What is Concrete Imaging (concrete X-ray or concrete radar)?

Concrete X-ray or concrete scanning is a technology that allows to precisely locate conduits and PVC pipes, void detection, and taking concrete slab measurements. Concrete scanning enables construction industry to safely locate hazards and determine the clear course within the concrete elements before drilling, cutting or coring which means, Identify what is inside or underneath the concrete without drilling or digging into the concrete. Concrete radar identifies the entire problem before drilling, coring or cutting the structure and gives sharp and accurate imaging reports to enable simple location and path finding.

How the system works?

Concrete Imaging system consists of a transmitter or the source and a receiver which provide high quality, sharp and accurate imaging reports by collecting and processing the electromagnetic waves. Concrete X-ray has the transmitter on one side while the receiver on the other. Whereas the Concrete radar has both the transmitter as well as the receiver in one unit thus accesses only one side of the structure for testing.

Why use the Concrete imaging?

While cutting, coring or drilling without using the Imaging system, one cut or hit can cause project delays and cost you future work. Concrete imaging reduces the chances of damages by 90% and quickly locates the position of Rebar, water pipelines and electrical conduits embedded in the concrete, saving time as well as money. Accurate target location within the structure is achieved more safely, quickly and economically with the concrete imaging technology.

Be Brand conscious

Before giving the project to any company, make sure about the quality of imaging service they provide. The Concrete Imaging equipment should be safe to use around the people present without evacuating them, any safety constraints and setup requirements so that the disturbance in the operation can be eliminated or minimized to possible extent. The company technicians should have all the equipments to troubleshoot any problem on site which can cause delay in the project. Do ask for the written reports from the company that takes the project.

Limitations of Concrete X-ray over Concrete radar

Concrete x-ray is damaging to the human body, so identifying the exclusion zones around the area being tested become a compulsion which means part or all of the site will need to be evacuated along with that it produces one image per exposure which becomes time consuming and costly. Also operators have to access both the sides of the structure as the transmitter and the receiver are different units.

Whereas Concrete radar emits very low energy which is not harmful for humans hence evacuation of site is not necessary and it scans larger areas producing a vertical sectional view of the area which can be placed together to form a 3D model. It requires access to only one side of the structure because the radar transmitter or the source and the receiver are present in one unit and rely on the basis of reflection of the radio waves to produce a significant image.

Hence, knowing the above factors, you are free to choose the process you find suitable for finding cracks and fissures in the concrete of your house. All the best!