Sedan Crater, Nevada Test Site
(Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Energy)

Nuclear Explosive Safety

Since 1998, OMICRON has provided nuclear explosive safety and risk analysis, documentation, and assessment services to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), weapon National Laboratories, and DOE/NNSA sites with a nuclear explosive facilities and activities.

Our staff has considerable experience in nuclear explosive (NE) facilities and nuclear explosive safety studies (NESS) support, including among others supporting weapons responses and nuclear explosive safety studies (NESS) with phenomenological modeling of abnormal environments, nuclear explosive and components safety evaluations. We also have significant experience in preparing, reviewing, and implementing authorization/safety basis, along with safety input documentation for NESS, e.g., DSA, TSRs, HARs, Master Studies. Our staff have supported NESS activities for many current stockpile weapon programs (e.g., W76, W88), and many retired programs, (e.g., W56, W62, W69).

• Nuclear Explosive Safety Studies (NESS): OMICRON has been supporting NESS for as long as the company has been in business. NESS support has included, among others, support to DOE/NNSA, National Laboratories, and DOE/NNSA sites with weapons responses, and preparation and review of NESS input documents. NESS input documents have included DSAs/TSRs for nuclear explosive facilities, Hazard Analysis Reports (HARs) for nuclear explosive facilities, USQs for NE operations, Master Studies, weapons safety and components safety evaluations, and evaluations of interfaces between facility and nuclear explosive operations activities.
• Nuclear Explosive Facility Support: OMICRON has supported most of the critical production sites and facilities in the DOE complex with safety and risk analyses and documentation, design, and assessments. This includes facilities at (former) Rocky Flats, Y-12, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Pantex, Nevada Test Site (NTS), Hanford, and Sandia National Laboratories (SNL).
  
  OMICRON has provided support services to NNSA and DOE Albuquerque Operations Office, including reviews of nuclear explosive facilities’ safety basis documents, assessments of safety and operational programs, and specialized support, such as database development.
• Stockpile Management Activities: Our personnel have supported stockpile maintenance and dismantlement activities for over 14 years. This includes reviewing hazard analysis reports (HARs) and technical safety requirements (TSRs) for weapons operations (e.g., W69, W56, B61, W79), master studies, and nuclear explosive safety studies.
• Weapons Facility Support: We have supported pit manufacturing and certification activities at both (former) Rocky Flats and Technical Area (TA-55) at LANL; canned subassembly (CSA) operations at Y-12; special nuclear material (SNM) recovery and storage operations; subcriticality.
  
  OMICRON has supported weapons laboratories, the Pantex Plant, and the Device Assembly Facility (DAF) at NTS with activities such as explosive off-gas modeling, weapons responses, fire modeling, characterization of CSA hazardous materials, identification of hazardous components of weapons systems, and hazard characterization of weapons programs. We have supported preparation and review of off-site and on-site transportation activities (e.g., transportation risk assessments). We have also supported enhanced surveillance activities, including safety and risk assessments for hydrodynamic testing, radiography operations, and other activities associated with recertification and requalification of weapons components.