ML20046B852
| ML20046B852 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 07/20/1993 |
| From: | Taylor J NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS (EDO) |
| To: | |
| References | |
| SECY-93-198, NUDOCS 9308060311 | |
| Download: ML20046B852 (66) | |
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July 20, 1993 SECY-93-198 FOR:
The Commissioners FROM:
James M. Taylor Executive Director for Operations
SUBJECT:
NRC STRATEGIC INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PLAN PURPOSE:
To obtain the Commission's approval of the NRC Fiscal Year 1994-1998 Strategic Information Technology (IT) Plan (Enclosure 1).
SUMMARY
A team of senior managers and executives from across the Agency, working with the Office of Information Resources Management (IRM), has completed an NRC Strategic Information Technology Plan. This strategic plan is the basis for i
the Agency's IT program guidance and activities in the NRC Five-Year Plan I
(FYP) and will be submitted with the IT-related portions of the FYP to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to satisfy IT planning requirements in OMB Circular A-130, " Management of Federal Information Resources."
In the future, I will give the Commission an annual update to the Information Technology Strategy in January or February of each year so that it can be reviewed in conjunction with the FYP program guidance.
The Strategic Information Technology Plan addresses three major areas:
(1) IT Program Management, (2) IT Infrastructure, and (3) Information and Applications Management.
Key recommendations call for accelerating the replacement of Agency workstations, implementing a new document management system, applying business process reengineering to selected Agency work processes, and establishing an Information Technology Council to advise the
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Director of IRM.
The FY 1994-1998 Five-Year Plan includes resources to implement these strategic initiatives with the exception of funding that will
Contact:
Francine Goldberg, IRM NOTE:
TO BE MADE PUBLICLY AVAILABLE 492-7216 WHEN THE FINAL SRM IS MADE AVAILABLE If 4
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be needed in the out-years for implementing a new Agency document management l
system. The staff will evaluate the funding for this system after completing i
the requirements analysis in FY 1995.
i BACKGROUND:
l OMB Circular A-130 requires Federal agencies to " establish multi-year strategic planning processes for acquiring and operating information i
technology that meet program and mission needs, reflect budget constreints, I
and form the bases of their budget requests." Each year the agency must 1
submit its strategic IT p1>.n to OMB.
In the past, the Agency has satisfied-this requirement by submitting the IRM portion of the NRC FYP.
While this approach has met Circular A-130 requirements, it did not produce an agencywide j
strategy that would enable the NRC to take full advantage of information technology in meeting programmatic and administrative needs.
l In 1990, a team of IRM and customer office representatives found the need to I
focus more attention on long-range planning as critical to improving the Agency's IRM programs. As a result, the Steering Committee for Strategic Planning recommended changes in IRM's strategic guidance which were forwarded to the Commission in February 1991 (Reference 1).
In August 1991, the Commission approved these changes to the FY 1992-1996 FYP, including staffing for the planning effort.
In November 1991, the Director of IRM established the Strategic Planning and Technical Advisory Staff which began a formal 4
strategic planning process in June 1992. includes information on the relationship of strategic IT planning I
to other issues of interest to the Commission.
l DISCUSSION:
4 The Strategic Planning Process The quality of the strategic IT planning process is critical to building consensus for the selected strategies and commitment for successful implementation. The NRC IT planning process was carried out by two groups of NRC employees representing a broad range of agency interests. A nine-member IRM Review Board at the level of deputy office director and above provided i
oversight for the planning process. An IRM Strategy Team of senior managers I
representing both large and small offices and Regions developed the strategy 1
(See Enclosure 3 for a list of participants). An experienced strategic planning facilitator led the Strategy Team and the Review Board through a planning process that has been used successfully by many large companies and government agencies.
In 1987, the NRC used this process to develop its strategic plan that was the basis for the original version of the Five-Year P1an.
The Strategy Team and Review Board developed the strategy in a 5 step process:
(1) assess the current situation and develop IT challenges; (2) develop alternatives to meet IT challenges; (3) evaluate the costs and benefits of
4 5 o The Commissioners i alternatives; (4) decide among the alternatives; and (5) prepare i
implementation plans.
At each step, the Review Board gave the Strategy Team i
guidance to ensure that the concerns and viewpoints of senior executives were j
addressed.
This approach, involving a broad spectrum of participants, with review by senior executives at each step, resulted in a strategy that is fully supported by the offices, regions and senior executives.
Strategic Planning Goals The Strategy Team and Review Board developed the following two fundamental goals for the strategic planning effort:
1.
To produce a flexible and feasible plan that effectively supports the evolving needs of the NRC and its stakeholders and is appropriately balanced in addressing both technical and administrative needs 2.
To institute an agencywide strategic IT planning process that is designed to support the NRC's mission, integrated with the five-year planning process, and performed by participants representing the spectrum of NRC's information technology needs r
Key Elements of the Strategic IT Plan The Strategic IT Plan addresses three major areas:
IT Program Management; IT Infrastructure; and Information and Applications Management.
IT Procram Manaaement The Strategy Team and Review Board made several recommendations for IT Program management.
The most significant of these were to modify the IT planning and budgeting process and establish an IT Council to advise the IRM Director.
In the past, the IT planning and budgeting process emphasized the needs of individual offices and tended to elicit short-term requirements rather than i
long-term strategic direction. The budgeting approach was not always effective or equitable in allocating resources to the most important IT projects.
The new strategy for IT planning and budgeting was designed to address all the elements of Goal 2, described previously.
In particular, it is directed at expanding the participation of Headquarters and regional i
offices to achieve more effective agencywide solutions and to allocate resources to the projects with the greatest benefits to the Agency.
The IT Council, chaired by a customer office representative, plays a key role I
in the new approach to IT planning and budgeting.
The goals of the Council j
are to:
Shape the development of NRC's IT strategies i
Maintain agencywide support for and adherence to IT policies, standards, I
and guidelines l
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Optimize the allocation and use of IT resources agencywide Improve decisions regarding IT initiatives Improve communication and coordination among Headquarters and regional l
offices regarding common IT needs i
The Council will give the Director, IRM, advice and assistance in:
Annually reviewing and recommending changes to the Agency's IT strategies for incorporation in the NRC FYP and the Strategic IT Plan Establishing a framework of IT policies, standards, and guidelines Reviewing proposed new IT applications and major modifications, and recommending priorities as part of the budget process Reviewing significant IT application projects before beginning key phases of the project Chartered in March 1993, the IT Council held its first meeting in April to begin the review of proposed IT applications for the FY 1995 budget cycle.
The IT Program management strategy also calls for improving the IT acquisition i
process; revising current IT policies and standards to emphasize "open 1
systems;" developing architectures for the Agency's information, applications, and technology; and preparing a new IT human resources strategy. The two i
goals of the human resource strategy are (1) to increase the proficiency of the NRC staff with information systems and encourage effective use of electronic systems and media and (2) to develop and maintain a highly competent and motivated Agency IRM staff, organized to effectively support i
customers and carry out the IRM program.
i IT Infrastructure The strategy for IT infrastructure emphasizes significant investment in the hardware, software, and telecommunications technologies needed to create a robust and reliable automation environment capable of supporting the Agency's current and future applications and communication needs. These needs are associated with both administrative and programmatic information systems and with technical computing and scientific modeling applications that support NRC's mission.
The strategy discusses four key areas of the infrastructure: workstation replacement, networking and connectivity, local area network (LAN)-based development platforms, and high-performance computing infrastructure.
The new workstation replacement strategy emphasizes an accelerated investment in office automation workstations to avoid the costs of operating and maintaining old equipment and to provide the capability needed to run current and future LAN-based applications. The strategy is to update NRC's office automation workstations to meet a high standard for functionality, reliability, I
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performance, and interoperability by maintaining a workstation inventory that, on average, lags current technology by one generation.
The second component of the infrastructure strategy is networking and connectivity. The main element of the networking and connectivity strategy is to continue current plans to connect all NRC computer resources to a single, expandable, multi-function NRC telecommunications network providing connectivity and high speed information transfers among diverse workstations, NRC-owned minicomputers, regional sites, outside locations such as the Southwest Research Institute, the U.S. Department of Energy laboratories, and timesharing facilities.
The networking strategy.also calls for establishing a j
network management center to monitor, maintain, and support the NRC computer and network environment.
The third component of the infrastructure strategy calls for the more aggressive use of LAN-based platforms for new applications to improve functionality and ease of use. The fourth component focuses on special i
infrastructure needs for high-performance computing, in which the Agency will I
continue to improve connectivity, increase training and technical assistance, acquire the necessary engineering workstations, and enable the program offices l
to coordinate common needs through the T r h m agy Advancement Board.
l Information and Aonlications Manaaement 1
The strategy for Information and Applications Management focuses primarily on improving the overall quality and integration of the Agency's information and applications by strengthening the way that information systems are developed i
and managed. The strategy covers four major areas: quality of NRC i
information systems, Agency processes and workflow, data and document i
management, and high-performance computing applications.
l The goal for improving the quality of NRC information systems is to i
efficiently and effectively implement easily accessible, reliable, secure, and integrated information systems for high priority administrative and mission-related needs. The key element of the strategy is to strengthen the Agency's computer systems life cycle management (LCM) methods. The new LCr1 methodology would be applied to all major systems development projects over an established threshold.
J The goals for Agency processes and workflow are to apply technology to improve workflows; increase NRC's ability to communicate electronically with licensees 1
and other agencies; and increase the effective and efficient use of electronic I
media for such information as forms, mail, and records. ' Key components of the i
strategy are to aggressively pursue paperwork reduction initiatives and pilot the use of business process reengineering (BPR) as a technique for streamlining Agency processes.
The primary objectives of BPR are to eliminate redundant and unproductive activities and to simplify and integrate essential activities before automating them. After reviewing suggestions submitted by the Headquarters and regional offices, the staff selected four applications areas as candidates for business process reengineering.
These applications
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l areas are document management, commercial contracting, materials licensing,
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and fee billing (including associated staff-hour reporting systems).
The goal for data and document management is to manage shared data and documents as Agency resources to ensure they are accessible, secure, and reli able.
The staff determined that the implementation of a new document management system for agencywide use was the single most important initiative in this area. The limitations of current systems hamper access to documents, i
which are one of the Agency's most valuable information resources.
Benefits of the proposed document strategy would include-Improved return on the Agency's large document capture investment Availability of more of the Agency's documents in full text j
Improved ease of use and greater functionality for search and retrieval, t
especially for full text Faster, more efficient, and less expensive means to process and distribute documents by using electronic methods instead of paper Elimination of redundant entry and retrieval systems, and multiple computer hardware and software vendors and maintenance suppliers i
The goal for high-performance computing applications is to focus on supporting future licensing and regulatory activity in the program offices. Application areas include design certification for advanced reactors, plant life extension, high-level waste repository licensing and technical training of the i
NRC staff. The plan describes each office's strategy for developing future applications.
Relationship of the IT Strategy to the NRC Five-Year Planning Process The Strategic IT Plan is the basis for the Agency's IT program guidance and activities in the NRC FYP.
I will give the Commission an annual update to the i
Information Technology Strategy with the draft FYP prcgram guidance.
In this first year of the new planning process, the plan was not completed in time to be given to the Commission with the program guidance on March 23, 1993.
Nevertheless, most aspects of the plan were incorporated into the draft FYP program guidance submitted to the Commission.
Now that the initial plan has been completed, the Agency's IT strategy will be 1
updated annually using a facilitated, agencywide process shorter than, but similar to, the process used to prepare the initial strategy.
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Response to Staff Requirements Memorandum Concerning an External Advisory f
Committee in COMKR-91-002/COMFR-91-002 (Reference 2), the Commission requested that NRC consider creating an external ad hoc advisory committee to review the Agency's plans, programs, and capabilities for using computers and computer systems.
In view of the Executive Order of February 10, 1993, cancerning the f
termination and limitation of such committees, the staff does not recommend this approach.
The Director of IRM will continue to seek the technical advice of external parties, including expert and IT industry comments on major technology acquisitions, review of NRC's strategies by other Federal agencies, j
and comments by information service providers that specialize in technology i
trends and government applications.
The staff also plans to obtain the views of the Nuclear Information and Records Management Association and other l
industry groups on electronic submittals and on information that the NRC could make available by electronic bulletin boards or other mechanisms.
In this 4
manner, the Director of IRM will continue to seek external review and comment using methods judged most appropriate and cost-effective for the Agency.
i A Commission briefing on the IT Strategic Plan is scheduled for early August.
l RECOMMENDATION:
i Unless the Commission directs otherwise, the staff plans to proceed with implementation of the NRC Fiscal Year 1994-1998 Strategic Information j
Technology Plan after the Commission meeting.
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RESOURCES:
The FY 1994-1998 Five-Year Plan includes resources to implement these i
strategic initiatives with the exception of funding that will be needed in the out-years for implementing a new Agency document management system.
The staff will evaluate the funding for this system after completing the requirements analysis in FY 1995.
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Enclosures:
1.
NRC Strategic Information Technology Plan (Draft) 2.
Additional Background Information l
3.
IRM Review Board and IRM Strategy i
Team Membership l
References:
1.
February 21, 1991, memorandum, EDO to Chairman Carr l
2.
Staff Requirements Memorandum l
COMKR-91-002/COMFR-91-002, i
April 10, 1991 3.
September 18, 1991, memorandum, EDO to the Chairman and Commissioners 1
SECY NOTE:
In the absence of instructions to the contrary, SECY j
will notify the staff on Wednesday, August 4,
- 1993, that the Commission, by negative consent, assents to l
the action proposed in this paper.
DISTRIBUTION:
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DRAFT U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Strategic Information Technology Plan i
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Strategic Information 1
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U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Strategic Information Technology Plan Table of Contents EX EC UTI V E S U5151 A R Y...................................... 2 1 INTRODUCTION 4
2 NRC STRATEGIC INFORMATION TECIINOLOGY PLANNING PROCESS..
5 3 NRC STRATEG IC IT PLAN.................................. 8 3.1 IT Program Afanagement 8
3.1.1 IT Planning and Iludgeting........................ 9 3.1.2 IT Policy and Standards.........................
11 3.1.3 IT Acquisition Management.......................
12 3.1.4 IT Human Resource Strategy......................
14 3.1.5 IT Architectures..............................16 3.2 IT Infrastructure
...................................17 3.2.1 Workstation Replacement........................18 3.2.2 Net w orking and Connectivity......................
18 3.2.3 Applications Development Platforms.................19 3.2.4 IIigh-Performance Computing Infrastructure............
20 3.3 IT Information and Applications 31anagement
................23 3.3.1 Improving the Quality of NRC Information Systems.......
24 3.3.2 Agency Processes and Workflow....................
26 3.5.3 Data and Document 51anagement
...................27 3.3.4. Iligh-Performance Computing Applications.............
28 LIST O F AC RONYS IS....................................... 32 FIGURES Figure 1 Information Technology Council....................... 7 TAllLES Table 1 IT Program Afanagement 9
Table 2 IT Infrastructure
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Table 3 IT Information and Applications 31anagement..............
24 A PPENDIX A - Agency IT 5f anagement............................ Al 1
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EXECUTIVE SU3131ARY i
A team of senior and executive managers from across the Agency, working with the Office of j
Information Resources Management (IRM), has completed a U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) Strategic Information Technology Plan. This strategic plan is the basis for i
the Agency's information technology (IT) program guidar.ce and activities in the NRC Five-Year
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Plan (FYP) and will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget to satisfy the IT i
planning requirements of OMB Circular A-130, " Management of Federal Information l
Resources."
1 The Strategic Information Technology Plan addresses three major areas: (1) IT Program f
Management, (2) IT Infrastructure, and (3) Information and Applications Management. Key j
recommendations call for accelerating the replacement of Agency workstations, implementing i
a new document management system, applying business process reengineering (BPR) to selected
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Agency work processes, and establishing an Information Technology Council to advise the F
Director of IRM.
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j The strategy for IT Program 31anagement emphasizes the need to expand the role of NRC
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Headquarters and regional offices in planning and budgeting for information resources to ensure I
that these resources are effectively deployed to support the Agency's mission. A key element
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j is the establishment of an IT Council that includes senior managers representing the major NRC q
offices and regions. The Council will assist the Agency's IRM Director in annually updating
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j the IT strategy, establishing agencywide IT policies and standards, prioritizing new applications
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and major enhancements to existing systems, and performing management reviews of major systems. The IT program management strategy also calls for improving the IT acquisition l
4 process, revising current IT policies and standards to emphasize "open" systems, developing i
architectures for the Agency's information, applications, and technology, and preparing a new l
IT human r: source strategy."
t The strategy for IT Infrastructure emphasizes significant investment in the underlying f
4 hardware, software, and telecommunications technologies needed to create a robust and reliable automation environment capable of supporting the Agency's current and future applications and l
i communication needs. These needs are associated with both administrative and programmatic j
l information systems and with technical computing and scientific modeling applications that support NRC's mission. Although the Agency has been installing microcomputers and has been i
networking offices through an extended local and wide area network over the past several years, l
the rapid growth of decentralized local area network (LAN) applications will require more robust and higher capacity networks, more powerful workstations, and more aggressive adoption of new
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LAN-based systems development platforms to meet the Agency's needs. The new strategy calls for greater investment in workstations and distributed client-server architectures and continuation i
of the Agency's network upgrade plans to support both technical computing and office systems.
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i The strategy for Information and Applications Management focuses primarily on improving the overall quality and integration of the Agency's information and applications by changing the way that information systems are developed and managed. This strategy includes three major components: (1) strengthening systems life cycle management for all new systems, focusing on major development projects; (2) piloting BPR as a routine part of the systems life cycle process 1
to reevaluate and streamline current processes before they are automated; and (3) implementing a data management program to improve the quality and accessibility of the Agency's information, with a focus on key application areas. _ By completing these components, the Agency would improve the overall quality of its applications. The strategy also includes the j
investment of resources in two key application areas: document managemcnt and high-performance computing applications.
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t Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan Introduction 1 INTRODUCTION Agency Mission The U.S. Congress has determined that the safe use of nuclear materials for peaceful purposes I
is a legitimate and important national goal. It has entrusted the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) with the primary Federal responsibility for achieving that goal. NRC's l
mission is to ensure adequate protection for the public h:alth and safety, the common defense and security, and the environment, in the use of nuclear materials in the United States.
l NRC's scope of responsibility includes regulation of commercial nuclear power plants; research, j
test, and training reactors; fuel cy:le facilities; medical, academic, and industrial uses of nuclear materials; and the transport, storate, and disposal of nuclear materials and wastes. NRC carries out its mission by developing, adopting, and enforcing standards and requirements that licensees must meet to design, construct, and operate safe facilities, in the form of rules, license conditions, and regulatory guidance; inspecting facilities and taking enforcement action as i
necessary to ensure that such standards are followed; and conducting research to suppon, assess, i
or refine judgements used in regulatcry decisions.
Agency Goals The NRC Five-Year Plan (FYP) for FY 1994-1998 includes ten agencywide goals that address i
the regulatory mission and objectives of the Agency. These are listed below in four categories:
regulation of nuclear reactors, nuclear regulatory research, regulation of nuclear materials, and effective Agency management.
Nuclear Reactor Regulation Goal 1 Ensure that nuclear power plants and other licensed facilities are operated safely and that licensees are adequately prepared to respond to accidents.
Goal 2 Ensure that facilities, when no longer in operation, are adequately and l
safely decommissioned.
Goal 3 Ensure that nuclear power plants under construction are designed and constructed properly and are ready for safe operation.
Goal 4 Prepare for future standard reactor desia licensing and reactor license I
renewal activities, including making revisions to regulatory guidance and standard review plans.
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Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan NRC Strategic IT Planning Process j
Nuclear Regulatory Research l
Goal 5 Ensure that research provides the technical bases for timely and sound rulemaking and regulatory decisions in support of NRC licensing and inspection activities.
L Nuclear Materials Management Goal 6 Ensure that current and future uses and transportation of nuclear and radioactive materials are safe and have adequate safeguards.
l Goal 7 Ensure that high-level and low-level nuclear waste and uranium mill i
tailings are safely managed and disposed of.
Agency Management Goal 8 Continue to maintain special and independent reviews and investigations of NRC activities.
Goal 9 Allocate NRC's human and capital resources and direct the Agency's affairs so that they contribute most effectively to the mission of protecting
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the public health and safety.
i Goal 10 Ensure that the NRC has effective external communications and relations with outside organizations, the public, international organizations, and foreign governments.
l 2 NRC STRATEGIC INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PLANNING PROCESS This is the first year that the NRC has addressed the need for a strategic information technology (IT) planning process that involves significant agencywide participation with a focus on long-r.aige direction. During this first year, the NRC established the foundation, emphasizing i
technology infrastructure and cooperative IT management practices. In future years, the NRC will fully integrate the IT planning process with other Agency planning processer and focus more 4
attention on technology standards, architectures, and major information systerr.t.
1 Agency Strategic Information Technology Planning Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-130 requires Federal agencies to " establish multi-year strategic processes for acquiring and operating information technologies that meet program and mission needs, reflect budget constraints, and form the basis of their budget requests." Until recently, the planning and budgeting for information technologies has been 5
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Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan NRC Strategic IT Planning Process carried out by the NRC's Of6ce ofInformation Resources Management (IRhi) with other offices i
submitting written responses to an annual request by IRM for planning information.
l Recently, the Agency recognized the need to plan for the more distant future and expand the role of other NRC components in planning and budgeting for IT resources to more effectively support
.NRC's mission and the goals enumerated in Section 1. The General Services Administration (GSA) endorsed this approach in its recent triennial review of NRC's IRM program. The new IT planning process involves a broad spectrum of participants from across the Agency and covers all NRC major programs involving information technology, both centralized IT programs carried out by IRM and office-sponsored IT programs.
Initiating the New Strategic Planning Process The new strategic planning process was based on the following two fundamental goals:
To produce a flexible and feasible plan that effectively supports the evolving needs of the NRC and its stakeholders and is appropriately balanced in addressing both technical and administrative needs; and To institute an agencywide strategic IT planning process that is designed to support the NRC's mission, integrated with the five-year planning process, and performed by participants representing the spectrum of NRC's information technology needs.
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The quality of the strategic IT planning proccss is critical to building consensus for the selected strategies and commitment for successful implementation. The NRC strategic IT planning process was carried out by two groups of participants representing a broad perspective of Agency interests. Agency executives were represented by a nine-member IRM Review Board.
Senior management were represented by a Strategy Team of staff and line managers from both large and small offices and regions. An experienced facilitator led the IRM Review Board and the Strategy Team through the strategic planning process which the NRC had also successfully l
used to prepare the firN NRC FYP.
The IT strategy was developed in a five-step process:
(1) assess the current situation and develop IT challenges (2) develop alternatives to meet IT challenges (3) evaluate the costs and benefits of alternatives (4) decide among the alternatives (5) prepare implementation plans Initially, senior executives were asked to give overall guidelines and direction for the process.
A series of IT challenges were clarified and used throughout the process for focus and vision.
At each step, the Information Resources Management Review Board gave the Strategy Team 6
1
Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan NRC Strategic IT Planning Process guidance to ensure that senior executives' concerns and views were addressed. This approach, involving a broad spectrum of participants, with review by senior executives at each step, has resulted in a strategy that is fully supported by the NRC offices, regions, and senior executives.
The Future Strategic Planning Process One of the fundamental goals of the strategic planning initiative was to institute an agencywide strategic IT planning process and integrate it with the Agency five-year planning process. To accomplish this goal, the Agency must annually revise the plan and incorporate the results of the planning process into the Agency's program guidance approved by the Commission as the basis for planned accomplishments and resources in the NRC FYP.
In the future, the strategic IT planning process will be carried out by a permanent IT Council composed of senior managers from the major NRC Headquarters and regional offices.
Figure 1 Information Technology Council
- Of 6ce for Analysis & Evaluation Office of Nuclear Material Safety of Operational Data GORS A 5"f'E""'d8 Shape IT strategies
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Office of Nuclear Reactor Office of Nuclear Regulatory l
Regulation Support IT policies.
Research
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standards and guidelines Office of the Controller Office of Administration Improve IT decisionmaking j
Office of the Secretary Office of Personnel j
Improve communications j
among Headquarters and Office of'he General Counsel regi nal o ces concerning Regional Office IT issues j Office ofInformation Resources Representative of the Designated Management - Advisory Members Senior Official for Information Resources Management -
Advisory Member The Council will help to annually update the Strategic IT Plan for IRM and the other NRC offices to use in revising their program guidance for the FYP. Both the Strategic IT Plan and the resulting revised guidance will be submitted to the Agency's Steering Committee for Strategic Planning, the Executive Director for Operations, and the Commission for review as part of the Agency's five-year planning process.
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-l Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Program Management Relationship of the Strategic IT Plan to Other Documents This document describes the NRC IT challenges, long-range strategic directions, and the strategic initiatives which will be undertaken to meet the challenges. This " strategic" document is the basis for many of the IT goals, objectives, assumptions, and program guidance in the NRC FYP. A separate " tactical" document contains the implementation plans which describe the tactical, scheduling, and fiscal estimates for implementing the strategic initiatives.
This
" tactical" document describes the basis for major IT planned accomplishments and associated resources in the NRC FYP.
3 NRC STRATEGIC IT PLAN The goal of the strategic plan is to improve the effectiveness of the NRC in meeting its program and mission needs by successfully acquiring and deploying information technologies. This i
includes specific information systems and the infrastructure and IT program management activities needed to support those applications.
The strategic plan describes the challenges, the current environment, and strategies in three major strategic areas: (1) IT program management, (2) IT infrastructure, and (3) information and applications management.
In this first year of the new planning process, key l
recommendations include major initiatives for accelerating the Agency's workstation replacement l
strategy, implementing a new document management system, applying business process i
reengineering (BPR) to selected work processes for the Agency, and establishing an IT Council l
to advise the Director of IRM. In future planning years, initiatives will be more aligned with specific program and mission needs' of the NRC, addressing technology standards and i
architectures and integrating major information systems.
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3.I IT Program Management The strategy for IT Program Management emphasizes the need to expand the role of NRC l
Headquarters and regional offices in planning and budgeting for information resources to ensure that these resources are effectively deployed to support the Agency's mission. A key element is the establishment of an IT Council that includes senior managers representing the major NRC offices and regions. The Council will assist the Agency's IRM Director in annually updating the IT strategy, establishing agencywide IT policies and standards, prioritizing new applications and major enhancements to existing systems, and performing management reviews of major l
systems. The IT program management strategy also calls for improving the IT acquisition i
process, revising current IT policies and standards to emphasize "open" system:;, developing architectures for the Agency's information, applications, and technology, and preparing a new IT human resource strategy."
Table I summarizes the program elements, challenges, and strategic initiatives for IT program management. The program elements for IT program management are IT planning and 8
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Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Program 31anagement budgeting, IT policy and standards, IT acquisition management, IT human resource strategy, and 1
IT architecture.
r Table 1 IT Program 31anagement PROGRAM CIIALLENGES STRATEGIC INIllATIVES ELDIENTS j
IT Planning and Institute an annual IT planning and budgeting Create an Information Budgeting process that is designed to support the NRC Technology Council
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mission, focuses on IT throughout the Agency.
Expand the role of NRC increases customer (office and region) participation Headquarters and regional l
and accountabihty, enhances the ability of senior offices in planning and
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executives to make IT decisions, and is integrated budgeting for IT resources i
with the Agency's five-year planning process.
i IT Policy and Develop clear IRM policies and standards, with Assess status of Agency IT Standards client participation, that support the Areney's IT policies and standards q
i strategy and maintain a balance between the Update / develop new IT benefits of standardization and the need for policies and standards flexibility.
Develop strategic and tactical l
IT Acquisition Develop an IT acquisition strategy to provide Management quahty IRM products and services in a timely IT acquisition plans manner, and to accommodate rapid changes in Reevaluate and document technology, FIP acquisition processes, policies and procedures i
IT Human Develop a new human resource strategy to Develop IT proficiency Resource (1) increase the proficiency of the NRC staff with standards for all employees Strategy information systems and encourage effective use of Perform an IRM skills electronic systems and media, and (2) develop and assessment and implement an I
maintain a highly competent and motivated Agency IRM employee development IRM staff, organized to effectively support program customers and conduct the IRM program.
Realign IRM work activities j
i IT Architecture Define information and technology architectures to Plan the update / development guide the planning and implementation of of information, applications, technology for both infrastructure and apphcations.
and technology architectures 1'
3.1.I IT Planning and Iludgeting i
i The Challenge / Vision Institute an annual IT planning and budgeting process that is designed to support the NRC mission, focuses on IT throughout the Agency, increases customer (office and region) participation and accountability, enhances the ability of senior executives to make IT decisions.
and is integrated with the Agency's five-year planning process.
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j Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Program Management i
Description of the Current Environment In the past, the IT long-range planning and budgeting process was conducted principally by 3
l IRM, with information from NRC Headquarters and regional offices supplied in their responses to an annual request by IRM for planning information. The planning process emphasized the needs of individual of6ces and gave the of6ces little opportunity for communication and l
coordination to achieve effective agencywide solutions. The information requested by IRM was closely associated with the Agency's budgeting process, which resulted in short-term requirements rather than long-term strategic direction. Most of the Agency's IT activities were j
j prioritized, budgeted and defended by IRM, with little participation by the ofHees. This made t
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it difficult for the offices to defend their IT needs in the budget process and was not always
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effective or equitable in allocating resources to the most important IT projects.
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Strategy for IT Planning and Budgeting l
l The new strategy for IT planning and budgeting proposes to expand the participation of i
Headquarters and regional offices to achieve more effective agencywide solutions and to allocate
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resources to the projects with the greatest benefits to the Agency. The new strategy will encourage agencywide communication,. priority-setting, and shared perspective.
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The IT Council, chaired by a customer of6ce representative, will be vitally important for I
instituting the new approach to IT planning and budgeting throughout the Agency. The goals l
of the Council are:
Shape the development of NRC's IT strategies i
Maintain agencywide support for and adherence to IT policies, standards and guidelines 1
Optimize the allocation ofIT resources agencywide 4
t i
1 Improve IT decisionmaking i
Improve communication and coordination among Headquarters and regional of6ces concerning IT issues The Council will give the Director, IRM, advice and assistance in:
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Annually reviewing and recommending changes to the Agency's IT strategies for l
j incorporation in the NRC FYP and the Strategic IT Plan t'
Establishing a framework of IT policies, standards, and guidelines
.l Reviewing proposed new IT applications and major modi 6 cations, and recommending j
priorities as part of the budget process i
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o Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Program Management Reviewing significant IT application projects before beginning key project phases i
The new planning and budgeting strategy transfers from IRM to the large offices and regions the responsibility for defending and budgeting new sponsored applications, special workstation i
equipment and software, and data entry. IRM will continue to budget for smaller offices and l
most of the IT resources, including allinfrastructure and agencywide applications. The Agency j
will consolidate the descriptions of all IT activities into an agencywide IT technology plan.
3.1.2 IT Policy and Standards The Challenge / Vision j
l Develop clear IRM policies and standards, with client participation, that support the Agency's j
IT strategy and maintain a balance between the benefits of standardization and the need for i
flexibility.
Description of the Current Environment The current framework of Agency IT strategies, policies, and standards is out-of-date for planning or managing programs within the Agency. For example, existing policies and standards do not reflect changes in the IRM organization, current organizational placement of the designated senior official (DSO) for information resources management, changes in technologies, or the move to open systems. Limited policies and standards result in high maintenance and j
support costs, difficulty in sharing information, and duplicative data and applications. An up-to-date framework is important for establishing a consistent, integrated IT environment throughout the Agency.
The process for updating the IT framework also needs modification. In the past, strategies, policies and standards were often developed by IRM. Other NRC components were not involved l
until late in the process, when they were asked to comment on near final products.
Strategy for IT Policy and Standards IRM, in collaboration with Headquarters and regional offices, will develop and institute an updated framework of Agency IT strategies, policies, and standards. The IT Council and Senior Information Resource Management Officials (SIRMOs) representing the major Headquarters and Regional offices will be involved throughout the process to assist in developing and implementing clear practices, policies and standards that satisfy user office needs.
IT policies will be updated to establish roles and responsibilities for planning and budgeting, l
acquiring Federal Information Processing (FIP) resources, reviewing and implementing major information systems, and managing documents and data as Agency resources.
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Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Prograrn Management IT standards will be updated to implement open systems and life cycle management and to i
support the management of documents and data as Agency resources consistent with user office needs.
3.1.3 IT Acquisition Management The Challenge / Vision Develop an IT acquisition management strategy to provide quality IRM products and services in a timely manner, and to accommodate rapid changes in technology.
t Description of the Current Environment IRM relies to a great extent on contractors to perform its basic functions and deliver services to its customers. Performance in acquiring information technology and services and in managing IRM contracts affects the ability of the Agency to successfully execute its information resources management program. Areas that could be improved are FIP acquisition planning; acquisition processes, policies, and standards; and staffing.
t Acquisition Planning IRM has man ; small contracts that may cover similar aspects of certain work processes or work areas (for w.nple, six separate contracts support the local area network (LAN) and microcomputer environment). This results in complex and costly contract management by NRC staff.
More attention to planning acquisition strategies ahead of time could consolidate individual acquisition requests into larger contracts with broader scopes of work, where appropriate.
Acquisition Process. Policies. and Standards The IT contracting function requires many FTEs, includes numerous steps and procedures, and requires effective cross-functional efforts by NRC acquisition specialists, lawyers, and internal customers. Although many of the contracting procedures are determined by external rules and regulations such as the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and Federal Information Resource l
Management Regulation (FIRMR), there may be ways to increase flexibility in the implementation of these requirements.
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An effective acquisidon process would generally include clearly defined roles and responsibilities for all participants, collegial relationships among participants who work as a team to achieve a common objective, incentives and accountability for completing the acquisition process in an efficient and timely manner and for getting the best value for the Agency, clear and consistent acquisition procedures, and early consideration of whether the FTE time spent in procurement effort and risk management (steps taken to avoid protests) are commensurate with the size of the procurement.
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1 The current IT acquisition process does not always include the above characteristics and the complex information resources acquisitions often take longer than expected for a variety of reasons. The lengthy acquisition process and the rapidly changing technology have at times 4
resulted in the purchase of equipment that was nearly obsolete by the time the procurement was completed. Acquisition procedures are not always well understood and acquisition documents are sometimes inadequate or incomplete. Although much effort is expended on acquisitions, this effort is not always perceived as effective or appropriate for the cost of the goods or services being acquired.
Although the Office of Administration (ADM) has recently updated the NRC Acquisition Regulation, which covers the Agency's general acquisition policies, more specific NRC policies and guidance are needed to address FIP acquisitions. IRM is working with ADM to develop l
FIP-specific acquisition policies.
t r
l In its
'ent review of IRM, GSA noted that " careful attention should be paid to the definition of rol, and responsibilities, in IRM and ADM, to DPA [ Delegation of Procurement Authority]
tracking responsibilities, and to establishing guidance on entering into and approving interagency agreements."
1 Etaffing The balance between NRC and contractor staffin performing technical work is weighted tsward contractors, which raises concerns about maintaining an adequate level of NRC expertise and talent. The following are problems that have been identified: (1) too much technical FIP work is being contracted, (2) insufficient use of computing skills is affecting the ability of NRC computer professionals to stay technologically current, and (3) insufficient direct technical involvement by NRC computer professiona!s is affecting their ability to adequately manage I
contractors performing technical work.
In reviewing IRM, GSA also noted this problem with balancing NRC and contractor staff:
- [ thel IRM program at NRC is heavily dependent on contract support. At the end of fiscal year 1992. IRM was using 33 contracts with 275 contractor employees and had 137 full time employees. The ratio of contractors to staff is even Freater in one IRM Divisiot.. where there are as many as even contractors for every NRC employee."
Strategy for IT Acquisition Management 3
A new IT acquisition management strategy is critical to implementing other strategic initiatives
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defined in this document. For the Agency to update its technology and equipment, it must process acquisition requests in a timely and effective manner. The following sections describe the proposed improvements in the planning, process, policies, standards, and staffing for acquisitions.
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Draft NRC Strategie IT Pian IT Program Management Accuisition Planning The NRC will develop both strategic and tactical IT acquisition plans to consolidate and reduce the number of procurement actions and to save administrative time and costs, while improving the quality of acquisitions. The NRC will establish agencywide contracts for IT architectural and infrastructure components described elsewhere in this document such as the workstation 7
replacement effort. The NRC will examine other means of acquisition, including the GSA Government-wide Agency Contracts program.
l Acquisition Process. Policies and Standards The NRC will improve the FIP acquisition management process by increasing management attention and staff resources. IRM and ADM have each hired a senior IT acquisition specialist with expertise in FIP acquisitions. The NRC is beginning to define and document NRC FIP acquisition procedures, policies, and guidance, including DPA tracking responsibilities, and oversight of interagency agreements.
The Agency will use BPR to analyze and improve a selected area of acquisition procedures, processing practices, and the use of automation. (See Section 3.3.2 on BPR pilot projects).
l This acquisition strategy may be expanded to include other areas of the FIP acquisition life cycle process and resolve other recurring procedural problems.
l In implementing the Agency's standards in FIP acquisitions, all Agency project managers will be required to attend training and obtain certification in FIP acquisition.
A substantial investment has already been made in preparing a comprehensive course in "FIP acquisitions for Project Officers" which will be mandatory for certification as an IRM project officer.
Staffinc IRM is analyzing the skills of its staff to address the concerns of balance between contractors and NRC expertise. IRM will make adjustments as needed to its organization and plans for contracting systems work. Better acquisition planning and consolidated contracts can also make contract management more efficient.
3.1.4 IT Iluman Resource Strategy i
The Challenge / Vision i
Develop a new human resource strategy to (1) increase proficiency of the NRC staff with i
information systems and encourage effective use of electronic systems and media, and (2) develop and maintain a highly competent and motivated Agency IRM staff, organized to effectively support customers and conduct the IRM program.
Description of the Current Environment Only a few years ago, the Agency's original microcomputers were viewed as little more than
" glorified" typewriters. Today powerful microcomputers, plentiful software options, improved 14 4
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Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Program Management f
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technology, and improved computer literacy skills have significantly changed the way we perform our work. This change has also raised the level ofIT literacy expected of most Federal i
employees. The NRC now has the capability to reduce its paper laden processes by using computers to transmit information electronically. With the completion of the Agency Upgrade of Technology for Office Systems (AUTOS) project during fiscal year 1993, almost all NRC staff will have access to workstations and basic office automation functions. In the near future, many office functions, currently accomplished by telephone or through the mail with paper distribution, will be performed in the LAN environment. It will socm be essential for all NRC employees to possess at least a minimum level of proficiency in using IT capabilities such as l
electronic mail (e-mail) and word processing.
Many NRC staff will also require IT competencies in such software applications as spreadsheets, graphics, and information retrieval.
NRC's Information Technology Services Training Lab and Individual Learning Center give all NRC employees opportunities for hands-on classroom instruction and individual study in the use of NRC's IT capabilities. Information on training courses and prerequisites are routinely 4
distributed to all staff. For the most part, employees in Headquaners and the regions can obtain the instruction they need to use the NRC's IT resources.
Although most employees believe that the NRC offers excellent IT training opportunities, the l
IT Strategy Team recommended further steps to bring about the cultural changes needed for the Agency to effectively use the technology. Particular attention is needed to address requirements j
of senior managers who have little time for formal training and who frequently have the least s
experience with computer technologies.
Strategy for Iluman Resources IT Proficiency of Apency staff
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To begin improving overall IT proficiency at the Agency, the NRC will assess the cultural J
problems and needs associated with the increasing use of technology. The NRC will establish basic competency goals for clerical, professional, supervisory, and executive positions. To meet these assessed needs and competency goals, the Agency will establish necessary training and development programs to assist employees in achieving the target competency levels and effectively using technology.
IT Proficiency of IRM Staff IRM recognizes the importance of maintaining the technical proficiency of its staff. IRM recently assessed the skills ofIRM staff to determine both strengths and weaknesses. IRM will use the results of this assessment in conducting initiatives to better use existing skills and develop or acquire those skills needed to more effectively perform the IRM program.
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Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Program Management 3.1.5 IT Architectures The Challenge / Vision DeHne information and technology architectures to guide the planning and implementation of technology for both infrastructure and applications.
Description of the Current Environment NRC information technology systems have been developed over time in a mixture of technologies and architectures. Most of NRC's major agencywide systems were developed as separate applications running in a timeshared mainframe environment with remote access. These applications were developed using a variety of often incompatible languages and database management systems. As distributed minicomputer systems became cost-effective, the Agency developed its payroll, personnel, property, and 6nancial systems in local minicomputer environments.
In the mid 1980s, the Agency developed a data architecture and began implementing an integrated " corporate" database, primarily supporting rc=!nr applications.
Recently, with the advent of powerful microcomputers, some Agency users devdoped office systems on stand-alone or LAN-connected microcomputers. While the ease-of-use and flexibility of microcomputer applications have provided many benefits to NRC users, it has also caused problems with application and data integration. Many of the problems occurred because the NRC has not yet prepared architectures for information, applications, and technology which would give the staff a consistent environment for implementing individual microcomputer applications.
Although a data architecture was used in developing some of the Agency's reactor-related applications, the Agency has not made a consistent, sustained effort to define its data, applications, and supporting technology architectures. Guidelines and policies to encourage adherence by of5ces to such architectures have never been defined. The growth of distributed LAN-based systems emphasizes the need for a coherent, complete architectural model that will foster the ability to share and effectively use information.
GSA noted that:
NRC has begun initiatives that could be coordinated into an architectural strategy addreoing long-term needs... [W]ithout coordinating individual modemzation efforts and directing them toward a strategic IRM plan, NRC risks a severe cost impact. A coordinated approach to mode nization can help avoid potential redundancies, establish Agencywide standards, enhance identidcation of emerging technologies, and reduce costs.
Strategy for IT Architectures IRM will work jointly with the Headquarters and regional of6ces to develop and institute Agency information, application, and technology architectures to define the context and standards for future applications and to assure that user of6ce applications needs are met.
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a Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Infrastructure 3.2 IT Infrastructure j
The strategy for IT Infrastructure emphasizes significant investment in the hardware, software, and telec smmunications technologies needed to create a robust and reliable automation environment to support the Agency's current and future applications and communication needs.
I These needs are associated with both administrative and programmatic information systems and i
technical computing and scientific modeling applications that support NRC's mission. Although i
the Agency has been installing microcomputers and has been networking offices through an l
extended local and wide area network over the past several years, the rapid growth of decentralized LAN applications will require more robust and higher capacity networks, more powerful workstations, and more aggressive adoption of new LAN-based systems development platforms to meet the Agency's needs. The new strategy calls for greater investment in l
workstations and distributed client-server architectures, and continuation of the Agency's network upgrade plans to support both technical computing and office systems.
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Table 2 summarizes the program elements, challenges, and strategic initiatives for IT Infrastructure. The program elements for IT Infrastructure are: workstation replacement, networking and connectivity, applications development platforms, and high-performance computing infrastructure.
l Table 2 IT Infrastructure j
T 7
PROGRAM CIIALLENGES aTRATEGIC INITIATIVES ELEMEVIS 3
i Workstation Ensure that NRC's technology infrastructure is Adopt a new workstation Replacement robust, reliable, and capable of supporting current replacement strategy t
and future applications needs.
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Networking and Continue with plans to Connectivity implement a single multi-4 function wide area network i
Continue with pleas to l
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implement a network i
management center Applications Move aggressively to f
Development implement client-server l
l 1%: forms technology for new l
systems liigh-Continue emphasis on j
j performance improved connectivity, j
j Computmg increased training and Infrastructure technical assistance, l
acquisition of engineering j
workstations, and program l
office coordination j
through the Technology j
Advancement Board
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i Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Infrastructure i
The Challenge / Vision Ensure that NRC's technology infrastructure is robust, reliable, and capable of supporting current and future applications needs.
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3.2.1 Workstation Replacement j
Description of the Current Environment In FY 1993, NRC will complete an agencywide program to supply Headquarters and regional offices with microcomputers attached to standardized LANs and to provide agencywide l
communications capabilities among the LANs. Although the original objective was to replace the agency's aging word processing systems, the Agency later expanded the plan to give most clerical, professional and managerial staff microcomputers connected to LANs capable of 1
supporting standard office automation functions.
As the staff became familiar with microcomputer technology and the varieties of available software increased, the staff identified many new applications and productivity tools that could be used to improve the efficiency and l
effectiveness of the Agency's programs. Many of the Agency's original workstations could not support newer application requirements and could not be maintained cost effectively. Demand i
for replacement of technologically obsolete machines was growing before the Agency met its initial goal of providing workstations to all employees who needed them. The NRC recognized that the existing workstation strategy and level of investment in replacement workstations were insufficient to support growing application needs.
Strategy for Workstation Replacement The new long-term workstation strategy emphasizes an accelerated investment in office automation workstations to avoid the costs of operating and maintaining old equipment and to provide workstations capable of running current and future applications. The strategy is to (1) replace NRC's office automation workstations to meet high standards for functionality, reliability, performance, and interoperability by maintaining a workstation inventory that, on average, lags current technology by one generation; (2) meet this standard within 2 years; (3) after achieving this standard, maintain it by replacing approximately one fifth of NRC's workstations each year with new technology.
The NRC will establish standards and policies to acquire, install, maintain, and replace
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workstations as appropriate. Finally, NRC will implement a configuration management and inventory control project to efficiently manage the use, maintenance, and timely replacement of i
workstations, and the disposal of obsolete equipment.
3.2.2 Networking and Connectivity i
Description of the Current Environment NRC has three separate data communications networks -- a LANE-LAN communications network, a network for printing from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and a network l
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providing access to various computer facilities -- m addition to special purpose connections.
NRC staff must also understand a variety of communications software and often cumbersome procedures for connecting to various applications or data sources. These procedures are unique for specific types of computers, hardware, and software being used, with, for example, one procedure to access the Nuclear Document System (NUDOCS), another to access event data, and a third to enter inspection plans.
i This multiplicity of data circuits and communication protocols results in complexity for customers and the telecommunications staff and difficulties in integrating information from different applications. IRM would like to simplify this environment so that a customer would simply select an application or data source from a workstation menu, without needing to know the specifics of an application's location, hardware, or software platform. This simplification would ultimately extend to the use of a single communication protocol for most NRC applications. An important step in moving towards this desired environment is to implement one multi-function network to replace the three existing data communications networks. This step is an imponant one in moving towards a single, vendor-independent (open) communications protocol for all NRC applications.
Strategy for Networking and Connectivity IRM will extend NRC networks to accommodate the connection of all NRC computer resources to a single NRC communications network.
This network will support an open systems architecture to enable connectivity and high-speed information transfers among diverse workstations, NRC-owned minicomputers, regional and resident sites, outside locations such as the Southwest Research Institute, the U.S. Department of Energy laboratories, national and international public networks such as Internet, and timesharing facilities. The network must function reliably and must be implemented in a cost-effective manner that provides adequate j
speed and capacity as traffic increases, but does not provide the capacity before it is needed.
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As the NRC increasingly depends on the network for its critical functions, more sophisticated network-monitoring and configuration management methods will be needed to adequately monitor, maintain, and support the NRC computer and network environment. The NRC will establish a network management center to manage the operation and configuration of the network.
3.2.3 Applications Development Platforms Description of the Current Environment Applications within NRC have been implemented across a variety of development platforms that inchide timesharing services on NIH IBM mainframes, internal IBM and Data General minicomputers, standalone microcomputers, and LAN servers.
Over time it has become increasingly ineffective and costly for the Agency to develop and maintain applications over this 19
l 1-Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Infrastructure i
wide range of platforms.
Even more importantly, access to information is hindered by i
incompatibilities between the proprietary products of various vendors.
j Other businesses and agencies have similar problems with the cost and support for their older j
systems. The computer industry is addressing this problem by developing " client-server" application architectures which can interconnect diverse systems across platforms. These client-l server architectures have the following additional advantages: (1) user-friendly interfaces, allowing the user to operate the " client" part of the application on an intelligent microcomputer
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workstation, and (2) scalability, since the server part of the application, which stores the data l
l and does most of the processing, can be a microcomputer, minicomputer, or mainframe, as
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necessary.
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i Strategy for Applications Development Platforms
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NRC's strategy is to move aggressively to implement client-server technology for new systems.
Required tasks will include training IRM staffin the new technology, planning and implementing j
i operational support for the new platform, establishing necessary development contracts, establishing policies and standards, and using client-server technology for pilot applications.
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3 As a first step, IRM is developing a pilot appli:ation for the Office of Personnel using client-j server technology to enable NRC staff to perform onsite computing using the data from j
g mainframe, minicomputer, and microcomputer systems. The goal is to replace these various l
l platforms with a high-performance desktop computer connected to the LAN and wide area J
network (WAN). NRC will pilot and evalaate other applications in the LAN environment using i
client-server technologies. The results of these pilots will be assessed jointly by IRM and client i
offices and integrated with the policy, standards, and architecture activities, i
Other elements of NRC's strategy for its development platforms are to reduce the costs and j
improve the effectiveness of applications by (1) moving applications from the NIH timesharmg platform, (2) pursuing cross-servicing or acquiring common applications, such as those i
supporting administrative, financial, personnel, payroll functions, and (3) establishing standards i
for application platforms based on newer technologies supporting an "open systems" approach.
3.2.4 Iligh-Performance Computing Infrastructure Advances in high-performance computing are bringing scientific computing and analytical j
modelling to the desktop. Existing codes are being moved from large mainframe environments l
to less expensive and more accessible engineering workstations. Scientific user communities are dynamically exchanging codes and data using electronic interfaces.
The NRC has been responding to these changes by planning and implementing the infrastructure needed to support the staffin making the most effective use of the new high-performance computing technologies i
for licensing and regulatory applications.
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The main elements of the infrastructure strategy for high-performance computing are interoffice coordination, high-performance workstations, networking and connectivity, network security, and high-performance computing support services. See Section 3.3.4, "High-performance i
Computing Applications" for a description of planned applications.
i Description of the Current Environment Interoffice Coordination l
A Technology Advancement Board (TAB) has been established to coordinate interoffice needs for advanced computing and to assist the Office ofIRM and major program offices in identifying and transferring applicable information technologies to projects related to the agency's safety l
mission. TAB activities will also address the use of new technologies to facilitate the sharing and exchange of information with licensees, the nuclear industry, the States, Federal agencies, l
and the public.
i Hich-Performance Workstations and Associated Computine Resources To meet Agency high-performance computing needs, the NRC is using the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Governmentwide Agency Contract to acquire a variety of RISC (reduced instruction set computation) workstations, all of which can run in the UNIX environment. UNIX is the de facto standard non-proprietary ("open") operating system that has
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been adopted for NRC's high-performance networks. The agreement with NASA also provides l
the NRC with related software, hardware, networking equipment and maintenance. By the end J
of the year, the high-performance workstations available to the technical staff will have doubled, i
reaching an inventory of over fifty RISC units.
Networkine and Connectivity i
To meet needs for sharing and communication among high-performance computing users, the i
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j NRC has developed an initial high-performance computing systems architecture. The basic concept is that most RISC ststions will be networked to enable resource sharing within cach of l
the program offices. To date, UNIX networks have been established in NRC's Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR), Office for Analysis and Evaluation of Operational Data (AEOD) and Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards (NMSS). For example, a high-performance UNIX-based network server has been installed in NMSS Division of High-Level Waste Management (DHLWM) to support high-level waste repository licensing and will soon be linked to other RISC stations, a graphics station and standard microcomputers.
The local program office high-performance networks are, in turn, being integrated into the NRC WAN. The NRC WAN will have fully integrated e-mail and directory services. This will allow I
high-performance computing users to have e-mail and document transfer capability with all NRC staff, the Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory Analyses (CNWRA), certain U.S. Department i
of Energy (DOE) laboratories, and with outside users over the public Internet network.
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NRC is standardizing on the Transmissions Control Protocol /Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) for LA'N/WAN communications among high-performance UNIX workstations, NRC minicomputers, the NIH mainframes, and Internet. Initial implementation of TCP/IP has begun and will
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continue through next year. Adopting the TCP/IP protocol will simplify and reduce the number of communications procedures that a user must know to access different computing facilities, and will make it possible for NRC staff to access Internet directly from the NRC LANs.
The program of6ces with high-performance networks have requested two features available on Internet: file transfer protocol (FTP) and remote interactive access (TELNET). FTP provides the capability to transmit high volumes of data and TELNET allows outside users, such as DOE laboratory staff, to interactively access NRC high-performance computers to diagnose problems, install code, configure files, and provide other technical assistance. While only implemented on a limited basis, the FTP has already proved a valuable resource for the technical staff. NRR employed the FTP features to receive and configure the RELAP5 facility decks for the Westinghouse AP600 advanced design and the SPES test facility directly from the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. The NRC Technical Training Center used the interactive capabilities to work with the graphical interface package, PICASSO, with experts from the European community on the Halden Reactor Project.
The use of the Internet TELNET feature, which allows outside users to access NRC machines, has required NRC to enhance the security architecture ofits networks. A " fire wall" approach using special network con 6gurations, software, and hardware will protect the NRC networks by monitoring, checking, and controlling outside access. NRC plans to implement the new security features by the end of the fiscal year.
In addition to the use of Internet for large volume data transfers, NRC has installed a direct line for such transfers between DHLWM high-performance workstations and the CNWRA computer l
facility in San Antonio, Texas and the CNWRA Washington Technical Support Of6ce in l
Arlington, Virginia. The large volume file transfer techniques used by DHLWM will be
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expanded to other Agency high-performance computing projects as needed.
l Hieh-Performance Comouting Suoport Services A technical assistance program has been established to support the high-performance computing environment. This program combines in-house training and technical exchanges with industry to encourage and accelerate the development and implementation of high-performance computing within NRC. Two DOE Laboratories ibat currently support N'RC have been tasked to review and integrate requirements and provide assistance to bring advanced computing resources in-house. Current tasks include an assessment of NRR high-performance computing requirements
- e support the licensing of advanced design reactors and an overall assessment of program office networking needs.
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IRM staff have been trained in the UNIX /RISC technologies to install software, administer networks, and provide onsite customer support to the program offices. This staff expertise is currently augmented with contractor support for hardware and software installation and maintenance.
Technical exchanges with industry, vendors and other government agencies have also enhanced l
the program. For example, NRC staff have met with experts from the Electric Power Research l
Institute (EPRI), Construction Systems Association, and The Georgia Institute of Technology.
Access to EPRInet has been established and the staff reviewed the EPRI management information system requirements for the advanced design reactors. NRC staff have seen the l
Westinghouse computerized information management system for the AP600 project, have scheduled a demonstration of the Duke Power Computer Aided Design / Computer Aided Manufacturing system, and also plan to meet with General Electric (GE) to review the computing resources used by GE to implement the management information system for their simpli6ed boiling water reactor (SBWR) design.
Strategy for Technical Computing Infrastructure NRC will continue to develop in-house technical knowledge and skills for high-performance computing through training and technical exchanges with industry and vendors. IRM will continue to place a high priority on TAB member requirements for future licensing and regulatory activity in the program offices. Connectivity and accessibility will be enhanced to take advantage of and share resources among high-performance networks.
With the implementation of the security fire wall and TCP/IP protocols, users will have faster, more l
flexible access to one another other and well as to Internet and other external networks.
In a related area, NRC has established office guidance to monitor the development of the National Education and Research Network, established by the High-performance Computing Act of 19%, and will evaluate the utility of the network to the NRC when it is available.
i 3.3 IT Information and Applications Management The strategy for Information and Applications Management focuses primarily on improving the overall quality and integration of the Agency's information and applications by changing the way that information systems are developed and managed. This strategy includes three major components: (1) strengthening systems life cycle management for all new systems, focusing on major development projects; ('2) piloting BPR as a routine part of the systems life cycle process to reevaluate and streamline current processes before they are automated; and (3) implementing a data management program to improve the quality and accessibility of the Agency's information, with a focus on key application areas. By completing these components, the Agency would improve the overall quality of its applications. The strategy also includes the i
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it Draft NRC Strategie IT Plan IT Information and Applications Management i
l investment of resources in two key application areas: document management and high-performance computing applications.
l i
Table 3 summarizes the program elements, challenges, and strategic initiatives for IT Information and Applications Management.
The program elements for Information and l
Applications Management are: improving the quality of NRC information systems, Agency i
processes and workflow, data and document management, and high-performance computing a
i applications.
i Table 3 IT Information and Applications Management
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PROGRAM CIIALLENGES STRATEGIC INITIATIVES l
ELDIENIS Improving the Efficiently and effectively implement easily Strengthen systems life cycle Quality of NRC accessible, reliable, secure, and integrated management l
Informanon information systems for high-priority administrative Systems and mission-related needs.
Agency Apply technology to improve NRC workflow Pilot
- business process f
Processes and management processes; increase NRC abihty to reengineering" to streamline Workflow commun cate electronically with licensees and other important processes agencies; and increase the effective and efficient Implement paper reduction f
use of electronic forms, mail, signatures, and initiatives Tecords.
Data and Manage shared data and documents as Agency Strengthen Agency data i
)
Document resources and ensure they are accessible, secure, administration in key i
Management and reliable. Update the Agency's document business areas management capabilities to meet current and Implement a modern anticipated programmatic needs.
document management
(
system for agencywide use l
i See Section 3.3.4, High-I High-Increase activities to develop and implement
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Per formance technical computing applications needed to support Performance Computing Computing future licensing and regulatory activity in the Applications Applications program offices, such as for advanced reactor design certification, plant life extension, and high level waste (HLW) repository licensing.
i 3.3.I Improving the Quality of NRC Information Systems The Challenge / Vision Efficiently and effectively implement easily accessible, reliable, secure, and integrated
{
information systems for high-priority admimstrative and mission-related needs.
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Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Information and Applications Management i
Description of the Current Environment The NRC developed its information systems over the years using a variety of technologies and approaches. Systems development project managers had few operational guidelines and the NRC had few development standards to encourage a consistent level of quality in developing, testing and maintaining these systems. With the introduction of microcomputers, the problem 1'
of compatibility and quality expanded as individual users and offices began to implement individualized, unique systems.
One way that IT managers have found to improve the quality and consistency of information systems is to practice a standard systems life cycle, management (LCM) approach to structure the systems development process of new information systems from initial requirements and l
programming activity through obsolescence and replacement. LCM generally encompasses the L
key components that make up a system: software, data, hardware, telecommunications, training, user support, and systems maintenance.
s An effective LCM should include a rigorous, proven methodology; standards; project management; computer-aided systems engineering (CASE) tools; data management; configuration and software management; and independent reviews. The use of CASE tools as part of LCM can significantly reduce the costs of system maintenance, improve quality and reliability, and l
increase the productivity of development staff. For these reasons, over 90 percent of Fortune 500 companies use CASE tools to develop and maintai1 their information systems. Most Federal agencies are also establishing LCM frameworks and using CASE tools.
NRC has practiced LCM primarily by applying internally drafted guidelines, using CASE tools f
in only a few development projects.
l Strategy for Improving the Quality of NRC Information Systems IRM, with client office input and review, will acquire and implement within the Agency a standard LCM and CASE tool set, implement standards for all major IT deliverables, assign customer and IRM responsibilities for life cycle steps, revise project management standards, and require independent monitoring and reviews for each life cycle step. The NRC will use the new j
standard LCM for all major projects over an established threshold. Smaller, more simple i
applications will have an LCM commensurate with their size and complexity and may not
[
require the use of CASE tools.
Initiatives under "IT Architectures" (Section 3.1.5), " Applications Development Platforms.
(Section 3.2.3), " Agency Processes and Workflow" (Section 3.3.2), and " Data and Document Management" (Section 3.3.3) also will contribute to the improvement of NRC Information i
Systems.
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t Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Information and Applications Management 3.3.2 Agency Processes and Workflow i
The Challenge / Vision Apply technology to improve NRC workflow management processes; increase NRC ability to i
communicate electronically with licensees and other agencies; and increase the effective and efficient use of electronic forms, mail, signatures, and records.
i Description of the Current Environment i
Most business processes and workflow systems in the NRC are paper-based and rely on internal desk procedures or mailroom distribution of paper copy. As distributed office automation l
capabilities, e-mail, and networks are implemented in the Agency, many of these paper-based workflow systems can be replaced with electronic media and communications methods. NRC is conducting three agencywide projects to increase the application of electronic technology to l
business processes.
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4
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First, a Paperwork Reduction Task Force is determining types of information that are good candidates for electronic access. These types have been categorized as follows: forms of 4
information that can be provided within the current LAN configuration, those that can be l
implemented with a WAN, and those that are part of other systems development efforts.
Second, a Forms Automation Project team is examining the many forms used in the Agency to determine those that are likely candidates for converting to an electronic format on the AUTOS LAN. Third, an electronic communications project team is determining and coordinating requirements and planning for known electronic information receipt and dissemination projects.
The NRC is implementing several pilot projects for electronic communications with licensees.
With these three projects, the NRC is exploring the application of technology to existing paper-based systems. Many companies and federal agencies are also streamlining their existing l
processes using BPR to eliminate redundant and unproductive activities and simplify and integrate essential activities. A typical BPR initiative includes consolidating tasks; reducing centralized processing; assigning local authority for decision-making; analyzing workflow across organizations and processes; modeling and measuring costs to help reduce them; eliminating i
redundancy; and evaluating and applying new technologies. Although there has been some t
discussion within NRC of streamlining specific internal processes, a structured approach such i
as BPR has not yet been applied.
Strategy for Improving Agency Processes and Workflow f
As workstations and networking are extended to every NRC employee, the Agency will focus on replacing its paper-based systems by expanding the current paperwerk reduction, forms l
automation, and electronic communication projects to include more processes. The Agency will i
need to establish policy for electronic workflow management, including criteria for accepting electronic signatures and electronic media for official Agency records.
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2 NRC will explore the use of BPR by conducting BPR pilot projects and evaluating their l
effectiveness to determine how BPR might be further applied within the Agency. Candidate j
3 areas being considered for piloting BPR are document management, commercial contracting, materials licensing, and fee billing.
l 3.3.3 Data and Document Management The Challenge / Vision i
Manage shared data and documents as Agency resources and ensure they are accessible, secure, and reliable. Update the Agency's document management capabilities to meet current and anticipated programmatic needs.
4 Description of the Current Environment 4
Data Manacement l
Like many agencies, NRC has experienced problems with the quality, redundancy, and integnty of data in many of its existing systems. In 1985, the Agency developed a data architecture and began to apply data management principles to a portion of its information in order to reduce development and maintenance costs, improve data for management decision-making, improve the integrity and reliability of data, reduce data redundancy, and provide for more efficient data entry 1
In conductmg its imtial data management efforts, the Agency used mainframe systems which supported reactor-related functions, including inspection, enforcement and event data. Many benefits resulted from this central data management program; for example, the Agency
?
(1) improved analysis and management in the inspection program by instituting a uniform inspection planning process and database across all regions with the ability to track the actions taken to followup and close out inspectable items; (2) found national trends in safety J
performance by making uniform comparisons of licensee performance and inspection activity l
data; and (3) improved the scheduling and coordination of licensee site activities by the use of l
4 l
the shared centralized database.
Although obtaining good results from this initial data management initiative, NRC found i
difficulty extending the program to other areas. The program relied on a highly controlled,
)
centralized mainframe data repository, dial-up user access, and data management staffing by
?
IRM. The NRC was replacing mainframe systems with newer, more user-friendly, cost-effective, microcomputer-based systems. While these new systems had many benefits, the I
distributed microcomputer environment was making data management much harder. Integration j
and uniformity can be achieved only with a strong data administration program and with customer support for policies to ensure that data structures are uniform and designed for sharing.
1 27 t
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Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Information and Applications Management P
d Document Management i
Document management in the Agency includes a range of office document management systems and the Agency's major centralized NUDOCS. Although the NRC program and support offices rely on these older systems, users accustomed to newer and more flexible technologies are i
becoming increasingly dissatisfied with their limitations. These limitations include redundant j
document scanning and entry systems; the inability to use certain methods for search and retrieval, such as full-text and proximity searching; the inability to cut and paste from existing d
text; and the lack of cost-effective methods for distributing documents.
In many cases, i
document management systems are being developed by the NRC program offices to address unique needs not satisfied by NUDOCS. Although further investment in the current l
NUDOCS system could overcome certain document-processing limitations and provide additional i
search features, this would not be cost-effective, significantly improve user satisfaction, or j
address inherent retrieval limitations.
s Strategy for Data and Document Management 4
Data Management To support improved integration and data management, NRC will implement a strong data j
j administration program to ensure that data is managed as an Agency resource by (1) establishing d
policies and standards for shared data, (2) defining roles and responsibilities for shared data, and l
(3) implementing a data quality assurance program. The staff will apply these data management j
policies and standards to major functional areas, including financial and contracts data.
i j
Document Manacement 4
To improve document management systems in the Agency, NRC will undertake a major initiative to implement a modern text and image management system to replace NUDOCS, provide the staff with robust document management systems, and reduce the need for other j
systems. The NRC will begin by applying BPR to streamline document management processes.
In performing the analysis, the NRC will categorize existing and proposed text management applications, to determine their requirements. The staff will select the new approach based on l
]
the results of cost / benefit and alternatives analyses.
l 3.3.4 High-Performance Computing Applications i
j The Challenge /Wsion Increase activities to develop and implement technical computing applications needed to support future licensing and regulatory activity in the program offices, such as for advanced reactor design certification, plant life extension, and high level waste (HLW) repository licensing.
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i Description of the Current Environment The new, more powerful, microcomputer technologies enable the staff to perform scientific j
modeling and simulation in distributed high-performance computing environments.
These j
systems have the potential to greatly enhance the way the Agency conducts its mission activities j
in such areas as advanced reactor design certification, plant life extension, HLW repository licensing, and technical training of NRC the staff. Although many of the staff recognize the l
l potential benefits of high-performance computing, most NRC offices are still in the experimental l
stages of using this new technology. More training and experience will be needed before the l
staff can take full advantage of high-performance computing applications in performing licensing and regulatory work.
The following high-performance computing projects are currently underway in the program offices:
l Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation j
In NRR, networked RISC/ UNIX workstations have been installed to enable the staff to share l
computer codes and data between NRR Divisions. The staff uses these workstations to run j
j computer models for analyzing advanced reactors and operating reactor events. For example, j
high-performance models have been used to more clearly understand the behavior and j
containment concerns for advanced light water reactors such as the AP600 and the SBWR.
i Models have also been used to analyze the significance of inspection findings at operating reactors. For example, the staff modeled a degraded high pressure emergency cooling system l
at an operating plant to determine the effect on safety.
{
Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research i
1 The Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research (RES) staff use networked UNIX workstations to 2
support evaluation and engineering activities associated with the design, acceptance, and implementation of computer codes.
These codes perform analyses for graphical system i
interfaces, reactor simulation, plant process protection and control applications, seismic analysis, I
severe accident analysis, and other engineering simulations. The staffis moving existing codes l
from mainframe environments to these high-performance workstations; is updating, enhancing, or consolidating other codes; and is using satellite data communications to connect with outside networks such as the U.S. Geological Survey's National Seismic Network to obtain specialized J
data.
F 1
j Office for Analysis and Evaluation of Operational Data The Technical Training Center (TTC) is using a variety of analytical codes for upgrading of 4
reactor simulator models and for development of classroom simulations. The classroom i
I simulations will be accomplished using these codes on RISC/ UNIX-based workstations to compute and display information that cannot be observed on simulator instrumentation. As part of this effort, the staff is using advanced graphics software for process control applications, j
obtained through the Halden Reactor Project, to develop the graphical interface through which j
the information will be dynamically displayed for classroom simulations. A necessary part of i
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Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Information and Applications Management this effon is the electronic exchange of data and code among AEOD, the Halden Reactor Project, and the national laboratories.
A high-performance Ethernet network enables TTC instructors to control the center's GE and Babcock and Wilcox (B&W) reactor simulators using Macintosh-based instructor stations. The recently-acquired Combustion Engineering (CE) simulator uses a RISC/ UNIX-based Silicon Graphics 4D system and three Silicon Graphics workstations.
These Silicon Graphics workstations and several Sun SPARCstations are, likewise, connected to the Ethernet network.
At Headquarters, the AEOD is developing a Reactor Safety Assessment System on a Sun SPARCstation which uses expert system technology to support the analysis of operational events at the NRC Operations Center.
Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safecuards NMSS has completed the initialinstallation phase of an Advanced Computer Peview System that will be used to develop methods needed for review and licensing of h proposed Yucca Mountain repository by the DHLWM. Regulatory activities that will be supported by the system include (1) development of the NRC License Application Review Plan, (2) review of DOE pre-licensing activities, (3) development of guidance for DOE on regulatory requirements (4) iterative performance assessments (IPAs) of the repository, and, eventually, (5) review the license application. These functions will require the staff and its consultants to develop and use a variety of engineering and scientific computer programs to evaluate repository design and performance. The staff needs to communicate large computer files and source code to its consultants and to outside mainframe computers using INTERNET and other networks to work effectively at long distances on such tasks as the IPA. Graphical hardware and software will be needed to allow the staff and its consultants to a::alyze large quantities of complex spatial and temporal data describing repository site characterid cs, environment, and projected repository i
behavior and to help communicate and publish complex engineering drawings, site characterization data, and results of computer models. To meet these needs, the review system design presently utilizes a high-performance UNIX-based network comprised of a SPARCstation server, SUN-IPX workstations, a high-resolution printer, and 486 microcomputers. Other components to be added include an advanced graphics server, a color printer, a digitizer, a scanner, a drum plotter, additional workstations, and extensive software and software support.
Strategy for Analytical and Scientific Computing The Agency will continue and expand analytical and scientific computing on high-performance workstations to support licensing and regulatory activities. Following are future plans for individual NRC offices:
30
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Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan IT Information and Applications Management l
r Office of Nuclear Reactor Reculation NRC will continue using RISC/ UNIX workstations to model.nd analyze reactor systems and containment behavior for advanced reactors.
The staff wu increasingly use models and I
scientific codes to analyze the significance of inspection findings and assess reportable events l
at operating reactors.
2 I
Office of Nuclear Reculatory Research It is planned that RES activities requiring analytical and scientific computing on high-I performance workstations will be continued and enhanced as needed. Future activities will l
include additional analytical codes and modifications to existing codes, graphical data transfers over high-speed communication lines, improvements in satellite data communications techniques, and faster data exchanges between workstations and on high-performance computing networks.
Office for Analysis and Evaluation of Operational Data i
The TTC will continue to develop workstation-based classroom simulations using RISC/ UNIX
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workstations at the best speed permitted by available resources, including coordinating with other offices to provide access, as requested, to the simulation codes and tools acquired through TTC
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procurements. The TTC will prepare to do advanced reactor simulation, as time is available, j
as part of the Multiple Advanced Reactor Simulator project and will work toward moving more l
of the full scope simulator models to the UNIX environment.
j As a result of major software improvements to several of TTC's full scope simulators (completed for GE BWR/6, in progress for B&W, and currently planned for Westinghouse), the i
existing super-minicomputer systems are fully utilized with little or no excess capacity. Future enhancements will therefore require additional computer capacity. RISC-based processors capable of executing code from earlier platforms appears to be the best option for this needed additional computer capability. The new processors will be integrated in the TTC's high-performance network architecture, which enables the use of new UNIX tools while preserving
)
the investment in older simulation software.
Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safecuards The Division of High-Level Waste Management will continue to develop the Advanced Computer Review System, describal previously, according to the 3-year implementation schedule. Upon completion, the sys'em will serve about 30 DHLW staff. IRM will assist NMSS by acquiring special commercial software and providing system support.
31
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4 Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan Acronyms l
LIST OF ACRONYMS l
ADM Office of Administration AEOD Office for Analysis and Evaluation of Operational Data APR Agency Procurement Request AUTOS Agency Upgrade of Technology for Office Systems BPR business process reengineering B&W Babcock & Wilcox CASE computer-aided systems engineering CE Combustion Engineering CNWRA Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory Analyses l
DCFO/C Deputy Chief Financial Officer and Controller l
DHLWM Division of High-Level Waste Management DPA delegation of procurement authority l
DSO designated senior official j
e-mail electronic mail I
EPRI Electric Power Research Institute FAR Federal Acqusition Regulation i
FIP Federal information processing FIRMR Federal Information Resources Management Regulation i
FTP File Transfer Protocol l
FYP five-year plan GE General Electric Company j
GSA General Services Administration HLW high-level waste l
l IPA iterative performance assessment j
IRM Office of Information Resources Management j
IT information technology
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i LAN local area network
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LCM life cycle management
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j NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration j
i 32
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i Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan Acronyms NIH National Institutes of Health NMSS Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards
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NRC U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission r
NRR Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation NUDOCS Nuclear Document System OMB Office of Management and Budget i
RES Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research
[
RISC Reduced Instruction Set Computation l
j SBWR Simplified Boiling Water Reactor i
SIRMO Senior Information Resource Management Official TAB Technology Advancement Board TCP/IP Transmission Control Protocol /Internet Protocol TTC Technical Training Center
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WAN Wide Area Network h
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Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan Appendix i
APPENDIX A - Agency IT Management i
As a Federal agency, the NRC is required to manage its information technology resources according to OMB Circular A-130, which formally established the concept of information i
resources management. OMB Circular A-130 specifies that Federal agencies manage their information in an efficient, effective, and economical manner and comply with the information policies, principles, standards, and guidelines prescribed by the Director of OMB.
OMB A-130 also required that the head of each agency appoint a DSO for IRM. The DSO is responsible for performing the IRM functions assigned to the Agency by OMB A-130 including Reviewing the agency's IT activities Ensuring all FIP resource acquisitions are conducted as required by the Federal Acquisition Regulation and Federal Information Resources Management Regulation Ensuring that the agency's IT systems do not overlap or duplicate one another l
Implementing government-wide and Agency information policies, standards, and guidelines Reviewing and improving the accuracy and completeness of data and records Developing and annually revising a five-year plan for agency IT needs Maintaining an inventory of the agency's major information management systems
[
i NRC Designated Senior Official The Deputy Executive Di-i for Nuclear Materials Safety, Safeguards, and Operations Support is the NRC DSO for information resources management. The DSO has delegated authority for principal IRM functions to he Director, IRM, and the Director, ADM. The DSO has redelegated GSA's authority to acquire FIP resources for tnose IRM functions under the purview of each of the two office Directors and to sign all Agency Procurement Requests (APRs) to GSA for competitive procurements below a $10 million threshold.
The DSO retained authority to sign APRs requesting a delegation of procurement authority from GSA for non-competitive procurements and for competitive procurements that exceed S10 l
million. The DSO also retained authority for establishing and maintaining an overall IRM Review Program for major IRM activities.
i i
Al
Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan Appendix Roles of the Office of Information Resources Management IRM is responsible for providing information resource management services in the following areas:
- computer, telecommunications, and information sen-ices including database management, office automation, cwputer hardware and software, systems development, computer operations, timesharing, nation-wide telecommunications equipment and services, computer and systems security, the Information Technology Services Center, user training, document control and management, information collections, central files, records management and senices, the library, graphics, and all necessary information support services to other NRC offices".
[NUREG-0325, Revision 16, March 15,19931 Roles of the Office of Administration ADM is responsible for providing information resource management services in the following areas:
- Freedom ofInformation Act and Privacy Act requests, publication services, mail and distribution services, and access to NRC public documents through its local Public Document Roons*
INUREG-0325, Revision 16, March 15,1993].
Roles of Other Offices NRC Headquarters and regional offices have their own mission-specific responsibilities that may require IRM activities. SIRMOs in major NRC offices have been appointed to assist the DSO in carrying out IRM responsibilities within their offices. The SIRMOs are responsible for i
l ensuring that their organizations know and comply with Agency policies and basic Federal regulations for acquiring FIP resources and for developing and managing automated information I
systems. The SIRMOs also represent their organizations in reviewing aspects of NRC's IRM program and in preparing agencywide IRM plans, policies and budgets.
The NRC Deputy Chief Financial Officer and Controller (DCFO/C)is responsible for reviewing certain aspects. of the design and operation of Agency financial systems to ensure that requirments of the Chief Financial Officers Act are met. The DCFO/C will review and concur in the design of information systems that provide, at least in part, financial and program performance data used in financial statements and reports.
General Services Administration Review of NRC's IRM Program The GSA delegates cenain authorities to the NRC for the acquisition of FIP resources and has an oversight role. As part of this oversight, GSA recently completed its first triennial review j
of NRC's Information Resources Management Program. GSA recommended that the Agency continue with activities to create and implement a strategic IRM plan connected to the Agency's Five-Year Plan.
A2
Draft NRC Strategic IT Plan Appendix 4
In discussing and preparing this Strategic IT Plan, the staff considered the following recommendations from the GSA repon:
4 (1) Improve IRM oversight functions 1
(2) Continue the strategic IRM planning process to ensure that plans are produced regularly, and that they address all aspects of planning and receive agencywide, executive-level approval (3) Develop a plan to modernize information systems based on agencywide planning j
(4) Establish a centrally managed IRM Review Program that focuses attention on major information systems j
i (5) Continue the revision and improvement ofits FIP acquisition processes i
(6) Develop an information system architecture that is linked with the strategic IRM plan
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Additional Background Information i
i High Performance Computing While agreeing with the program guidance proposed by the EDO in 1991 on the need for a long range computer strategy, the Commission requested in COMKR-91-002/COMFR-91-002 that the Agency accelerate the development and
+
implementation of high performance computing and communication environments to i
support advanced reactor licensing and other programs.
IRM and the affected offices are conducting these high performance computing efforts, discussed with Commissioners Rogers and Remick on February 10, 1993. The Agency's high performance computing requirements have now been incorporated into the broader information technology strategy and are addressed in Sections 3.2.4, "High-Performance Computing Infrastructure," and 3.3.4, "High-Performance Computing i
Applications," of the Strategic IT Plan.
r i
General Services Administration Triennial Review of IRM i
The General Services Administration (GSA) recently completed its first triennial review of NRC's information resources management program. The IRM l
Strategy Team considered the GSA findings and recommendations in preparing the recommended IT strategy. GSA made the following recommendation for the strategic planning process: "NRC should continue its strategic IRM planning i
process to ensure that plans are produced regularly, that they address all i
aspects of planning, and that receive agencywide, executive-level approval."
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t Membership IRH REVIEW BOARD Eric S. Beckjord, RES l
Robert M. Bernero, NMSS i
Gerald F. Cranford, IRM James L. Milboan, RIV
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Frank J. Miraglia, NRR t
Patricia G. Norry, ADM Ronald M. Scroggins, OC r
James H. Sniezek, DEDR Hugh L. Thompson, Jr., DEDS IRM STRATEGY TEAM l
I Donald L. Chery, NMSS Dennis C. Dambly, OGC Lloyd J. Donnelly, RES (Alternate - Gerald K. Tomlin, RES)
Francine F. Goldberg, IRM l
Edward L. Halman, ADM l
John C. Hoyle, SECY (Alternate - Sandy Joosten, SECY)
William F. Kane, Region I Malcolm R. Knapp, NMSS Charles E. Fitzgerald, IRM i
James F. McDermott, OP l
George H. Messenger, IRM Peter J. Rabideau, OC Lynn B. Scattolini, OEDO i
Sheldon A. Schwartz, OSP R. Lee Spessard, AE00 James Turdici, OEDO John C. Voglewede, OED0 d
Frank P. Gillespie, NRR l
(Alternate - Richard H. Wessman, NRR) s l
Pcfemm 1
[p* "cg[0, UNITED STATES j
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
[
3su wasumotoN. o. c. rosss l
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FEB 211331 t
MEMORANDUM FOR: Chairman Carr FROM:
James H. Taylor Executive Director for Operations
SUBJECT:
GUIDANCE FOR THE FY 1992-1996 FIVE-YEAR PLAN As required by the September 23, 1987, charter, the Steering Comittee for Strategic Planning has reassessed the strategic guidance for the NRC FY 1992-1996 five-Year Plan (FYP) development.
As part of the reassessment, the steering comittee considered (1) input from the comittee members, which included the views of their subordinate managers; (2) the Commission's Principles of Good Regulation; (3) the results of the Regulatory Impact Survey I
of reactor licensees; (4) report s of the Nuclear Safety Research Review Committee; and (5) various OIG and GA0 reports. Based on this review, the steering committee recommends strategic changes in the following areas:
1.
future reactor licensing; 2.
reactor operating licensing; 3.
reactor operations improvements; 4.
Clean Air Act implementation; 5.
remedial actions at uranium mills; 6.
high-level waste repository and monitored retrievable storage; i
7.
consolidation; 8.
NRC long-range computing; 9.
training; and 10.
financial management.
The proposed text changes, including a brief rationale, for each of the above areas are shown in Enclosure 1.
The changes are shown as modifications to the f
In addition to the changes proposed in the enclosure, the existing FYP.
comittee notes two additional areas where modifications to the strategic guidance may be necessary. These are the Licensing Support Systems (LSS) and the Emergency Telecomunications System (ETS). With regard to LSS, the Comission has efforts underway to address the LSS program and budget responsibility. A comission paper addressing funding of the ETS (industry i
3 Chairman Carr 2
versus NRC) is being developed. Because the Commission is expected to be addressing both of these programs in February or March, the committee did not address them.
The FYP should be modified, as appropriate, based on Commission decisions on the LSS and ETS program.
The staff has also reviewed and updated the goals, assumptions, objectives, and guidance in the existing five-Year Plan to reflect factual, clarifying, editorial, and fact-of-life (e.g., to implement Commission decisions) changes.
These changes, including a restructuring of the Nuclear Safety Research (NSR)
Mission Area to consolidate all advanced reactor research in a single program, are shown in Enclosure 2.
I recommend Commission approval of the changes in Enclosures 1 and 2.
i Or:ginal Signed By:
James M. Taylor James M. Taylor Executive Director for Operations
Enclosures:
1.
Recommended Strategic Changes to FYP 2.
Recommended Revisions To Goals, Assumptions, Objectives and Guidance in FYP 4
cc:
Commissioner Rogers Commissioner Curtiss Conmissioner Remick SECY OGC OlG (G:\\ DEA \\GUIDFYP.GS)
- see previous concurrence OFFICE :OC/ BOPS
- OC/PABI
- OC/PABII
- OC/BDA l
NAME
- JSilber/vnk*
- DCorley* :CSeelig*
- JEvans*
DATE
- 2/14/91
- 2/14/91
- 2/14/91
- 2/14/91 OFFICE :OC/DBA
- OC
- OC
- EDO
- ED0 7
J NAME
- PRabideau*
- JFunche s * : RScroggins *-
JSniezek
- JT cg DATE
- 2/19/91
- 2/19/91
- 2/19/91
- 2/
/91
- 2 hl/91 OFFICIAL RECORD COPY i
NUCLEAR SAFETY MANAGEMENT AND SUPPORT Information Resources Manacement
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L INFORMATION RESOURCES PANAGEMENT PROGRAM GOAL o
Ensure that the NRC maintains efficient and effective information resource management services that support the agency's staff in meeting the NRC mission, goals, and objectives.
PP0 GRAM PLANNING ASSUMPTIOP!S NRC headquarters staff will be consolidated in 'a'hite Flint during 1993.
o NRC will continue to maintain wi4-h-4he developncnt of a ru4e to upgrade o
the Emergency Notification System, with final rule issued in FY 1992.
h4htcrim, N"C will rely en the public switch-eetwrk and c* mine other poss4ble-414eenative; a: a backup until the Emergency Telecommunications System is implemented.
Shared data base growth and utilization will continue to be the focal point o
for future safety, management, and administrative systems applications.
Centralized shared data will be interfaced with distributed local area network (LAN)-based data and applications, as appropriate.
PROGRAM OBJECTIVES AND GUIDANCE 1.
Allocate information management resources to support activities that contribute most effectively to the mission of protecting the public health and safety.
The NRC will develop a revised long range computer strategy by early a.
FY 1992 to enable the agency to take full advantage of the evolving microcomputer, local ~ area network, telecommunications, and distributed database technologies in a manner that balances individual. custc=er office needs with the agency's need for access to centralized
" corporate" information
~
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The NRC will continue to assess, on an ongoing basis, if information technology is being used efficiently and effectively to accomplish its health and safety mission, bc.
The NRC will provide appropriate support for agency compliance with applicable statutes and regulations.
GA0P-NSMS92.G0P VIII-17 DRAFT 2/14/91
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April 10, 1991 i
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COMKR-91-002/COMTR-91-002 i
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$(C R E T ARY MEMORANDUM FOR:
James M. Taylor Executive Director for Operations 3M khamuelJ. Chilk, Secretary FROM:
i IMPLEMENTATION OF NRC LONG RANGE COMPUTER i.
~
SUBJ ECT:
STRATEGY The Commission (with all Commissioners agreeing) requests that the agency consider accelerating the development and l
implementation of engineering / communication high performance In addition, the computing environments to the extent feasible.
Commission believes the NRC must reacquire computational capability formerly available within the staff and now routinely In completing its review of the NRC provided by contractors.
long range computer strategy, the staf f should not only address the use of advanced equipment and technology, but also the necessary staff skills and training to realize the potential j
enhancements to productivity and quality that new technologies offer.
The staff is requested to review and comment on the attached memorandum by Commissioners Rogers and Remick in terms of staff's
}
technical review and audit capability.
The staff should identify i
what resources would be necessary to complete its review of the suggested short term pilot programs and the NRC long range strategy for using analytical codes as an aid to technical review and audits and to implement the strategy by September ?O, 1991, or sooner if feasible.
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The Commission recognizes that the proposal in COMKR-91-002/
COMFR-91-002 to create an outside NRC ad-hoc advisory committee I
of leading technical experts to review the NRC plans, programs, and capabilities in the use of computers and computerized systems to carry out the agency's current and future activities in an efficient and timely manner may require up to two or three years.
The staff should pro"ide its input on the benefits of creating an ad-hoc advisory committee and comment on the most expeditious manner of creating such a committee.
(spo) 1RM (SECY Suspense:
6/30/91) i f
Attachement:
Nt'd O'f. EDO As stated
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Commis 1oner Curtiss Comissioner Remick i
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MEMORANDUM FOR:
Chair =an Carr i
Commissioner Curtiss FROM:
Kenneth C.
Rogers l
Forrest J. Remick BUBJECT:
IMPLEMENTATION OF NRC LONG RANGE COMPUTER STRATEGY l
The Executive Director for Operations in his memorandum of l
February 21, 1991 to Chairman Carr on " Guidance for the FY
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1992-1995 Five-Year Plan" forwarded recommended changes in ten j
areas by the Steering Committee for Strategic Planning.
One of these is NRC long-range computing requirements (Number 8).
The
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Steering Committee proposes allocation of information manage-ment resources to " develop a revised long-range computer strategy by early 1992 to enable the agency to take full j
advantage of the evolving microcomputer, local area network, i
telecommunications, and distributed' data base technologies,.in a manner that balances individual customer office needs with l
the agency's need for access to centralized ' corporate' infor-i
=ation."
We believe the agency should proceed more aggressively in this i
area by actually initiating this strategy in 1992 rather than j
simply developing a strategy for future implementation.
We believe that one way of implementation of the strategy could be i
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achieved by procurement, installation, and demonstration /utili-i zation of UNIX-based RISC operating workstations, in addition to expanding the use of MS-DOS microcomputers, in FY 1992-1993 j
in the Offices of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, Nuclear Material Safety & Safeguards, Analysis and Evaluation of Operation Data, and Nuclear Regulatory Research with the full support of the.
i Office of Infor=ation Resource Management.
We believe that the initiatives in.these offices outlined in our memorandum to 1
Mr. Taylor of March 5, 1991, would implement the strategic change in NRC's long range computer strategy better than the manner in which the Steering Committee proposes.
We recognize that additional effort would have to be expended by the office of Information Resources Management to establish i
agency-wide standards, equip =ent requirements, training, and i
procedures, and that these important activities should precede i
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b actual deployment of the UNIX-based workstation environments, as an example, that are either proposed or in various stages of implementation.
We believe that IRM should proceed expedi-tiously with this activity, while active planning, procurement, and implementation continues in parallel by each of the four j
offices on their identified programs.
We believe early demonstration pilot projects in each of the offices may be one useful way to demonstrate the integration of l
training requirements, equipment capability, offsite and NRC interoffice communication capability, and productivity gains from operational results.
We suggest that one of the more l
advanced programs cited in our March 5 memorandum be selected
^
for this purpose and given priority attention by the senior staff.
In general, we believe that the staff should be encouraged to accelerate the development and implementation of engi-neering/ communication high performance computing environments within the agency for purposes of improving professional productivity through use of current technology, improving the quality of NRC technical assessment and review activitics, providing a more challenging environment for our professional t
staff, pc-rmitting more ef ficient exchange and interpretation of technical design data for advanced reactor reviews with appli-cants, and offering a challenging environment for NRC Fellows i
and new hires with engineering and science degrees who seek l
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" hands on" technical analysis facilities with which to work.
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We therefore propose that the Commission request Mr. Taylor to j
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incorporate appropriate modifications to Enclosures 1 and 2 of his February 21, 1991 memorandum te reflect the strategic changes we reconnend.
We would suggest for example that
- be reworded as shown in the attachment to this memorandum, and that the staff incorporate appropriate changes in Enclosure 2 of his February 21, 1991 memorandum as appro-i priate.
l We also propose the immediate creation of an outside of NRC ad-hoc advisory committee of leading technical experts to reviev I
the NRC plans, programs, and capabilities in the use of t
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computers and computerized systems to carry out the agency's current and future activities in an efficient and timely r.anner.
SECY, please track, i
G, to-at J. Remick Kenneth C.
Rogers Yo.missioner Commissioner d
cc:
EDO SECY OGC NMSS NRR AEOD RES IRM OC J
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NRC Leno-Ranae Co cuter Stratecy ISSUE:
What should be the future directions for NRC's computing?
PROPOSED CHANGES:
1.
Allocate infomatf or. management resources to support activities th; contribute most effectively to the mission of protecting the public healt ;
and safety.
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The NRC will continue to assess, on an ongoing basis, if informatic technology is being used efficiently and effectively to accompli:
its health and safety mission.
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The NRC will provide appropriate support for agency co:pliance wi' applicable statutes and regulations.
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CROSS REFERENCE Proposed changes appear on page VIII-17 of Enclosure 2.
RATIONALE FOR CHANGE:
3-s~ w In the next dedir
- years, the continuing evolution of microco:puter:
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telecomunications, and data base techr. ologies is expected to have a major impai :
1 on the NRC computing environment.
The agency needs to develop and implement :
long-range computing resources strategy that will enable it to take fu' i advantage of this evolving technology.
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The NRC will provide appropriate support for increased utilization of microcomputers in for such applications as:
scalable processing architecture for seismic and structural analysis (NRR), analysis of plant thernohydraulic transients and operational event analysis with the Nuclear Plant Analyzer (RES), emergency planning strategies in the Operations Center (AEOD), and geoscience analysis activities associated with radioactive waste site facility reviews (NMSS).
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SEP 181991 MEMORANDUM FOR:
The Chairman Comissioner Rogers i
Comissioner Curtiss Comissioner Remick FROM:
James M. Taylor Executive Director for Operations
SUBJECT:
STAFF COMMENTS ON PROPOSAL TO CREATE AN AD H0C ADVISORY COMMITTEE TO REVIEW NRC PLANS, PROGRAMS AND CAPABILITIES FOR THE USE OF COMPUTERS AND COMPUTERIZED SYSTEMS In a memorandum dated March 19, 1991, which discussed various aspects of the NRC's implementation of a long range computer strategy, Comissioners Rogers and Remick proposed "... creation of an outside of NRC ad hoc advisory committee of leading technical experts to review the NRC plans, programs and capabilities in the use of computers and computerized systems to carry out the On agency's current and future activities in an efficient and timely manner."
a Staff Requirements Memorandum (SRM) was issued asking the April 10, 1991, staff to provide its input on the benefits of creating an ad hoc advisory comittee, and to comment on the most expeditious manner for creating such a comittee.
Since the issuance of the March 19, 1991, memorandum and the subsequent SECY paper dated April 10, 1991, several developments have taken place that support substantially the points raised by Comissioners Rogers and Remick and underscore the NRC's comitment to an effective advanced computing strategy.
Two Comission papers (SECY-91-247 and SECY-91-226) were developed, one dealing with the use of computers and computer graphic-aided reviews for advanced reactor designs and a second detailing the staff's expertise and capabilities to utilize analytical codes. The second paper described several pilot projects, scheduled for implementation during FY 1992, that will utilize advanced technology similar in scope to the approaches presented in i
Comissioners Remick and Rogers' memorandum.
The staff acknowledges the need to proceed aggressively and to accelerate the schedule for implementing a revised long range computer strategy. With respect to the areas discussed in the Comission papers, this comitment is reflected in the aforementioned pilot projects, the creation of an advanced technology work group cited in SECY-91-247, and the advanced technology However, the agency's complete l
workshop planned for early calendar year 1992.
long range computer strategy should encompass a range of computing and telecommunications activities that is much broader than those discussed in the Comission papers, which dealt primarily with the staff's use of advanced The long range strategic plan should technology in the regulatory process.
address the integration of technologies required to position the NRC to handle
l the many and diverse issues that will confront the agency during the 1990's and beyond.
Included among these technologies are:
(1) large scale l
information capture, storage, and retrieval systems; (2) advanced computer networking topologies; (3) improved interactive mid-range and mainframe I
computing systems; and (4) state-of-the-art telecommunications equipment.
The entire plan must be supported by a progressive software development program that supports the use of both computer aided software engineering tools and a robust standards implementation program.
Although we are beginning to make meaningful progress towards this broader
~,
goal, we are still in the beginning phase of this effort. Our first action will be to establish a permanent strategic planning function in IRM and involve the new 1RM Strategic Steering Board, formed in April 1991, in the planning process.
This Board, which is comprised of senior level managers from the major program of fices, was established to provide a forum for building agencywide consensus regarding major IRM policies and programs.
IRM l
also plans to evaluate the use of existing government and commercial organizations that provide independent advice and expertise on the application of information technologies.
These groups could provide benefits similar to the advisory group proposed by the Commission.
l The proposal to create an ad hoc external advisory committee to review NRC's i
information technology program has been considered by the IRM staff and the members of the Strategic Steering Board in light of the new planning l
initiative described above.
The staff and Board believe that an advisory committee might be beneficial once key IRM planning components are in place i
and functioning and the framework for the ongoing planning process has been established. Without this framework and a clearer definition of the agency's 1
goals, objectives, and requirements for information technology, the agency would not be in a position to fully benefit from the expert advice and review l
that such a committee might provide.
In addition, the new IRM director would j
like an opportunity to review the agency's IRM programs and requirements, and i
the effectiveness of existing resources and advisory groups before considering the addition of an external group.
The staff recognizes the possible value of forming an external ad hoc advisory committee on computers and computerized systems once the agency has better i
q defined its ongoing information planning process and has made progress towards j
the development of a strategic plan (approximately 15-18 months from now). At that time the director of IRM, with the advice of the Strategic Steering i
Board, will assess the effectiveness of the IRM planning process and make a specific recommendation concerning how an external advisory group might l
contribute to that process.
i Oripnal Sdned Bp
~
James M. Taylor i
James M. Taylor i
Executive Director for Operations
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Enclosure:
IRM Str:tegic l
l Steering Board Charter 2
j cc: SECY OGC i
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CHARTER INFORMATION RESOURCES MANAGEMENT STRATEGIC STEERING BOARD A.
GENERAL.
With the increased role of information technology in the agency's missions and programs, the need for senior management to actively participate in Information Resources Management (IRM) planning processes is essential to an effective IRM program.
To achieve that objective, the Information Resources Management Strategic Steering Board (SSB or Board) is established by the Executive Director for Operations (EDO) to advise and assist the Director, 0ffice of Information Resources Management, the Deputy Executive Director for Nuclear Materials Safety, Safeguards & Operational Support (DEDS), and the EDO in the formulation of the agency's strategic 1RM goals and objectives and the identification of agencywide IRM priorities.
B.
RESPONSIBILITY.
The SSB is established to provide a forum for agencywide consideration of and development of consensus on the policies, priorities, plans and directions that will be developec and implemented by the Office of Information Resources Management.
The Board's functions include:
1.
Providing a forum for senior NRC management to discuss and reach consensus on IRM issues, to assess agency-wide impacts of IRM actions, and to build agencywide commitment to IRM policies and strategic plans.
2.
Providing a forum to develop consensus guidance for IRM as to priorities among major new initiatives or requirements that are not included in the IRM five-Year Plan and Budget, and for which the Office of Information Resources Management reouires supplemental funding or an adjustment of priorities.
3.
Providing a forum for IRM, Users Groups, and program offices to recommend major, new initiatives in IRM-related services, programs or policies, and recommending actions that could be taken to enhance IRM.
l 4
Providing strategic assessments of IRM to the DEDS, the EDO, and the l
agency's Strategic Planning Comittee to ensure that IRM plans and major l
programs are consistent with agency goals, objectives anc mission requirements.
S.
Reviewing, co menting on, and endorsing through consensus the IRM Vision
'95 plan, the IRM Five Year Plan, strategic plans for the agency's computing environment, and other major 1RM projects.
C.
MEMBERSHIP.
The SSB will be chaired by the Director, Office of Information Resources Management, who.will report to the Deputy Executive Director for Nuclear Materials Safety, Safeguards & Operational Support (DEDS), and its membership
I
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will include representatives of the following offices: Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR), Office of Nuclear Material Safety & Safeguards (NMSS). Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research (RES), Office of the Secretary (SECY), Office for Analysis and Evaluation of Operational Data (AE0D), Office of the Controller (OC), and the Office of Administration (ADM).
All other offices will be represented on an annual rotational basis, beginning in 1991 with the Office of Consolidation (CONS). The Regions will be represented on an annual rotating basis by either a Regional Administrator or Deputy Administrator. In designating their members, Office Directors should ensure that their designee is in a Senior Executive Service (SES) position. Members of the Board should be individuals who have a knowledgeable appreciation of the importance of information technology and resource management to the agency's mission.
To ensure continuity, off;ces and Regions that participate on the Board on a rotational basis will be kept informed of all Board activities, and should communicate any concerns or comments they may have to the current small office or Regional member on the Board.
j ADVISORS.
To perform its functions, the SSB will require assistance that involves technical knowledge and/or professional expertise that is represented in several NRC organizations.
To assure that such support is readily available to the SAB, e
the Director, Division of Computer & Telecommunications Services (DCTS), the
+
Director, Division of Information Support Services (DISS), the Director, Division of Contracts & Property Management (DCFM/ADM), the Deputy Director, Office of Personnel (0P), the Assistant General Counsel for Administration (OGC), the Licensing Support System Administrator, the Director, Office of Consolidation, and others, as the Chairman, SSB, designates, may serve as Advisors to the 558.
TECHNICAL WORKING GROUPS.
The Board may establish Technical Working Groups to examine areas of particular concern to the Board.
Such Working Groups will include a representative designated by the Director, Office of Information Resource Management, and any other members as the particular task may require.
Participation will be with the approval of the Office Director to whom the named Working member reports.
SECRETARY.
The Executive Assistant, IRM, will serve as Secretary to the SSB.
D.
MiEETINGS.
}
The Board will meet at the call of the Chairman, SSB, but at least quarterly.
1 The Secretary will prepare an agenda for approval by the Chairman, SSB, and circulate the agenda at least thirty days in advance of a scheduled meeting.
l The Secretary will prepare a summary of each meeting for distribution to members within ten days following each meeting.
The Secretary will prepare draft and final Board reports and other comunications for the concurrence of the members
3 and the approval of the Chairman, SSB.
E.
ELEPORTS AND RECORDS.
The Secretary will maintain the records of the Board's activities and prepare reports and communications for the signature of the Chairman, SSB. The Secretary is responsible for all administrative matters, including dissemination of agenda, i
minutes, reports and correspondence.
Specific reports required of the Board include-1.
Annual Recommendations on IRM Five-Year Plan (February or March) 2.
Semiannual Report on Activities of the Board (April, September) 3.
Annual Recommendations to the ED0's Strategic Planning Committee (February) 4 Annual Review of IRM Vision '96 Progress (November) 5.
M Hoc Recommendations and/or Findings (as required) 1 Reports are distributed as follows: the EDO, the Chairman, SSB, and members of the Board and Technical Advisors, unless an action of the Board has been initiated at the request of the Chairman or Member of the Comission.
In that l
l event, copies will go to all members of the Comission.
F.
WORK PRACTICES AND PROCEDURES.
1 1.
Any NRC office or region may submit coments or proposals for consideration to the SSB, and the SSB may gather coments and information from NRC I
offices.
Additionally, technical Users Groups are encouraged to submit comments and proposals to the SSB for consideration, and the SSB will actively seek advice from such groups.
All submittals to SSB should be i
to the Chairman, SSB, who through the Secretary, will make distribution to all the Members and Technical Advisors.
J 2.
The SSB will conduct regularly scheduled meetings during November, February, May, and July, and, as circumstances dictate, the Chairman, SSB, may call meetings on an ad hoc basis.
3.
As a requirement for a Technical Vorking Group is identified, and its purpose is defined, the Board will provide a specific task description, schedule and identify any additional resources required, e.g.,
expert consultant support.
4.
The Secretary will prepare and issue all meeting agenda, minutes and reports at the direction of the Chairman, SSB, and make all papers, vugraphs or other documentation presented to the SSB available to the Members and Technical Advisors at least thirty days before a SSB meeting i
is convened.
The Secretary will retain all records of the SSB and make all arrangements for meetings.
5.
SSB members or their alternates are expected to attend all meetings.
Technical Advisors to the SSB may attend any meeting, but must attend those meetings for which the agenda requires their participation.
Technical Working Group members will attend SSB meetings when the agenda requires
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their participation.
Offices, technical User Groups. and others will participate by making presentations at the recuest of the SSB.
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full Member Offices I
Cffice of Administration
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Office for Analysis ard Evaluation of Operaticnal Data
- t Office of the Controller Office of Information Resources Manacement Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Office of Nuclear Material Safety ar.d Safeguarcs i
Office of Nuclear Regulatcry Pesearch l
Office cf the Secretary l
Recional Member Offices I
5 Region I
(1991)
Decion :I (1992)
Fegion ill (1993) f Region IV (199a) i Region V
(1995) j Rotational Menter Offices i
i Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards Atcriic Safety and Licensinc Board Panel Office of Consolidation (i991)
Of fice of Enforcement Office of Governmental anc Public Affairs Office of Inspector General Office of nvestigations Office of the Licensing Support System Administrator Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business l'tilization/ Civil Rights Advisor Member Offices Office of Administration Office of Consolidation Office of the General Counsel Office of Information Resources Manacement Office of the Licensing Support System Administrator Office of Personnel i
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Distribution:
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Document Name: G:JOAN.CEJ
- See previous concurrence IRM DEDS GCranford*
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JT ylor 9/13/91 9/13/91 9/g791 I
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