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  • Vit Bits Special Edition - Vit Plant Makes Pivotal Progress in 2019

Vit Bits Special Edition - Vit Plant Makes Pivotal Progress in 2019

Mission completion is in sight for the Hanford Vit Plant team after progress made in 2019 has the project moving full speed towards making glass. 
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Special Edition
Year in Review: Vit Plant Makes Pivotal Progress in 2019

Mission completion is in sight for the Hanford Vit Plant team after progress made in 2019 has the project moving full speed towards making glass in 2023. The plant continued to pivot away from construction activities and moved deep into startup testing and commissioning on the way to beginning waste treatment through the Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste (DFLAW) approach.
 
“Our accomplishments speak to the teamwork, collaboration, and partnership between our customer, regulators, stakeholders, subcontractors, and nearly 3,000 employees,” said Valerie McCain, Bechtel principal vice president and Vit Plant project director. “We’re excited about it. It’s a real privilege to be a part of the team making this next bit of history at Hanford.”

DFLAW Construction Nearly Complete
The Effluent Management Facility is the final major construction effort to support DFLAW
The Effluent Management Facility is the final major construction effort to support DFLAW.

With DFLAW design finishing in June and the last of 9,859 pieces of permanent plant equipment arriving in October, the Vit Plant jobsite is nearly out of the engineering, procurement, and construction business. The Effluent Management Facility is the final major construction effort to support DFLAW and will be finished in 2021.
 
The major accomplishments at EMF this year included safely placing and assembling the 111-ton electrical powerhouse, which allowed workers to bring power to the facility by completing installation of thousands of feet of electrical cables. Crews also set two massive processing vessels inside the facility, each standing 40 feet tall and weighing 160 tons. These vessels were transported by barge up the Columbia River to reach the Vit Plant in May.

Many Systems Well Advanced in Startup Testing
Employees safely install a gamma-ray detector shield inside the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant’s Analytical Laboratory.
Employees safely install a gamma-ray detector shield inside the Analytical Laboratory.

The Analytical Laboratory, Low-Activity Waste (LAW) Facility, and Balance of Facilities have all finished construction and are well advanced into startup testing.
 
The startup accomplishments kicked off in January when the Analytical Laboratory became the first major facility to enter the startup testing phase. The Lab’s HEPA filtration system later completed testing thanks to a collaboration with Mississippi State University technicians, and the first scientific equipment arrived and has been installed to allow chemists to prepare for waste analyses.
 
To date, 188 of the 265 systems needed to support DFLAW have been turned over from Construction to Startup.

Plant Management Receives Systems for Commissioning
Workers safely monitor systems from inside a computerized control room in the annex of the plant’s Low-Activity Waste Facility.
Workers safely monitor systems from inside a control room in the LAW Facility annex.
Commissioning became a major focus in 2019 as the first groups of permanent positions were filled for the Vit Plant workforce. To date, 95 commissioning technicians have been hired and are working a 24/7 shift schedule to monitor and manage the plant. In August, the commissioning workers moved into the annex housing the plant’s control room at the LAW Facility. The annex is key to controlling DFLAW operations. The first team of chemists is also setting up shop at the Analytical Laboratory to perform the first scientific work to support DFLAW.
 
To date, 130 of the 301 systems needed to support DFLAW have been handed over from Startup to Plant Management.
Vit Plant Team Invests in the Community
Vit Plant employees donated $425,000 and thousands of volunteer hours in 2019.
Outside of work, the Vit Plant team continued its long history of strong support for the community through financial contributions and volunteer efforts across the Tri-Cities. Employees donated more than $425,000 to local organizations, campaigns, and programs, such as United Way of Benton-Franklin Counties, Second Harvest, Junior Achievement, and Toys for Tots. Employees also logged thousands of volunteer hours, teaching Junior Achievement classes, participating in DiscoverE, sorting food for Second Harvest, mentoring kids on STEM at the Boys & Girls Club, and assembling bikes for Bikes for Tikes.
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Copyright © December 2019 Bechtel National, Inc., All rights reserved.

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What is Vitrification?Read more
What is Vitrification?

What is vitrification? Vitrification is accomplished by mixing waste from underground tanks with glass-forming materials in high-temperature melters.

Read more
    • Project
      • About the Project
        • Vitrification 101
      • Facilities
        • Analytical Laboratory
        • Balance of Facilities
        • Direct-Feed Low-Activity Waste (DFLAW)
        • High-Level Waste (HLW) Vitrification Facility
        • Low-Activity Waste (LAW) Vitrification Facility
      • Journey to Melter Heatup
      • Virtual Tour
      • Leadership
      • Our Employees
      • Vit Plant FAQ
      • History
      • Contact Us
    • Mission & Values
      • Mission Statement
      • Safety
        • Industrial Safety
        • Nuclear Safety
      • Quality
      • Ethics
      • Community Investments
    • Newsroom
      • Newsroom
      • Media Library
      • Newsletter
    • Suppliers
      • Business Opportunities
        • Permanent Plant Equipment
        • Construction Services
        • Technical Services
      • Qualification Process
      • Supplier Quality
        • Suspect & Counterfeit Items
      • Supplier FAQ
      • Business Resources
      • Networking Events
      • Supply Chain Collaboration Events
    • Careers
      • Job Opportunities
      • Hanford Site Stabilization Agreement
      • Internships

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