Science and Hazard Management

We offer support both as part of an integrated engineering team and as independent advisors and provide the technical underpinning to support our position as the leading UK nuclear services provider, applying our specialist knowledge to the areas of:

  • Hazard management, human factors and radiological protection
  • Decommissioning planning and costing
  • Decommissioning methodologies, design and implementation
  • Waste and spent fuel management
  • Environmental assessment, contaminated land management, site end state preparation & implementation
  • New nuclear build

Using a variety of processes, tools and techniques, we bring to bear a variety of disciplines and experiences to optimise the whole decommissioning process from initial strategy formulation to final site clearance.

As well as formulating strategies to move forward, we also review existing design strategies to ensure that they can be successfully implemented in terms of flows through a facility, zoning and design for ultimate decommissioning of new or modified facilities. We can also assist internal and external clients in facilitating and documenting the scheme decision process and can facilitate requirements management and value engineering workshops and apply multi-attribute decision analysis methodologies such as Best Available Technique.

Experience
  • Dounreay site closure optimisation (Cavendish Dounreay Partnership) – savings over £1bn and timescale reduced by 11 years
  • Winfrith Closure Programme – site closure date accelerated by 27 years
  • Harwell Optimisation Project – site closure date accelerated by 14 years
    Total RSRL savings around £500M
  • Magnox / RSRL – competition win for 12 sites, NDA estimate savings in excess of £1bn
Key Customers
  • AWE
  • EDF Energy
  • DSRL
  • Magnox Ltd
  • Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA)
  • Babcock Marine
  • HM Naval Bases (Clyde, Rosyth, Devonport)
  • RWMD
  • EBRD (KNPP,INPP, Bohunice)
  • Sellafield Ltd
  • Ministry of Defence
  • Rolls Royce

We are a world leader in the safe management of radioactive fuels and wastes, with proven capabilities in waste and component handling, transportation, storage and disposal. Our decommissioning expertise ranges from identifying the optimum decommissioning strategy, ensuring integration with waste management and site restoration strategy, baseline planning and cost estimating, identification of Best Available Technique, concept design and methodology development, on-site implementation and subsequent records / knowledge management. Our capability and experience in the complete decommissioning of nuclear equipment and facilities allows us to provide a fully integrated solution that can be delivered in-house. Safety and quality are paramount through all aspects of our decommissioning work.

Experience
  • Baseline decommissioning planning (Magnox fleet)
  • Non-elective closure planning (AGR fleet)
  • Decommissioning planning and design (France, Lithuania, Italy, Russia)
  • Decommissioning design and implementation (WAGR and Calder Hall)
  • Decommissioning planning for new build (Horizon)
  • Decommissioning strategy and design review (FGMSP, Sellafield)
  • Programme management and planning (defence-related liabilities, Sellafield)
  • Geographical Information System (GIS) management of characterisation data, building & infrastructural information

Our multi-disciplinary Waste and Spent Fuel Management team enables us to identify optimum management strategies, assess financial impact of competing strategies, determine the Best Available Technique, assess radiological and chemotoxic inventories, evaluate immobilising agents, assess material behaviour over time, identify appropriate package types, and produce Letters of Compliance and Radioactive Waste Management Cases.

Experience
  • Options for fuel pond emptying and sludge treatment (Canada)
  • Spent IX resin retrieval and disposition (Canada)
  • UNGG decommissioning planning (France)
  • Grout formulation trials (Dounreay)
  • Packaging of carbon debris (AGR fleet)
  • Graphite characterisation & behaviour (NDA)
  • Pre-Conceptual Disposability Assessment (Sizewell B spent fuel)
  • Letters of Compliance (SGHWR & Dragon ILW, Trawsfynydd Active Wastes)
  • Radioactive Waste Management Case (SGHWR sludge)
  • Spent fuel storage strategic options, BAT, technical studies and liabilities assessment (Sizewell B)
  • Spent fuel storage options for new build (EDF, Horizon and HGNE)
  • ILW and LLW management options for new build (Horizon and HGNE)
  • Design for decommissioning (Dounreay RHILW encapsulation plant and store)
  • Nuclear facility layout (Sellafield Silo Maintenance Facility)

Cavendish Nuclear has been providing safety case and hazard management services to the nuclear industry for more than 30 years and has carried out assessments, and prepared safety documentation for all major UK operators of nuclear facilities. This service provision includes safety documentation management, authorship, independent peer review and interface with regulatory bodies.

Cavendish Nuclear can provide fully integrated safety cases combined with full design and engineering substantiation capabilities, project management, analytical support and technical consultancy throughout the project life cycle.

Cavendish Nuclear safety case and hazard management capability comprises of Principal Consultants, Senior Consultants, Consultants and Supervised Practitioners. In addition to this capability within Cavendish Nuclear, we also have the potential to ‘reach back’ into the wider Babcock International Group and access another 120+ safety case and hazard management professionals within Babcock Marine. This makes Babcock International Group the largest and most diverse nuclear safety case and hazard management capability service provider in the UK.

Our extensive experience in the development and preparation of safety documentation supports all stages of a project lifecycle including:

  • Optioneering and design phases from initial Hazard Appraisal and Hazard management Strategies through to Preliminary Safety Reports in order to communicate proposals, at an early stage, to the necessary stakeholders
  • Construction, including modifications and concessions, through Pre-Commencement Safety Reports, Inactive and Active commissioning, and through Pre-Inactive and Pre-Active Commissioning Safety Reports
  • Operation, including optimisation of the operational envelope, through Operational Safety Reports and throughout the plant life through Short and Long Term Periodic Safety Reviews
  • Post Operation Clean Out, Decommissioning and Demolition through a range of applicable safety reports

Our hazard management capabilities include hazard identification and assessment (HAZID, HAZAN), ALARP assessment, INSA and independent peer review, dose uptake analysis, shielding design, plant zoning, human factors integration, human-machine interaction, human reliability analysis, competence frameworks, safety case development, and engineering support and workplace design.

Examples of work
  • Dose uptake analysis and RPA (Berkeley)
  • FED Retrieval shielding assessment (Trawsfynydd)
  • Containerised Waste and FED Retrieval safety case (Berkeley)
  • Encapsulation plant and LLW Vault safety cases (Dounreay)
  • Reactor dismantling safety case (WAGR, UNGG (France))
  • Human factors planning and strategy (AWE, Sellafield SMF, Trawsfynydd)
  • Competency framework design (EDF NNB)

Cavendish Nuclear has proven experience in all areas of environmental management and capabilities that enable us to deliver support to the UK and international nuclear industry. Our nuclear specialism gives us a sound understanding of our customer’s requirements saving time and money and gives confidence to the regulators that all environmental aspects have been thoroughly considered. Cavendish Nuclear are equally capable of working independently on major contracts; as a support function to customers’ nuclear projects; in a specialist role or as part of an integrated project delivery team, a flexibility that allows our solutions to be tailored to the customer’s needs.

Cavendish Nuclear can provide environmental specialists in all major technical areas including:

  • Contaminated land assessment and management
  • Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and environmental modelling
  • Engineering support including Best Practicable Environmental Options (BPEO)
  • Best Available Techniques (BAT)
  • Multi Attribute Decision Analysis (MADA) and Environmental Safety Case
  • Waste Management
  • Radiological Characterisation and Environmental Management Systems (EMS)

Cavendish Nuclear can offer essential support at all stages of a project lifecycle to ensure the project minimises environmental impacts, is compliant with relevant legislation, implements industry best practice and prevents pollution.