Advanced Integrated Technologies, LLC, a Norfolk-based ship repair and maintenance company, announced that it has acquired the East coast business unit of Maintenance and Inspection Services, a North Carolina company. This acquisition expands the AIT’s capabilities in the areas of Quality Assurance and Non-Destructive Testing, also known as NDT.
“Modern ship inspection and repair services require highly specialized skills and equipment, particularly those required to meet technical standards for the U.S. Navy and other maritime customers,” explained the company’s president Carl Spraberry. “This acquisition allows AIT to keep more of the critical inspection and test functions in-house, and allows us to offer NDT services to other companies that either don’t have their own test team or that require third party testing.”
Welding standards for the maritime industry are famously demanding, due to the harsh conditions that Navy and commercial ships encounter. “When you are involved in defense operations, you need to know that your ship’s welds are going to stay together,” Spraberry said. “Critical welds, such as those that hold sections of the ship’s structure and hull together, are tested with a variety of non-invasive methods. These can include use of electromagnetic waves, ultrasound, and dye penetrant. These tests are, a very efficient method of ensuring structural quality of any component or system and give the ship’s owner the assurance that a ship is properly constructed and maintained.”
Advanced Integrated Technologies was founded by Spraberry, a retired Navy surface warfare officer and service-disabled veteran, in 2009. Since then, they have grown quickly and expanded their installation and repair services for ships and submarines to include parts fabrication, chemical cleaning, non-destructive testing, and skilled labor support. They also offer a line of products designed to reduce power-consumption aboard ship, both at sea and in-port.
For additional information on AIT and Non-Destructive Testing visit www.ait-marine.com.