Information Notice 1995-45, American Power Service Falsification of American Society for Nondestructive Testing Certificates

American Power Service Falsification of American Society for Nondestructive Testing Certificates
	ML031060177
Person / Time
Site:	Beaver Valley, Millstone, Hatch, Monticello, Calvert Cliffs, Dresden, Davis Besse, Peach Bottom, Browns Ferry, Salem, Oconee, Mcguire, Nine Mile Point, Palisades, Palo Verde, Perry, Indian Point, Fermi, Kewaunee, Catawba, Harris, Wolf Creek, Saint Lucie, Point Beach, Oyster Creek, Watts Bar, Hope Creek, Grand Gulf, Cooper, Sequoyah, Byron, Pilgrim, Arkansas Nuclear, Braidwood, Susquehanna, Summer, Prairie Island, Columbia, Seabrook, Brunswick, Surry, Limerick, North Anna, Turkey Point, River Bend, Vermont Yankee, Crystal River, Haddam Neck, Ginna, Diablo Canyon, Callaway, Vogtle, Waterford, Duane Arnold, Farley, Robinson, Clinton, South Texas, San Onofre, Cook, Comanche Peak, Yankee Rowe, Maine Yankee, Quad Cities, Humboldt Bay, La Crosse, Big Rock Point, Rancho Seco, Zion, Midland, Bellefonte, Fort Calhoun, FitzPatrick, McGuire, LaSalle, Fort Saint Vrain, Shoreham, Satsop, Trojan, Atlantic Nuclear Power Plant, Crane
Issue date:	10/04/1995
From:	Crutchfield D; Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
To:	;
References
	IN-95-045, NUDOCS 9509270134
	Download: ML031060177 (9)
	v • d • e

UNITED STATES

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20555-0001

October 4, 1995

NRC INFORMATION NOTICE 95-45: AMERICAN POWER SERVICE FALSIFICATION OF

AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR NONDESTRUCTIVE TESTING

(ASNT) CERTIFICATES

Addressees

All holders of operating licenses or construction permits for nuclear power

reactors.

Purpose

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing this information

notice to alert addressees that American Power Service (APS) of Georgetown, Massachusetts, has deliberately given falsified American Society for

Nondestructive Testing (ASNT) certificates to an NRC licensee in connection

with the procurement of commercial-grade services. It is expected that

recipients will review the information for applicability to their facilities

and consider actions, as appropriate, to avoid similar problems. However, suggestions contained in this information notice are not NRC requirements;

therefore, no specific action or written response is required.

Description of Circumstances

In response to information submitted by the Northeast Nuclear Energy Company

(NNECo), the NRC recently investigated APS, a vendor that provides commercial- grade services for the resurfacing of babbitt material on bearings. The NRC

determined that the president of APS deliberately and improperly falsified

ASNT certificates and gave them to NNECo.

Discussion

On March 4, 1994, NNECo advised the NRC by letter (Accession Number

9403150377) that on February 15, 1994, it had received apparently falsified

certificates from APS. NNECo had contracted with APS for commercial-grade

services in supplying rebabbitted bearings for a Millstone Unit No. 2 reactor

building closed cooling water system pump. Since APS did not have a NNECo

approved quality assurance program, the rebabbitted bearings were to be

dedicated and accepted under NNECo's quality assurance program. The

dedication process included ultrasonic examination which was to be performed

by NNECo as part of the receiving inspection.

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K)J IN 95-45

October 4, 1995

-~ During NNECo source inspection of APS, the APS president informed the NNECo

Quality Assessment Services (QAS) inspector that APS had developed in-house

ultrasonic testing capability and gave the inspector copies of what

appeared to be ASNT certificates identifying three of the company's employees

as ultrasonic testing inspectors or examiners. Upon observing that the

certificates had identical serial numbers, the NNECo QAS inspector contacted

ASNT and learned that ASNT had not issued the certificates in question..

NNECo informed NRC of its findings in the March 4, 1994, letter, (Accession

Number 9403150377). The NRC Office of Investigations determined that the

president of APS deliberately and improperly falsified ASNT certificates and

gave them to NNECo.

NRC informed APS of its finding by letter dated

February 14, 1995 (Accession Number 9502160007).

Since APS was performing a commercial-grade service and since the acceptance

of the bearings was based on ultrasonic testing performed by NNECo, the

integrity of the bearings was not compromised and NNECo was able to justify

their use in the intended application.

This information notice requires no specific action or written response.

If

you have any questions about the information in this notice, please contact

the technical contact listed below or the appropriate Office of Nuclear

Reactor Regulation (NRR) project manager.

enn Ms.

Crutchfiel

Director

Division of Reactor Program Management

Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Technical contact: Uldis Potapovs

(301) 415-2959 Attachment:

List of Recently Issued NRC Information Notices

k.Jchment

IN 95-45

October 4, 1995 LIST OF RECENTLY ISSUED

NRC INFORMATION NOTICES

Information

Date of

Notice No.

Subject

Issuance

Issued to

95-44

95-43

95-42

95-41

95-40

95-39

95-38

95-37

95-36

Ensuring Compatible Use of

Drive Cables Incorporating

Industrial Nuclear Company

Ball-Type Male Connectors

Failure of the Bolt-Locking

Device on the Reactor

Coolant Pump Turning Vane

Commission Decision on the

Resolution of Generic

Issue 23, "Reactor Coolant

Pump Seal Failure'

Degradation of Ventilation

System Charcoal Resulting

from Chemical Cleaning of

Steam Generators

Supplemental Information

to Generic Letter 95-03,

Circumferential Cracking

of Steam Generator Tubes"

Brachytherapy Incidents

Involving Treatment

Planning Errors

Degradation of Boraflex

Neutron Absorber in

Spent Fuel Storage Racks

Inadequate Offsite Power

System Voltages during

Design-Basis Events

Potential Problems with

Post-Fire Emergency

Lighting

09/25/95

09/28/95

09/22/95

09/20/95

09/19/95

09/08/95

09/07/95

08/29/95 All Radiography Licensees.

All holders of OLs or CPs

for nuclear power reactors

designed by Westinghouse

Electric Corporation (W).

All holders of OLs or CPs

for nuclear power reactors.

All holders of OLs or CPs

for nuclear power reactors.

All holders of OLs or CPs

for nuclear power reactors.

All U.S. Nuclear Regulatory

Commission Medical

Licensees.

All holders of OLs or CPs

for nuclear power reactors.

All holders of OLs or CPs

for nuclear power reactors.

All holders of OLs or CPs

for nuclear power reactors.

OL - Operating License

CP = Construction Permit

s'<-"

IN 95-45 October 4, 1995 During NNECo source inspection of APS, the APS president informed the NNECo

Quality Assessment Services (QAS) inspector that APS had developed in-house

ultrasonic testing capability and gave the inspector copies of what

appeared to be ASNT certificates identifying three of the company's employees

as ultrasonic testing inspectors or examiners. Upon observing that the

certificates had identical serial numbers, the NNECo QAS inspector contacted

ASNT and learned that ASNT had not issued the certificates in question.

NNECo informed NRC of its findings in the March 4, 1994, letter, (Accession

Number 9403150377). The NRC Office of Investigations determined that the

president of APS deliberately and improperly falsified ASNT certificates and

gave them to NNECo.

NRC informed APS of its finding by letter dated

February 14, 1995 (Accession Number 9502160007).

Since APS was performing a commercial-grade service and since the acceptance

of the bearings was based on ultrasonic testing performed by NNECo, the

integrity of the bearings was not compromised and NNECo was able to justify

their use in the intended application.

This information notice requires no specific action or written response. If

you have any questions about the information in this notice, please contact

the technical contact listed below or the appropriate Office of Nuclear

Reactor Regulation (NRR) project manager.

orig /s/'d by DMCrutchfield

Dennis M. Crutchfield, Director

Division of Reactor Program Management

Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Technical contact:

Uldis Potapovs

(301) 415-2959 Attachment:

List of Recently Issued NRC Information Notices

DOCUMENT NAME:

95-45.IN

See previous concurrence

....To receive a copy of this document, hndlcate In the box: 'C' - Copy without attachment/enclosure

'E' = Copy with attachment/enclosure

AND

No copy

.

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Tech Ed

SLewis

AGallow

UPotapovs

DATE

5/18/95

5/04/95

95

5/31/95

5/31/95 OFFICE

C/TSIB:DOTS

[D/DOTSI*C/OECB:DOPS

PECB:DRPM

C/PECB:DRPM

lNAME

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RDennig

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DATE

6/01/95

6/01/96/02/95

09/14/95

09/20/95 OFFICE [D/DAN4 ZL

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NAME

DCr cjfield

DATE

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UrILILAL KtLUKU LUrT

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IN 95-XX

September xx, 1995 During NNECo source inspection of APS, the APS president informed the NNECo