ICNDTCONSTITUTIONCONSTITUTION

Draft 2016 v4 is the version updated to follow the reorganisation plan
agreed at the GA39 in Munich in June 2016.

Issue/Draft
Rev. 4Date
14 June 2018

Details
Version agreed following
Organisation Review
2015-2017

Status/Approval
Approved by postal ballot
31 October 2017 andimplemented 14 June 2018

ICNDT

CONSTITUTIONTABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Preamble ........................................................................................................................... 2
2. Name, Seat and Activities ................................................................................................ 2
3. Purpose ............................................................................................................................. 3
4. Means of Achieving the Purpose of the Association ....................................................... 3
5. Types of Membership....................................................................................................... 3
6. Acquiring and Terminating Membership ......................................................................... 4
7. Rights and Duties of the Members ................................................................................... 4
8. Bodies and Officers and their Tasks ................................................................................ 5
8.1 The International Committee............................................................................. 6
8.2 The Executive Committee (IEC) ....................................................................... 7
8.3 Advisory Committee (IAC) ............................................................................... 7
8.4 Working Groups and Task Groups .................................................................... 8
8.5 Regional Groups/Federations of ICNDT ........................................................... 8
8.6 The Chair ........................................................................................................... 8
8.7 The General Secretary ....................................................................................... 8
8.8 The Treasurer ..................................................................................................... 9
8.9 The World Conference President ...................................................................... 9
8.10 The Immediate Past Chair ............................................................................... 9
8.11 The Auditors .................................................................................................... 9
9. Complaints and Arbitration .............................................................................................. 9
10. Other Organisational Stipulations ................................................................................ 10
11. Changes to the Constitution ......................................................................................... 10
12. Dissolution of the Association ..................................................................................... 10

1. PREAMBLE
The first World Conferences on Non-Destructive Testing (NDT for short hereinafter)
were held in Brussels (1955), Chicago (1957) and Tokyo (1960). The ICNDT was set
up in 1960, initially just as a committee without a legal status of its own, with the aimof promoting international cooperation with the specific task of organising successive
World Conferences.
Terms of Reference were first developed in 1960 and subsequently revised, forinstance, in 1967 (Montreal), 1979 (Melbourne) and 1982 (Moscow).
The 2008 revision of the Constitution incorporated the changes that had become
necessary since the end of the 1990s and formed the basis for converting the ICNDT
into an association with a legal status of its own.
The 2016 version is the 2008 version updated to follow the reorganisation plan agreed
at the GA39 in Munich in June 2016.
All gender-specific expressions used in this Constitution refer to men and womenequally.
ICNDT Constitution – v4 implemented 14 June 2018

2

ICNDT

CONSTITUTION

2. NAME, SEAT AND ACTIVITIESThe Association is named the INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE FOR NONDESTRUCTIVE TESTING. Its abbreviation is ICNDT. The graphic symbol is theabbreviated name ICNDT printed on a world globe. The Association has its seat inVienna and operates worldwide.

3. PURPOSE
3.1 ICNDT is a non-profit association devoted to the international development of thescience and practice of non-destructive testing, in conjunction with individual, alreadyexisting NDT societies and recognised Regional Groupings of NDT societies.
ICNDT’s activities are dependent on the voluntary actions of its members. The
purposes are in particular:
3.2 to promote and support Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) at an international level
for the benefit of the involved public in general.
3.3 to promote international collaboration in all matters relating to NDT, including
collaboration with international organisations with an interest in NDT, e.g.
International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO), International Institute of
Welding (IIW), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), UNIDO, World
Federation of NDT Centres etc.
3.4 to encourage the foundation, development, strengthening and cooperation ofexisting and new national NDT Societies and their Regional groups or federations.
3.5 to assign the place and organisation of the World NDT Conference to an
appropriate NDT society or group of societies, at intervals of four years.
3.6 to establish and implement membership policies of ICNDT in collaboration with
Regional groups or federations.
3.7 to award distinctions honouring outstanding services in the area of NonDestructive Testing.
3.8 to encourage the formulation of international standards on Non-Destructive
Testing in collaboration with the International Organisation for Standardisation, andother standards bodies.
3.9 to promote best practices in NDT and to encourage international harmonisation inthis area.

4. MEANS OF ACHIEVING THE PURPOSE OF THE ASSOCIATION
4.1 The non-profit objectives of the Association are achieved specifically by the
maintenance of worldwide contacts and the exchange of experience in the area of
NDT with NDT societies, their Regional groups and federations and otherorganisations, national or international, with interests in NDT, the assignation of theplace and organisation of the World NDT Conference held every four years, executing
projects, holding scientific lectures and issuing publications in this area.
4.2 The necessary funds shall be raised through fees, subsidies, other donations(including from the World Conference organisers) and income generated by the
Association’s assets.

ICNDT Constitution – v4 implemented 14 June 2018

3

ICNDT

CONSTITUTION

5. TYPES OF MEMBERSHIP
5.1 The members of ICNDT are Full Members, Associate Members, Liaison Membersand Honorary Members.
5.2 Full Members of ICDNT are non-profit making, legally incorporated NDTsocieties.
5.3 Associate Members are non-profit NDT organisations that do not qualify as Full
Members.
5.4 Liaison members are international organisations (e.g. ISO, IAEA, UNIDO) withan interest in NDT and a willingness to commit to two-way liaison with ICNDT.
Arrangement of Liaison Membership will be by correspondence between theorganisation and the ICNDT Chair, covering mutual arrangements for liaison. Liaison
Membership is subject to ratification by the ICNDT General Meeting.
Nominated representatives of Liaison Members may attend General Assemblies of the
Association but have no vote.
5.5 Honorary Members are delegates who have been awarded the title of Honorary
Member in recognition of their distinguished services within the scope of ICNDT
objectives. They have the right to speak but may only participate in a vote at a General
Assembly or Annual General Meeting if they have also been appointed representativeof a member country.

6. ACQUIRING AND TERMINATING MEMBERSHIP
6.1 Societies that wish to join the ICNDT as Full or Associate Members shall submit awritten application in accordance with the application procedure defined by theMembership Working Group. Applications shall be voted on by the International
Committee at its next meeting or by post/email, following review by the Membership
Working Group.
6.2 Proposals for Honorary Membership shall be made by the ICNDT Chair, secondedby the Immediate Past Chair. The recommendations need to be approved of by morethan half of the ICNDT members present at the second General Assembly meeting at
each World Conference. Persons to be honoured shall have been active throughout
several conference periods in promoting the objectives of ICNDT.
6.3 Membership shall be terminated through the loss of legal status, loss of contact,
failure to pay membership fees or (in the case of an Honorary Member) death, orvoluntary termination or expulsion.
6.4 Voluntary termination shall be implemented on 31 December of any given year bysubmitting a written resignation, at least 3 months prior to the date of withdrawal.
6.5 Expulsion may be ruled at the decision of the Executive Committee on the groundsof a violation of membership duties or of dishonourable behaviour or on other serious
grounds. A Member so expelled will have a right of appeal to the next full Meeting of
ICNDT.
6.6 The termination of membership for whatever reason shall not affect the duty of
paying the membership fee for the full year.

ICNDT Constitution – v4 implemented 14 June 2018

4

ICNDT

CONSTITUTION

7. RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF THE MEMBERS
7.1 Every Full Member shall appoint two delegates (one voting), who shall have theright to participate in the International Committee. Each Full Member shall have one
vote in all matters brought to a vote. This vote shall be cast by the respective delegateof the two who has been appointed voting delegate. The Members may replace theirdelegates between meetings; however they shall inform the Secretariat immediately in
writing (or by e-mail).
7.2 Liaison, Associate and Honorary Members have the right to participate in theInternational Committee and the right to address questions to all bodies of the
Association but no vote. Note: Honorary members may cast a vote if they have also
been appointed voting delegates of a member country.
7.3 All members are obliged to heed the Constitution of the Association and topromote its objectives.

8. BODIES AND OFFICERS AND THEIR TASKSThe bodies of the ICNDT are:
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)
(v)

The International Committee (ICNDT)The Executive Committee (IEC)The Advisory Committee (IAC)
Working Groups (WGs) and Task Groups (TGs)
The Regions (Regional groups or federations recognised by ICNDT)The officers of the ICNDT are:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

The Chairman
The Immediate Past Chairmen
The General Secretary
The Treasurer
The World Conference President
One representative of each recognised Region, as nominated to
the Executive Committee
The Auditors

The Chairman, the General Secretary, the Treasurer, and the Auditors shall be electedby the International Committee at the second General Assembly at the World
Conference to serve until the next World Conference, i.e. for four years. Re-election ispermissible.
The World Conference President shall be appointed by the organiser of the next World
Conference to serve for four years. This appointment shall be notified to theInternational Committee.
Two Regional Representatives each shall be nominated by each of the recognised
Regional Groupings (Europe, Asia-Pacific, Pan-America, Africa etc.) and be madeknown to the Chairman, the General Secretary and the ICNDT Secretariat
immediately.
The Officers of the Association shall not receive any payments from the funds of the
Association except for reimbursement of any necessary expenses approved in advanceby the Executive Committee.

ICNDT Constitution – v4 implemented 14 June 2018

5

ICNDT

CONSTITUTION

8.1. The International Committee
The International Committee of ICNDT is the Delegates’ Conference and thus forms
the General Meeting pursuant to the Austrian Law on Associations of 2002. It is thedecision-making body and has the following tasks:•

to take decisions on the acceptance and exclusion of Members and Regions•

to elect the Chair, the General Secretary, the Treasurer and the Auditors•

to agree the amount of membership fees (Full Member fees and Associate
Member fees)•to accept the report by the Auditors•

to approve of financial reports, accounts and budgets•

to confirm the Rules of Procedure (Operating Procedures) to be tabled by
the Executive Committee•

to choose the location and organiser of the World Conference (WCNDT)•

to dissolve the Association, if necessary.

The membership of the International Committee shall comprise:••

two voting representatives nominated by each Region
one voting representative of each Full Member.

Meetings of the International Committee shall be convened by the Chair, as follows:
General Assemblies
The International Committee shall meet twice during each NDT World
Conference held every four years, at the beginning and end of the Conference, andonce between World Conferences, in conjunction with an appropriate regional
conference. These meetings are referred to as General Assemblies.
Annual General Meeting
An Annual General Meeting shall be held in January each year, accessible as aphysical meeting and also by Internet.
Other meetings
Furthermore, the International Committee shall convene if at least one tenth of themembers file a respective demand with the Executive Committee.
Members shall be notified of General Assembly and Annual General Meetings at
least eight weeks in advance. The notification shall indicate the time and place ofthe meeting, the agenda and whether not there will be access via the Internet or
telephone.
Members who are unable to attend may nominate in writing another member
representative to vote on their behalf. No member may exercise more than one
proxy vote.
The quorum of the International Committee shall be at least one third of the voting
membership. When insufficient members are present physically the meeting must
be adjourned for 15 minutes and reconvened including members present byInternet, and shall be considered quorate if a minimum of ten members (including
members from at least three Regions) are present.

ICNDT Constitution – v4 implemented 14 June 2018

6

ICNDT

CONSTITUTION

Decisions at meetings shall be taken by a simple majority of the voting delegatespresent (including proxies) in person or via the Internet.
Decisions may also be taken, as the need arises, by means of circulation to beorganised by the Executive Committee by fax, e-mail or letter, whereby a period of atleast 4 (FOUR) weeks is to be granted for voting. A simple majority of the votes castshall be required with a quorum of third of the voting members.
8.2. The Executive Committee (IEC)The ICNDT Executive Committee (IEC) shall manage the business of the Association
as a cooperative leadership body under the leadership of the Chair. The Executive
Committee's task is to advise and support the Chair and Secretariat in the operations of
ICNDT, to supervise the execution of policy approved by the International
Committee, in accordance with this Constitution and such Operating Procedures as themembership shall approve.
The ICNDT Executive Committee will be made up of:
Voting members
Elected by the General Assembly:
Chair, General Secretary, Treasurer
Nominated by the Regions:
One representative of each Region, normally the President
Ex-officio:
Past-Chair or a deputy (see 8.6)
President of the next World Conference (nominated by the WCNDT
organiser).
Non-voting members:
Chairs of ICNDT Committees and Working Groups
The Executive Committee shall convene at least three times per year at times
determined by the Chair or a deputy (see 8.6).
Every voting member of the Executive Committee present physically or by Internet
shall have one vote. Decisions shall be taken on a simple majority of the votes cast,whereby at least five members need to be present for a quorum. The Chairman has thedecisive vote in case of an equal number of votes cast.
8.3. The Advisory Committee (IAC)The Advisory Committee is appointed by the ICNDT to provide a strategic overview
of the activities of the Association and a means for the Executive Committee tocommunicate with a wider cross-section of the membership between full general
meetings of the ICNDT.
It will provide advice to the IEC and WGs. It will meet annually in a different region
each time over the four-year cycle of World Conferences.
The membership of the IAC is:••Members of the IEC as above
One additional member from each Region as nominated to the General
Assembly, normally the Vice-President
ICNDT Constitution – v4 implemented 14 June 2018

7

ICNDT••

CONSTITUTIONICNDT Honorary members
Co-opted members (to allow the IAC committee to co-opt additional members
if this was judged necessary to balance the committee).

This committee shall be chaired by the Past-Chair of ICNDT (alternate the Chair).
8.4. Working Groups and Task Groups
The Executive Committee may nominate Working Groups, Task Groups andCommittees (e.g. the Membership Working Group) to execute activities in accordancewith Terms of Reference approved by the full membership. They shall report on theirwork to the International Committee.
8.5 Regional Groups/Federations of ICNDT (the “Regions”)
Regional Groups or Federations of members, recognised by ICNDT in accordancewith the relevant Operating Procedure, will be supported by ICNDT.
The Regional Groups or Federations will be represented on the ICNDT General
Assembly alongside the member societies, with two voting representatives nominatedby each Regional Group/Federation (one also being nominated to the IEC and both to
the IAC).
Coordination of the activities of the Regional Groups or Federations and ICNDT is the
responsibility of the IEC.
Members of ICNDT will be assigned to the appropriate Regional Groups orFederations and given the option to join alternative or additional groups if they wish.
8.6 The Chair
The Chair shall administer all actions of the ICNDT in accordance with the objectives,
strategies and Operating Procedures of the Association and act as Chair for all
meetings of the ICNDT and the Executive Committee. They shall represent the
Association solely vis-à-vis third parties, except for matters relating to thetreasurership.
In the absence of the Chair, one of the following shall act as Vice Chair with the
responsibilities of the Chair (in order of precedence):
1. Immediate Past Chair
2. General Secretary
3. Treasurer
8.7 The General Secretary
The General Secretary shall be responsible through the Secretariat for recording all
matters associated with the ICNDT between meetings as well as for recording anddistributing minutes of International Committee meetings held during their term ofoffice. Furthermore, the General Secretary shall also arrange for the Secretariat tomaintain a Register of Member Societies and of the names and addresses of appointed
representatives accessible to all members and the public via the Internet.

ICNDT Constitution – v4 implemented 14 June 2018

8

ICNDT

CONSTITUTION

8.8 The Treasurer
The Treasurer shall be responsible for keeping the current records of income andexpenditure as well as the preparation of a budget and an annual financial report, inthe form of income and expenditure accounts, including an overview of the assets tobe submitted to the Executive Committee and Annual General Meeting for approval.
They shall arrange for the audit of the annual accounts by the elected Auditors. They
shall prepare a financial report for each meeting of the ICNDT.
8.9 The World Conference President
The World Conference President shall organise and conduct the forthcoming World
Conference as directed by the Member Society responsible for the Conference, during
their term of office and with the aid of a World Conference Organising Committee,
and shall liaise with the ICNDT via the Committees in which they are an ex-officio
member.
The World Conference President shall be appointed by the ICNDT Member Society
elected by the ICNDT membership to host the next World Conference.
8.10 The Immediate Past Chair
The duties of the Immediate Past Chair shall be to advise the Chair and perform othersuch duties as delegated by the Chair, including chairing the Advisory Committee.
8.11 The Auditors
Two Auditors, suitably knowledgeable and not members of the Executive Committee,
shall be elected by the International Committee at the General Assembly for a fixed
period of four years. The Auditors will audit the annual accounts and Financial Reportprior to their presentation to the Annual General meeting.

9. COMPLAINTS AND ARBITRATION
9.1 Complaints
Any complaints against ICNDT’s Bodies or Officers arising shall be handled inaccordance with the relevant Operating Procedure.
9.2 Arbitration Tribunal
When necessary an Arbitration Tribunal shall be established by the Secretariat. It shallconsist of a Chair and two Assessors, none of whom shall be a party to the dispute.
Each of the two parties to the dispute shall appoint an arbitrator (Assessor) from theranks of the delegates or officers within 14 days after a written request by registered
post from the opposing party or the Executive Committee.
The two arbitrators (Assessors) shall agree on a Chair of the Arbitration Tribunal fromthe ranks of the officers within a period of four weeks. In case such an agreement is
not reached, the Chair shall be appointed by the Executive Committee.
The Executive Committee will consult a neutral Austrian lawyer with experience inarbitration to guide the tribunal, which shall follow the law of Austria.
The Arbitration Tribunal shall only constitute a quorum when all three members arepresent and shall decide on a simple majority. The Arbitration Tribunal shall make a
final decision after hearing the parties to the dispute. The costs of arbitration shall beborne by the parties to the dispute as ruled by the Arbitration Tribunal.

ICNDT Constitution – v4 implemented 14 June 2018

9

ICNDT

CONSTITUTION

10. OTHER ORGANISATIONAL STIPULATIONS
10.1. Secretariat of ICNDTA Member Society shall be elected by the ICNDT to provide a Secretariat service tothe ICNDT Chair, World Conference President, the International Committee, theExecutive Committee and the Advisory Committee.
Duties of the Secretariat shall include (but not be limited to):
•
•
•
•
•
•

the ICNDT website and ICNDT Journalmaintaining a register of members and publishing it on the website.
issuing agendas and minutes of meetings and publishing them on thewebsitearranging elections
supporting the Treasurercollection of fees

11. CHANGES TO THE CONSTITUTION
Changes to the Constitution require the following process:•••proposal in writing signed by a minimum of five members
proposal notified to all members by the Executive Committee
and, after at least six months, a proposal subject to a vote at a full General
Meeting or a postal/electronic ballot of the Full Members.

A positive vote by 2/3 (two-thirds) of the votes cast (excluding abstentions) with aminimum of ballot return of 50% of the eligible voting members is required.

12. DISSOLUTION OF THE ASSOCIATION
The voluntary dissolution of the Association may only be decided upon by theInternational Committee by positive vote of a two-thirds of the voting members
following completion of the following process:•••proposal for dissolution by the Executive Committee
proposal notified to members of the Association
and, after at least six months, a vote at a full General Meeting or a
postal/electronic ballot of the voting members.

In the event of Dissolution or in the case of the absence of the previous privileged
Purpose of the Association, the assets remaining after the deduction of all liabilities
shall be allocated to the most similar non-profit making purposes possible.

ICNDT Constitution – v4 implemented 14 June 201810