Nuclear & Critical Infrastructure Manufacturing worked example

Critical Weld Inspection Plan at 23% setup, indication, and re-inspection allowance: a worked example

This scenario runs the critical weld inspection plan calculation on the strong side: 23% setup, indication, and re-inspection allowance, with every other input held at its documented default. Use it when a build has many critical welds and you need a defensible estimate of NDE inspection hours before committing inspectors.

The inputs for this scenario

  • Critical weld inspections required: 60 inspections (unchanged)
  • Weld inspections completed per hour: 4 inspections / hr (unchanged)
  • Setup, indication, and re-inspection allowance: 23 % (raised for this scenario; the documented default is 20)

Working through the calculation

  • Applying the documented formula (Base weld inspection hours = critical weld inspections required รท weld inspections completed per hour) to the inputs above produces each figure below.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 18.45 hr for required weld inspection hours, the number this scenario is built around.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 15 hr for base weld inspection hours.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 23 % for setup and re-inspection allowance applied.
  • At this operating point the engine returns 4 inspections / hr for weld inspections completed per hour.

How this compares with the baseline

  • Against the tool's baseline example, where setup, indication, and re-inspection allowance sits at 20% and the headline result is 18 hr, this scenario comes in 2.5% above the baseline at 18.45 hr.
  • Use it when scheduling NDE on a safety-related weldment or quoting the inspection labor for a nuclear fabrication job. Treat this as a target state: the delta against the baseline quantifies what the improvement is worth before you commit to chasing it.

Results at a glance

  • Required weld inspection hours: 18.45 hr (headline result)
  • Base weld inspection hours: 15 hr
  • Setup and re-inspection allowance applied: 23 %
  • Weld inspections completed per hour: 4 inspections / hr

Run it with your numbers

  • Every input above is editable in the live Critical Weld Inspection Plan calculator, which recalculates instantly and can be shared with the inputs intact.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.