NDT Invoicing Software for Inspection Companies in India

Invoices from timesheets and completed jobs, with payments and reminders. Request a demo. Affordable. Accessible. Fully customizable. Quote on request.

How NDT work gets billed in India

Billing in the Indian NDT business has its own vocabulary. Work for public sector undertakings such as IOCL, BPCL, HPCL, ONGC, GAIL and NTPC is usually won through tenders, then executed under a rate contract or work order with a schedule of rates. Progress is measured, joint measurement records are signed with the client's engineer-in-charge, and payment comes through running account bills followed by a final bill. Private refineries such as the Jamnagar complex, EPC contractors, fabrication shops, power plants and boiler manufacturers each have their own processes on top.

For many Indian inspection companies, that means billing lives in Excel: a sheet of measured quantities, a sheet of rates, a sheet of technician attendance and a GST invoice typed separately. Every RA bill is a fresh reconciliation. When a measurement is disputed or a rate is misread, the bill comes back and cash stays stuck for another cycle.

The Invoicing app in the Atlantis NDT ERP reduces that re-keying. It is part of our NDT ERP, pre-configured for inspection companies and deployed by our team, including from our Hyderabad office. Approved timesheets, equipment by serial number and consumables drawn from stock become invoice lines carrying the project, work order or PO, site, method and technician.

This page covers tender and rate-contract billing, RA bills and JMRs, per-film and per-joint radiography billing, IBR and PESO related work, GST, TDS and payment cycles, and the DPDP Act — and how the app handles each.

Rate contracts, work orders and RA bills

A typical PSU or large private job runs like this: the tender sets a schedule of rates with item numbers; the work order or PO authorizes the scope; site progress is recorded in measurement sheets or a JMR signed by the engineer-in-charge; and your RA bill claims the measured quantities at contract rates. The client's finance team checks the bill against the work order, the JMR and the cumulative quantities billed earlier.

In the Atlantis ERP, the Project app records the client PO or work order, contract, site, methods, codes and scope. The invoice header carries the NDT project, job or PO number, site, invoice type and industry sector. The invoice type field lets you distinguish RA bills from a final bill. Each line can carry a cost centre, method, equipment serial, technician, rate type and days or hours, with separate subtotals for labour, equipment and consumables.

Schedule-of-rates item numbers and cumulative quantity tracking across RA bills are set up during implementation, as part of the customization scope agreed with you, to match your tender formats. Signed JMRs and measurement sheets can be kept with the job record, so when a quantity is questioned the evidence is in one place.

Many PSUs also require bills and supporting documents through their own vendor portals, and much government procurement now runs through GeM. The ERP claims no built-in connection to any portal. It produces invoices that already carry the references those portals ask for.

Radiography billed per film, per joint or per day

Radiography in India is often billed per film or per joint rather than per day, especially on pipeline and piping fabrication work. Other contracts pay per crew-day, and shutdown work is frequently billed per shift. Ultrasonic, MPI and DPT may be billed per joint, per metre or per day depending on the tender.

Day and shift billing flows from timesheets. Each entry records a work type — inspection, travel, standby or setup — with method, site, client and equipment serial, a billable flag and a rate multiplier for night shifts, Sundays and holidays. Unit-rate billing such as per film, per joint or per metre is set up as service products and rate rules during implementation, following your schedule of rates.

Radiography also brings regulation. Under AERB, industrial radiography requires licensed sources, a Radiological Safety Officer and trained, monitored personnel. The employee NDT profile records radiation safety training and radiation badge number, and the Fleet app records whether a vehicle may carry radioactive sources along with its transport licence expiry. Film and chemicals are tracked as consumables in Asset Management and Inventory with a movement ledger, so film usage on the bill is backed by stock records rather than an estimate.

The Team Assignments app blocks double-booking of technicians and equipment serials and warns when assigned equipment is out of calibration, which matters when a source or UT set is moving between sites in different states in the same week.

IBR, PESO and fabrication work

A large share of Indian NDT work supports regulated equipment. Boilers and boiler components come under the Indian Boiler Regulations, with inspection authorities reviewing NDT records before approving work. Pressure vessels for storing compressed and liquefied gases involve PESO requirements. Fabrication shops building these items for power plants, refineries and process industries usually want NDT billed per job, per drawing or per joint, with the report as supporting evidence.

The ERP's NDT Reports app captures work order, drawing, WPS and procedure references and runs each report through review and approval, including third-party or authorized inspector names and signatures. Because reports and invoices come from the same job, you can send both together — which is often what a fabrication client's QA team needs before the bill moves to accounts.

For owners and EPCs who want findings in context rather than a folder of PDFs, our companion product, Digital Twin Reporting Software, places inspection results on a 3D model of the asset. It is a separate product that works alongside the ERP and can strengthen bids for owner-side inspection contracts.

Certificates on the bill: ASNT and ISO 9712

Indian clients see both ASNT SNT-TC-1A based certification and ISO 9712 certification on site, and many tenders specify minimum levels for each method. PSU and EPC clients increasingly check certificates at mobilisation and during audits, and a technician found with an expired certificate can put the bill for that work in dispute.

The Certificates app records each technician's scheme, level, method, certifying body and expiry, and automatically marks certificates expiring within ninety days or expired. The Timesheets app warns when a technician's certificate is not valid, so the supervisor sees it when approving hours — before they are billed. See the Certificates app for more.

Atlantis's own training programmes are based on ASNT SNT-TC-1A. The app can record ISO 9712 certificates your technicians hold, but we do not provide ISO 9712 training.

GST, place of supply and multiple registrations

Every NDT invoice in India is a GST invoice. Intra-state supplies carry CGST and SGST; inter-state supplies carry IGST; the place of supply rules for services decide which applies, and they can depend on the client's registration and the site location. Companies with branches in several states usually hold a GSTIN in each, and invoices must carry the correct GSTIN, SAC code and tax split.

The ERP uses standard Atlantis ERP accounting. During implementation, taxes and invoice formats are configured for India following your chartered accountant's instructions — GST rates, fiscal positions, GSTIN on the invoice layout and SAC codes on service products. Multiple state registrations are handled through the company and branch structure agreed during setup.

Businesses above the notified turnover threshold must also follow GST e-invoicing rules. We make no certification claim for any e-invoicing or government reporting system; where a requirement applies to you, we review it with you and your CA during scoping and agree what is included.

TDS, retention and payment cycles

Indian clients commonly deduct TDS under the Income Tax Act from payments to contractors and professional service providers, so the amount received rarely equals the invoice total. PSUs and large EPCs also typically hold a security deposit or retention money from RA bills, and may require a performance bank guarantee. Payment cycles on PSU work can be long, with bills moving through several approval levels.

Payments are recorded against invoices using standard Atlantis ERP payments, and standard reminders help you follow up. How TDS deductions and retention are recorded in the payment reconciliation is configured with your CA during implementation, as part of the agreed scope, so your receivables reflect what is truly outstanding rather than a figure inflated by amounts you will never receive in cash.

If your company is a registered micro or small enterprise, the MSMED Act sets payment timelines for buyers and allows interest on delayed payments. Accurate invoice dates and receipt records become important evidence if you ever rely on those rights. Payment terms are set per client so due dates reflect your contract.

DPDP Act and technician data

Timesheets, certificates, vision tests and radiation badge records contain personal data about your technicians. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 sets obligations for how organisations collect, use and protect personal data. Keeping these records in the ERP, with access controlled through the standard Atlantis ERP permission model, is a better position than scattering them across spreadsheets, WhatsApp photos and email attachments.

The custom invoice layout decides what the client sees — full technician names, employee references or only the technician level — so personal data on invoices is limited to what the contract needs.

Equipment and consumables on Indian jobs

Advanced methods are growing fast in India — phased array and TOFD replacing radiography on many piping and pressure vessel jobs, eddy current and IRIS on exchanger bundles in refinery shutdowns — and tenders increasingly price that equipment separately from manpower. Conventional equipment also moves constantly between sites, branches and clients.

In the Atlantis ERP, instruments are tracked by serial number in the Asset Management app, with issue and return approved by supervisors and managers, condition recorded both ways, reservations with clash prevention and inbound and outbound movements. Rental rates can be recorded against equipment, and invoice lines carry the equipment serial, so equipment charges tie back to the units actually issued to the job.

Calibration records and the calibration certificate register — with provider, certificate number, lab accreditation number and expiry — sit on the same equipment record. PSU and EPC clients frequently ask for calibration certificates with the bill or during audits, and having them against the serial number on the invoice saves a search through shared folders.

Consumables such as film, developer and fixer, penetrant kits, magnetic particles, couplant and PPE are tracked with reorder levels, low-stock flags and a movement ledger. On per-film or per-joint contracts, consumable usage is also a cost check: if film consumption per joint is rising, your margin on that rate contract is falling.

From quotation to invoice

Private clients and EPCs often buy on a commercial offer rather than a formal tender. In the Quotations app, NDT service products are flagged by method and category, and each quote carries the job type, site, project dates and applicable codes, with a custom branded PDF and online acceptance that converts the quote to a sales order.

Whether the job started from a tender schedule of rates or a quotation, the project, crew assignments, timesheets, equipment issues and reports build on that record. When the billing team prepares the invoice or RA bill, the accepted rates and scope are already in the system — not in a revised Excel sheet someone emailed from site.

Who uses the Invoicing app

• Billing and accounts staff prepare RA bills and invoices from approved records, apply GST correctly, record payments with TDS and retention, and follow up on overdue bills.
• Site in-charges and supervisors approve timesheets, confirm standby and night shifts, and collect signed JMRs.
• Project and contract managers check bills against the work order, schedule of rates and cumulative quantities.
• Owners and directors watch margin, receivables and branch performance on the financial dashboard.
• Technicians log hours by work type; accurate entries from site mean fewer corrections at billing time.

Access follows the standard Atlantis ERP permission model, set during implementation, which also supports limiting who can see technicians' personal data.

The financial dashboard and branch cost centres

The Invoicing app includes a financial dashboard with revenue, cost of sales, gross margin, operating expenses, EBITDA, outstanding invoices, vendor bills and expenses, and a 12-month view. Cost centres by branch — for example Hyderabad, Mumbai, Vadodara or Chennai — or by service line, together with the industry sector on each invoice, show whether PSU rate contracts, private refinery shutdowns, fabrication shop work or power plant outages actually carry your margin. The outstanding invoices view shows exactly which RA bills are stuck.

Implementation in India

We deploy and configure the ERP for you. Typical scope includes schedule-of-rates items mapped to service products and rate rules; GST configured with your CA; GSTIN and branch structure; custom invoice layout; RA bill and final bill types; equipment by serial with rental rates; consumables such as film, chemicals and couplant; payment terms; and training for billing staff, site supervisors and technicians. The ERP is affordable, accessible and fully customizable, with pricing on request. See all the ERP apps.

Refinery and power plant shutdowns in India

Annual turnarounds at refineries in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Assam, and planned outages at thermal power stations, are where many Indian NDT companies earn a large part of their year. A shutdown can bring dozens of technicians onto day and night shifts for a few weeks, working on columns, exchangers, heaters, piping and boiler tubes, often alongside several other contractors under the client's permit system.

Shutdown billing usually goes wrong after the event. Attendance registers, shift logs and measurement sheets from site reach the office late; night-shift and Sunday work is not separated; standby while waiting for a permit or scaffolding is disputed; and the equipment charge for the IRIS or eddy current kit that spent the whole shutdown on exchanger bundles is understated. The bill then goes out weeks after demobilisation, when the client's engineers have moved on.

In the Atlantis ERP, timesheets are approved as the shutdown runs, with work type, method, equipment serial and rate multiplier captured when the hours are worked. Cost centres on invoice lines let one shutdown be split by unit or package, and the separate labour, equipment and consumables subtotals match the way most shutdown budgets and work orders are structured. Before mobilisation, Team Assignments blocks double-booking of technicians and equipment serials and warns about out-of-calibration equipment, so the crew and kit on the bill are the crew and kit that were really on site.

For boiler tube inspection during power plant outages, where thickness surveys and other methods may be billed per tube, per panel or per day, unit rates are set up as service products during implementation.

Month-end close for a multi-branch NDT company

Many Indian NDT companies run branches or site offices in several states, each with its own GSTIN, its own clients and its own crews. Month-end often means each branch emails a spreadsheet of bills raised, payments received and expenses to head office, where someone consolidates everything by hand before the owner sees a margin figure.

With the Atlantis ERP, each branch raises invoices in the same system under its own registration and cost centre. Field expenses, travel, lodging and daily allowances are recorded in the standard Expenses app and can be re-billed to jobs where the contract allows. Vendor bills for calibration labs, film suppliers and equipment dealers are recorded through Purchase, so the cost side of the dashboard is current.

The financial dashboard then shows revenue, cost of sales, gross margin, operating expenses, EBITDA and outstanding invoices, bills and expenses across all branches, with a 12-month view that makes seasonal patterns — the shutdown months, the monsoon slowdown on outdoor work — visible. Owners can see which branch is profitable and which is only busy, and which clients have RA bills stuck in approval.

How branches, registrations and cost centres are structured is agreed with you and your CA during implementation, so the setup reflects how your company is actually organised rather than a generic template.

Frequently asked questions

Can the ERP prepare RA bills and a final bill?

Yes. The invoice type distinguishes RA bills from the final bill. Cumulative quantity tracking in your tender format is configured as part of the agreed scope.

Can radiography be billed per film or per joint?

Yes. Unit rates are set up as service products and rate rules during implementation; day and shift work flows from timesheets.

Is it certified for GST e-invoicing?

No certification is claimed. GST and invoice formats are configured for India during implementation, and any e-invoicing requirement is reviewed with you and your CA.

Can it handle multiple GSTINs?

Yes, through the company and branch structure agreed during setup.

How are TDS and retention handled?

They are recorded in payment reconciliation as configured with your CA during implementation.

Does it record ASNT and ISO 9712 certificates?

Yes, and timesheets warn when a technician's certificate is not valid.

Book a demo for your Indian operation

Bring a real RA bill with its JMR and attendance, and we will show it built from ERP records. Book an Invoicing demo or request a quote for the Atlantis NDT ERP.

Invoicing by region

• Invoicing global overview
• Invoicing in United States
• Invoicing in Canada
• Invoicing in UK & Europe
• Invoicing in Middle East

Works with

• Purchase: Purchase orders for consumables, film, couplant and equipment.
• Inventory: Stock of consumables, sources and equipment across sites.
• Expenses: Field expenses and per diems, approved and rebilled to jobs.

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