ML12094A203

Public Meeting Licensee Slides - Vogtle Initial License Exam High Failure Rate

ML12094A203
Person / Time
Site:	Vogtle
Issue date:	04/02/2012
From:	NRC/RGN-II/DRS/OLB
To:	Southern Nuclear Operating Co
References
Download: ML12094A203 (7)

Text

VogtleInitialLicenseEamHighFailreRateVogtle Initial License E x am High Fail u re Rate Issue SummaryIn March and April of 2011, Vogtle 1 & 2 Hot License Class HL-16 took a utility authored NRC license exam.

Seven of ten candidates failed the NRC written exam, oneofthesevenalsofailedtheoperatingtest one of the seven also failed the operating test. Driven by a loss of all exam generation experience at a critical time that was not compensated for rapidly enough by site managementPrevious NRC pass rate has been consistently high Root CauseThe root cause for the high NRC exam failure rate was less than adequate oversight and involvement of the HL-16 initial license class by Vogtle1 & 2 management. UnexpectedlossofallNRCexamdevelopmentgroupexperience&Unexpected loss of all NRC exam development group experience

& supervision due to retirementsManagement underestimated the effect of and did not adequately compensate for the loss of training experienceTime pressure on exam development led to inadequate validation and inadequate internal and external review and challenge of the NRC examTraining management did not fully communicate developing issues with the license examination to site management Corrective ActionsExam Development:Exam group fully staffed and stabilizedRecent retired experienced exam developers full time for this exam and for knowledge transfer and mentoringExam team member qualification requires NRC exam writers conference or INPO sponsored exam writer courseCompleted an INPO Assist Visit on the current license class exam development and the development process The current NRC exam was independently reviewed by an experienced fleet lead examiner and an independent industry expert Corrective actions:Management OversightMonthly line and senior management review process includes performance indicators that contain progress on exam development milestones Fleet and site management exam readiness challenges prior to exam submittal and exam administration put in processExam validation scheduling requirements put in processThe Training Manager now reports directly to the Site VP and clear communication expectations establishedThese corrective actions were taken fleet wide Current Class and ExamThere are 22 candidates in the current license class and they are performing wellPractice Audits, actual Audit and the NRC exams were developed with corrective actions in placeAdditional resources, reviews, challenges and validation were utilized on these examsThe NRC Operating and Written exam review is in progress ConclusionHL-16 license Exam was an anomaly compared with previous NRC pass rate for the last 10 yearsDriven by a loss of all exam generation experience at a iilihdfidl cr i t i ca l t ime t hat was not compensate d for rap idl y enough by site managementCauses have been identifiedRigorous and sustainable fleet wide corrective actions have been taken and put in process