Dave Nelson

Dave Nelson, co-owner and President of Nel PreTech, has been at the helm of the family-owned metrology and engineering services firm since its founding in May 1993. Together with his brother Greg Nelson and wife Jennifer, Dave has built a reputation for high-quality inspections, detailed reporting, and technical excellence driven by his passion for mathematics and problem‑solving.

With a foundation in physics and metrology, Dave steered the company’s evolution from dimensional inspection to a full end‑to‑end industrial scanning and engineering services partner. Under his leadership, Nel PreTech expanded into cutting‑edge 3D scanning, industrial CT scanning, reverse engineering, CMM inspections, and advanced NDT services—all delivered through an ISO/IEC 17025‑accredited quality system.

Dave is committed to assembling a team of exceptional professionals—physicists, metrologists, mechanical engineers—with real scientific understanding of X‑ray physics, material properties, scanning uncertainties, and mechanical function. This distinction ensures every project benefits from rigorous measurement, insightful analysis, and useful deliverables.

In interviews, Dave emphasizes the transformative impact of CT scanning in manufacturing, asserting that it is at the beginning of a rapid growth phase. By integrating advanced hardware (like Zeiss Metrotom and ATOS Q scanners) with sophisticated software, Nel PreTech, under his guidance, delivers deep analysis services—such as porosity, thickness, fiber orientation, and failure analysis—beyond traditional inspection methods.

Dave takes pride in the company’s long history and its people, many of whom have been with the firm for years. His mission remains to provide customers with trustworthy, precise, and actionable metrology and engineering results through innovation, discipline, and a deeply scientific approach.

Read more:

• Interview with Easy Engineering
• Quality Magazine article by Dave Nelson – “Computed Tomography: A Look Inside”
• Interview with Quality Magazine – “Trends in NDT Lab Services”

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