From a single laboratory at Al Khobar in the early days of its formation to six now, Al Hoty-Stanger has traced a long, evolutionary path.

The company, which is an independent, multi-disciplined materials testing and consultancy organisation, was formed in 1975 from a union between the Western expertise of David Stanger and the business flair of Saudi entrepreneur Abdulaziz Al Hoty.
The Al Khobar laboratory was set up when Aramco was its first client. Now in addition to Al Khobar, the company has laboratories in Riyadh, Jeddah, Yanbu, Jubail and Hofuf along with satellite operations It also has facilities in Abu Dhabi, Jebel Ali and Dubai city. Jointly, these laboratories offer testing services over a range of disciplines, which is quite unparalleled in the Middle East.
Services range from weld procedure and welder certification to strength, hardness, impact, bend and re-bend testing. Microstructural determinations are routinely undertaken on weldments, parent materials and suspect components and on replicas. Rebars are tested for bend, tensile strength and elongation.
The laboratory is equipped for both organic and inorganic analyses and can determine a host of constituents and components, in some cases to one part per billion discrimination. These determinations range from elemental analyses of metals to gas mixture separations, from polymeric grouping to environmental contamination.
The laboratory evaluates the failure of metallic and other components, employing microscopy as the prime examination tool. Expert opinion is offered based on a variable mix of field visits, non-destructive evaluation, and chemical and metallurgical analysis coupled with a close examination of the topography and possible fractography of the surfaces.
The laboratory undertakes the quantification of almost all of the physical properties required to test fuel and lubricating oils to ASTM, API and PI standards. It can also fingerprint the gas content of insulating oils and the wear metal debris in used lubricating oils to aid in operational diagnostics.
Among the facilities is the microbiology laboratory for food and water examination as to their suitability for human consumption. A variety of environmental testing, often on water and wastewater, is also undertaken.
In the geotechnical field, the company uses techniques including rotary and percussive drilling and dynamic and static penetration tests. Field acquisition of test data, soil samples and rock cores together with laboratory testing result in recommendations for foundation design or potential mineral exploitation. Other services include pile evaluation and ground-probing radar as well as scientific work
In the construction field, the physical and mechanical properties of construction materials are determined both in the field and the laboratory, usually to ensure that materials conform to local and international specifications. These materials include water, aggregate, soil, cement, concrete admixtures as well as a wide variety of component materials and finished products. The condition and suitability of materials in existing structures are assessed where a change of use is required or a structural distress is suspected.
Also available are full non-destructive testing services with the use of visual, radiography, ultrasonic, magnetic particle and dye techniques. These allow the examination and inspection of a component, assembly or structure without alteration of its physical properties, serviceability or endurance.
“The watchword of the company is quality – quality both in our testing techniques and in the service we offer our clients,” said a spokesman of the company.
“It is this commitment to quality which has gained approval from numerous government and commercial organisations as well as accreditation from the Saudi Arabian Standards Organisation and Dubai Municipality, ISO 9002 certification from BSI and approval from the Meteorological and Environmental Protection Agency.
“Our reputation for correctness and professionalism has grown with the company and this, together with the strongly independent stance, has resulted in our being one of the market leaders in the field.
“Our approach to the future is one of progress, of continuing assessment of new techniques and equipment, and their addition to our range of services.”