We know that NDT is the industry working behind-the-scenes to keep so many other industries running. But even within NDT, there are sectors that don’t get a lot of attention, even though they are critical to our communities and our homes.

At ASNT 2025, we sat down with Austin Picano, an ASNT NDT Level III in UT, to talk about his presentation on NDT of wastewater infrastructure—not only the methods and technologies used, but also why we shouldn’t take this important sector for granted.

Concrete, Corrosion, and Confined Spaces

Many people in NDT are familiar with the methods and techniques used to inspect steel, but wastewater infrastructure requires a different approach since many of the pipes are made from concrete.

Austin's team uses a range of techniques to assess concrete, including visual testing, impact echo tests, impulse response, and electromagnetic methods. For steel and ductile iron pipes (which are also used in wastewater infrastructure), spot UT measurements help track whether a pipe is degrading faster or slower than the expected decay curve.

Drones and ROVs

Wastewater pipes can be enormous—60, 70, even 96 inches in diameter—which means inspectors have physically fit inside them in the past. But confined spaces present safety risks, including exposure to hydrogen sulfide gas.

Austin shared the growing role of drones and remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) to overcome some of these challenges. Today, submersible ROVs can navigate pipes that can't be fully dewatered, functioning like miniature submarines to capture visual data. It's safer, faster, and increasingly capable as technology matures.

NDT Doesn’t Just Prevent Failures—It Saves Money

The impact of functioning wastewater infrastructure is obvious; it impacts our homes, our workplaces, and our environment. But the importance of NDT in this sector is not just in keeping our pipes flowing. When NDT helps extend the operational life of a wastewater asset by five or ten years, the savings get passed through to ratepayers.

It's one of the core value propositions of NDT that applies across every industry it touches, but it's especially visible in the public utility space, where the connection between asset management and consumer cost is direct.

Austin's goal with his ASNT 2025 presentation was simple: he wanted at least one person in the room to find a connection between his NDT work and their own. The fundamentals of NDT—clean surfaces, calibrated instruments, careful interpretation—apply whether you're inspecting a jet turbine or a concrete sewer pipe. And the impact is just as significant.

This post is based on a conversation recorded for the Chat NDT with ASNT podcast. Listen to the full episode to hear Austin's firsthand stories from the field, including his first visit to a wastewater treatment plant and what it's like to stand inside a 96-inch outfall pipe.