but they were taken over and their kit replaced by modern GPR, which in this instance doesn’t work. GPR, designed to detect at depth, cannot pick up the detail ‘staring it in the face’. The problem always was, and remains, detecting small targets, end on, within brickwork which may contain a multitude of magnetic components. And detecting stainless steel, which is much less magnetic just made NDT wall tie detection surveys a real pain and often pushed Technicians into dark and scary headspaces.
So, in the interests of minimising the risks of false negatives, we’re undertaking old fashioned intrusive surveys and checking for other, visual, indications of problems with the brickwork.
We can also record and advise the Client of other issues that also need, proactively, to be factored into their ongoing maintenance.
So, in the interests of minimising the risks of false negatives, we’re undertaking old fashioned intrusive surveys and checking for other, visual, indications of problems with the brickwork.
We can also record and advise the Client of other issues that also need, proactively, to be factored into their ongoing maintenance.
Following the collapse of the outer skin of brickwork at a school in Falkirk, CRL Surveys Scotland are now in the early stages of a £360k Project, checking for the presence, distribution, type, condition and fixity of wall ties in 58 of their schools and early learning centres. The results will enable targeted and prioritised, rather than ‘scatter gunned’, maintenance and remedial works.
However, wall ties have come in a multitude of types and materials and finding the pesky varmints is never easy.
However, wall ties have come in a multitude of types and materials and finding the pesky varmints is never easy.
