Richland, Wash. — The last massive shield door has been delivered to the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant." It weighs 102 tons and will be installed in the High-Level Waste Facility.

"Receipt of the last of the shield doors represents a significant milestone in progress on the project, and they are an integral part of the plant's safety infrastructure," said Joe St. Julian, area project manager for the facility for Bechtel National Inc., which is designing and building the Vit Plant.

The Vit Plant has more than 100 nuclear-quality shield doors, ranging from 3 to 119 tons. They will provide radiation protection and maintain contamination boundaries during plant operations. The doors will be installed throughout the Pretreatment, High-Level Waste and Low-Activity Waste facilities.

"The delivery of this shield door represents an extensive degree of teamwork between the vendor and within the Vit Plant Project team. They have done an excellent job," said Gary Olsen, the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of River Projection, High-Level Waste Facility federal project manager.

"The door is an instrumental component in our safety protection measures for operations, and the team has worked closely to ensure it meets all necessary requirements to support its function," he said.

The recently delivered shield door is made of carbon steel and measures more than 15 feet wide, 36 feet tall and 7 inches thick. It will be installed in the area of the High-Level Waste Facility that holds the melters. When operational, the melters will heat glass-forming materials and liquid radioactive waste to 2,100 degrees Fahrenheit. Then, it will be poured into stainless steel canisters to cool and solidify.

"The Vit Plant shield doors are crucial to protecting our workers and the environment, and each has been manufactured to the highest standards of nuclear-quality," St. Julian said.

The door will provide access for an overhead crane that will be used to perform maintenance in the melter area. The door was manufactured and shipped by Bechtel subcontractor Oregon Ironworks of Portland, Ore.

Oregon Ironworks was one of a number of small businesses that provided nearly $60 million in shield doors to the project.

Bechtel National Inc. is designing and building the world's largest radioactive waste treatment plant for the U.S. Department of Energy at the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington state. The Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, also known as the Vit Plant, will immobilize the radioactive liquid waste currently stored in 177 underground tanks using a process called vitrification.

Vitrification involves blending the waste with molten glass and heating it to high temperatures. The mixture is then poured into stainless steel canisters. In this glass form, the waste is stable and impervious to the environment, and its radioactivity will dissipate over hundreds to thousands of years.

The Vit Plant will cover 65 acres with four nuclear facilities — Pretreatment, Low-Activity Waste Vitrification, High-Level Waste Vitrification and Analytical Laboratory — as well as operations and maintenance buildings, utilities and office space.

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Richland, Wash. — Employees and subcontractors at the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," recently surpassed 11 million hours without an injury resulting in a lost work day.

"Reaching 11 million hours as a project is an outstanding achievement that required every employee, whether at our construction site or in our offices, to work safely and watch out for each other," said Frank Russo, project director.

About 2,750 skilled craft, engineers and other professionals work at the Vit Plant. They worked more than a year and a half to achieve the milestone. That includes nearly 600 people who work at the project�s 65-acre construction site.

"We are constructing four major nuclear facilities, as well as the utilities and support buildings," Russo said. "The work is equivalent to building two nuclear power plants. Each day, our site employees face hazards associated with heavy construction, such as operating large cranes and equipment, transporting materials and working at heights. And, each day, our employees make a choice to work safely."

In addition to its Richland employees, the project also has a few hundred workers located in satellite offices in Oakland, Calif., and Frederick, Md.

"This accomplishment demonstrates our strong safety culture and our employees' dedication to their own safety, the safety of their co-workers and the safety of the plant they are designing and building," Russo said. "They want to ensure they go home safely every night. They also want to ensure that the workers who will operate the Vit Plant in the future will be able to go home safely every night."

About the Waste Treatment Plant:

Bechtel National, Inc. is designing and building the world's largest radioactive waste treatment plant for the U.S. Department of Energy at the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington state. The Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," will immobilize the radioactive liquid waste currently stored in 177 underground tanks using a process called "vitrification."

Vitrification involves blending the waste with molten glass and heating it to high temperatures. The mixture is then poured into stainless steel canisters. In this glass form, the waste is stable and impervious to the environment, and its radioactivity will dissipate over hundreds to thousands of years.

The Vit Plant will cover 65 acres with four nuclear facilities — Pretreatment, Low-Activity Waste Vitrification, High-Level Waste Vitrification and Analytical Laboratory — as well as operations and maintenance buildings, utilities and office space. Construction of the Vit Plant began in 2001 and is more than 60 percent complete.

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Richland, Wash. — The Hanford Waste Treatment Plant Project, also known as the "Vit Plant" and the Department of Energy (DOE) will host an open house, Wed., March 14, 5-7 p.m., at the Red Lion Hotel in Richland, Wash.

The purpose of the open house is to promote public awareness and support the project's efforts to be transparent and open. Vit Plant subject matter experts will be available to answer questions, and Vit Plant exhibits and videos will be on display. Everyone is invited to attend.

Bechtel National, Inc. is designing and building the world’s largest radioactive waste treatment plant for the U.S. Department of Energy at the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington state. The $12.2 billion Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," will immobilize the radioactive liquid waste currently stored in 177 underground tanks using a process called "vitrification."

Vitrification involves blending the waste with molten glass and heating it to high temperatures. The mixture is then poured into stainless steel canisters. In this glass form, the waste is stable and impervious to the environment, and its radioactivity will dissipate over hundreds to thousands of years.

The Vit Plant will cover 65 acres with four nuclear facilities — Pretreatment, Low-Activity Waste Vitrification, High-Level Waste Vitrification and Analytical Laboratory — as well as operations and maintenance buildings, utilities and office space.

Construction of the Vit Plant began in 2001 and is more than 60 percent complete. The project is scheduled to complete construction in 2016; will reach commissioning in 2019 and achieve full operations in 2022.

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Richland, Wash. — Last week, the Waste Treatment Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," received a 2012 Safe-in-Sound award from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the National Hearing Conservation Association. Each year, this award honors companies that have demonstrated dedication to hearing loss prevention through their workplace programs and practices.

The Vit Plant, which is being designed and constructed by Bechtel National, Inc. (BNI), is the first construction project to receive the award. It was recognized for its innovative strategies to address challenges in the areas of noise monitoring, risk evaluation and risk communication; for adopting the NIOSH-recommended exposure limits; for promoting active involvement of the workforce; and for encouraging the adoption of their strategies across Bechtel.

"Safety, at all levels, is a value at the Vit Plant, and we remain committed to ensuring the health and welfare of all our employees," Frank Russo, BNI project director, said. "This recognition demonstrates that our comprehensive safety program, which includes an extensive hearing-loss prevention program, is viewed as effective and fully embraced by our employees."

The Vit Plant is one of three 2012 Safe-in-Sound recipients. Other recipients include Colgate-Palmolive, a global company with 35,000 employees in 200 counties, and the 3M Hutchinson Plant in Minnesota, the largest 3M manufacturing plant in the U.S. Awards were presented at the 37th Annual Hearing Conservation Conference in New Orleans.

More information on the award can be found on the NIOSH website at http://www.safeinsound.us/.

Bechtel National, Inc. is designing and building the world's largest radioactive waste treatment plant for the U.S. Department of Energy at the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington state. The $12.2 billion Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," will immobilize the radioactive liquid waste currently stored in 177 underground tanks using a process called "vitrification."

Vitrification involves blending the waste with molten glass and heating it to high temperatures. The mixture is then poured into stainless steel canisters. In this glass form, the waste is stable and impervious to the environment, and its radioactivity will dissipate over hundreds to thousands of years.

The Vit Plant will cover 65 acres with four nuclear facilities — Pretreatment, Low-Activity Waste Vitrification, High-Level Waste Vitrification and Analytical Laboratory — as well as operations and maintenance buildings, utilities and office space.

Construction of the Vit Plant began in 2001 and is now more than 60 percent complete. The project is scheduled to complete construction in 2016; will reach commissioning in 2019 and achieve full operations in 2022.

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Richland, Wash. — The Hanford Waste Treatment Plant Project, also known as the "Vit Plant," recently issued the final design detailing the structural concrete for the Pretreatment Facility. The final drawing represents the completion of the facility's concrete floors and results from more than 15,000 pages of calculations and 500 other drawings. These calculations and drawings provide the details that enable crews to construct the massive concrete structure.

"Completing the structural concrete design for the Pretreatment Facility—the largest Vit Plant facility—is the culmination of more than 500 Vit Plant engineers' and designers' working over several years," Tom Patterson, manager of engineering at the Vit Plant, said. "It is an important milestone that enables us to fully support the Vit Plant's construction schedule."

The Pretreatment Facility structural concrete design includes calculations and drawings that are upheld to the highest nuclear safety and quality standards. Every inch of concrete design—wall or floor—underwent extensive review to ensure it met all regulations and requirements.

When complete, the Pretreatment Facility will be composed of 113,000 cubic yards of concrete and approximately 20,000 tons of steel. It will include five concrete floor elevations, which start at ground level and extend to 98 feet above ground. A single concrete floor ranges from 1 to 8 feet thick and spans 40 to 50 feet, depending on its location within the facility.

Each floor is reinforced with a complex rebar grid, composed of more than one-inch-thick rebar. Many of the floors are also supported by structural steel.

"Thanks to the hard work of the Vit Plant engineers and designers, design of the Pretreatment Facility is more than 75 percent complete, and we are steadily progressing toward Vit Plant construction complete in 2016, commissioning in 2019 and full operations in 2022," Wahed Abdul, federal area project manager, said.

The Pretreatment Facility walls will reach a total height of 109 feet when finished. Steel columns and roof trusses will extend beyond the walls to an overall height of 120 feet, and the emissions stack will reach nearly 200 feet.

Bechtel National, Inc. is designing and building the world's largest radioactive waste treatment plant for the U.S. Department of Energy at the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington state. The $12.2 billion Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," will immobilize the radioactive liquid waste currently stored in 177 underground tanks using a process called "vitrification."

Vitrification involves blending the waste with molten glass and heating it to high temperatures. The mixture is then poured into stainless steel canisters. In this glass form, the waste is stable and impervious to the environment, and its radioactivity will dissipate over hundreds to thousands of years.

The Vit Plant will cover 65 acres with four nuclear facilities—Pretreatment, Low-Activity Waste Vitrification, High-Level Waste Vitrification and Analytical Laboratory—as well as operations and maintenance buildings, utilities and office space.

Construction of the Vit Plant began in 2001 and is more than 60 percent complete. The project is scheduled to complete construction in 2016; will reach commissioning in 2019 and achieve full operations in 2022.

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Richland, Wash. — Employees at the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," donated more than 4,000 toys and over $10,000 to the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves' Toys for Tots campaign at an event this morning. Marines from Bravo Company, 4th Tank Battalion, were on hand to accept the donation.

"I am pleased to be back for a second year at the Vit Plant Toys for Tots event," Captain Christopher Johnson said. "Again, this is the largest donation from a single employer, and on behalf of the Marines Corps Reserves, I thank you. Your gifts will help many children have a brighter holiday season."

The Vit Plant's nearly 3,400 employees rallied to collect the more than 4,000 toys, which include 500 bicycles and helmets. Bechtel and URS, the contractor and principle subcontractor for the Vit Plant, also made $5,000 in corporate donations to the Toys for Tots organization. Employees raised an additional $5,000.

Because employees surpassed last year's donation, several Vit Plant senior managers attended the event dressed as various holiday characters, including Santa and his elves. Last year, Vit Plant employees donated 3,500 toys, including 200 bicycles, and $8,000.

"Toys for Tots is an important program, and the Vit Plant is proud to support it and the Marines Corps Reserves," Ty Troutman, manager of construction, said. "Once again, our employees have demonstrated their incredible generosity and made me proud to be a part of the Vit Plant project." Troutman also thanked the Marines for their service.

Local businesses Griggs/Ace Hardware and Vintners Logistics also contributed to the Vit Plant's efforts. Griggs/Ace Hardware ensured the bicycle orders were fulfilled, and Vintners Logistics provided transportation for the toys and bikes.

Vit Plant employees are committed to supporting the local community and have donated nearly $640,000 to area organizations and charities. These include the United Way of Benton and Franklin Counties, March of Dimes and Second Harvest.

Bechtel National, Inc. is designing and building the world's largest radioactive waste treatment plant for the U.S. Department of Energy at the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington state. The $12.2 billion Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," will immobilize the radioactive liquid waste currently stored in 177 underground tanks using a process called "vitrification."

Vitrification involves blending the waste with molten glass and heating it to high temperatures. The mixture is then poured into stainless steel canisters. In this glass form, the waste is stable and impervious to the environment, and its radioactivity will dissipate over hundreds to thousands of years.

The Vit Plant will cover 65 acres with four nuclear facilities — Pretreatment,Low-Activity Waste Vitrification, High-Level Waste Vitrification and Analytical Laboratory — as well as operations and maintenance buildings, utilities and office space.

Construction of the Vit Plant began in 2001 and is more than 60 percent complete. The project is scheduled to complete construction in 2016; will reach commissioning in 2019 and achieve full operations in 2022.

Download Press Release (with Photos)

Richland, Wash. — The Hanford Waste Treatment Plant Project, also known as the "Vit Plant," will host an open house, Wed., Nov. 30, 5-7:30 p.m., at the Red Lion Hotel in Richland, Wash. The purpose of the open house is to promote public awareness and support the project's efforts to be transparent and open. Vit Plant subject matter experts will be available to answer questions, and Vit Plant exhibits and videos will be on display. Everyone is invited to attend.

To support the Vit Plant's community giving efforts, Santa will be on hand to collect donations for Toys for Tots. The public is welcome to bring their own cameras and take photos with Santa.

Bechtel National, Inc. is designing and building the world's largest radioactive waste treatment plant for the U.S. Department of Energy at the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington state. The $12.2 billion Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," will immobilize the radioactive liquid waste currently stored in 177 underground tanks using a process called "vitrification."

Vitrification involves blending the waste with molten glass and heating it to high temperatures. The mixture is then poured into stainless steel canisters. In this glass form, the waste is stable and impervious to the environment, and its radioactivity will dissipate over hundreds to thousands of years.

The Vit Plant will cover 65 acres with four nuclear facilities — Pretreatment, Low-Activity Waste Vitrification, High-Level Waste Vitrification and Analytical Laboratory — as well as operations and maintenance buildings, utilities and office space.

Construction of the Vit Plant began in 2001 and is more than 60 percent complete. The project is scheduled to complete construction in 2016; will reach commissioning in 2019 and achieve full operations in 2022.

Download Press Release

Richland, Wash. — The Hanford Waste Treatment Plant Project also known as the "Vit Plant" and the Department of Energy (DOE) will host an open house, Wed., Nov. 30, 5-7:30 p.m., at the Red Lion Hotel in Richland, Wash. The purpose of the open house is to promote public awareness and support the project's efforts to be transparent and open. Vit Plant subject matter experts will be available to answer questions, and Vit Plant exhibits and videos will be on display. Everyone is invited to attend.

To support the Vit Plant's community giving efforts, Santa will be on hand to collect donations for Toys for Tots.

Bechtel National, Inc. is designing and building the world's largest radioactive waste treatment plant for the U.S. Department of Energy at the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington state. The $12.2 billion Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," will immobilize the radioactive liquid waste currently stored in 177 underground tanks using a process called "vitrification."

Vitrification involves blending the waste with molten glass and heating it to high temperatures. The mixture is then poured into stainless steel canisters. In this glass form, the waste is stable and impervious to the environment, and its radioactivity will dissipate over hundreds to thousands of years.

The Vit Plant will cover 65 acres with four nuclear facilities — Pretreatment, Low-Activity Waste Vitrification, High-Level Waste Vitrification and Analytical Laboratory — as well as operations and maintenance buildings, utilities and office space.

Construction of the Vit Plant began in 2001 and is more than 60 percent complete. The project is scheduled to complete construction in 2016; will reach commissioning in 2019 and achieve full operations in 2022.

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Richland, Wash. — Last week, the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," received and placed a key piece of air-filtration equipment in the Low-Activity Waste Facility. The nearly 100-ton carbon bed adsorber is part of a complex air-filtration system that will ensure the facility’s air emissions meet strict environmental regulations and requirements.

The extensive air-filtration system includes compliance monitoring equipment, HEPA filters, the adsorber, a thermal catalytic oxider, caustic scrubbers, exhaust fans and a more than 130-foot tall emissions stack. When operational, the adsorber will remove mercury and acid gases before air is channeled through the thermal catalytic oxidizer, which will remove organics and NOx.

"The air-filtration system is designed to the highest nuclear-quality standards to ensure the air emissions from the Low-Activity Waste Facility are completely safe and will not pose any danger to the environment or people," John Platt, area project manager for the facility, said.

Similar air-filtration systems will be used in the High-Level Waste and Pretreatment facilities. The Low-Activity Waste Facility adsorber is the first to arrive at the Vit Plant.

Completely assembled, the adsorber measures 45 feet long, 12 feet wide and 14 feet tall. It is composed mostly of stainless steel, including nearly 110 feet of 18-inch-diameter piping, and required more than 7,000 nuclear-quality welds to assemble.

The adsorber arrived at the Vit Plant construction site on seven trucks that included two base frames, two major units and two upper platforms and several crates of additional parts. Each major unit measures 21 feet long, 8 feet wide and 11 feet tall.

Using a crane, the adsorber parts were lowered through a hatch in the facility’s roof to the 48-foot elevation. The hatch, which measures 16 feet by 26 feet, is not much larger than the units themselves and required careful planning by Vit Plant engineers and craft.

"Receiving and setting this major piece of equipment is a significant milestone for the Low-Activity Waste Facility and the Vit Plant as a whole," Jeff Bruggeman, federal area project manager for the facility, said. "The Low-Activity Waste Facility is 67 percent complete and steadily receiving and setting its permanent plant equipment. This is essential to completing Vit Plant construction in 2016, reaching commissioning in 2019 and achieving full operations in 2022."

A video of the receipt and placement of the carbon bed adsorber is available at http://www.hanfordvitplant.com/newsroom/videos/.

Bechtel National, Inc. is designing and building the world's largest radioactive waste treatment plant for the U.S. Department of Energy at the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington state. The $12.2 billion Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," will immobilize the radioactive liquid waste currently stored in 177 underground tanks using a process called "vitrification."

Vitrification involves blending the waste with molten glass and heating it to high temperatures. The mixture is then poured into stainless steel canisters. In this glass form, the waste is stable and impervious to the environment, and its radioactivity will dissipate over hundreds to thousands of years.

The Vit Plant will cover 65 acres with four nuclear facilities — Pretreatment, Low-Activity Waste Vitrification, High-Level Waste Vitrification and Analytical Laboratory — as well as operations and maintenance buildings, utilities and office space.

Construction of the Vit Plant began in 2001 and is more than 60 percent complete. The project is scheduled to complete construction in 2016; will reach commissioning in 2019 and achieve full operations in 2022.

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Richland, Wash. —Last week, crews at the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," finished installing the Pretreatment Facility's fifth elevation of concrete walls. The fifth elevation reaches approximately 97 feet at the top.

To place the final walls, crews used a specialized concrete pumping truck with an extendable arm that reaches approximately 200 feet vertically or horizontally.

The Pretreatment Facility, the largest of the Vit Plant's four major nuclear facilities, comprises six elevated concrete sections and more than 113,000 cubic yards of concrete. Work on the sixth and final elevation is already in progress, and only four small wall sections remain before all concrete walls in the Pretreatment Facility are complete.

When complete, the building's walls will reach a total height of 109 feet. Steel columns and roof trusses will extend beyond the walls to an overall height of 120 feet.

Bechtel National, Inc. is designing and building the world's largest radioactive waste treatment plant for the U.S. Department of Energy at the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington state. The $12.2 billion Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, also known as the "Vit Plant," will immobilize the radioactive liquid waste currently stored in 177 underground tanks using a process called "vitrification."

Vitrification involves blending the waste with molten glass and heating it to high temperatures. The mixture is then poured into stainless steel canisters. In this glass form, the waste is stable and impervious to the environment, and its radioactivity will dissipate over hundreds to thousands of years.

The Vit Plant will cover 65 acres with four nuclear facilities — Pretreatment, Low-Activity Waste Vitrification, High-Level Waste Vitrification and Analytical Laboratory — as well as operations and maintenance buildings, utilities and office space.

Construction of the Vit Plant began in 2001 and is more than 60 percent complete. The project is scheduled to complete construction in 2016; will reach commissioning in 2019 and achieve full operations in 2022.

Download Press Release (with Photos)