Forensic Engineers & Investigators

We aim to determine why engineering materials such as metal, alloys and plastics, crack and fail in tests or in service. Our industrial clients use the resulting advice for remedial action.

Metallurgy provides a deep technical understanding of the composition and performance of metals such as steel and other alloys.

Materials engineering encompasses elements of metallurgy but extends to cover all materials used for mechanical and structural systems and engineering plant. Materials may include plastics, rubbers, lubricants and sealing agents or a combination of these materials in the form of composites and adhesively bonded components. They may also include paints and protective coatings

Components can fail quickly due to inherent weakness, design deficiency or overloading but breakdown can also take time if progressive damage is caused by metal fatigue, wear and corrosion. In either case, scientifically analysing the way the material failed using forensic engineering methods can determine failure sequence and causes. Our materials engineers and metallurgists are trained and experienced in critically evaluating component failures. We provide the following analytical techniques: microscopy (fractography and metallography using optical and scanning electron microscopy), alloy composition analysis (using emission spectroscopy and energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis) Read More.

Through some of our investigations, we have also developed groundbreaking techniques and expertise to enable an analysis of the failure of adhesive bonds including metal to metal and rubber or polymer to metal bonds. Read More