RSRL Restore News Aug 2013 - Research Sites Restoration Ltd

Updates on the site restoration programme
JUL/AUG 2013 ISSUE 9
RESTORE NEWS
Water Recovery
Project
The Water Recovery Project is
investigating and testing a suitable
method to retrieve and immobilise
water that has been discovered
in a number of storage
tubes in B462.
To date a series of option assessments and design workshops have been completed with key
stakeholders to determine the most suitable approach for recovery of water from the storage tubes.
The method selected for further development is direct absorption.
Using the new method during
RM2 recovery operations
when water is encountered
in a storage tube, custom
designed perforated bags
would be remotely placed into
the storage tube using the
existing RM2 grabs. Water
would be absorbed through
the perforated bags and into
a mix of acrylamide polymer
granules and Rapid Hardening
Portland Cement (RHPC). The
absorption properties of the
polymer granules are such that
JULY/AUGUST 2013
10 grams will absorb more than
1 litre of water. The inclusion
of RHPC as the encapsulating
medium ensures that a monolithic
structure containing the absorbed
water would be created that
could then be directly disposed
of into a 500 litre drum without
any further treatment. Additional
work to confirm the viability of
this method has been completed
including laboratory trials and
discussions with other nuclear
site licence companies both in
the UK and abroad.
Work is underway to develop
and submit to RWMD an
addendum to the existing
RH-ILW Final Letter of
Compliance for this solution
as well as gaining the relevant
safety case modification
approval.
A fully workable and approved
solution is expected to be
delivered to the operations
team before the end of
the year.
Contents
Tony’s Monthly View
2
Nuclear Material
Transfers
3
RSRL Frameworks
Road shows
3
Safety Feature
4
Business Cases
5
The Smart Project 6
NDA and DECC visit
7
New Chairman
8
RESTORE NEWS
Tony’s monthly
view
The summer is now with
us and I have to take back
what I have previously said;
the sun does shine in the
south! Speaking to friends at
Dounreay it sounds like they
have had a few days of decent
weather as well.
I really hope you all enjoyed
the staff events at Harwell
and Winfrith, I certainly did. It
was great to see so many of
you in attendance and I hope
it made a good start to the
weekend. Thanks for being so
generous, we raised over £800
from the raffle which has been
donated to Cancer Research,
Thames Valley and Chiltern Air
Ambulance, and the Dorset
and Somerset Air Ambulance.
I’m sure you are all aware by
now that a two-year pay deal
has been agreed with the
unions and it will be payable in
the August salary; the unions
have worked hard on behalf
of their members for the deal
offered and, whilst I’m sure
everyone would like more, I
think it is a fair settlement in
these difficult times.
LLWLow Level Waste
PBIPerformance Based
Indicators
NMNuclear Materials
RM2
NVQNational and Vocational
Qualifications
SGHWRSteam Generating Heavy
Water Reactor
PBO Parent Body Organisation
SMESmall Medium Enterprise
Retrieval Machine (2)
Tony Wratten
Managing Director RSRL
SSHESafety Security Health
and Environment
TRIRTotal Reportable
Incident Rate
VLLWVery Low Level Waste
RSRL welcomes Journalist from Japan
RSRL played host to a
journalist from The Asahi
Shimbun GLOBE, who
was on a tour of civil
nuclear sites in the UK and
Europe. Norito Kunisue
was particularly interested
in the decommissioning
of nuclear facilities; the
challenges, the skills
required and the business
chances that are created.
Senior Project Manager, Gary
Reid, gave a presentation on
Harwell’s history, successful
decommissioning projects
and the progress being made
towards site restoration. This
was followed by a tour of the
licensed site; visiting former
materials test reactor DIDO.
JULY/AUGUST 2013
leave, enjoy the break and try
to return fully recharged for the
challenging autumn we have
ahead.
For those of you who are not
on leave, my staff talks are on
the 14/15 August I’m always
happy to take questions on the
day but if you prefer to remain
anonymous, you can send
questions through Comms
beforehand. If I don’t see you
personally and you are taking
Acronyms explained
ILWIntermediate Level Waste
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UPDATES ON THE SITE RESTORATION PROGRAMME
Dates
for the
diary
14 August
Tony Wratten’s staff talks
at Harwell
15 August
Tony Wratten’s staff talk
at Winfrith
20 August
Monthly RSRL/ONR/EA
Progress Meeting at Harwell
20 August
ExCom
22 August
RSRL Board Meeting at
Winfrith
3 September
Civil Nuclear Assurance
Board Meeting at Newbury
11 September
Monthly RSRL/NDA/PBO
Periodic Review at Harwell
13 September
RSRL Directors’ Workshop
at Winfrith
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RESTORE NEWS
3
UPDATES ON THE SITE RESTORATION PROGRAMME
Early shipments were carried
out using Nupak Type B
transport packages, which
contain up to eight drums
per trip. During June the first
transfer of lower inventory
drums commenced using a
Re-sealable IP2 Full Height
ISO container, carrying up
to 35 drums. To date 117
drums have been transferred
to Sellafield from the Solid
Waste Complex, where half
of the (CH) ILW drums are
stored at Harwell.
Nuclear Material
transfers start on time
The first consignment of contact handled (CH) ILW drums was
transferred from Harwell to Sellafield during April 2013, as
planned. This was achieved after a great deal of organisation and
liaison between RSRL and Sellafield Ltd, Direct Rail Services Ltd,
ONR-Safety, EA, ONR-Security, ONR-Transport and LLWR.
These movements have been
made possible through the
dedication and joint efforts of
the Solid Waste Operations
Team and Transport Team
at RSRL. Both teams have
been working closely with
Sellafield Ltd across various
areas of discipline in order to
meet regulatory and project
requirements. The project has
benefited from a “can do”
attitude across both SLCs.
The remaining (CH) ILW drums
are stored in the Radiochemical
Building. In order to retrieve
and load these drums, access
between the site road and
building doorway has been
strengthened to accommodate
the movement of vehicles up
to 30 tonnes. This part of the
project was made complicated
by the need to avoid a high
voltage cable feeding electricity
to prestigious occupants of the
Harwell Campus.
Preparation for the transfer
of a further two NM streams,
Concrete Lined Drums
(CLDs) and Dragon waste,
is progressing in close
cooperation with Sellafield
Ltd and Regulators. These
transfers are due to start in
three years time.
RSRL Frameworks Road shows
held at Winfrith and Harwell July 2013
RSRL Contracts Team hosted
two one day Road shows to
promote the range of goods
and services available through
Framework Agreements.
The events were extremely well
supported by suppliers and staff
alike; both have generated positive
feedback about how useful and
informative the events were.
Building on the success of the
events the contracts team plans
to host something similar in 12
months, and are also hosting
further supplier days in September
this year in association with the
Local Enterprise Partnerships
(Oxfordshire and Dorset County
Council). These Supplier days will
focus on affording Small Medium
Enterprises (SME’s) the opportunity
to improve their involvement in
RSRL’s work programme.
Delivering Safety I Value I Service
JULY/AUGUST 2013
RESTORE NEWS
Human Performance
Error Avoidance Tools
10
4
UPDATES ON THE SITE RESTORATION PROGRAMME
Safety
feature of
the month
Clear Communication Techniques
FACT
We’re only human and we can make mistakes!
There are 10 Error Avoidance Tools that can help
to reduce errors.
Use 3 way communication:
• Repeat the message back
• Confirm the message is correct
Use the Phonetic Alphabet when:
• Identifying plant and equipment
• Wording is similar
• Background noise levels are high
• Using the phone or radio
Avoid using:
• Slang
POOR COMMUNICATION
is often a root cause of accidents
Some recent
incidents have
been caused
by poor
communication
• Complicated technical terms
Write messages down:
• Written messages avoid confusion when reporting onward
10
So remember –
it’s good to talk!
The Goal: Clear Communications is our most powerful tool
PBO Competition Update June 2013
The data gathering, site access and dialogue phase of the
Competition process is due to end in mid September.
The first meeting of the PBO Competition RSRL project work-stream
leads has taken place. The work-stream leads will be responsible for
developing the PBO competition schedule to ensure that all relevant
activities are captured and included in the overall project plan, through
to share transfer in September 2014.
The second phase of site visits continues with the last RSRL site
visit currently planned by the bid team from UK Nuclear Restoration
Ltd scheduled for early September.
To date RSRL has received 49 formal data requests; this equates to
1645 individual line items, resulting in 5961 documents being delivered
to NDA within the agreed timescales. Many thanks to all those involved.
The RSRL Project Schedule and Transition Documentation pack
(Issue 1) was delivered on schedule to NDA on 28 June 2013 in
line with the PBI requirement that earns 25% of the Competition
Fee for 2013-2014.
Remember, if you have any queries concerning the competition
process do not hesitate to contact the competition team on:
720 6846 or [email protected] or perhaps
post a question on the “Any Questions” forum.
JULY/AUGUST 2013
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RESTORE NEWS
Security Presentation
Increasing security awareness
In recent years several security
presentations have been made
to the Site Emergency Team
by site security and external
trainers including Dorset Police.
This has proved very useful in
increasing security awareness
and recognising and
understanding security threats
within the Nuclear Industry as
well as all of the UK.
A Dorset Police Counter
Terrorism Security Advisor
kindly offered to run a similar
presentation open to all pass
holders, including tenants and
contractors. The presentations
proved very popular with a total
of 128 pass holders attending;
feedback was positive and
individuals found them to be
informative and
useful. RSRL
thanks the Dorset
Police for their
time and
co-operation.
Further information
on the role of CTSAs is available at www.nactso.gov.uk
Winfrith holds
Recruitment Days
The Winfrith Optimised
Programme means that we need
more staff in order to deliver
the programme successfully.
As a result of this, the Human
Resources team has been
working with Managers to set
up and run two successful
Recruitment Assessment days
Decommissioning Operative
posts. The main focus of
the recruitment has been for
SGHWR but Operative posts
are also required elsewhere.
Both recruitment days were
held at the Highcliffe Centre
and were well attended by
a range of experienced and
non-experienced candidates.
Delivering Safety I Value I Service
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UPDATES ON THE SITE RESTORATION PROGRAMME
Michael Dunnett, Winfrith
Closure Director, presented
an overview of RSRL
and the plans for future
decommissioning works.
The candidates then
underwent interviews,
assessments and
a group exercise.
Kate Oliver, HR Manager said
“We have been really
pleased with the high level
of applications and have
seen some great candidates
as part of this recruitment
process.”
RSRL is looking forward to
welcoming the successful
candidates, which will
include a small number
of trainees.
Article on Business Cases from
the RSRL Programme Office
The work that RSRL has to carry out to make its sites
suitable for their future use is captured in the RSRL
Optimised Lifetime Plan (LTP).
However, RSRL has to
assure itself, the Nuclear
Decommissioning Authority
(NDA), regulators and other
stakeholders that it will plan and
deliver this work to the standard
required and expected. These
aspects are addressed in a
business case.
A business case must be
prepared when RSRL intends to
start something ‘new’ from the
LTP, for example a programme,
project or procurement,
particularly where there could
be significant financial, technical
or commercial risks associated
with the work.
As well as describing the scope
of the work, a business case
must:
• S
tate the benefits that will
be achieved as a result of
performing the work.
• C
onsider different technical
options or methods for
carrying out the work to
determine which option will
provide best value for money.
• B
alance cost with
hazard reduction, safety,
environmental, security and
socio-economic issues.
• A
ddress make/buy and
sub-contracting options for
the preferred option.
• P
rovide a realistic resource
profile and an affordable
cost profile for the work.
• A
rticulate the risks
associated with preferred
option and explain how
they will be mitigated.
• D
escribe the management
arrangements that will
ensure delivery of the
benefits.
Once the preferred option is
approved either by RSRL’s
senior management or the
NDA (depending on the value
of the work), the work can
commence. However, if the
preferred option is different
from that given in the LTP
then the LTP needs to be
changed first.
A good business case will
provide RSRL with the
evidence to support its
decision making and give
the assurance to the NDA,
regulators and stakeholders
that RSRL is acting
responsibly.
Winfrith Stakeholder event
Winfrith opened the gates and
invited stakeholders to visit the
site and some of the facilities
to understand about the future
developments, and to see what
work has been progressed
since last year. The visitors
enjoyed a bus tour around
site, a visit inside the Dragon
reactor and a DVD was shown
on the proposed site end state.
Feedback was good and many
people commented that they
were amazed with the progress
of the work performed inside
the Dragon reactor. The
evening finished with a buffet
and an opportunity to ask
further questions.
JULY/AUGUST 2013
RESTORE NEWS
6
UPDATES ON THE SITE RESTORATION PROGRAMME
RSRL staff go back to college
RSRL staff went back to college;
however, this time they were
sharing their knowledge with
thirty Engineering and Allied
Trades students. The aim was
to emphasise the employment
opportunities associated with
decommissioning Winfrith and
was held in Weymouth College’s
new Enterprise Centre. An
excellent opportunity on both
sides to bridge the gap between
training and employment.
Andy Haas, SGHWR (Steam
Generating Heavy Water
Reactor) Facility Manager
at RSRL gave a talk to the
enthusiastic students who
were interested in the nuclear
industry and how they could
apply their skills set. Students
were surprised to hear of the
current developments the
site has undergone, with one
saying: “I didn’t know it was
such a safe industry to work in.”
Vice Principal for Enterprise and
Employability at the College,
Rob Jones commented:
“It’s been brilliant to
welcome RSRL Winfrith
to our new Enterprise
Centre and talk about the
amazing opportunities
that our students could be
a part of. There has been
some ground-breaking
work and so much more
to come over the next
eight years. The College
is very proud to be a part
of the journey and our
students’ development.”
The Smart Project Supply
Chain
SMART is a process developed
by Magnox Ltd during FY10/11
to thoroughly underpin their
forecasted Low Level Waste
volumes. The SMART process
was further developed by RSRL
in conjunction with Magnox
during 2012 to enable all wastes
to be captured.
A trial was carried out on the
DRAGON decommissioning
project as a collaborative
exercise between Magnox,
RSRL and LLWR, which resulted
in RSRL having the necessary
experience and tools to carry out
further SMART reviews.
The RSRL 4 man SMART team
is based in the Programme
Office and consists of Quantity
Surveyors, a Planner and an
Estimator. The team will visit the
facilities on both sites and carry
out a walk round to determine
the makeup of each structure,
including its contents.
The SMART process involves
taking measurements and
photographs of plant and
equipment, and is carried out
in conjunction with Project
JULY/AUGUST 2013
Managers, Radiological
Protection Advisors and
other project staff. Where
measurements cannot be
made ‘take offs’ from Technical
Drawings are used. Our motto
is if it doesn’t move, measure it.
The SMART team, working in
conjunction with the project
teams, are able to estimate
more accurately the volumes
of waste, and determine the
disposal routes for the waste,
for example incineration,
reuse or recycle. The waste
is categorised as follows: Out
of Scope, LA-LLW, HV-VLLW,
LLW and ILW.
volumes of waste that will be
generated by RSRL during the
decommissioning of the facilities
on its sites. The output of this
work will be a new data set that
records fully traceable waste
volumes for RSRL, backed up
by measured dimensions of
actual plant and equipment.
This will provide much better
confidence in the waste
volumes that RSRL has to
manage and dispose of.
This gives RSRL the opportunity
to divert waste away from
LLWR to other suitable routes.
We are currently carrying out
the SMART process on Winfrith
Balance of Site Structures
which will be followed by
SGHWR and in due course the
facilities at Harwell.
The SMART work is being
carried out to provide a
better understanding of the
Nick Simpson & Gerry Toman
take measurements of the
Dragon Reactor Fuel Element
loading/Unloading area
Awards
Entries invited for supply
chain awards
Business entries are
now being invited for the
prestigious NDA Estate
Supply Chain Awards 2013
which recognise outstanding
contributions to the nuclear
clean-up mission. Launched
last year, the awards are
jointly sponsored by the NDA
and its SLCs, with the aim
of acknowledging the supply
chain’s vital role in delivering
progress across the estate
and providing innovation in all
its forms to add benefit and
efficiencies to the programmes
of work. For further information
please see attached link.
http://www.nda.gov.uk/
contracts/supply-chainawards.cfm
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RESTORE NEWS
7
UPDATES ON THE SITE RESTORATION PROGRAMME
SAVE SCHEME update
FACE 2 FACE
Since the last newsletter Excom have made the following SAVE awards:
SAVE 810
Preventing jamming of the debris grab in B462
at Harwell
£50 awarded
SAVE 837/838
Submissions relating to testing of DN3380
flask fleet and reducing the number of on-site
DN3380 SSWF
£150 awarded
SAVE 844
Installation of window film on offices/rooms
where direct sunlight shines through windows
£25 voucher awarded
SAVE 845
Use of LED lights in areas where maintained
emergency lights are used 24/7
£100 awarded
Richard Jenkins
Role
There are a small number of outstanding suggestions where advice is being sought. However, the
individuals concerned have been advised of this and they should receive an update shortly after
the next ExCom meeting, which is scheduled to take place on 20 August.
Senior Project Manager
(SPM) at the Liquid effluent
treatment plant (LETP).
Working on the Harwell site
for 26 years I had never set
foot into the LETP; this all
changed in December 2012
when I transferred from
B220, to my new abode.
Seven months on…
RSRL hosts visit from the NDA and DECC
The role is very busy, varied,
exciting and rewarding. In
this position you have to be
able to deliver not just the
project requirements but also
to meet the expectations of
the workforce. I have seen
laughter, tears and stern
looking faces.
What I like most about
the role…
The responsibility that
comes with the post and
the interaction I have with
so many people both
locally and across the
organisation.
What I least like about
the role…
Representatives from the
legal teams at the NDA
(Nuclear Decommissioning
Authority) and DECC
(Department of Energy
and Climate Change)
visited Harwell in June for
a familiarisation visit, to
learn more about the site’s
operations, and to gain a
practical understanding
of the complexities
faced by the site teams
in decommissioning and
delicensing.
Delivering Safety I Value I Service
Senior Project Manager, Paul Atyeo, gave an introduction
and overview of RSRL’s programme and decommissioning
achievements to date. This was followed by a presentation
from Property Manager, Stuart Clark, on de-designation and
delicensing. Afterwards the visitors were given an opportunity to
tour the licensed site and visit former materials testing reactor,
DIDO, which is currently in care and maintenance and waiting
final stage decommissioning.
NDA Rob Higgins and DECC Michael Freeman commented:
“We’d like to thank RSRL. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed
the visit, which managed to put the whole decommissioning
mission into perspective. The presentations and tours were
incredibly interesting and informative.”
The huge amount of e-mails
that I get each day and
attending long meetings.
Outside of the role…
I enjoy relaxing at home,
although I have had my
fair share of DIY jobs to do
around the house of late! My
interests are Landrovers, fine
wine and expensive holidays
- although the holidays are
now on hold with fatherhood
on the horizon….GULP!!
JULY/AUGUST 2013
RESTORE NEWS
New Chairman and
Deputy Chairman
The Harwell-Chilton
Stakeholder Group,
established to give the local
communities a voice in
decisions regarding the site,
has recently come under a
new chairmanship.
Local councillors Chris Broad,
Chilton Parish, and Dr John
Sharp, East Hendred Parish,
were elected as Chairman
and Deputy Chairman and
are expected to be in post
from 1 October 2013.
RSRL thanks former chairs,
Terry Joslin and Terry Fraser,
for all their hard work and
commitment over the
years and wish them every
success in the future.
Commenting, Chris Broad,
said:
“I am delighted to have
been elected. The next
few years will see some
important developments
at RSRL and I am pleased
to be able to contribute
as Chair of the LSG.”
Chris Broad
LSG Chairman
Didcot Support Hub - T2 - receives donation from RSRL
RSRL recently sponsored
T2 - the Didcot Support
Hub and drop in centre for
individuals with moderate
and mild learning disabilities.
The hub, which is run by
registered charity Style Acre,
opened in February 2012
and has enabled ‘hard to
reach’ vulnerable people
to receive much needed
support, to help them to
gain skills and training and
have access to meaningful
employment.
JULY/AUGUST 2013
Commenting on the donation, Fundraising and Marketing
Manager, Philippa Stannard said:
“On behalf of everyone here at Style Acre we would
like to thank RSRL for their wonderful donation, which
will fund the T2 StudyVox Radio and enable the people
we support to broadcast on the internet as well as
provide skills which could lead to work experience
opportunities and help improve communication skills.”
For more information go to
www.styleacre.org.uk
RSRL sponsored the hub’s
portable radio station
VoxBox, which enables users
to develop specialised radio
and communication skills
and helps users feel like they
belong to a community and
can keep in touch.
Style Acre made mention
to RSRL’s support in their
newsletter http://www.styleacre.
org.uk/newsletter/NewsletterJuly-2013.pdf and on their social
networking sites.
“The Great Harwell Bake Off”
And the winner, RSRL’s Danny Joyce.
Danny’s entry was a
fabulously decorated cake
with a gorgeous texture and
incredible taste, with each part
representing areas of RSRL.
Danny narrowly pipped Melissa
Males into second place,
Melissa entered an astonishing
display of perfectly decorated
cupcakes.
Tony presented Danny with
a cookery book and crystal
glasses and Melissa with a
copy of Nick Hance’s book
‘The Enigma Revealed’, and
crystal glasses for their hard
won endeavours.
All monies raised were for
Great Ormand Street Hospital.
RSRL welcomes Babcock and Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy Ltd
On 23rd July Harwell received a
visit from Babcock International
Group and Japanese company,
Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy Ltd.
John Sharp
LSG Deputy Chairman
8
UPDATES ON THE SITE RESTORATION PROGRAMME
The Hitachi representatives
were on a fact-finding visit to
gain an understanding of the
legislation, and its application, for
the management of radiological
protection on UK nuclear
licensed sites.
Managing Director, Tony Wratten,
provided an overview of RSRL. This
was followed by presentations by
Babcock, and RSRL representative
Vaughan Rees, and a round table
discussion. The day ended with a
tour of the licensed site and DIDO,
accompanied by Project Managers,
Paul Atyeo and Barry Reynolds;
they talked more about the work
undertaken at Harwell in the site’s
early years and the decommissioning
achievements to date.
Commenting on the visit, Nick
Cockin, Babcock’s Operations
Manager for Nuclear Services,
said that the visit had been
extremely informative and had
provided the guests with a great
insight into the requirements
and application of the Ionising
Radiations Regulations as well as
the best practice approaches to
the management of radiological
protection developed by RSRL
and Babcock.
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