Tieval Ltd
About us
Tieval was formed in England in 2013 to supply and maintain automated and semi-automated NDT inspection equipment, as well as offer technical support services and spares for more than thirty ultrasonic Rolls-Royce fan blade scanners located on four continents.
Since our inception, Tieval engineers have used their expertise to design, manufacture, calibrate & maintain a diverse range of automated and semi-automated NDT systems. These systems have been designed to inspect a variety of metallic and composite components, from flat sheets to complex double curved structures including:
• M430T Fan Blade Scanner – the only system approved for the in-service inspection of Rolls Royce Trent series fan blades, RB211 fan blades & IAE V2500 Fan Blades.
• TDS Disc Inspection System - 6 or 7 axis rotary ultrasonic immersion system fitted with a turntable up to 2m in diameter. The system has been designed to offer automated and semi-automated inspection of a variety of components and is compliant with major technical specifications.
• TRS Rectilinear Inspection System - 5 or 6 axis ultrasonic immersion system that has been designed to offer automated and semi-automated pulse-echo inspection of flat and curved composite components.
• TSS Shaft Inspection System – an ultrasonic immersion system with fully configurable automated axes and probe normalisation. The system has been designed to offer automated and semi-automated pulse-echo and through transmission inspection of metallic and composite rod, bar and tube.
• TJS Waterjet Inspection System - a multi-axis ultrasonic squirter system that has been designed to offer automated and semi-automated through transmission and pulse-echo inspection of curved and double curved composite components.
• Bespoke Inspection Systems - Our team of experts pride themselves on their ability to deliver everything from complete turnkey NDT solutions to bespoke tooling. Tieval has worked with industry leading manufacturers of metallic and composite components to deliver bespoke inspection systems meeting the most exacting requirements.
All Tieval systems are CE & UKCA marked and meet all territorial machinery directives. Our products are manufactured within the UK and designed and assembled on-site in our facility located in the Forest of Dean. Alongside system production, we also offer consultancy, retrofitting & refurbishment, software and training services for NDT systems of any age or manufacturer.
Our Research and Development engineers are focussed on the future, ensuring that continued advancement of our hardware and software remains at the forefront of what we do. Some of our recent and ongoing projects include:
• Improved kinematic calculations for enhanced contour-following capabilities for our range of immersion ultrasonic systems
• Improvements in detection and sensitivity in honeycomb fan blades, with lowered background noise
• Development of our own updated in-house pulser-receiver for use in composite and metallic component inspection
• Design and rapid prototyping of a 4 axis SCARA robotic arm, which will be capable of contour-following on complex geometry components
We are excited to take part in the UK Metals Expo 2026 both to talk to customers old and new and to launch our new range of R&D and education focused ultrasonic inspection systems On our stand you will find information about our range of services and inspection systems, friendly and experienced staff and a great range of ducks!
Products & services
M403T Fan Blade Scanner
Developed over 30 years the M403T fan blade scanner is the only system approved for the in-service inspection of Rolls Royce Trent series fan blades, RB211 fan blades & IAE V2500 Fan Blades. The M403T has been designed to offer automated, in-service ultrasonic inspection of aero-engine fan blades which is a key component of aircraft safety. The system, which requires minimal operator intervention, calibrates itself using a specialist test piece and uses the calibration information to assess the results of fan blade inspections. Entry of a fan blade serial number leads to the automatic generation of pass or fail results. The M403T fan blade scanner is currently capable of inspecting fan blades from the following engines: Trent 500 Trent 700 Trent 800 Trent 900 Trent 1000 Trent 7000 Trent XWB84 Trent XWB97 RB2-11 535 E4 RB2-11524 G&H IAE V2500
TDS Disc Inspection System
The TDS system is a 6 or 7 axis rotary ultrasonic immersion system fitted with a turntable up to 2m in diameter. The system has been designed to offer automated and semi-automated inspection of a variety of components and is compliant with major technical specifications. The TDS is a rotary ultrasonic immersion inspection system fitted with either 6 or 7 axes featuring turntable diameters up to 2m. This system has been specifically designed to meet major technical specifications, and as such boasts precision-engineered linear and rotary axes, high accuracy motors and gearboxes and is offered with a variety of integrated ultrasonic solutions. The system also features Tieval’s bespoke TiCore software and full remote pendant support. The system is capable of both rectilinear and rotary C-Scan inspection on metallic components with the following geometries: Sheet – single curved, double curved, sloped or flat Disc – single curved, double curved, sloped or flat Ring – single curved, double curved, sloped or flat Bar/Tube – subject to dimensions
TRS Rectilinear Inspection System
The TRS rectilinear inspection system is a 5 or 6 axis ultrasonic immersion system that has been designed to offer automated and semi-automated pulse-echo inspection of flat and curved composite components. As standard the TRS is compliant with major technical specifications. The TRS rectilinear inspection system is an ultrasonic immersion inspection system fitted with either 5 or 6 axes and a fully configurable glass flatbed. This system has been specifically designed to meet major technical specifications, and as such boasts precision engineered linear and rotary axes, high accuracy motors and gearboxes and is offered with a variety of integrated ultrasonic solutions. The system also features Tieval’s bespoke TiCore software and full remote pendant support. The system is suitable for pulse-echo C-Scan inspection on composite components with the following geometries: Sheet - single curved, double curved, sloped or flat Upon request the system can also be configured for through transmission C-scan inspection of composite components. Contact Tieval for further details.
TSS Shaft Inspection System
The TSS inspection system is ultrasonic immersion system with fully configurable automated axes and probe normalisation. The system has been designed to offer automated and semi-automated pulse-echo and through transmission inspection of metallic and composite rod, bar and tube. As standard the TSS is compliant with major technical specifications. The TSS inspection system is an ultrasonic immersion system with fully configurable automated axes and probe normalisation. The system has been designed to offer automated and semi-automated pulse-echo and through transmission inspection of metallic and composite rod, bar and tube. As standard the TSS is compliant with major technical specifications. Solid bar or rod – up to 500mm in diameter Tube – up to 500mm in diameter Contoured rod, bar or tube – up to 500mm in diameter Upon request the system can also be configured for through transmission C-scan inspection of composite components. Contact Tieval for further details.
TWS Web Inspection System
The TWS Web Inspection System is a 3-axis ultrasonic immersion system that has been designed to offer automated and semi-automated through transmission inspection of composite webs sandwiched between larger outer panels. The system has been tailored to scan hard to reach areas within composite structures and features polygonal scanning in addition to rectilinear scanning. The TWS is a 3-axis ultrasonic immersion system designed to offer automated and semi-automated through transmission inspection of composite panels in low access areas. This system has been designed by Tieval, and features precision engineered linear axes, high accuracy motors and gearboxes and is offered with a variety of integrated ultrasonic solutions. The system also features Tieval’s bespoke TiCore software and full remote pendant support. The system is capable of through transmission C-Scan inspection on composite components with the following geometries: Flat composite sheets Composite web structures sandwiched between larger panels Single curved composite sheets – upon request
TJS Waterjet Inspection System
The TJS Waterjet Inspection System is a multi-axis ultrasonic squirter system that has been designed to offer automated and semi-automated through transmission and pulse-echo inspection of curved and double curved composite components. The system is highly configurable and can be fitted with cartesian axes, robotic arms or automatic tool changing upon request. The TJS is a multi-axis ultrasonic squirter system designed to offer automated and semi-automated through transmission and pulse-echo inspection of composite panels. The TJS is fully configurable and can be offered with a multitude of options including number of axes, axis style (cartesian or robotic) and automatic tool changing. This system has been designed by Tieval, and features precision engineered linear axes, high accuracy motors and gearboxes and is offered with a variety of integrated ultrasonic solutions. The system also features Tieval’s bespoke TiCore software and full remote pendant support. The system is capable of through transmission and pulse-echo C-Scan inspection on composite components with the following geometries: Sheet - single curved, double curved, sloped or flat
Bespoke Inspection Systems
Tieval specialise in the design, manufacture, installation and worldwide support of automated and semi-automated NDT inspection systems. Our team of experts pride themselves on their ability to deliver everything from complete turnkey NDT solutions to bespoke tooling. Tieval has worked with industry leading manufacturers of metallic and composite components to deliver bespoke inspection systems meeting the most exacting requirements. Since opening in 2013 we have worked to maintain our reputation for meeting and exceeding customer expectations and are extremely proud of our customer feedback record. Tieval use various quality management systems and methodologies to ensure we stay relevant, up to date and competitive in an ever-changing world. We are BSI ISO 9001:2015 registered with the following scopes: The design, development and manufacture of ultrasonic inspection machines The provision of technical support services for ultrasonic inspection systems Our commitment to progress ensures that we are always engaged in new research and development projects. This not only involves developing new products and solutions, but also refining existing scanning solutions that are active in the field. Tieval have taken this approach when designing ultrasonic scanning software and have developed four proprietary software packages: TiView – Designed for ultrasonic inspection of Rolls Royce and IAE aeroengine fan blades TiCore – Designed for ultrasonic inspection of metallic and composite components TiMid – Designed to interface with legacy systems, such as those made by Midas NDT or Meccasonics TiVault – Designed for viewing and analysis C-scans on computers that are not integrated on Tieval systems For further information about our software please see the relevant software sections in ‘Our products and services’.
Calibration
Tieval specialise in on-site mechanical and ultrasonic calibration of automated NDT systems, as well as the calibration of standalone conventional ultrasonic, eddy current and ultrasonic thickness gauge sets. Annual equipment calibration services can be tailored to suit your needs and are often performed at your facility to avoid the potential damage involved in otherwise unnecessary transportation. Tieval are BSI ISO 9001:2015 registered with the following scopes: The design, development and manufacture of ultrasonic inspection machines The provision of technical support services for ultrasonic inspection systems Alongside this the equipment used during calibrations is UKAS certified annually and is therefore traceable to ISO/IEC 17025. Tieval regularly calibrate ultrasonic systems to a variety of major specifications. For a full list or further enquiries please contact Tieval.
Maintenance
Our team of experts are on hand to cover all aspects of automated and semi-automated NDT system maintenance. As well as individual maintenance operations, Tieval also offers worldwide TiCare service level agreements which are available for most equipment types and can be tailored to suit your individual needs. Example contract features include: calibration, preventative maintenance, breakdown cover, system updates, data retention, priority engineer availability and/or unlimited email and phone support. Tieval specialise in the ongoing maintenance and support of Meccasonics and Midas-NDT technologies. Tieval exclusively owns the design rights to all Midas-NDT electronics and software source code. This puts us in a unique position to be able to support these systems and maximise their productive lifespan. Tieval have experience in supporting inspection systems integrated with UTEX instruments and software, Socomate flaw detectors, CMS software packages and similar.
Refurbishment & Retrofitting
Tieval offers a refurbishment and retrofitting service for legacy inspection systems produced by Meccasonics or Midas NDT, as well as older Tieval systems. This helps to extend the longevity of older inspection systems and aims to improve the accuracy and reliability of these systems by employing newer generation technologies. Refurbishment - this service takes an existing system and repairs or replaces any worn or damaged parts ‘like-for-like’. This helps to extend system lifespan and aims to ensure the system runs as close to its original operation specification as possible. Retrofitting - this service aims to upgrade existing inspection systems utilising some of our newest inspection technologies. It aims to improve the specification of older machines and bring their inspection abilities in line with newer systems.
Consultancy
Tieval engineers have worked to some of the most exacting inspection requirements and can draw on unrivalled experience to offer consultancy in the design of systems and processes for a large range of applications. We also offer training and consultancy services in all areas of automated ultrasonic inspection and can work to assist customers in the design of specialist solutions for any requirement. Some examples of our work include: Composite Inspection - Tieval engineers have been involved in the development of numerous composite inspection processes and systems. Metallic Inspection - Tieval engineers have decades of experience designing high performance metallic inspection solutions. GLARE Inspection - Tieval engineers worked with the Technical University of Delft to develop inspection processes and systems for GLARE (Glass Re-Enforced Aluminium), the material used in the manufacture of the Airbus 380 fuselage. Fuel Rod Inspection - Tieval engineers developed a process for the inspection of nuclear fuel rods for the United Kingdom nuclear industry. The company created automated systems and processes to locate gas pores as small as 0.1mm diameter in welded fuel rods, whilst also quantifying all aspects of weld penetration. Fan Blade Inspection - Tieval engineers designed the system and processes for the in-service inspection of wide-chord fan blades. Aero-Engine Disc Inspection - Tieval engineers have developed advanced systems for the inspection of aero-engine discs that allow manual, semi-automatic and fully automated inspection of discs to most specifications. This has been replicated for shaft and bar inspection.
TiView Software
TiView has been developed by Tieval as a proprietary software package for the control, capture, manipulation and evaluation of the ultrasonic inspection data of aero engine fan blades. TiView has been refined over the last decade to provide unparalleled accuracy, consistency and ease of use. Some key features of TiView include: Auto-sentencing – All fan blade C-scans are auto-analysed and a pass or fail result is automatically delivered. Auto-calibration – In conjunction with the approved Rolls Royce & IAE calibration pieces TiView carries out automatic calibration, ensuring optimal indication detectability. Locate indications – during post-scan analysis operators have the option to move the transducers to the location of any detected indications. This is crucial for defect identification and marking. TiView is supplied in conjunction with all M403T fan blade scanners and is equipped with pre-programmed shape files for all approved Rolls Royce & IAE calibration pieces, as well as Trent series, RB211 & V2500 aero engine fan blades.
TiCore Software
TiCore is a state-of-the-art software suite developed in-house for control, capture, manipulation and evaluation of the ultrasonic inspection data of metallic and composite components. Developed specifically for the Windows™10 & 11 operating systems, TiCore utilises the most advanced facilities of modern-day personal computer hardware, providing ultra-fast performance when capturing and viewing scanned information. Some key features of TiCore are: Multiple scan types supported – Rectangle, polygonal, quadrilateral, disc and tube C-scans can be generated by TiCore on flat, sloped and contoured materials. In-software analysis – TiCore supports multiple scan filters, default and programmable palettes and various other scan analysis tools as standard. Full remote pendant support – TiCore supports the use of Trio Teach pendants for when remote system movement, A-scan viewing or scan programming is required.
TiVault Software
TiVault has been developed by Tieval as a proprietary software package for the viewing, manipulation and evaluation of any ultrasonic inspection data produced on inspection systems utilising any of Tieval’s software suites. TiVault can open all C-scan data files generated on Tieval software and apply a variety of scan filters, default and programmable palettes and various other scan analysis tools as standard.