ASNT Seeks Industry Input on SNT-TC-1A

October 20, 2026

Title image: ASNT Chief Global Strategy Officer Paul Lang addressed a packed room at the follow-up Q&A session on SNT-TC-1A at ASNT 2026 on 13 October, where attendees asked questions and shared feedback on the review of the recommended practice.

For nearly 60 years, ASNT Recommended Practice No. SNT-TC-1A has given employers a trusted way to qualify their NDT technicians. At the 13 October general session at ASNT 2026 in Columbus, Ohio, ASNT Chief Global Strategy Officer Paul Lang and ASNT Board Director and Past President Clyde May asked the next question: How does the industry prove what a technician can do, not just how many hours they’ve logged?

They opened with an example. An employer-certified UT Level II technician may have 1680 hours of training and experience—a verified, auditable figure trusted across the industry. What those hours cannot show is how likely that technician is to find the flaw.

Clyde May, ASNT Board Director and Past President, spoke at the 13 October general session on SNT-TC-1A. He and Paul Lang invited the industry to help shape the next evolution of the recommended practice.

Measuring Hours, Not Ability

The speakers made it clear that SNT-TC-1A is not “wrong.” When it was first published in 1966, inspection performance was difficult to capture and compare, and counting hours was a practical workaround. Today’s tools, including recorded scans from phased array ultrasonic testing (PAUT) and digital radiography, allow performance to be reviewed and compared directly.

Careers have changed, too. Methods have split into many techniques, and technicians change employers more often, making a credential tied to one employer harder to carry. Practical examinations do not require a defined flaw population, difficulty range, or detection threshold, and recertification can rest on continued satisfactory performance rather than a repeat demonstration. Concerns about consistency, oversight, trust, and portability, they said, all trace back to one design choice: that the system measures inputs.

Three Pressures for Change

Why now? Lang and May described three pressures. First, the workforce: more than 39% of certified NDT personnel are over age 55, and only 11% are under 35, so new talent must become competent faster without lowering the bar. Second, technology: NDE 4.0, advanced modalities, automation, and robotics are changing the work. Third, confidence: employers, customers, and regulators increasingly expect traceable evidence of competence.

From Discussion to Review

The conversation is not new. ASNT’s 2022–2026 Strategic Plan prioritized a stronger certification portfolio, and the topic has been discussed at every Annual Conference since 2023 and covered in Materials Evaluation, leading to the August 2026 announcement of a comprehensive SNT-TC-1A review.

Preliminary findings from interviews and an industry survey show that 62% of respondents view the coming changes as a net positive. Only about one in three said that hours strongly predict on-the-job ability. Cost was a common concern, along with implementation and transition.

Dear Colleagues,

Thank you for joining us on Tuesday, 13 October, at ASNT 2026 in Columbus for the general session “Together We Lead: Redefining How NDT Skills and Performance Are Proven,” and for continuing the conversation at the afternoon Q&A follow-up session. The morning session was standing room only, and many of you joined the open session that afternoon. ASNT Board Director and Past President Clyde May and I were grateful for the energy, candor, and thoughtful questions you brought to both. I also had many in-depth conversations with attendees about the upcoming transition, including both their concerns and their excitement about what the future system will bring.

A special thank you to my fellow panelists in the afternoon session—Clyde May, Brian Frye, Marvin Trimm, and Michael V. McGloin—for leading a discussion that was open, practical, and grounded in real-world experience.

Your participation matters. The questions you asked, the experiences you shared from your own programs, and the recommendations you offered are being shared with the SNT-TC-1A transformation project group and will directly inform the next phase of this work.

The central question we put in front of you was a simple one: an inspector may have 1680 hours of training and experience, but how likely is that inspector to find the flaw? For nearly 60 years, we have excelled at documenting program inputs such as training hours, experience, examinations, and certifications. The challenge before us now is showing how well those inputs reflect real-world inspection performance. We discussed—and many throughout the week echoed—the “three clocks” now running at the same time:

  • Workforce: Experienced inspectors are retiring, and we must develop new talent faster without compromising competence.

  • Technology: Phased array, full matrix capture, digital radiography, computed tomography, and AI are changing the work, and qualification must keep pace with the methods and tasks people perform.

  • Confidence: Customers need evidence that an inspector can reliably detect the defects that matter, not simply that a qualification was issued.

These are real clocks measuring real events happening in our industry.

The SNT-TC-1A transformation project is about strengthening trust in NDT, not diminishing the value of experience. The direction we discussed is a path from accumulated hours to demonstrated competence to sustained performance.

This work is grounded in evidence. Emily Wenstrom, Senior Vice President of Stanton Communications, recently presented key findings from the SNT-TC-1A Key Insights Report to the ASNT Board of Directors. Those findings, together with the Industry Feedback Survey, subject matter expert submissions, and your input in Columbus, are informing the Board’s ongoing discussions about transforming SNT-TC-1A and the future of NDT personnel qualification.

We also heard you clearly on one point: many of you wanted more “meat on the bone” about the new framework and what the initial requirements will look like. That is a fair concern, and we appreciate you raising it. The limited detail was deliberate. ASNT is gathering industry evidence before deciding how to modernize SNT-TC-1A, and we did not want to present a finished model before hearing from the people who will use it. As the work moves from Listening & Research into the Framework & Resources phase, specifics on structure, requirements, guidance, and templates will take shape, and we will share them with you as they develop. Transition guidance and effective dates will be published well before any new requirement applies.

What will not change is just as important. SNT-TC-1A remains employer-based, the written practice remains at the center of your program, current qualifications remain valid, and employer flexibility and the role of the Level III remain central.

That last point deserves emphasis. The transition and execution of a modernized SNT-TC-1A will rely on our Level IIIs. You are the ones who will update written practices, design and administer demonstrations of competence, and guide your organizations through the change. We need you involved now, while the framework is being built, not after it is finished. Please keep sharing your perspective, encourage your peers to engage, and consider volunteering your expertise as the framework is developed, validated, and piloted.

Thank you again for your time, insight, and commitment to our profession. Please stay connected and involved by visiting the ASNT SNT-TC-1A resource page often for the latest updates, resources, and opportunities to participate.

With appreciation,
Paul Lang
ASNT Chief Global Strategy Officer

What Comes Next

The speakers stressed that the project is still in the discovery phase. Industry input and the SNT-TC-1A Committee will shape the final document. There is no predetermined move to third-party certification, and SNT-TC-1A is planned to remain an employer-based program. The review is also separate from the 2028 edition, which is on track for on-time or early release and will carry forward ASNT’s oversight role from the 2024 Addendum.

ASNT will form subject-matter expert groups to review each method and section of SNT-TC-1A, followed by an open industry comment period. Sign-up details and a full timeline will be shared soon.

A full house turned out at ASNT 2026 to weigh in on the future of SNT-TC-1A. Your voice belongs in this conversation, so stay tuned for opportunities to get involved.

Stay current on ASNT’s efforts to modernize SNT-TC-1A.

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