WANO member support missions achieve record

27 July 2018

The World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO) delivered a record number of member support missions last year. The total of 246 missions was a 15% increase on 2016. Such missions, which are carried out at the request of a member plant or utility, enable WANO members to assist each other in improving safety or reliability at an individual member's plant.

Throughout 2017, WANO's missions addressed work management, human performance, equipment reliability, radiation protection, operations, outage management and organisational effectiveness, among other areas.

Peter Prozesky, the organisation's CEO, said yesterday: "At WANO, we actively encourage a collaborative environment, where our members can share information, learn best practices and obtain feedback to facilitate continuous learning and improvement. This growing use of our service reflects the commitment of the global nuclear industry to achieving excellence in safety and reliability."

WANO has started another new member support initiative over the last 12 months to develop 'new unit assistance' modules that support new units and entrants into the nuclear industry.

"It is important that new entrants and units join WANO before construction begins on the site, and as soon as the contract for main works on a new unit is signed. This will give enough time for the operator to ensure staff are fully trained and to ensure the entire operational function meets the necessary safety and reliability standards - in time to safely and effectively begin its operational life," WANO said.

WANO is focusing member support missions to help members resolve areas for improvement (AFIs) identified during peer reviews. A target of 60% of technical missions are focused on resolving peer review AFIs to focus mission resources on issues with the most relevance to safety and reliability, it said. The average performance for this target across all WANO [members] was 72% for operating units in 2017.

A not-for-profit international organisation, WANO was established in 1989 by the world's nuclear power operators to exchange safety knowledge and operating experience amongst organisations operating commercial nuclear power reactors. Its members operate some 460 nuclear units in more than 30 countries and regions.

WANO consists of a governing board, a central office in London and regional centres in Atlanta, Moscow, Paris and Tokyo.

Researched and written by World Nuclear News