Identify corrosion before It becomes disruptive or expensive
Corrosion is one of the most persistent and costly challenges in industrial environments. When discovered late, it can lead to:
- emergency repairs
- production downtime
- safety incidents
- asset replacement
- insurance claims
Our dogs detect corrosion VOCs long before visible signs appear, enabling planned, efficient intervention rather than reactive, high-cost repair.
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Advantages
Financial advantages
- Reduce unnecessary insulation removal
- Minimise scaffolding and access requirements
- Avoid broad-area NDT where it isn’t needed
- Prevent unplanned shutdowns
- Extend asset life through timely maintenance
Risk-management advantages
- Identify hidden corrosion hotspots
- Strengthen integrity assessments
- Reduce the likelihood of leaks and failures
- Improve confidence in inspection coverage
- Support predictive maintenance strategies
Early corrosion detection
Corrosion under insulation (CUI) and early-stage corrosion develop long before they become visible or measurable, creating significant risks for industrial assets, infrastructure, and integrity-management programmes. Our detection dogs provide the fastest available, non-intrusive method for identifying early-stage corrosion activity — including concealed, insulated, or inaccessible areas. We provide both on-site VOC detection and off-site analysis, giving you flexible, high-sensitivity options for any environment. Our dogs detect VOCs released at the very earliest chemical stage — long before sensors, scopes, or strip-and-look methods can confirm a problem.
Why this matters: The industry’s biggest risks
Corrosion isn’t just a maintenance issue — it’s a risk issue. Here are some of the main pressures driving the need for better detection:
The industry’s biggest headache. It’s invisible, unpredictable, and expensive to find.
The nightmare scenario: leaks, fires, toxic releases, shutdowns, investigations.
When corrosion appears in low-risk areas, it undermines confidence in RBI models.
Finding corrosion during a turnaround can delay restart by days or weeks.
The single biggest cost driver in CUI inspection, and 70-90% of removals reveal nothing.
- 2023 TE Connectivity Sensors Whitepaper.
- Issue 2, Jan 2021, by ESR Technology for the HOIS Joint Industry Project
High pipe racks, congested areas, hazardous zones, and a global shortage of inspectors.
Operators must demonstrate proactive, defensible integrity management.
The common theme?
‘We don’t know what we don’t know.’
Our service directly addresses that uncertainty.
On-site & off-site VOC detection
Two ways to detect early-stage corrosion — one seamless system
Corrosion doesn’t always wait for access windows, shutdowns, or ideal inspection conditions. That’s why we offer two complementary methods for detecting the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) released during the earliest stages of corrosion:
1. On-site VOC screening
2. Off-site (remote) VOC sample testing
Together, they form a flexible, scalable corrosion-detection system that adapts to your site, your schedule, and your operational constraints.
• On-site VOC screening
Fast, non-intrusive detection across live assets
Our detection dogs work directly on your site, scanning insulated or enclosed assets for corrosion-related VOCs. This method is ideal when you want:
• Rapid coverage of large areas
• Real-time hotspot identification
• Zero disruption to operations
• No insulation removal or scaffolding
• Immediate integration with NDT teams
Each alert is GPS-tagged, verified, and can be supported with optional VOC sampling for laboratory analysis.
• Off-site VOC sample testing
Early-stage corrosion detection without a site visit.
For remote, hazardous, offshore, or access-restricted locations, we offer a simple alternative: you collect VOC samples using our kit, and we test them in our controlled facility.
This method is ideal when you need:
• Low-cost early triage
• Screening before shutdown planning
• Coverage of remote or offshore assets
• Testing in hazardous or ATEX-restricted zones
• A scalable solution across multiple sites.
Samples are blind-tested by our detection dogs under controlled conditions, ensuring accuracy, repeatability, and zero operational disruption.
How both methods work together
On-site and off-site VOC detection are designed to complement each other:
• Remote testing identifies early hotspots and prioritises where on-site inspection is needed.
• On-site screening pinpoints exact locations and supports targeted NDT.
• Both feed into your RBI model, strengthening risk visibility and reducing uncertainty.
This combined approach gives you a complete early-stage corrosion intelligence system — flexible enough for any asset, any environment, and any inspection strategy. Whether you need rapid on-site screening or discreet off-site analysis, our VOC-based detection system gives you
the earliest possible insight into corrosion activity.
How our approach is different
Early-stage detection
We detect corrosion before metal loss — something traditional tools cannot do.
Non-intrusive
No insulation removal, no scaffolding, no shutdown.
Fast coverage
Kilometres of pipework can be screened in a single day.
Scientifically grounded
Scientifically grounded
Dogs are trained on real corrosion VOCs collected via sorbent tubes and emission chambers.
Cost-effective
By identifying hotspots early, you reduce unnecessary insulation removal and focus resources where they matter most.
and why it’s a game changer
The industry has been searching for a way to detect corrosion before it becomes measurable or visible.
A method that:
• Doesn’t require insulation removal
• Doesn’t require shutdown
• Doesn’t require scaffolding
• Works fast
• Reduces uncertainty
• Strengthens RBI
• Helps prevent unplanned failures
We bring that method.
VOC-detection dogs provide the missing first step in corrosion management — a rapid, early-stage screening tool that transforms how operators prioritise inspection and maintenance.
Who we work with
We support clients across:
- Oil & gas
- Petrochemical
- Power generation
- Rail infrastructure
- Offshore modules
- Storage terminals
- Manufacturing and heavy industry.
Any site with insulated assets, ageing infrastructure, or CUI concerns benefits from early-stage
VOC detection
Ready to transform your corrosion strategy?
If you want to reduce uncertainty, target your inspections more effectively, and detect corrosion before it becomes a problem, we’re ready to help.
Why our method is unmatched
- Detects volatile compounds released during the earliest stages of metal oxidation
- Identifies active corrosion before wall-thinning is detectable by electromagnetic or ultrasonic sensors
- Engineering teams depend on intrusive testing and late-stage indicators and integrity-management programmes rely on periodic inspection cycles that miss early activity
- Surveying and consultancy teams often inherit uncertainty from inaccessible or insulated structures
- Alignment with sustainability goals under the European Green Deal and Net Zero 2050
- Effective on insulated, coated, buried, or difficult-to-access structures
- On-site VOC detection for immediate results
- Off-site VOC analysis via Remote Scent Tracing under controlled, double-blind conditions
- Demonstrated 92% sensitivity in field trials
- Significantly reduces cost and the need for intrusive strip-and-look inspection, a projected 70% reduction in inspection footprint
What it enables
• Earliest possible intervention, reducing unplanned downtime and failure risk
• Stronger asset-integrity assessments and risk-based inspection planning
• Targeted intrusive testing, reducing scaffolding, insulation removal, and material waste
• Alignment with sustainability goals and reduced inspection footprint
• A practical, evidence-based tool for strengthening integrity-management programmes
Who we work with
We support clients across:
- Oil & gas
- Petrochemical
- Power generation
- Rail infrastructure
- Offshore modules
- Storage terminals
- Manufacturing and heavy industry.
Any site with insulated assets, ageing infrastructure, or CUI concerns benefits from early-stage
VOC detection
Ready to transform your corrosion strategy?
If you want to reduce uncertainty, target your inspections more effectively, and detect corrosion before it becomes a problem, we’re ready to help.
How early do you want to know?
Contact Us
- +353 87 005 4554
- Ireland
- info@cdireland.ie