Engineers Week Spotlight: EM Experts Help Transform Liabilities Into Opportunities

EM highlights the contributions of five engineers we’ve interviewed across the cleanup complex for National Engineers Week.

Editor's Note: Founded by the National Society of Professional Engineers in 1951, National Engineers Week is dedicated to ensuring a well-educated future engineering workforce by increasing understanding of and interest in engineering and technology careers. Engineers Week is from Feb. 16-22.

When did you begin working at the site and what got you interested in the cleanup mission?

I began my career at the DOE Savannah River Operations Office in 2021, working as a facility engineer at the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF). DOE offered great opportunities to build onto my previous commercial nuclear industry experience and allowed me to add value to the cleanup mission. Additionally, DOE offered new and exciting opportunities to work with very technical individuals in technology development and environmental remediation.

Can you tell us a little about a project you have worked on?

The SWPF is a newer facility that processes about 90% of the legacy radioactive liquid waste, generated in the 1950s from the Savannah River Site nuclear material production operations. As a facility engineer, I was able to work in collaboration with the contractor on numerous optimization projects, review and approve safety basis updates, and provide oversight to help increase facility throughput and aid in the overall cleanup mission, scheduled to be completed by 2037.

How is your expertise making an impact on an EM project, or the mission in general?

Having a diverse background in chemical and mechanical engineering, along with years of commercial nuclear experience, has allowed me to provide technical expertise and oversight to help accelerate the cleanup mission. I have since taken on additional oversight roles, overseeing work at the Saltstone Production & Disposal Facility and Effluent Treatment Facility, all of which play an intricate role in the overall cleanup mission.

How do you measure team success?

Team success is measured by the accomplishments the team has made over a given period of time, having worked together to achieve milestones or resolve complex issues to help improve the overall process. A great example would be the complex work performed by the SWPF Optimization Team, improving facility processes, to get closer to the target cleanup rates needed to meet the cleanup mission target completion date. The SWPF Optimization Team’s hard work was recognized by being awarded with the 2024 Secretary’s Honor Award.