Paducah Crews Brings Innovation, Lessons From One Cleanup Project to Next

Paducah Site workers review a map of the C-337 Process Building while installing new barcode-enabled signage on columns. The signage uses a grid mapping system developed as a lesson learned from the C-333 Process Building deactivation to improve tracking of component locations as deactivation work progresses.

PADUCAH, Ky. — Cleanup crews are wrapping up work to prepare the C-333 Process Building for future demolition, and they are taking lessons learned in innovation, efficiency and safety with them as they shift focus to the C-337 Process Building at the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management (EM) Paducah Site.

New tools, refined approaches and valuable lessons learned from successes in C-333 will guide the next phase of work at C-337.

The C-333 and C-337 facilities are the largest at the Paducah Site. They combine for over 40 miles of piping, 100 acres of floor space and thousands of process components once part of uranium enrichment operations for decades. Both facilities are similar in construction and are slated for deactivation and demolition as cleanup continues at the site.

As crews launch deactivation activities in C-337, several key takeaways from the C-333 deactivation shape the overall strategy to increase efficiency and worker safety. As components are removed for downsizing in the site’s material-sizing area, crews prepare the equipment to be dismantled. Through benchmarking with other EM sites, different methods, including removal of lead paint, proved to be more effective to prepare equipment, saving time and minimizing potential exposure to workers.

Paducah Site Lead April Ladd praised the team members for their continued innovation and discipline.

“The work in the C-333 Process Building demonstrates the value of refining processes, challenging old assumptions and learning from every phase of the cleanup,” Ladd said. “These improvements not only enhance safety and efficiency but strengthen our long term path toward the overall cleanup mission at the Paducah Site.”

A view of the northwest corner of the C-337 Process Building at the Paducah Site. With deactivation in the C-333 Process Building wrapping up, lessons from the facility are being applied as work shifts to the C-337 Process Building.

In addition to efficiencies in preparations, new process improvements address challenges associated with the scale of deactivation operations. One such upgrade is a new grid-based tracking system.

During C-333 deactivation activities, tracking the hundreds of components stored around the facility was challenging. The new system assigns precise grid locations for components and introduces barcoding technology to enhance accuracy. Once demolition preparation begins, this upgraded tracking capability will enable the project to quickly produce detailed inventories of items within each grid area, improving organization, documentation and execution.

“Each lesson learned in the C-333 Process Building directly informs our work in the C-337 Process Building,” Four Rivers Nuclear Partnership (FRNP) Program Manager Myrna Redfield said. “Our teams continue to rise to the occasion with smart solutions, strong collaboration and a deep dedication to safely preparing these massive facilities for demolition.”

FRNP is the Paducah Site deactivation and remediation contractor.

“As the Paducah Site transitions to deactivation of the next process building, lessons learned from the C-333 are invaluable in refining work practices, strengthening safety controls and improving the overall efficiency of deactivation,” Ladd said. “Each improvement represents the team’s continued commitment to safe, compliant and forward-looking deactivation work, supporting the long term cleanup mission at the Paducah Site.”

-Contributor: Dylan Nichols