Element Materials Technology

Element is a global provider of lab-based Testing, Inspection and Certification services, working with customers in highly regulated industries where failure in service is simply not an option. Its expertise covers a diverse range of materials and products, and it supports the entire product life cycle from concept through to ongoing compliance, handling standardised high-volume testing as readily as one-of-a-kind challenges. The company frames its purpose as making tomorrow safer than today and positions its technical specialists as an extension of the customer's own team.

The work divides into three broad offerings. Materials testing makes Element one of the largest independent providers of destructive and non-destructive testing for metals and non-metals, spanning chemical analysis, mechanical testing, metallurgical testing, failure analysis, corrosion and coatings work, polymer and composite testing, and non-destructive methods including ultrasonic testing, radiographic inspection, magnetic particle inspection, liquid penetrant inspection, eddy current testing and X-ray diffraction. Product qualification testing covers EMC and EMI, vibration, shock, pressure, lightning strike, climatic and environmental chamber testing, salt spray corrosion, ingress protection, hail impact and container and package testing. Certification covers products and management systems against relevant international standards, including global market access schemes. Around these sit calibration, metrology and dimensional inspection, advisory services, expert witness and remote witness testing, and a digital engineering practice offering modelling and simulation, finite element analysis, computational fluid dynamics, digital twins, test rig design and machine learning and data science work.

Element organises its market-facing business by industry. Aerospace and space work covers aircraft structures, engines, avionics, fuel systems, batteries, composites, bird strike, altitude and fire testing, with Nadcap approved supplier status. Defense includes MIL-STD and DEF STAN programmes, ballistics, military sand and dust, high level acoustic noise and solar radiation testing. Energy spans hydrogen, oil and gas, nuclear, power generation, wind turbines, pipe and coatings testing. Connected technologies covers electrical safety, batteries, wireless and RF, cybersecurity certification, internet of things devices, printed circuit boards and data centre infrastructure. Construction and infrastructure covers building materials and products, fenestration, roofing, scaffolding, geotechnical and structural investigation, plus CE, UKCA and Q marking. Environmental services address water, soil, air quality and emissions, asbestos, occupational hygiene, PFAS, hydrocarbons and hazardous waste. Health and life sciences covers pharmaceutical, medical device, antimicrobial, food and consumer product testing. Transportation covers automotive, marine and rail, including EMC and fire testing for marine equipment.

Accreditation is central to the proposition: Element holds a broad range of national and international accreditations and client approvals for the safety-critical industries it serves, and operates a global laboratory network so that customers can access testing capacity close to where they work.