Robinson Nuclear Plant Spearheads Innovative Robotic Technology to Improve Worker Safety

Robinson Nuclear Plant Spearheads Innovative Robotic Technology to Improve Worker Safety

by vbarq

Robinson radiation protection technicians pose with the facility’s Warrior robot. (Click to enlarge.)

For more than a decade, unmanned robots have been used to detect and dispose of bombs in war zones and to assist with recovery efforts in disaster areas. Since last March, they have been utilized to help clean up the reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan. Here in the United States, nuclear energy facilities are also beginning to introduce this technology to help keep workers out of areas where there may be elevated radiation levels. Leading the effort is the radiation protection team at Duke Energy’s Robinson Nuclear Plant in Hartsville, S.C., where robots conduct inspections and perform maintenance activities inside the facility, limiting worker exposure to radiation.