Development of the NDT Railway Certification Program (W.S. cert)

In 2010, W.S. Werkstoff Service GmbH underwent an assessment by the DGZfP’s “NDT in the Railway Industry” Technical Committee and the regulatory authority (EBA), and was recognized as a technically competent body that same year.

Since 2010, we have audited more than 100 workshops in 18 European countries and granted certifications in accordance with DIN 27201-7.

The NDT accreditation process, which was carried out over many years by the relevant technical authorities, was essentially a certification process, as it includes:

• Evaluation of the conformity of NDT processes with normative requirements through an on-site assessment.
• Systematic collection of information (collection of objective evidence of compliance) based on a checklist, in particular through review of documents, interviews with NDT personnel, and observation of the practical implementation of NDT in the workshop.
• If there are any deviations from the regulatory requirements: Identify and implement corrective actions, and conduct follow-up on-site audits as needed.
• Preparation of a report on the review conducted by the reviewer.
  Evaluation of the review results in the report and decision by a second person who is not the same as the reviewer (dual-review principle).
• Confirmation of approval by sending a certificate of approval to the repair shop.
• Monitoring of compliance through regular inspections—in the case of W.S. Werkstoff Service GmbH, these take place midway through the three-year accreditation period.
• Re-recognition after the recognition period has expired.

Following the revision of DIN 27201-7 in 2014, the standard no longer provides for the concept of a technically competent body or, consequently, for the accreditation of workshops by such a body. Likewise, accreditation by independent third parties (DGZfP, EBA) no longer exists.

However, the newly established ECMs (see EU Regulation 445/2011) must demonstrate the conformity of their NDT processes as part of their facility assessment, as must facilities seeking their own certification. From the perspective of the market and interested parties, a competent third-party body is helpful and desirable for this demonstration of conformity.