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Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) refers to a method in which, without damaging or affecting the service performance of the object being tested, and without harming its internal structure, changes in physical phenomena such as heat, sound, light, electricity, and magnetism caused by abnormalities or defects within the material’s structure are utilized. Using physical or chemical methods along with modern technologies and equipment, this method enables the inspection and testing of the internal and surface structures, properties, states, as well as the type, nature, quantity, shape, location, size, distribution, and evolution of defects in the test specimen. Compared to destructive testing, non-destructive testing has the following 3 main characteristics: 01 Non-destructive: It allows for the inspection of test specimens without compromising the functional performance of the objects being inspected ； 02 Comprehensiveness: When necessary, a 100% comprehensive inspection of the object being tested can be conducted; this is something that destructive testing cannot achieve ； 03 Completeness: Destructive testing is generally applicable only to the inspection of raw materials; for standardized products produced in bulk, sampling inspections must be carried out ； Non-destructive testing can inspect various stages of the product manufacturing process, up to the point where the finished product is thoroughly tested. Due to its characteristics of non-destructiveness, compatibility, dynamism, and rigor, non-destructive testing has now become an essential and effective tool in industrial development, reflecting to a certain extent the level of industrial advancement in a given country. Currently, the commonly used non-destructive testing methods include five main categories: ultrasonic testing (UT), radiographic testing (RT), magnetic particle testing (MT), penetrant testing (PT), and eddy current testing (ET). These methods are widely applied in downstream industries such as special equipment, rail transit, armaments, nuclear power, aerospace, and energy and power. The application of non-destructive testing technology has spread across all aspects of China’s economic development and people’s daily lives, ranging from aircraft and satellites to everyday household items. It plays a crucial role in various key industries of the national economy, serving as an important means to ensure and improve product quality, and reflecting the level of development of the national economy. According to the \"Development Roadmap for Non-Destructive Testing\" compiled by the Chinese Society of Mechanical Engineering, the value increase of products in various industries after the implementation of non-destructive testing is as follows: about 5% for mechanical products, 12%~18% for products in the defense, aerospace, and nuclear energy sectors, and around 20% for rockets. Market Overview of the Non-Destructive Testing Industry: With the rapid development of the global economy, the application areas of the non-destructive testing industry continue to expand, and its market size has also maintained a fast growth trend. Statistical data show that the global Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) market was worth approximately 8.3 billion dollars in 2018, and it is expected to reach 12.6 billion dollars by 2024; ultrasonic testing will account for the largest share of this market. The market size for ultrasound testing (UT) in 2016 was 2.44 billion dollars; it is expected to grow to 3.93 billion dollars by 2022, with a compound annual growth rate of 8.3% from 2016 to 2022. Currently, the United States has the highest consumption in the ultrasonic non-destructive testing market; in 2015, it accounted for approximately 35.6% of the global non-destructive testing equipment market ； Next is Europe, which accounts for about 26.5% of the total market volume. In recent years, due to the rapid development of infrastructure and the continuous improvement in manufacturing automation in the Asia-Pacific region, countries such as China, India, Japan, and South Korea have **become the main drivers of growth in the global non-destructive testing market, accounting for approximately 24.2% of the total market volume. Overall, the global non-destructive testing industry has maintained steady growth. Meanwhile, with the rapid advancement of automatic control technology, computer technology, and sensor technology, non-destructive testing techniques have entered an era of information processing driven by computer control. Striving to enhance the reliability of inspections, efforts are being made to achieve a smooth transition from non-destructive testing (NDT) to non-destructive evaluation (NDE). In recent years, ultrasonic testing, as a representative of advanced non-destructive testing technologies, has taken the lead in the process of modernization, and is currently advancing toward digitalization, automation, intelligence, and imaging technologies. Compared to developed Western countries, the testing industry in China has a relatively short history of development. In the 1980s, in order to meet the needs of reform and opening up as well as the development of a market economy, and to promote the growth of domestic industries, the government formulated regulations regarding technical standards, norms, and qualification assessment procedures. It also took steps to encourage the establishment of standardization organizations, testing and inspection institutions, certification bodies, and similar entities across various industries. Since China’s accession to the WTO, under the dual influence of competition from foreign testing institutions and the growing demand for testing services driven by China’s rapid economic development, China’s testing industry has entered a phase of rapid growth. According to data released by the China Certification and Accreditation Association, as of the end of 2019, there were 44,007 testing and inspection institutions in China, with 1.2847 million employees, representing increases of 11.49% and 9.4% respectively compared to the previous year ； A total of 527 million various inspection and testing reports were issued to society, generating revenue of 322.509 billion yuan, representing increases of 23.13% and 14.75% respectively compared to the previous year. At the same time, the number of various instruments and equipment available in testing institutions in our country is also on a steady upward trend year by year. By the end of 2019, such institutions had a total of 7.108 million units/set of various instruments and equipment, representing a year-on-year increase of 12.16%. As one of the important methods for inspection and testing, non-destructive testing has entered a period of rapid development with the further advancement of China’s economic reform and opening up. Among them, the application of ultrasonic non-destructive testing is continuously expanding; ultrasonic testing is widely used for the inspection of metal materials and components, covering almost all downstream industrial sectors such as special equipment, rail transport, energy and power, steel metallurgy, aerospace, and nuclear power. With the continuous economic growth of our country, the basic research and application levels of non-destructive testing technology in China have seen rapid development and improvement as these testing/monitoring challenges are addressed. In this process, not only has a comprehensive system of non-destructive testing technologies and standards been established, but a systematic and standardized framework for the training and assessment of technical personnel has also been developed. At present, the level of non-destructive testing technology in our country is sufficient to independently address the vast majority of technical challenges in all domestic engineering projects, and it enables the development of most common non-destructive testing equipment and instruments. Our country has thus become a key force in international non-destructive testing standards and academic research. According to the Development Roadmap for Non-Destructive Testing, China currently has over 300,000 professionals who are directly engaged in or work on technologies related to industrial non-destructive testing. There are approximately 2,000 inspection and testing agencies that provide non-destructive testing services, while more than 20,000 machinery manufacturing and installation companies have their own non-destructive testing teams. The cost of non-destructive testing accounts for 1% to 50% of the cost of products, and the annual sales of instruments and technical services in this industry exceed 10 billion yuan. In recent years, with the transformation and upgrading of China’s traditional industries, emerging sectors have experienced rapid growth, giving rise to new materials, new structures, and new industries that provide continuous opportunities for development in the non-destructive testing industry. At the same time, although the overall level and comprehensive strength of domestic enterprises have improved significantly, they hold an important position in the world in terms of the fundamental theories of non-destructive testing, technology development, instrument design and manufacturing, as well as product application. However, in the manufacturing of some high-end non-destructive testing instruments, there is still a certain gap compared to developed countries such as Europe and the United States; for example, in the field of full-focus phased array ultrasonic testing, imported international brands are still widely used. According to data from China’s customs, the import volume of non-destructive testing equipment (excluding probes and accessories) in China from 2017 to 2020 was as follows: Driven by the rapid annual increase in the import volume of ultrasonic flaw detection instruments, the import volume of non-destructive testing equipment in China has shown a continuous upward trend in recent years. The proportion of ultrasonic flaw detection instruments among such equipment has also increased over time; the respective proportions from 2017 to 2020 were 43.68%, 45.28%, 50.66%, and 46.98%. Specifically in terms of ultrasonic non-destructive testing equipment, according to data from China’s customs, from 2017 to 2020, the import value of such equipment in China (customs code: 90318031, excluding probes and accessories) was 489.2802 million yuan, 685.3443 million yuan, 833.8245 million yuan, and 698.1916 million yuan respectively. The import volume increased rapidly year by year, indicating ample potential for domestic substitution of imported products. Industry competition landscape: 1. High industry barriers and moderate market competition, with competition primarily focused on technology. The ultrasonic non-destructive testing industry is a technology-intensive sector that requires high levels of specialized expertise and advanced technological skills; it involves various fields such as acoustics, automation, computer science, and materials science. In the field of ultrasound testing equipment, parameters such as the stability of the testing instruments, detection rate, signal-to-noise ratio, bandwidth, and imaging quality, as well as requirements related to ultrasound transducers such as the number of channels, detection frequency, wedge angle, and number of crystals, all determine whether a product is competitive. Improving these performance metrics involves specialized knowledge from various fields including materials science, mechanics, circuit design, and industrial automation; it also requires companies to invest significant funds and time in research and development, necessitating long-term technical accumulation on their part. Therefore, the ultrasound non-destructive testing industry has high barriers to entry, few market participants, and relatively mild competition. Non-destructive testing is an important means of ensuring and improving product quality, and downstream industries use ultrasonic testing equipment to ensure the stability of product quality and performance. Therefore, the main factor customers consider when choosing ultrasonic testing equipment is whether it can meet diverse testing requirements; moreover, with the continuous emergence of new materials, new structures, and new processes, specialization and customization have become characteristics of non-destructive testing equipment. Therefore, competition in this industry is primarily based on technological aspects; the ability to provide comprehensive, lossless solutions tailored to the specific characteristics and varying needs of customers, along with the corresponding product support capabilities, has become the core competitive advantage. 2. The competitiveness of domestic manufacturers continues to grow; however, foreign companies still dominate the high-end product segment. With the continuous development of the non-destructive testing industry, the overall level and comprehensive capabilities of domestic enterprises have significantly improved. They now occupy an important position globally in areas such as basic theories of non-destructive testing, technology development, instrument design and development, and product application. Due to constraints such as funding, technology, R&D capabilities, and brand strength, domestic non-destructive testing companies are generally small in scale, with a relatively limited product range. In terms of the technical level and quality stability of high-end products like fully focused phased array ultrasonic testing equipment, there is still a gap compared to foreign companies. According to data from China’s customs statistics, the import volume of high-end non-destructive testing equipment in China has been on the rise. In 2019 and 2020, the value of such equipment imported into China (excluding accessories such as probes) was 1.646 billion yuan and 1.486 billion yuan respectively. Among this, the import value of ultrasonic flaw detection instruments was 834 million yuan in 2019 and 698 million yuan in 2020; this figure increased by 21.68% in 2019 compared to 2018. In 2020, it declined due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, but still remained at a relatively high level. As domestic enterprises continue to increase investments in various areas, improve their production processes, enhance their R&D capabilities, and upgrade product performance, they are now directly competing with foreign manufacturers in the mid- to high-end market. In the future, gradually replacing some of the market share currently occupied by foreign products will become one of the market trends for China’s non-destructive testing industry. Opportunities for the industry: 1**Sustained support from industrial policies – Since 2016, various industrial policy guidelines have been revised, including the \"Guidance Catalogue for Key Products and Services in Strategic Emerging Industries (2016 edition)\", the \"Classification of Strategic Emerging Industries (2018)\", and the \"Guidance Catalogue for Industrial Structure Adjustment (2019 edition)\". All these documents specify that testing and inspection instruments should be included among the key products or services in strategic emerging industries. At the same time, the State Council and the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine have successively introduced a series of strategic plans and policy measures such as \"Made in China 2025\", the Development Plan for Strategic Emerging Industries during the 13th Five-Year Plan Period, the 13th Five-Year Plan for Improving Quality and Brands, and the Guiding Opinions of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council on Carrying Out Quality Improvement Initiatives. These plans also list \"fully leveraging the efficiency of quality infrastructure\" as one of the four main goals for improving the quality of supply, in order to promote supply-side reform. They specify that quality infrastructure systems such as metrology, standards, inspection and testing, and certification should operate in a complete and efficient manner, with further improvements in technical levels and service capabilities; this will enhance international competitiveness and provide stronger support for scientific and technological progress, industrial upgrading, social governance, and foreign exchanges. 2. The national economy continues to develop rapidly. China has become the world’s second-largest economy and is currently undergoing a transformation from a major manufacturing country to a strong manufacturing powerhouse. With the further implementation of supply-side reforms, the national economy continues to improve. Industrial restructuring is progressing steadily, and traditional industries are gradually completing their transformation and upgrading, moving toward more high-end development ； Meanwhile, resources such as labor and capital are converging toward advanced manufacturing industries, which directly spurs the rapid development of key sectors including aerospace, automotive, high-speed rail, shipbuilding, and rail transit. New materials, structures, and processes continue to emerge, thereby driving an increasing demand for ultrasonic testing equipment. According to statistics from the “Roadmap for the Development of Non-Destructive Testing”, following the implementation of non-destructive testing, the value added to products across various industries is as follows: approximately 5% for mechanical products; 12%–18% for defense, aerospace, and nuclear energy products; and around 20% for rockets. Therefore, the ultrasonic non-destructive testing industry will serve **strategic basic industries and emerging industries**, and also promote the sustainable development of **other industries**. 3 The continuous improvement of industry quality standards is a prerequisite for the development of ultrasonic testing; subsequent progress relies on the support of standard and evaluation systems. Currently, **efforts are being made to expedite the development of relevant regulations and improve the industry and sectoral standard systems**. Additionally, reforms regarding mandatory new standards are being promoted, with the aim of enhancing the effectiveness, advancement, and applicability of technical standards and testing equipment, such as ultrasonic phased array technology. In January 2016, the **Energy Bureau revised the industrial standard \"Ultrasonic Phased Array and Multi-Probe Testing for Welded Joints in Operational Oil and Gas Pipelines,\" specifying the requirements for using ultrasonic phased array and multi-probe testing systems to inspect and assess the quality of circumferential welded joints, angular welded joints, and pipe-making welded joints in operational oil and gas pipelines ； In February 2016, the standard **\"Non-Destructive Testing – Ultrasonic Testing – Phased Array Ultrasonic Testing Methods\" was released** ； In March 2019, CGN Group announced that phased array ultrasonic testing technology would be used in place of radiographic testing for the inspection of statutory welds in the conventional island of the Yangjiang Nuclear Power Plant; this made Yangjiang Nuclear Power Plant the first nuclear power plant in China to use phased array ultrasonic testing technology exclusively for its conventional island ； In May 2020, the Sinochem Quanzhou million-ton ethylene project used ultrasonic phased array equipment to perform non-destructive testing on the welds of large-diameter pipes with outer diameters ranging from 508 millimeters to 1.93 meters; this was the first time that ultrasonic phased array technology was employed in a domestic petrochemical project to replace radiographic testing ； In August 2021, the industry standard for ultrasonic phased-array testing of pressure equipment, namely \"Non-destructive testing of pressure equipment – Part 15: Phased-array ultrasonic testing\", was approved by the **Energy Administration and put into official use. The continuous improvement of standard systems in various fields will gradually meet and expand the market demand for ultrasonic testing equipment in existing application areas, thereby promoting better development of the industry. 4. Continuous improvement in quality and safety awareness: With the rapid economic development in China, the construction of major projects and large-scale infrastructure is advancing by leaps and bounds. For example, **long-distance natural gas pipelines and gas distribution networks, large-scale petrochemical facilities and storage tanks, power generation units with capacities of millions of kilowatts, third-generation nuclear reactors, and high-speed rail networks have been put into use one after another. The construction of the aforementioned major projects and infrastructure **has promoted China’s economic development and the improvement of people’s living standards, but it has also given rise to significant public safety risks. In 2013, an explosion occurred in one of the oil transport pipelines of the Sinopec Huangwei Oil Pipeline in Huangdao District, Qingdao, Shandong, resulting in multiple deaths and significant economic losses ； In November 2017, an safety accident occurred at the Urumqi Petrochemical Refinery of CNPC during heat exchanger maintenance work, which also resulted in multiple deaths and had a significant impact ； In 2021, a gas explosion occurred in Shiyan, Hubei, resulting in significant human casualties and economic losses. The continuous occurrence of serious safety accidents has drawn **high attention from relevant authorities to the safety of the general public. Product quality reflects a company’s overall strength and represents its core competitive advantage, which will create a favorable environment for the development of the non-destructive testing industry. 5. The trend toward import substitution driven by self-reliance and control: With the continuous development of the non-destructive testing industry, domestic enterprises have seen a significant improvement in their overall capabilities and strength. Great progress has been made in areas such as the fundamental theories of non-destructive testing, technology development, instrument design and manufacturing, as well as product application, thereby laying a solid technical foundation for domestic products to replace imported ones. According to statistics from China’s customs regarding imports of non-destructive testing equipment (excluding supporting products such as scanning devices and probes), the amount spent on importing such equipment in China has been on the rise; the import values in 2019 and 2020 were 1.646 billion yuan and 1.486 billion yuan respectively. As global trade disputes and frictions increase, various sectors of the national economy as well as enterprises are becoming more aware of the critical importance of mastering core products and manufacturing technologies, as well as of the risk that normal production processes could be controlled by others. In particular, there is a growing demand for self-sufficiency in key instruments and equipment used in areas such as aerospace, nuclear power, and defense industries, which supports cutting-edge research and development. This creates significant opportunities for domestic manufacturers to develop their own products and fill the resulting gaps. Compared with international leading companies, domestic manufacturers of ultrasonic testing equipment are smaller in scale. With the continuous economic growth in China, as well as structural adjustments and upgrades in the industry, the demand for non-destructive testing services in the country is on the rise. International leaders in the production of non-destructive testing equipment, such as Baker Hughes and Olympus from the United States, are intensifying their efforts to expand their market presence. Leveraging their advantages in terms of internationalization, scale, comprehensiveness, professionalism, and market orientation, these companies are increasingly becoming key players in China’s ultrasonic testing equipment market, exerting significant competitive pressure on domestic firms. Although domestic enterprises have developed rapidly in recent years, they still fall short of international leading companies in terms of technical level, product variety, and scale. In particular, foreign companies maintain a dominant position in certain high-end testing instruments, which limits the opportunities for domestic enterprises to expand and has an adverse effect on the growth of their business scale as well as the improvement of their technical capabilities. There is a shortage of talent and technical expertise. The ultrasonic non-destructive testing industry is highly technical, involving various fields such as acoustics, automation, computer science, and materials science. The training of technical professionals requires practical experience, and since domestic companies are generally small in scale, it is difficult for them to build up sufficient numbers of technical staff in a short period of time. In addition, phased array ultrasonic testing equipment requires a high level of theoretical knowledge from operators. Operators must not only possess general knowledge of ultrasonics, but also have an understanding of the physics related to acoustic field deflection and focusing, as well as knowledge of relevant digital technologies and digital image processing techniques. Furthermore, they must undergo intensive training to master the skills needed to operate the testing equipment and obtain the necessary qualifications. Therefore, a lack of talent and technical expertise can hinder the widespread adoption of phased array ultrasonic testing. Future development trends in non-destructive testing: Driven by Industry 4.0, there are higher demands for the research and application of ultrasonic non-destructive testing technologies, which also bring about new opportunities for development. To meet the requirements for inspection and testing in the fields of intelligent industrial equipment, high-quality manufacturing, and highly reliable applications, ultrasonic non-destructive testing technologies and equipment are evolving toward specialization and precision, automation, fully unmanned operation throughout the process, and intelligent data management. 01 Specialization and precision: With the increasing diversity, complexity, and variety of inspection environments and objects to be inspected, single-purpose inspection equipment or generalized inspection methods can no longer meet all customer needs. It is necessary to conduct customized research on specialized inspection processes, methods, and technical standards tailored to specific objects under inspection. Additionally, dedicated inspection standards and equipment must be developed to align with the full-lifecycle inspection requirements of particular material structures. This will enable precise detection of various defects, as well as the standardization of process parameters, procedures, and equipment. Therefore, developing customized testing methods and equipment to meet the specific testing requirements of particular customers will be a trend in ultrasonic non-destructive testing, and it is also an effective way to expand the scope of application of ultrasonic testing and increase its technical value. Currently, leading companies in this industry typically adopt a case-based service model to provide customers with customized complete NDT systems; they conduct joint research tailored to specific customer needs, and offer specialized NDT equipment or technologies. 02 Automation and intelligence are the goals of the development of “Industry 4.0”. The foundation of intelligent inspection is the automation of non-destructive testing and the evaluation of test results. With the development of industrial automation and intelligence, industries in various downstream sectors require automated non-destructive testing of various specific precision components, leading to an increasing demand for automated inspection equipment. Automated inspection equipment integrates multiple fields, including ultrasonic phased array inspection instruments or ultrasonic cards, inspection methods, ultrasonic transducers and scanning devices, mechanical transmission, automated control, and automated robots. It utilizes mechanical devices to hold the ultrasonic transducer and the workpiece to be inspected; an electrical control system then governs the scanning process. This setup enables automation of various processes, such as setting of inspection parameters, excitation control, detection control, scan imaging control, data management, as well as analysis and evaluation of inspection results. 03 Automation: At present, China relies on imports for key components and high-end equipment related to new non-destructive testing technologies. The performance of some testing devices that have been developed through independent integration also depends on the performance of foreign components, which imposes limitations in terms of design flexibility, integrability, testing accuracy, and degree of automation. Foreign complete sets of testing equipment are generally expensive, have long delivery times, and are prone to being subject to foreign policy embargoes or restrictions, which has become a major factor hindering the development of non-destructive testing technology in China toward automation and intelligence. To better meet the domestic demand for non-destructive testing technology and equipment, and to promote future research, application, and development, it is necessary to achieve self-sufficiency in core components, core algorithms, and high-end equipment. 04 Development toward big data analysis for in-service monitoring and inspection: With the advancement of communication technologies and Internet of Things technologies, ultrasonic in-service monitoring has been first applied in fields such as the petrochemical industry and pressure vessels. A large amount of monitoring data can directly reflect the failure processes of structures during their operational life, and the aggregation and processing of this data represent an effective means of predicting failures and enhancing the safety of structural use ； On the other hand, studying the extent to which the numerous defects detected by ultrasonic testing affect structural safety serves as an important basis for material selection in industrial design departments. As the size of defects that can be detected by ultrasonic testing becomes increasingly small, it is a future development trend in ultrasonic non-destructive testing to study damage assessment after defect detection and to establish relevant databases.