Nuclear decommissioning in safe hands

21st August 2017
Source: SCX Group
Posted By : Joe Bush
Nuclear decommissioning in safe hands

The decommissioning of the former Dounreay nuclear plant in northern Scotland will feature, as a key part of the project, a crane designed, manufactured, tested and installed by Sheffield engineering specialists SCX Special Project.

The company has been awarded a contract to help ensure the safe handling of radioactive waste as part of one of the largest and most difficult nuclear commissioning challenges in Europe. The semi-automated overhead drum crane will be used to lift 500lt stainless steel drums into a new £22m unit at Dounreay. The drums will be encased in cement, put into long term storage and monitored remotely over time.

SCX Special Projects – part of the SCX Group – is working with Dounreay Site Restoration Ltd (DSRL), which is managing the decommissioning on behalf of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. The Sheffield firm is manufacturing, testing and installing the crane on-site, which closed in the mid-1990s after 50 years as a world leader in experimental fast breeder testing and development.

Andy Whitworth, Director of SCX Special Projects, said: “In such a safety critical industry you need to ensure that the equipment is reliable and safe far beyond all limits of its operation. High level waste demands extreme caution, requiring engineering solutions that exhibit strength, durability, safety and quality. At the top of our list of priorities is that people are protected and can work with confidence in the surrounding environment.”

The new waste storage facility will be an extension to the existing Dounreay Cementation Plant at the site which had three reactors, chemical reprocessing plants and various waste facilities. The latest estimated cost of the site closure plan is £2.3bn and work is scheduled to finish around 2030.

The design of the crane, which has a three tonne safe working load, incorporates an emergency failsafe hoist brake, which quickly and safely prevents the freefall of the load in the event of a mechanical failure or loss of control.

Dan Towers, Senior Project Manager at SCX Special Projects, said: “In a facility handling spent fuel, we need to be certain that the load is safe, secure and under control to ensure that both people and the environment are kept safe.”


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