The EM Office of River Protection (ORP) and contractor Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) recently wrapped up initial worker training sessions on sustaining a nuclear safety culture, as the pace of Hanford Site operations picks up.
Office of Environmental Management
August 1, 2023
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Washington River Protection Solutions President and Project Manager Wes Bryan, left, Production Operations Manager Monica Kembel, and AZ Farm area manager Dave Strasser were among the executive leadership and frontline managers who participated in recent operations safety culture courses. Hanford’s radioactive and chemical waste-storage tanks are in letter-designated underground fields called tank farms.
RICHLAND, Wash. – The EM Office of River Protection (ORP) and contractor Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) recently wrapped up initial worker training sessions on sustaining a nuclear safety culture, as the pace of Hanford Site operations picks up to support treating radioactive and chemical waste from large underground tanks.
“With our first melter for immobilizing waste in glass now up to its target temperature, we are making progress with our tank-waste cleanup mission at Hanford,” said Delmar Noyes, ORP assistant manager for Tank Farms Project. “It’s important to communicate to the workforce that safety remains a top priority and our operating culture will be the foundation of our success.”
The training WRPS is providing was developed to improve efficiency and increase overall focus on safety and operating culture and the importance of following formal processes and procedures.
“A group of Conduct of Operations operations coaches helped develop the training,” said Jared Dobson, acting program manager of WRPS Conduct of Operations and Human Performance Improvement. “The coaches also helped teach the classes alongside our trainers, sharing their fieldwork experience and adding real-world relevance to the training.”
Dobson said the 23 classes held from May to July were highly interactive, and each session included longtime Hanford Site workers and operations employees who shared lessons learned.
“Every session also included participation by at least one frontline manager and a member of executive leadership, including our company president,” said Monica Kembel, WRPS Production Operations manager. “Management and executive leadership heard directly from workers, answered questions and demonstrated leadership’s commitment to this effort.”
More than 350 WRPS employees have completed the training, and the contractor is developing additional classes for supervisors, operations engineers, craft workers and other working groups.
“I’m proud of the work our teams have accomplished in such a short time, digging into this critical training to ensure clear expectations and accountability across all working groups as we increase the pace of operations,” said Wes Bryan, WRPS president and project manager.
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