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Parsons: Salt Waste Processing Facility Startup Testing Advances on Schedule

AIKEN, S.C. – EM Update recently talked with Frank Sheppard, senior vice president and project manager for Parsons, EM’s contractor for the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF) at the Savannah River Site (SRS). Parsons declared construction of the facility complete in April 2016, eight months ahead of the target schedule and more than $60 million under the target cost for construction activities from Dec. 31, 2012 through the end of construction. In the interview, Sheppard discusses the successful startup testing and how Parsons is capturing lessons learned to share with other major construction projects across the DOE complex.

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1. Parsons is conducting startup testing before SWPF’s scheduled operational start by the end of 2018. How is testing going and how will the facility fit in to the SRS high-level waste mission once operational?

We worked hard with the Department of Energy to complete construction ahead of schedule last spring — and we are proud of that — but the ultimate goal is to get SWPF into operation. It’s been great to begin making progress on startup testing.

There is a series of tests — 60 individual system tests and five integrated system tests — that we need to complete during the test phase. By the end of February, we will have completed 26 of the 60 system operability tests. During these tests, all of SWPF’s components and systems are being rigorously tested to ensure they meet DOE’s strict safety and design requirements for waste processing.

So far, our testing program is on schedule and we hope to continue to be efficient and effective with these tests going forward and find opportunities for acceleration.

Our goal is to make the transition from startup testing to commissioning of SWPF by the end of 2017 and right now we’re actually shooting to make that transition in November. 

We don’t want to waste a day because SWPF is such a key part of maximizing the high-level waste system at SRS. Once operational, SWPF will process the majority of the Savannah River Site’s salt waste inventory by treating highly radioactive salt solutions stored in underground tanks at SRS. Removing that salt waste, which fills over 90 percent of tank space in the SRS tank farms, is a big step toward emptying and closing the site’s remaining 43 high-level waste tanks.

2. SWPF is among multiple major ongoing DOE construction projects. How are you capturing lessons learned from these projects and sharing them across the complex?

DOE has made, what I view as a very wise decision, to support the development of a formal lessons learned document that covers the engineering design, construction and transition from construction to testing phases for use across the complex.  

So we are really capturing these lessons learned — both from construction and from startup and commissioning — as we learn them rather than waiting until we’re done. Two or three years from now, this information might not be as easy to compile. We are finalizing this lessons learned document now and I believe this document can serve other DOE and National Nuclear Security Administration projects well.

When it comes to sharing these lessons, it helps that startup of SWPF is a very collaborative effort with the other site contractors, Savannah River Remediation (SRR) and Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS). Parsons and SRR have collaborated to hire 20 radiological technicians to support SRR efforts until December 2017 and then come back to work in SWPF as trained and experienced technicians. We are also working with SRNS to conduct our laboratory radiological methods development, which is expected to be completed by September 2017.

Separately, we’ve also partnered with the Department of Energy to share lessons learned with our counterparts in the United Kingdom who are working on similar construction projects, and those discussions are continuing. We’ve held a number of meetings to share our experiences and hear from the U.K. on what they are learning on their projects. It’s been incredibly valuable for both sides.

3. Are there specific lessons learned from construction or the transition to startup testing that are particularly notable?

Absolutely. You know, making the change from a construction focus to a startup testing focus is a challenge for the workforce. It’s important to be aware of this challenge, not only with the work itself but in the mindset of the workers. 

With electrical safety, we encountered a few procedural disruptions during this transition. We also had new workers coming to the project who were experienced in their specialty but not necessarily experienced in working at a DOE site. In both cases, one of the biggest lessons learned was the need for training to be specifically targeted to this change in mindset and applying that change to the job.

On a positive note, one of the big lessons learned for this kind of project is to start by installing and testing the basic process control system — which is essentially the brains of the plant — first rather than toward the end of testing. While it creates some challenges out of the gate, the benefits far outweigh any challenges and we are really seeing the benefits from that on SWPF.

4. What do you expect in terms of workforce changes this year?

Staffing for the testing and commissioning phase has stabilized and we currently have about 450 employees. We plan to hire an additional 17 operators in June 2017 and 14 laboratory technicians in July 2017.

We’ve worked hard to achieve the right skill mix here and we’ve got a great team in place to get SWPF up and running. We all want to see this plant in operation so that it can begin supporting this vital mission for the Savannah River Site.