UCOR crews are currently taking down Building K-631 at the East Tennessee Technology Park at the Oak Ridge Site.
UCOR crews are currently taking down Building K-631 at the East Tennessee Technology Park at the Oak Ridge Site.

OAK RIDGE, Tenn. – EM recently awarded its Oak Ridge Site cleanup contractor $12.5 million for its performance from Oct. 1, 2018 to March 31, 2019, amounting to 95 percent of the available fee.

The Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM) recently issued its six-month fiscal 2019 fee determination scorecard for UCOR after completing its evaluation of the contractor. EM releases information relating to contractor fee payments — earned by completing the work called for in the contracts — to further transparency in its cleanup program.

According to the scorecard and OREM’s correspondence to UCOR regarding the fee determination, the contractor received “excellent” ratings for project management and business systems, and regulatory and stakeholder activity; a “good” rating for operations management; and “high confidence” for cost and schedule incentive.

The contractor had several significant accomplishments:

  • Improved worker productivity and reduced the cost of demolishing Building K-1037, the largest remaining facility at the East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP).
  • Implemented an integrated approach to planning and executing building slab removals, with demolitions resulting in significant cost savings and reduced schedule.
  • Provided excellent support to keep the scheduled construction of the Mercury Treatment Facility on track by coordinating with other DOE contractors to safely and compliantly complete early site preparation activities for the facility under budget and ahead of schedule.
  • Worked closely with DOE’s Idaho National Laboratory to develop more efficient methods for mercury cleanup at former mercury process buildings at the Y-12 National Security Complex.
  • Shipped equipment from the Molten Salt Reactor Experiment for size reduction and disposal, meeting a commitment to the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation two years ahead of schedule.
  • Awarded 81 percent of its subcontracts to small businesses, exceeding a goal of 65 percent.

OREM also noted opportunities for improvements. UCOR selected a vendor that was not able to meet requirements to inspect an exhaust stack at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, delaying the inspection. DOE expressed concern about the timeliness of addressing maintenance issues associated with the gates at the White Oak Dam. Additionally, UCOR continued to experience incidents involving equipment operation related to consistent application of its work planning and control program.

View the fee determination letter and the full scorecard here.