Offshore NDT work

[josh1990]

I currently work from the uk as a rope access painter on the wind farms. The season will be ending soon so I intend on completing my NDT courses - MPI, Eddy current LVL 2 and UT lvl 2 3.1 3.2. Before going on the wind farms I did this work onshore so can gain the certificates. I intend on spending a couple of months in Thaialnd after completing the courses and trying to gain work in SE Asia. What are the chances of me finding work. It doesnt have to be offshore or Thaialnd in particular but where I could return to after every trip. Does anyone know any companies that take on Expats? Thanks in advance

[DMC1]

Hi Josh. You may have some luck with companies in Singapore but you must consider your experience. Many locals have a lot of experience to offer & the expats that are employed over here generally have something different to offer in addition to the basic NDT tickets.

In my case for the past 15 years I have run inspection teams for a Thai based company. All our inspection/NDT/rope techs are Thai nationals. In our CP department we have a couple of Filipino techs. The only expat positions are supervisory, which require plenty of experience & good reporting skills.

Good luck with whatever you decide but I would recommend that you look around the UK sector first.

[josh1990]

Ok thanks for the info. I am going to give it a try anyway as if I dont find work at least I will still have the qualifications to work else where. Hopefully one day I'll get to live in Thailand. You say something extra to offer, You think gain ing my level 3 rope access would be advantageous?

[DMC1]

Ok thanks for the info. I am going to give it a try anyway as if I dont find work at least I will still have the qualifications to work else where. Hopefully one day I'll get to live in Thailand. You say something extra to offer, You think gain ing my level 3 rope access would be advantageous?

You should try to get your IRATA level 3 anyway but there are lots of locals who also have this nowadays. When employing expats most companies will be looking at them to be experienced, competent team leaders and this ticket should help to show that along with whatever other tickets & experience you can bring to the table.