Overview
NDTScan provides concrete scanning in Compton as part of its core Berkshire coverage. The company is based in Oxford and led by Neil Smuts, who carries out and interprets the surveys himself rather than passing the data to a back office. For Compton clients that means one accountable specialist from the first call to the final report.
In Compton the local context is clear enough: the former Institute for Animal Health research campus, a large site under redevelopment. Across West Berkshire the recurring need is the same: to know exactly what is inside a concrete element before anyone drills, cores, cuts or specifies a repair.
Most scanning companies stop at marks on the surface. NDTScan does not. Every Compton survey goes through careful office post-processing, where reflections are analysed, ambiguities resolved and the interpretation checked against the drawings and the element's history. The result is a record the client can design from, defend in a dispute and hand to an auditor.
NDTScan will always say this to a Compton client considering repairs: scan first. A repair specified without a proper survey and an expert interpretation is a repair to a guess. The survey establishes what is really there, so the engineer can design for the structure that exists rather than the one on the drawings.
Scan before you repair. That is the standing advice for every Compton client, and the reason NDTScan reports what the concrete contains before anyone specifies what to do about it.
Services Available in Compton
- GPR Concrete Scanning Pre-drill and pre-coring surveys, rebar and mesh mapping, post-tensioned tendon detection, void and honeycombing detection, slab thickness and cover estimation and RAAC identification. Method and antenna selected for the Compton element in question, with the full interpreted record supplied.
- Ultrasonic Testing of Concrete Ultrasonic pulse velocity testing for uniformity and quality assessment, pulse echo for thickness and delamination where only one face is accessible, and the combined SONREB method for compressive strength estimation. Used across Berkshire where GPR alone cannot answer the question.
- Concrete Compressive Strength Assessment Rebound hammer surveys, UPV combined method and managed core extraction with laboratory testing to BS EN 13791. Independent reporting suitable for engineering acceptance, building control and dispute work on Compton structures.
Typical Compton Projects
Around Compton the instructions NDTScan receives are shaped by education buildings, including RAAC identification and pre-drill scans in occupied blocks and redevelopment sites where existing slabs and frames must be understood before design work starts. Alongside those sit the constants of every Berkshire town: pre-drill and pre-coring scans on occupied buildings, post-tensioned slab investigation before any fixing or penetration, RAAC identification in schools and public buildings, and structural investigation before repair.
NDTScan also covers Chieveley, East Ilsley and Hermitage and the rest of West Berkshire. Every one of these areas is reached from the Oxford base without a subcontractor in the chain.
About NDTScan
NDTScan is a specialist non-destructive testing company based in Oxford and led by Neil Smuts. Its core disciplines are GPR concrete scanning, ultrasonic testing and in-situ compressive strength assessment, brought together in its concrete scanning and structural condition survey service. NDTScan is a Level 4 UKCSS Operator, the first in the UK to achieve that certification. Compton and the whole of Berkshire are within the company's everyday working area, and all work is reported to a standard suitable for engineering acceptance. RAAC identification is covered on the RAAC surveys page, and steel on the ultrasonic thickness and corrosion mapping page.
Compton NDT Services
- GPR Pre-Drill Scanning Pre-drill and pre-coring surveys, PT slab mapping, rebar location and void detection across Compton housing, commercial and public buildings.
- Post-Tensioned Slab Investigation Tendon detection and full slab documentation for Berkshire commercial, education and healthcare structures before any fixing, cutting or coring.
- RAAC Identification GPR based RAAC plank identification for schools, halls, housing and public buildings across West Berkshire, reported in line with IStructE guidance.
- Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity Testing UPV surveys using the Proceq Pundit PL-200 to BS EN 12504. Uniformity, delamination and strength estimation for Compton structures.
- Compressive Strength Assessment Rebound hammer, SONREB and managed core extraction to BS EN 13791, reported for engineering acceptance and building control in Compton.
- Short-Notice Compton Coverage Oxford-based team covering Compton and the rest of West Berkshire. Immediate mobilisation available, with every survey interpreted and reported in full.
Our Services
- Concrete & Structural Integrity
- Drone-Based Aerial Surveying
- Vehicle-Mounted Inspection
- Handheld & Portable Inspection
- Underwater Surveying & Inspection
- Digital Twin & 3D Modelling
- Advanced Data Analytics & Reporting
Sectors We Support
- Aerospace & Aviation
- Education & Public Sector
- Archaeology & Heritage
- Smart Cities & Urban Planning
- Waste & Recycling
- Defence & Security
- Emergency Response
- Construction & Real Estate
- Mining & Minerals
- Agriculture & Environment
- Maritime & Underwater
- Rail & Transportation
- Oil & Gas
- Civil Engineering
- Utilities & Energy
Equipment & Technologies
- IML
- GSSI
- Sylva
- Leica
- Voyis
- Testo
- Hilti
- Cygnus
- Proceq
- MALA GPR
- SlipAlert
- Flyability
- Protimeter
- Matterport
- Saab Seaeye
- Deep Trekker
- IDS GeoRadar
- FLIR Systems
- Sonatest Ltd
- Wagner Meters
- Mistras Group
- Munro Stanley
- Blue Robotics
- DJI Enterprise
- Teledyne Marine
- Quantum Systems
- Argus Electronic
- Fakopp Enterprise
- Eddyfi Technologies
- Olympus Corporation
- FARO
- NavVis
- Trimble
Why Choose NDTScan
Compton Concrete Scanning FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions.
Common questions about GPR concrete scanning, ultrasonic testing and compressive strength assessment in Compton and across Berkshire. NDTScan works from its Oxford base with fully interpreted reporting.
Do you provide concrete scanning in Compton?
Yes. Compton is in Berkshire, which NDTScan covers from its Oxford base along with Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire. Neil Smuts carries out and interprets the survey personally, so the person on site in Compton is the person who writes the report.
What can a GPR concrete scan in Compton actually find?
Ground penetrating radar indicates the position and estimated depth of reinforcing bars and mesh, post-tensioned tendons, conduits and services, voids and honeycombing, and estimates slab thickness and cover. In Compton that most often means establishing what a slab or wall contains before drilling or coring, locating reinforcement before an alteration, or characterising a structure before repair. Where GPR cannot resolve a question, NDTScan adds Ferroscan or ultrasonic methods.
How is RAAC identified in Compton schools and public buildings?
With ground penetrating radar. RAAC planks return a distinctly different signature from conventional reinforced concrete, and NDTScan reads that signature element by element rather than sampling a corner and assuming the rest. The findings for a Compton building are reported in line with IStructE guidance, so the owner has a record that supports the decisions that follow.
What happens if a Compton contractor drills without scanning?
Usually nothing, until it does. Post-tensioned tendons, live services and undocumented reinforcement are routinely found where nobody expected them, and striking one turns a fixing into a structural incident. A pre-drill scan in Compton replaces guesswork with evidence, and NDTScan's interpreted report sets out what the data indicates, at what estimated depth, and with what confidence.
What does the report from a Compton survey contain?
The interpreted result, not raw traces. Plans showing the indicated positions and estimated depths of reinforcement, tendons, services and voids, slab thickness and cover where estimated, clear statements of what was and was not found, and the confidence attached to each finding. NDTScan works the Compton data up in the office before a single conclusion is drawn, and the report says so plainly.
Concrete scanning guides
The questions behind most enquiries
How to identify RAAC
What RAAC looks like, where it was used, and what a visual check cannot tell you.
Read the guideScanning before drilling or coring
What happens on the day, what the marks mean, and what the contractor receives.
Read the guidePost-tension detection
How tendons are investigated in a post-tensioned slab, and when the engineer decides.
Read the guideRebar scanning
Bar position, spacing and estimated cover, and what a scan cannot tell you.
Read the guideFerroscan surveys
What the Hilti system does well, and where radar takes over.
Read the guideConcrete x-ray
Why radiography is rarely practical on site, and what replaces it.
Read the guideWhat clients and partners say
In their words
I have worked with Neil on a number of projects and have found him to be extremely knowledgeable in the fields of concrete scanning and structural repair. His approach to the task is very structured and professional, and communication throughout the project is always open and honest. I will be working with Neil again in the future, and I would happily recommend him.
I had the pleasure of working with Neil on a complex project involving structural remediation, where his expertise was key to our success. Neil was professional, knowledgeable, and solution-focused throughout. He worked seamlessly with the client team and brought the right attitude to every challenge.
Neil is an expert in his field, with a high level understanding of concrete scanning techniques, concrete repairs, and the technology that suits. He shows a keen interest in innovation and is open to learning new methodologies. I would highly recommend Neil to those seeking his services.