IR 05000416/1997099
| ML20217H374 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Grand Gulf  |
| Issue date: | 10/09/1997 |
| From: | NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION IV) |
| To: | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20217H365 | List: |
| References | |
| 50-416-97-99, NUDOCS 9710150186 | |
| Download: ML20217H374 (6) | |
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GRAND GULF NUCLEAR STATION SYSTEMATIC ASSESSMENT OF LICENSEE PERFORMANCE (SALP)
Report 50 416/97-99 l. BACKGROUND The SALP Board convened on September 10,1997, to assess the nuclear safety performanco of the Grand Gulf Nuclear Station for the period February 25,1996, through September 6,1997. The Board was conducted in accordance with Management Directivo 8.6, " Systematic Assessment of Licensoo Performance." The members included:
K. E. Brockman (Board Chairperson), Deputy Director, Division of Reactor Projects, Region IV: D. D. Chamberlain Deputy Director, Division of Roactor Safety, Region IV; and J. N. Hannon, Director, Project Directora'o Ill 2, Offico of Nuclear Reactor Regulation. This assessment was reviewod and approved by the Regional Administrator, Functional Areas and Ratinas Previous Current Plant Operations 1 1 Maintenanco 2 1 Engineering 1 1 Plant Support 1 2 II PLANT OPERATIONS Overall safety performance in the Operations area continued to be evaluated as superior during this rating period. Plant operations during nonroutino and abnoirnal events was excellent, and training continued to be effectivo in developing and maintaining the capabilities of the operations staff. Licensee management demonstrated an appreciation of and attention to safety conscious decisionmaking, and programs and procedures appropriately supported the safe operation of the plant. Weaknesses identified in the previous SALP period were addressed and, whilo not completely resolved, improvements in individual attention-to detail and configuration control becamo evident later in the rating period. While numerous improvements emanated from self assessment findings, self assessmonts were sometimes narrow in their scopo and limited in their impac Professionalism in the control room continued at high levels. Operator performance during abnormal and nonroutine activities was excellent. The staff's capabilities and attentiveness were demonstrated by their responses to both the safety relief valvo opening event and the control rod drift event. Communications practices also improved and, by the end of the rating period, were exce'lont. However, some instances of inattention to detail were identified. The examples were isolated and mostly limited to the areas of operator-conducted surveillances and configuration control; however, one concern was the f act that two events (reactor core isolation cooling alignment to the suppression pool: start up with inaccurate condensate storage tank levelindication) evolved over multiple shift Management continued to ensure that the plant was operated in the most safety conscious operational mode. This included manually scramming the reactor, as appropriate, reducing 9710150186 971009 A gDR ADOCK 05000416 PDR
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_ . 2-power, when necessary, and rostrictin0 operational activities during periods of uniquo l operational challenges. A questionin0 attitudo was evident at alllovels of tho operations j organization. Operations departrnent mana0ers and staff focused on maximizing the '
plant's margins of safety. Ono exception was the decision to restart from Refueling Outa00 8 with questionablo condensato storage tank lovel instrumentation. Tho subsequent f ailure of the level transmitter resulted in a loss of control rod drive hydraulics and necessitated a manual scra Cporations continued to demonstrate a commitment to reducin0 control room material condition deficiencies. Inoperablo control board annunciators were minirnized throu0hout
, the rating period, and operations persorinol were consistently involved in the prioritization L
of work activities throughout the plant. Pro 0 rams and procedures were, on the wholo, very offectivo. Only isolated difficulties, such as a problem with respirator eye glassos, were identifie Self assessments were an int 00ral part of tho operations department pro 0 ram for self-
, ovaluation and improvement and, onco problems were identified and action plans developed, the correctivo actions woro comprehensivo and offective. However, self-assessments often focused on individual issues. Only recently have more broad based initiativos, such as the Shift Supervisor Review Program, boon undertako Performanco in the Operations functional area was dotormined to be Category . MAINTENANCE Maintenanco performance improved throu0hout the SALP period and attained a superior level during the latter portion of the cycle. Significant emphasis was placed on correcting the weaknesses noted in the last SALP report. The scram reduction pro 0 ram, initiated near the end of the last period, was effective in reducing the number of reactor scrams and plant transients caused by maintenanco activities and undetected plant material condition problems. Efforts to improve equipment reliability were offective and, by the end of the assessment period, overall material condition was very good, in several areas, the observablo material condition was considered to be outstanding. The promulgation of material condition standards and effective monitoring for conformance with those standards was also accomplishe Maintenance backlogs were ef fectively tracked and controlled and a significant reduction in the backlog was achieved. The initiation of a multidisciplined fix-it-now maintenance team was very successful and improved maintenanco's responsiveness to operational needs and challenges, The number of leaks in the radiological controlled area and the quantity of contaminated areas were also significantly reduced. Control room annunciator deficiencies and conditions requiring special operator attention (i.e., opo'ator work-arounds) were effectively tracked and controlle _ _ . _ . __ . -_
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e 3-I Management support of maintenanco activities was excellent. Conservativo decisionmaking was consistently demonstrated in addressing equipment problem Mamter.anco programs and procedures supported tho effective implementation of maintenanco activities, although there were isolated problerns identified with the implementation of maintenance instructions. As an exarnplo, maintenanco craf t initially performed ccirective maintenance work on the wrong diesel Generator jacket water couplin0; additionally, inadequato maintenance work practicos resulted in multiplo drif tin 0 control rods when the scram air supply to a hydraulic control unit was lost. Those isolated problorns were primarily caused by inattention to detail either during the implementation or preparation of work instruction Surveillanco pro 0 ram implementation was excellent, and very few surveillanco performanco errors were noted. Routino surveillancos were performed in a professional manner. The survoillance program and proceduros were of high qualit The requirements of the Maintenanco Rulo were proactively and effectively implomonte Probabilistic risk assessment insi0 hts and deterministic approaches v. ore effectively into0 rated to quantify the risk significanco of structures, systems, and compunonts. An onhanced sensitivity to risk si0nificant equipment being out of service was demonstrated, and this sensitivity was appropriately integrated into the conduct of maintenanco activities; however, a nood for operations and maintenance scheduling personnel to receive training on the capabilities of the risk monitoring program was identifie Maintenance and surveillance personnel were found to be hi0 hly qualified and, in the area of training, the use of equipment mock ups significantly enhanced offectiveness. Problem identification and performance assessment in the maintenance area was Generally very Good. Tho licensee self initiated actions to improve the supervisory skills of first lino supervisor Performance in the Maintenanco functional area was determined to be Category IV. ENGINEERING Engineering continued to perform at a superior level durin0 this ratin0 period. The previous SALP report hi0 hlighted instances whero correctivo actions were not taken to resolvo self-assessment findings; also, there appeared to be a willingness to allow some deficient conditions to romain unaddressed. In his SALP period, the licensee took numerous actions to address these weakness. This included the eatablishment of the Corrective Action Review Board to review root causo determinations and corrective actions for significant deficiencios and the initiation of periodic quality review group meetings to review, in a group format, proposed corrective action Grand Gulf completed an initial review of their Updated Final Safety Analysis Report (UFSAR) 2 months before the NRC's 10 CFR 50.54(f) request for design basis information. Additional design basis improvements wert subsequently initiated, Examples include a UFSAR review of 16 systems, operations and rnaintenance proceduro reviews for
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these systems, preparation of a calculational index and relational database, system desi0 n and analysis basis document review, mechanical and electrical calculational reviews, and design basis trainin Overall safety performanco in engineonna was very good. Operability determinations were prompt and sound. This was demonstrated by the ovaluations conducted for the drywell purgo compressors and the 480 Vac load center brookers which woro found in a position not previously evaluated for seismic qualification. Likowise, engineering ovaluations and calculations were thorou0h and technically sound. On the whole, engineering personnel were found to be technically knowledgeablo of component and containment leakago acceptanco critori Durin0 this assossment period, the quality of on0 ineering support for operations and maintenance continued to be excellent. The performanco of system engineers also continued to be a strength. EnD ineering provided effective support during the Standby Service Water Pump A overhaul and replacement, for the posttrip analysis conducted after the reactor scram on June 6,1996, and during several troubleshooting activities on the emergency diosol generator Engineerin0 programs and procedures were found to be superior. A few isolated deficiencies woro identified, however, in engineering products durin0 the assessment period. One example of these deficiencies was a configuration control weakness in the area of desi0 n calculations; specifically, an adequate control of the issuance of design calculations to assure that obsolete calculations were clearly identified and properly superseded had not been establishe The trainin0 provided for engineering personnel was extensive, and three training initiatives (en0i neerin0 support personnel training; senior reactor operatar training; and technical training) were initiated during this SALP period. A goal was established to have all desi0 n en0i neering managers and 20 percent of the staff senior reactor operators certified by the end of 199 Finally, the extensive corrective action and safety assessments conducted within engineering in this SALP period were considered effective and self-critical. There were several instances where aggressivo corrective actions were implemented in response to identified problems. For examplo, upon notification that a vendor supplied calculation did not account for all flows into the reactor vessel and could cause the licensed power level to be exceeded, immediate corrective actions were taken by the licensee to remedy the proble Performance in the Engineering functional area was determined to be Category V. PLANT SUPPORT Overall performance in the Plant Support area was very good. This represents a decline from the superior rating assigned during the last SALP period. Performance in the
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! 5-l . radiological controls ares was generally very good; however, some problems were noted with the performance of radiation protection technicians, the f ailure of radiation workers to wear electronic dosimeters, and failure of plant workers to follow established radiation protection procedures. Continuing performance problems were noted in the emergency
- preparedness area. Security performance was outstanding. Housekeeping was considered to be excellent. Fire protection program implementation was generally good. Performance assessment, problem identification, and corrective action effectivenoss in the Plant Support area were generally very good, although there were some instances noted in which corrective actions either did not prevent the recurrence of problems or corrective actions were not timel Very good performance was noted in the radiological controls area during this assessment period, Some performance problems were noted, including three instances of individual-radiation workers entering high radiation areas without the required radiation monitoring devices, severalinstances of radiological control technicians not appropriately documenting
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and updating radiological survey information, and one instance where a count rate meter exceeded its calibration check period because the meter was not returned to the health physics laboratory, as required The control of person-rem exposure was effective. The 3 yar average person rem exposure placed the facility slightly better than the national average for boiling water reactor facilities. Plant areas were, typically, properly posted and radioactive material .
controls worked well. Excellent performance was noted concerning the low activity of particulate, iodine, fission, and activation products released in gaseous effluent release Excellent performance was also noted in the chemistry, radiolog' cal environmental monitoring, solid radioactive waste management, and radioactive materials transportation programs. The training for and experience of personnel was considered to be very goo Overall, emergency preparedness perf'ormance was ccceptable. -The one event which occurred during the period was appropriately classified, and emergency response f acilities were properly maintained. A simulator walkthrough inspection was conducted for the first time during this assessment period and, overall, performance was acceptable. Plant conditions were promptly recognized and classified, and offsite agency notifications were timely. However, as was noted in the previous SALP report, performance weaknesses i
. continued to be identified. They involved a failure to satisfactorily perform dose assessment activities and a f ailure to satisf actorily implement site evacuation procedure Security program performance continued to be outstanding. The security organization was well managed and received excellent senior management support. Program strengths were ide'tified in the access authorization program, testing and maintenance activities, and management support. The design and installation of the vehicle barrier was also a notable success. Housekeeping was also considered to be excellen The fire protection program implementation was generally good, although a self-assessment in early 1997 identified several problems that, altogether, indicated a need for -
continued management involvement in this area,
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1 6-Performance assessment, problem identification, and corrective action effectiveness in the plant support area were, generally, very good. However, there were some instances noted in which correctic actions either did not prevent rt,currence of problems or where corrective actions were not timely. For example, as of June 1997, eight areas for improvement identified by the licensee in response to its July 10,1996, notification of l
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unusual event were still open. As a second example, individuals were not precluded frorn cntering high radiation areas withot't appropriate radiological monitoring, in spite of the problem having been previously idsntified and corrective actions having been implemented, The self assessnv t of the fire protection area was a notable example of an excellent self-assessmen Performance in the Plant Support functional area was determined to be Category ,
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