The Savannah River National Laboratory Modifications Team has reached a milestone of shuttering F/H Analytical Laboratory and transitioning activities and staff to new facilities, pictured here, at the Savannah River Site.
The Savannah River National Laboratory Modifications Team has reached a milestone of shuttering F/H Analytical Laboratory and transitioning activities and staff to new facilities, pictured here, at the Savannah River Site.

AIKEN, S.C. – Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) has successfully consolidated a laboratory that has provided vital analytical results to support almost every critical mission of the Savannah River Site over the last 60 years. The effort will provide future cost savings of more than $20 million.

As part of an effort to close legacy facilities in a portion of the site known as F Area, SRNL and Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS), the site’s management and operations contractor, began a phased approach in 2015 to close the F/H Analytical Laboratory and relocate the lab’s capabilities, programs, and personnel to SRNL’s main campus in A Area.

The final phase of that effort, which started in late fiscal 2018, included lab modifications in the main campus facility. The project was completed early despite the COVID-19 pandemic and competing SRNL priorities.

“The consolidation of F/H Laboratory services has been completed safely in support of the site’s mission to save millions of dollars annually in both facility and analytical cost,” said Woodie Melton, director of analytical characterization at SRNS. “With the establishment of new laboratories and added analytical methods and personnel, the future of SRNL analytical capabilities is stronger and is prepared to generate additional scientific discoveries, aiding in solving problems for both current and future DOE missions.”

Future analytical capabilities being established include a laboratory for high-precision isotopic measurements and added capabilities to dissolve and prepare plutonium oxide samples for analytical characterization.

“I am very proud of SRNL’s efforts to consolidate our analytical methods in A Area,” said Vahid Majidi, SRNS executive vice president and SRNL director. “This was a significant undertaking on the part of many and will allow us to provide the highest quality analytical services to all of our customers.”