IR 05000397/1990030
| ML17286A526 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Columbia  |
| Issue date: | 12/21/1990 |
| From: | Johnson P NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION V) |
| To: | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML17286A525 | List: |
| References | |
| 50-397-90-30-MM, NUDOCS 9101020219 | |
| Download: ML17286A526 (10) | |
Text
U.S.
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION REGION V
Report Number:
Docket Number:
License Number:
50-397/90-30 50-397 NPF-21 Name of Licensee:
Washington Public Power Supply System Name of Facility:
Washington Nuclear Project No.
2 (WNP-2)
Location of Meeting:
Date of Meeting:
Prepared by:
Supply System Headquarters Richland, Washington November 28, 1990 D. L. Proulx, Project Inspector Approved by:
0 nson le Reactor Projects Section
<2-X)-Ro ate Soigne
~ll i
S Mana ement Meetin on November
1990 Re ort No. 50-397/90-30 Management meeting to discuss the results of the most recent Systematic Assessment of Licensee Performance (SALP), covering the period of June 1, 1989 through August 31, 1990, and other items related to WNP-2.
9101020219 901226 PDR ADOCK 05000397 G
DETAILS 1.
Meetin Partici ants Nuclear Re viator Commission NRC J.
B. Martin, Regi ona1 Admini strator J.
E. Dyer, Project Director, Project Directorate V,
NRR F. A. Wenslawski, Deputy Director, Division of Radiation Safety.and Safeguards S. A., Richards, Chief, Reactor Projects Branch P.
H. Johnson, Chief, Reactor Projects Section
P. L. Eng, NRR Project Manager R. C. Sorensen, Senior Resident Inspector, WNP-2 D. L; Proulx, Project Inspector Washin ton Public Power Su
S stem (WPPSS P. L. Knight, Chairman, Operations Committee, Supply System Executive Board D.
W. Mazur, Managing Director A. L. Oxsen, Deputy Managing Director G.
D. Bouchey, Director, Licensing and Assurance C.
M. Powers, Director of Engineering J.
P. Burn, Director of Projects C. H. McGilton,. Manager, Operational Assurance J.
W. Baker, WNP-2 Plant Manager G. C. Sorensen, Manager of Regulatory Programs M. M. Monopoli, Manager, Support Services L. T. Harrold, WNP-2 Assistant Plant Manager A. G. Hosier, Manager, WNP-2 Licensing S. L. McKay, Manager, Plant Operations J.
D. Harmon, Manager, Plant Maintenance R.
G. Graybeal, Manager, Health Physics/Chemistry G. L. Gelhaus, Acting Manager, Plant Technical R.
F. Mazurkiewicz, Chief, Operations Branch, Bonneville Power Administration 2.
Discussion of 1989-1990 SALP Assessment The meeting convened at 8:00 a.m.
Mr. Martin stated that the purpose of the meeting was to present the SALP Board's assessment for the period ending in August 1990, and to allow for Supply System response to the SALP report.
He stated that the NRC also wished to discuss two recent plant issues following the SALP discussion.
Mr. Mazur stated that he was pleased that the NRC has recognized WNP-2's improvement and that the Supply System will still demand continued improvemen Mr. Richards suamarized the Board's assessment of the following functional areas:
Plant Operations
Maintenance/Surveillance Engineering/Technical Support Safety Assessment/guality Verification The following comments were provided after the discussion of each of the functional areas:
Plant 0 erations - Nr. Mazur'tated that he did not expect to have the new ssmu ator certified for WNP-2 by the end of 1991 due to problems with the vendor (Westinghouse).
He further stated that they had met four times with the vendor to pressure them to expedite the Supply System's order, and that the Supply System will be requesting an exemption to the schedule requirement for an upgraded simulator.
Nr. Baker stated that he appreciated the recognition given to this functional area and that, if management continues to be involved with this area, the Category 1 rating can be sustained.
He also stated that management will be involved in improving the Emergency Operating Procedures (EOPs),
and requested a meeting with the Region V staff to further discuss this area.
Maintenance/Surveillance 'Mr. Baker stated that the Supply System a
ire a contractor to help with Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCN) programs.
He further stated that although the RCM contractor had found some problems in this area, the program in place is basically strong, and the major concern is in implementation.
Mr. Richards noted that Maintenance/Surveillance is a large area to improve and substantial effort will be needed.
En ineerin /Technical Su ort Nr. Nazur stated that the Supply ystem oes not p an to s i t their emphasis in this area, and will keep all of the programs instituted in this area intact.'e noted, however, that management needs to focus on the project areas (i.e.
system engineers).
. ~
Nr. Johnson replied that the SALP Board's comnents regarding system engineer performance were not intended to reflect on the individual technical competence or dedication of the system engineers.
The SALP Board's concern was that system engineers appear to be overburdened to a degree which allows insufficient time for monitoring of system performance.
Mr. Oxsen stated that the emergency diesel generator bearing failure was one instance in which a system engineer could have prevented a
major proble Nr. Baker stated that there is no quick fix for a solution to this problem.
Ke further stated that the Supply System understands the benefits of good system engineers but does not have a course of action formulated at this time.
Nr. Baker anticipated that with the completion of the new engineering building, Generation Engineering and the Technical Staff will be working closer together at the site, which may result in better system monitoring.
In further discussion of the system engineer role, Supply System representatives acknowledged that many demands are made on the system engineers'ime, such that insufficient time is left for monitoring of system performance.
They stated that initiatives were being undertaken to strengthen the system engineering program, and that they would expect improvement to be realized during the next SALP cycle.
Safet Assessment/
ualit Verification Mr. Mazur stated that he e t goo a out
-
s progress sn t is area, and noted that the oversight groups have brought extra internal pressure upon plant personnel to improve performance.
He also said that they will continue to build a solid and positive program that is beneficial to the plant.
Nr. Baker felt that the goal for the next SALP cycle was to keep the guality Assurance (gA) people involved in continuing to find problems.
He also complimented the gA groups by stating that their reports and findings were comparable to those produced by INPO or the NRC.
Nr.
Richards noted that the Supply System is also perceived to be more responsive to gA audit findings.
Mr. Bouchey stated that WNP-2 is not where they need to be in this functional area, although they are postured to be the best in Region V.
He also stated that if the oversight groups continue to produce audits at the present level of quality (or better), the effect of this should be seen as improvement in other functional areas.
Nr. Wenslawski discussed the SALP Board's findings for the following functional areas:
Radiologica1 Controls
Emergency Planning
Security The following comments were provided after discussion of each of those functional areas:
Radiolo ical Controls Nr. Baker commented that the performance of WNP-2 sn t e area of Radiological Controls is similar to the past performance of personnel in Industrial Safety.
He stated that WHP-2 had problems with personnel in Industrial Safety but aggressive management attention had resulted in recent good performance in that area.
Similarly, Mr. Baker reasoned, there are good, strong programs in place for Radiologcial Controls, but the Supply System has had
chronic problems in implementation of these programs.
He stated that the Supply System's'adiological controls performance is in transi-tion, and that management will work for improvement during the next SALP cycle.
Emer enc Plannin Mr. Monopoli agreed that they have been slow to imp ement ong-standing corrective actions.
A root cause analysis has been performed for this problem, and management has altered its phil-osophy about handling long-term corrective actions.
Mr. Monopoli also discussed the Supply System's actions to correct conservatism deficiencies and inconsistencies in the EOPs.
He stated that the Supply System has not communicated effectively with the NRC regarding Emergency Planning and will work to strengthen this in the future.
Mr. Martin noted that the Board's assessment of this functional area
'had declined to Category 2 for the latest SALP period.
He cautioned Supply System management that it is difficult to sustain a Category
rating in any area.
Mr. Wenslawski stated that WNP-2 must also strike a balance between conservatism versus realism, so that unnecessary actions are not per-formed.
However, he stated that the Supply System's EOP requirement that a General Emergency (GE) be declared only after confirmation by a Post Accident Sampling System (PASS)
sample, was an example in which WNP-2 did not take the best conservative approach.
Mr. Monopoli agreed and stated that allowances have been made in the EOPs to ensure a quicker turnaround in declaring a
GE.
Mr. Baker stated that he took responsibility for the decline in performance in this functional area, and agreed that the Supply System erred in not declaring an Unusual Event for the electrical explosion.
~Secor1t Mr. Monopolf stated that management is aware of the security guard allegations regarding supervision's insufficient concern for problems identified by the security guards.
He asserted that, in the past, Security maintained an attitude of completing all tasks promptly and not being as concerned with details.
The work atmosphere is, slowly changing in this area, and management attention will be focused on improving security guard morale and responding effectively to their concerns.
He then discussed corrective actions being undertaken to improve this functional area.
Mr. Baker stated that the number of hours that security guards are required to monitor vital area doors has decreased.
He noted that further improvement will be slow because a design change is required to complete the needed modifications on these doors.
He added that they would soon receive a new X-ray machine for the security access building.
Mr. Baker also stated that two electrical engineers have been assigned to work on improved security equipment.
He concluded that he felt that the regulatory effectiveness review (RER) inspection was valuable to the improvement of the Supply System's security progra Mr. Martin then stated that he was pleased to see Plant Operations finally earn a Category 1 at WNP-2 because he felt that WNP-2 had always had the potential for this top rating.
He noted that Plant Operations is the lead functional area, and if Plant Operations continues to be a Category 1, the other functional areas will tend to follow.
Mr. Martin also asserted that WNP-2 should start a tradition in which Category 1 ratings are expected in Plant Operations.
Mr. Martin then stated that the Category 1 in Safety Assessment/guality Verification (SA/gV) was a more remarkable accomplishment because this functional area had been a longstanding weakness for the Supply System.
He stated that maintaining the Category 1 in SA/gV, and improving Engi-neering/Technical Support to a Category 1 rating should be the goal of licensee management, so they can realize long-term success at WNP-2.
System engineers, radiation protection, and maintenance have been problem areas, and they need to be brought along just as Plant Operations and SA/gV have been, so those areas will improve also.
Mr. Martin asserted that Supply System management needs to have high expectations for all functional areas.
He stated that the Supply System's objective for the next SALP cycle should be to maintain the momentum which has been established.
Mr. Martin then congratulated the licensee for their SALP performance, and stated that he looked forward to continued progress.
Mr. Mazur and Mr. Baker expressed appreciation to the NRC for recognizing their recent accomplishments, and comoitted to sustain the momentum of improvement into the next SALP cycle.
Mr. Mazur expressed disappointment in the decline in performance of Emergency Preparedness to a Category
rating.
He noted that substanti'al personnel and material resources have been allocated to this area, and the performance of this functional area should not have slipped.
He concluded that Emergency Preparedness, along with system engineers, radiation protection, and maintenance will receive increased management attention, to ensure that that overall improvement of WNP-2 will continue.
3.
Discussion of Recent Problems with Welds Associated with the Hi h
ressure ore ra PC S stem After completion of the SALP discussion, Mr. Richards introduced the topic dealing with recent failures of socket welds in the HPCS system.
He ref-erred to the licensee's previous commitment to find and correct problems noted with the HPCS system after failures were experienced approximately 18 months earlier.
He then requested that the licensee present their past and present positions on this issue.
Mr. Martin stated that what was of issue in this instance was how the licensee deals with problems to eliminate them permanently.
Mr. Baker related the history and technical issues related to the HPCS system, and expressed disappointment that a crack in the socket weld on HPCS V23 should arise when they felt that all of the problems in the HPCS system had been correcte Nr. Baker and Nr. Harrold then discussed non-destructive examination (NDE)
techniques and lessons learned from the recent examination of socket welds in the HPCS system.
Mr. Richards expressed concern that system problems not occur when there is an actual need for this emergency core cooling system.
He encouraged the Supply System to take advantage of this opportunity to correct these problems permanently.
Mr. Harrold then discussed further corrective actions in progress and to be taken in the near future.
Nr. Richards responded that the licensee deserved recognition for the aggressive corrective actions in progress.
4.
Discussion of Deficiencies in Three Recent Licensee Event Re orts LERs Associated wit t e Containment Instrument sr CIA S stem Nr. Richards opened the discussion by stating that LERs 90-18, 90-22, and 90-23 were confusing and difficult to read.
He noted that several personnel performance problems were apparent, but did not appear to have been adequately addressed in those LERs.
Mr. Baker discussed the Supply System's position on each of these LERs individually.
He initially addressed LER 90-18, which described an occurrence in which a worker accidentally bumped the manual operator of a relief valve, ultimately resulting in an isolation of the CIA system.
He stated that this was an occurrence of minor significance that did not require extensive corrective actions.
Mr. Baker stated, however, that'e was quite concerned with the poor performance exhibited in the incidents described in LERs 90-22 and 90-23.
He stated that LER 90-22 clearly. encompassed Operations personnel perfor-mance issues, but that poor procedural guidance also contributed to the occurrence.
Nr. Martin replied that LER 90-22 did not adequately convey the points brought out by Mr. Baker.
He stated that it appeared that Supply System management was focusing on the procedural errors, rather than the personnel performance errors that were made.
Nr. Martin stated that his principal concern'as the appea'rance that observed problems had not been adequately corrected.
Nr. Baker and Mr. Oxsen further discussed corrective actions taken to address LERs 90-22 and 90-23, including some personnel actions.
NRC management representatives concluded the discussion by stating that the Supply System appeared to have taken appropriate corrective actions, but needed to ensure that LERs more completely describe the types of comprehensive corrective actions discussed at this meeting.
Nr. Hartin stated that the meeting had been very useful, and thanked the attendants for their participation.
The meeting adjourned at 10:00 a.m.