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Inside this issue:
n Safety Snippet of the Day.....1 Todays Focus Area...............1 ACEMAN review..................2 Plant Status.............................2 CNO stresses industry les-sons..........................................2 Fall protection reminder.......2 o
SPOE goes live.......................2 Next Week Look Ahead.......2 Industry OE............................3 Staying safe in the heat..........3 Team Notes Prairie Island July 22, 2010 n = Face to Face (D-15) o = Self read p = Nice to know The drive-in drill activation code for all Emergency Response Organization mem-bers is 4444. Report immediately to the assigned facility as safely and quickly as pos-sible. Consider fitness for duty and fitness to drive before reporting to the site.
Be aware of minimum reporting requirements as there are both 30 and 60 minute responders.
Since January, 2010, there have been 64 positions approved for hiring this year at Prairie Island. Of those, the following have been filled:
Maintenance Manager Chemistry Instructor Business Support Manager Performance Assessment Coordina-tor Two Mechanical Maintenance Su-pervisors Work Week Manager Two Control Room Supervisors Program Engineering Supervisor System & Plant Engineering Man-ager Two Electrical and Instruments &
Controls Engineers Performance Assessment Supervisor Two Operations Instructors Nuclear Oversight Supervisor Control Room Supervisors 13 Non-Licensing Operators Radiation Protection Manager Nuclear Operations Planner Design Engineer Senior Plant Engineer Human Performance & Safety Man-ager Probability Risk Assessment Engi-neer Business Professional Assistant Mechanical Maintenance Supervisor Security Supervisor Four Radiation Protection Techni-cians Training Manager Chemistry Manager Supply Chain Engineer Supervisor There are currently 17 positions posted and are in the process of being filled.
Another 15 vacant positions have been identified as needing to be filled. These are evaluated on a weekly basis along with overall budget projections. As the year progresses, positions are considered for filling based on site revenues and other expenses.
Filling these open positions is critical to PI achieving its overall goals. Although site leadership must constantly balance overall needs, I am committed to secur-ing the right people in the right posi-tions so the site can face its challenges successfully, said Mark Schimmel, Site Vice President.
Please watch for announcements about team members being moved into these positions as they are filled.
Todays Focus Area: Prairie Island Staffing n E-mail Team Notes Prairie Island articles to DL-PI-Communications by 10:00 a.m. the day before publication.
Site Event Free Days:
71 Safety Snippet of the Day n NSP000058
A Accident Free C
Control Dose E
Event Free M
Meet Commitments A
Attend Training Picture of Xcellence Plant ACEMAN Today n N
No Rework Reason: The installation of Die-sel 3 power packs and turbo charger is in progress with re-work issues. The power pack is the wrong one. The turbo charger failed during installation and requires replacement. Work is in progress.
Enablers Missed: Job Plan-ning/Preparation, Verifica-tion/Validation.
Team Notes July 22, 2010 Page 2 Plant Status n Fall protection reminder n Although Xcel Energy has taken great strides to ensure workers are protected when working at heights, employees must take certain actions based on jobsite conditions. Fall protection equipment is required when working within six feet of an exposed edge greater than four feet off the ground. Even if handrails exist at heights, workers are expected to use fall protection whenever work requires leaning over a handrail. For additional information regarding fall protection requirements for a specific job, contact a Prairie Island safety consultant to evaluate jobsite conditions.
Go to the Prairie Island Plant Status sheet to review plant status and ma-jor tests/evolutions over the next 24 hours2.777778e-4 days <br />0.00667 hours <br />3.968254e-5 weeks <br />9.132e-6 months <br />.
SPOE Wizard goes live o The new Single Point of Entry Wiz-ard (SPOE) foundation architecture became available on all fleet worksta-tions July 21. This wizard allows a user to create a CAP and work re-quest at the same time with minimal data entry. The SPOE wizard can be reached from the Windows Start menu under Apps/Passport/select the Foundation Architecture icon OR from the NMCNet home page under I need to Access Founda-tion Architecture. For additional in-formation, please contact Lori Engesser or David Garcia.
CNO urges fleet to heed industry lessons n Chief Nuclear Officer Dennis Koehl recently conducted Operations in Excellence training sessions for senior and shift managers at Prairie Island and Monticello nuclear power plants. The sessions were created to specifi-cally address a concern about an industry-wide increase in the number of significant operational events discussed at a Nuclear Energy Institute board meeting earlier this year.
During the sessions, Koehl presented five examples of site and industry events that have occurred at nuclear power plants across the United States in the first part of 2010. In each of these examples, a breakdown occurred in the fundamentals of power plant operation reducing the overall margin of safety for the industry. The events also indicate a weakness in use of Operational Excellence and the use of effective training to sustain high levels of operational performance.
A review of these events shows shortfalls in the following areas:
Recognition and mitigation of risk associated with plant evolutions Application of operations fundamentals such as monitoring important parameters and controlling plant evolutions Rigorous application of engineering and maintenance fundamentals such as performance trending of critical parameters and investigation and resolution of deficient or degraded conditions The five examples highlighted were:
ANO - Control rods automatically withdrew H.B. Robinson - Damaged buses and auxiliary transformer Nine Mile Point - Refueling drain down Calvert Cliffs - water dripping onto switchgear Peach Bottom - rods didnt meet TS required times The Xcel Energy nuclear fleet has implemented several practices to help mitigate such shortfalls including Risk Management Principals and Behav-iors. According to Site Operations Director Brad Sawatzke, These exam-ples highlight the importance of maintaining diligence in keeping nuclear safety first. The fundamental issues that led to these events are similar to the challenges weve faced. Koehl said, We have processes in place to avoid events like those outlined here, and we have identified and avoided risk situations on hundreds of occasions but our processes only work when consistently applied by our employees and I need your help here.
The sessions included a videotaped message featuring Dick Kelly, Xcel Energy Chairman and CEO.
Team Notes July 22, 2010 Page 3 Signs & symptoms of heat-related illnesses o With summer heating up, one concern that always seems to sneak up on workers are heat-related illnesses. Working in a hot, humid environment can be difficult or even fatal if the signs and symptoms of heat-related disorders are ignored. Heat can create a number of safety problems and illnesses due to additional stress on the body. Heat-related illnesses include:
- Heat cramps
- Heat exhaustion
- Heat stroke (which can be fatal if not treated properly)
Heat stress is the bodys response to heat loading. Factors that contribute to heat stress include:
- Environmental heat source
- Amount of exertion required to perform a task
- Amount of time spent in hot or humid conditions
- Type of clothing worn Operations that involve high air temperatures, radiant heat sources (e.g.,
direct sunlight), high humidity, strenuous physical activities or direct physical contact with hot objects have the potential to produce heat stress. Outdoor operations conducted in hot weather such as construction, welding, and aerial line work can cause heat stress. Other risky locations include manholes, transformer vaults, valve pits, generating stations and steam tunnels.
Age, weight, degree of physical fitness, metabolism, use of alcohol or drugs, and a variety of medical conditions such as hypertension all affect a persons sensitivity to heat. Other environmental factors include ambient air temperature, radiant heat, air movement, conduction and relative humidity. It takes time to acclimate to working in hot or humid conditions. Adjusting to heat involves a series of changes that occur in an individual during the first week of exposure to hot environmental conditions.
TIPS FOR PREVENTING HEAT-RELATED ILLNESS:
- Get used to working in heat gradually. Take it easy until after becoming accustomed to the temperature.
- Drink plenty of water often to avoid dehydration. Do not drink alcoholic or caffeinated beverages.
- Take frequent rest breaks when working in hot and humid conditions.
- Get a physicians advice before replacing salt, particularly if salt intake is restricted for medical reasons. The use of salt tablets is not recommended.
Eating lightly salted food before entering the work environment may be a better idea. Also available are special drinks intended to replace the bodys fluid and mineral levels.
- Dress lightly in layers so clothing can be added or removed as the temperature changes. Be sure to shade the skin against the sun.
Remain alert to the signs of heat illness. If signs appear, move the victim to a cool place and cool off by fanning or soaking with cool water. If conscious, drink water. Call for medical help immediately.
Industry Operating Experience o
Subject:
OE30980 Safety near-miss occurred during cable routing in the Motor Control Center Plant: Grand Gulf Event Date: March 3, 2010
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Description:==
Two supplemental electricians and a foreman were per-forming modification work (pulling new cables) in a non-safety related MCC (motor control center). The task involved entering a cubicle with no exposed electrical hazards, re-moving an external panel (top panel),
and pulling the cable. The internal cover that was removed exposed the 480v AC bus bars in the MCC.
When attempting to remove the in-ner cover, it came into contact with the energized bus bar, shorted to ground, and caused an arc flash.
There were no injuries, although this event is classified as an error due to a near-miss with potential for serious injury (unexpected exposure to 480vAC and potential for arc flash injuries.)
Cause: Maintenance and supplemen-tal management did not adequately implement station procedure Control of Supplemental Personnel and sup-plemental supplied procedure for supervisory personnel. Inadequate work practices existed, including at-risk behaviors such as work shortcuts evoked, not performing the job as briefed, behaviors indicating safety was not an overriding priority, and proceeding despite uncertainty.