ML20150B763

IE Inspec Rept 70-1113/78-17 on 780818,24-25 During Which No Items of Noncompliance Were Noted.Areas Inspec Wesnm Export Lic,Packaging Procedures & tamper-safing Practices

ML20150B763
Person / Time
Site:	07001113
Issue date:	10/05/1978
From:	Earnestine Clay NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION II)
To:
Shared Package
ML20150B752	List: ML20150B750 ML20150B755 ML20150B763
References
70-1113-78-17, NUDOCS 7811080270
Download: ML20150B763 (4)

Text

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afcv UNITED STATES jf'pn '

o NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 3 y f,f g REGION 81 5 #-' g 101 MARIETTA STREET, N.W.

o '[ ATL ANTA, GEORGI A 30303

%....+/

Report No.: 70-1113/78-17 Docket No., 70-1113 License No.. SNM-1097 Licensee: General Electric Company P. O. Box 780 Wilmington, Nor'a Carolina 28401 Inspected at: Wilmington, North Carolina Inspection conducted: August 18 and 24-25,1978 Inspectors: E. L. Clay J. W. Bates

( 7f' Reviewed by: "~ d -A. .

G.~ H;' Williams , hief /

Material Control and Accountabt1ity Section Safeguards Bran h Inspection Summary Export inspection was made on August 18 and 24-25, 1978: (Report No. 70-1113/78-17)

Areas Inspected: Reviewed SNM export license, packaging procedures, tamper-safing practices, tamper-indicating practices, SNM verification and shipping preparation practices. This inspection involved sixteen inspector-hours onsite by two NRC inspectors.

Results: Of the six areas inspected, no apparent items of noncompliance were identified.

l 7o 781108 OJL$r

L RII Rpt. No. 70-1113/78-17 I-1 s

DETAILS I Prepared by: []. h- ..

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17. L. Cray, />af eguards Fp' *ineer Date Material Control and Accountability Section Safeguards Branch Dates of Inspections: August 18, 1978 us p 5, 1978 Reviewed by:

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Date tdif Williarr . , Chief Material Co rol and /

Accountabi ity Section Safeguards Branch

1. Scope A routine, announced inspection of safeguards control for special nuclear material being exported by General Electric Company, Wilmington, North Carolina was made by the Safeguards Branch, Region II, Office of Inspection and Enforcement. This inspection included a review of the facility export license, packaging and tampersafing procedures and an independent verification of SNM content of SNM destined for shipment outside the United States.

2. Individuals Contacted

• A. L. Kaplan - Consulting Engineer, Licensing

• M. S. Smedley - Auditor. Nuclear Materials Management J. Malpass - Quality Control, Packaging W. Batson - Foreman, Shop Support H. Bagamihl - Laboratory Supervisor T. P. Winslow - Laboratory Manager

• Indicates those present at exit interview.

3. License Review A review to determine that the license possessed a valid license for exporting SNM in the Tsuruga, R-9 project could not be made on site.

At the time of this inspection, all export licenses for the General Electric Company, Nuclear Materials Division, are being maintained at the General Electric Company, San Jose, California site. The licensee informed the inspector that License Number XSNM-1262 was on hand at the San Jose, California site and would be used for exporting UO, powder in this project. The Division of Licensing informed the inspec-tors that License Number XSNM-126 was issued on August 3, 1978 and

f. a -

4 RII Rpt. No. 70-1113/78-17 I-2 will expire on September 1, 1981. The SNM for this license is for 154 kilograms U-235 contained in 5,624 kilograms uranium in the form of uranium oxide enriched to a maximum of 3.1 percent and will be used for fuel for the Tsuruga Nuclear Power Station. This is the first shipment of UO2 p wder against this license.

4. Packaging Procedures Packaging procedures were reviewed and packaging practices were observed for UO, powder to be shipped to the Japan Atomic Power Company, Tsuruga Nuclear' Power Station. The U0, powder in this project is packaged in five gallon buckets which are then placed inside BU-7 shipping containers. The inspectors determined that the packaging of UO, powder in this project was performed in accordance with approved -

facility operational procedures.

5. Tampersafing Practices Each container of UO, powder contained in this project is tampersafed with a Type - E seal' Tampersafing is accomplished by interlacing the seal wire with the lid bolt on the lid ring of each container prior to its placement inside BU-7 shippi g containers. The inspectors observed the tampersafing of thirty-six five gallon buckets in this project and determined that the licensee is following approved tampersafing procedures.

6. Tamper-Indicating Practices Tamper-indicating devices used to tamper-indicate shipping containers in the Tsuruga, R-9 project are Type-E seals. Tamper-indicating is accomplished by sealing the lid ring and bolt eye of each shipping container at the time the buckets of SNM are placed inside the shipping container. The inspectors observed the application of tamper-indicating devices on thirty-four BU-7 shipping containers. No discrepancies in approved procedures were noted.

7. SNM Verification The SNM verification of containers in the Tsuruga, R-9 project was accomplished by statistically selecting an appropriate sample size from the population of containers to be shipped. These containers were weighed, sampled and the sample non-destructively analyzed (NDA) in the R11 measurement Van. Thirty-seven containers were selected for verification. One container had been verified during a prior inspection.

l The data obtained from the Ril reweighing of thirty-six UO containers verify with 951 confidence that the difference in weight f$rthe containers in this shipment is within the interval of -22.0 15.0 grams.

RII Ept. No. 70-1113/78-17 I-3 NDA has not been performed on the samples selected for verification of this shipment. Should a significant difference be detected at the time these samples are analyzed, a supplemental report will be issued.

'8. Shippin i LPreparation Practices During this inspection the inspector observed the shipment preparation practices for Tsuruga, R-9 003 powder. Shipment p. reparation is accomplished by a Quality Control (QC) inspection of the shipping containers prior to and succeding palletizing. The QC inspection is performed by the licensee to check the condition of each shipping container, tamper-indicating devices and proper palletizing. At the time of this inspection the containers had not been palletized. The inspectors examined each container for proper labeling, tamper-indicating device application and drum condition. No discrepancies in approved procedures were noted.

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