Digital transformation of nondestructive inspection systems is inevitable. Pursuit of this opportunity amid uncertainty makes “a well-defined purpose” and “robust process” essential. This conversation will provide an overview of the purpose of NDE 4.0 (why?), underlying technologies (what?), and ways to overcome the challenges (how?) to successfully pursue the confluence of emerging digital technologies with the evolving physical world of nondestructive inspection.

The speakers’ objective is to inspire readers, leaders, and the community to address the next revolution in this new digital-physical confluence in nondestructive evaluation, with a purpose toconcurrently enhance safety and bring economic value to stakeholders of the inspection ecosystem. System-level integration of digital technologies such as machine learning, extended reality, artificial intelligence, and automation will create a platform where specific applications can evolve to make inspections more reliable and cost-effective.

The NDE 4.0 revolution can be compared to the development of the smartphone where the integration of wi-fi, processor, memory, GPS, camera, display, and a bunch of other sensors has completely changed the world in 10 years, in ways that were not originally perceived. Such is the exponential power of digital-physical integration in NDT. We cannot predict all of the changes, but we must prepare and work through the challenges associated with technology integration and adoption for nondestructive testing and evaluation.