Glovebox inside the Visual Examination and Repackaging Building located in Area 5 of the Nevada Test Site
(Photo courtesy of the U.S. Department of Energy)

Operational & Safety Programs Support

OMICRON's engineering staff have considerable experience in providing support to nuclear and nonnuclear facilities to develop, implement, and assess safety and operational programs. We have a 10 CFR 830.120-compliant (using NQA-1) Quality Assurance Plan and procedures in place to support our safety and risk analyses and documentation.

• Safety Programs: OMICRON has considerable experience in not only developing safety programs and associated documents but also assisting in implementing and assessing the requirements set forth in these programs and documents. For example, OMICRON has supported the flow-down of technical safety requirements (TSRs) to procedures; assisted in procedure development; and performed facility and operational improvement assessments, risk/cost-benefit evaluations, and feasibility/implementability assessments of safety controls. We have performed and assessed activities and programs relating to unreviewed safety questions (USQs), emergency response actions, and criticality safety, among others.
• Operational Programs: Our personnel have supported clients in developing operational programs and resolving audit findings. Our expertise spans training and qualification; waste management, configuration management, and change control; and facility and process design (design project management).
  
  We have also supported development, implementation, and assessment of integrated safety management (ISM) processes as they relate to work activities. Our engineers are trained to support the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Process Safety Management Program and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Risk Management Program activities and documentation.
  
  We have supported implementation of conduct of operations policies and associated training and design safety support activities. OMICRON can develop an operational safety program tailored to fit the needs of any nuclear or explosive facility.
• Compliance Programs: Our staff engineers are qualified and trained in performing operational readiness reviews (ORRs). OMICRON has extensive experience in managing and performing ORRs for a wide range of nuclear facility startup and closure activities. We have successfully supported management self-assessments, compliance assessments and audits, ORRs, and other reviews and assessments. We have developed action plans and readiness checklists, implementation plans, and startup notification reports for nuclear, nonnuclear hazardous, and explosive facilities and operations.
  
  OMICRON can develop the Criteria Review Approach Document and direct, perform, and support readiness assessments for nuclear and explosive facilities.
  
  Because of our experience in developing comprehensive safety basis documentation, we are well-versed in the requirements and we understand their significance when confronted with implementation questions.
• Nuclear Criticality Safety Programs: Our personnel have supported clients in developing effective nuclear criticality safety programs as well as key elements and procedures to implement the requirements of U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) directives, American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/American Nuclear Society (ANS)-8 series, and the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR).