NDT inspection cost in Jacksonville: Phased Array Ultrasonic Testing rates
Field-anchored pricing guide for PAUT (Phased Array Ultrasonic Testing) and the other five common NDT methods in Jacksonville, FL. Rates are quoted in USD per hour and reflect the Tier-1 labour band that applies across southeast markets.
Navy ship-repair contracts demand single-point traceability from technician cert to instrument cal to inspection record — fragmentation fails SUBSAFE-style audits.
Low band
$472
per hour · routine scope, full-day crew
Typical
$856
per hour · most jobs land here
High band
$1534
per hour · turnaround / night shift / rope access
Jacksonville, FL hosts a developing NDT contractor ecosystem built around naval (ns mayport) and port operations. Naval Station Mayport, Naval Air Station Jacksonville (FRCSE), and the wider southeast operator pool route PAUT scope through pre-qualified providers — losing a Level II credential here costs real money on outage windows.
Naval Station Mayport — east coast carrier homeport. That industrial substrate is what places Jacksonville, FL on the short list for PAUT programme contracts: cargo-hold survey cadence, FL DEP oversight, and the naval-base footprint at Naval Station Mayport all push the PAUT day-rate above generic regional benchmarks.
Seasonal cycles bring rotation tightening and spot-buy premiums at the upper bound of the published rate band. FRCSE — depot for entire P-8A Poseidon fleet (NDT to NAVAIR 01-1A-16)
FL DEP sets the documentary depth PAUT reports must reach in Jacksonville, FL — and FL F.S. 554 layers a second audit trail on top. The method-level reference is BPVC Sec V Art. 4 Mand. Appx IV; industry-side, NAVSEA T9074-AS-GIB-010/271 is the standard that owners cite in the bid pack. Procedures must demonstrate currency on both before the crew is cleared at gates like Naval Station Mayport.
- FL DEP
- FL F.S. 554
- USCG Sector Jacksonville
- BPVC Sec V Art. 4 Mand. Appx IV
- ASME Code Case 2235 (PAUT in lieu of RT)
- Code Case 2541 (corrosion mapping)
A typical PAUT bid in Jacksonville, FL lands at $1046/day for Level II work and roughly $1530/day for Level III sign-off authority. Mobilisation surcharge runs low (band-L), with COL index 94.5 feeding the labour line. Naval Station Mayport programme contracts trade volume against rate; spot-buys pay the 10–20% premium. The full multiplier resolves at ×1.02 once transport and demand-density are layered in.
| Line item | Rate | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Hourly labour (Level II) | $108–$153/hr | standard programme rate |
| Hourly labour (Level III) | $191/hr | procedure qualification + disposition |
| Day rate (Level II) | $1046/day | 8 hours, ≤30 km from base |
| Equipment surcharge | $357/day | instrument + consumables |
| Mobilisation | $325/trip | low transport-surcharge band |
| Outage / night-shift uplift | +25–40% | turnaround windows and weekend work |
Effective multiplier vs national base: ×1.02 · transport surcharge band: low.
The Jacksonville, FL PAUT contractor base is sized to recurring demand from Naval Station Mayport, Naval Air Station Jacksonville (FRCSE), JAXPORT. Provider listings on NDT Connect include current ASNT certification level, instrument calibration status, and named-site experience — replacing the email-and-spreadsheet pre-qualification dance most procurement teams still run for new vendors.
Major regional clients served
- Naval Station Mayport
- Naval Air Station Jacksonville (FRCSE)
- JAXPORT
- JEA
- Anheuser-Busch Jax Brewery
For the naval (ns mayport) operators that dominate the Jacksonville, FL industrial base, PAUT is the workhorse for weld overlay (cladding) bond inspection. Naval Station Mayport — east coast carrier homeport means the scope is dense, repeatable, and tightly specified — with rudder stock populations driving the recurring volume.
Local crews run PAUT packages calibrated for galvanic loss, deliver S-scan/L-scan/C-scan images, and close the disposition against FL DEP. Ballast-tank pitting map accounts for the bulk of billable hours; cargo-hold survey cycles drive the seasonal peaks. BPVC Sec V Art. 4 Mand. Appx IV sign-off authority is the contractor capability that consistently wins the bid here.
NS Mayport — only east coast Ford-class CVN-capable port besides Norfolk. Naval Station Mayport pre-qualifications are the gatekeeper — crews who already hold them win the volume work; new entrants run the onboarding gauntlet first. FRCSE — depot for entire P-8A Poseidon fleet (NDT to NAVAIR 01-1A-16)
Inspectors qualifying into the Jacksonville, FL PAUT market route through Jacksonville ASNT Section for ASNT Level II/III certification under SNT-TC-1A or CP-189. Total Level II training time for PAUT runs roughly 1280 hours including classroom and on-the-job experience. the nearest API exam centre handles 510/570/653 logistics. Prerequisite per ASNT: ut level ii current.
- ASNT chapter: Jacksonville ASNT Section
- API exam centre: access via nearest regional centre
How much does PAUT cost in Jacksonville, FL?
PAUT (Phased Array Ultrasonic Testing) day-rates in Jacksonville, FL typically clear at $1046/day for Level II crews, with the pricing multiplier on the national base running ×1.02 (transport surcharge band: low). Local Level II inspector wages average $76,000/year per BLS, which anchors that day-rate band. Always solicit at least three parallel quotes before committing programme spend.
Which Jacksonville, FL sites use PAUT most often?
Naval Station Mayport and Naval Air Station Jacksonville (FRCSE) are the high-volume PAUT buyers in Jacksonville, FL. The naval-base footprint at Naval Station Mayport is a recurring PAUT mobilisation point. Pre-qualification at these gates is what unlocks the volume contracts.
What credentials do PAUT inspectors need to work in Jacksonville, FL?
Working PAUT scope in Jacksonville, FL requires ASNT Level II for the method (roughly 1280 total training hours to qualify), plus Jacksonville ASNT Section membership is common. AWS CWI is required for welding-related scope; API 510/570/653 tickets unlock pressure-equipment work. API exam logistics route through the nearest regional centre.
What naval (ns mayport) failure modes does PAUT screen for in Jacksonville, FL?
On naval (ns mayport) jobs in Jacksonville, FL, PAUT is most often called for galvanic loss screening. Recurring scope on cargo-hold survey cycles drives the volume. The technique sits inside FL DEP's acceptance framework, and local crews build inspection plans around the failure modes the naval (ns mayport) owners audit hardest.
How fast can a PAUT crew mobilise in Jacksonville, FL?
Routine PAUT scope in Jacksonville, FL typically picks up a certified crew within 24–72 hours of posting a request — the established contractor base around Naval Station Mayport keeps mobilisation lead times short. Outage windows and turnaround support are negotiated against rotation; post the scope to NDT Connect to receive parallel quotes from providers already pre-qualified at Jacksonville, FL sites.
What standards govern PAUT acceptance in Jacksonville, FL?
PAUT examinations in Jacksonville, FL reference BPVC Sec V Art. 4 Mand. Appx IV / ASME Code Case 2235 (PAUT in lieu of RT) as the technical floor and FL DEP, FL F.S. 554 for documentary compliance. Naval Station Mayport's qualification matrix layers an additional customer-specific spec on top — procedures must close on all three before the crew is cleared at the gate.
Method
Phased Array Ultrasonic Testing
Abbreviation
PAUT
Labour band
Tier 1 (×1.18)
Code authority
NAVSEA
Get a quote
Post a PAUT scope and receive parallel quotes from certified Jacksonville providers.
Request a quotePricing caveat
The numbers above are field-anchored ranges, not a quote. Actual Jacksonville rates vary with scope, accessibility, shift, and contractor utilisation. Always solicit at least three quotes before committing programme spend.
Compare PAUT rates in nearby cities
Verified Jacksonville, FL Inspection-Market Data
Hard numbers from BLS, EIA, AAPA, Census & API directories — anchoring this page to Jacksonville, FL's actual NDT market, not a generic template.
- Local Wage Anchor — PAUT Specialist
- $100K/yr typical for Jacksonville, FL
- Metro Industrial Base
- 1.6M people in Jacksonville, FL
- Sector Mix (NDT Demand Drivers)
- Naval (NS Mayport) (25%) · Port Operations (18%) · Aerospace MRO (14%)
- Port / Marine Workload
- JAXPORT (Blount Island, Talleyrand, Dames Point) (Largest auto import port in US Gulf/SE)
- Active API-Certified Inspectors (regional)
- ~30 API 510 · ~40 API 570 · ~20 API 653
- ASNT Chapter / Community
- Jacksonville ASNT Section
- Cost-of-Living Impact on Rate Cards
- COL index 94.5 (5.5 pts below national avg) · transport surcharge band: low
Source: BLS OES May 2024 Jacksonville MSA
Source: US Census ACS 2023
Source: BEA Regional Accounts 2023
Source: AAPA US Port Rankings 2023
Source: API ICP roster + state directories (est.)
Source: ASNT chapter directory
Source: C2ER ACCRA COL Index 2024
Continue Reading — In-Depth Guides
Authored by ASNT Level III inspectors. Real procedures, real numbers, real codes.
- Phased Array UT (PAUT) — Complete GuideBeam steering, focal laws, scan plans, ISO 13588.
- Phased Array UT MethodMethod-level PAUT page — beam control & probes.
- NDT Inspection Cost Index [2026]US inspection rates by method & region, and what moves the price.
- Ultrasonic Testing — Complete GuidePhysics, calibration, codes, equipment, applications.
- Ultrasonic Testing MethodMethod-level overview, equipment, standards.
Join NDT Connect — free
Get PAUT inspection quotes in Jacksonville, or list your services — free on NDT Connect.
Free to join · No credit card · Provider profiles verified against ASNT & API rosters · Browse providers
