Washington River Protection Solutions has improved on the already solid safety performance of the previous contractor at the Hanford tank farms, it said.
WRPS took over operation of Hanford's underground tank farms, which store 53 million gallons of high level radioactive waste, a year ago as the contract of CH2M Hill Hanford Group expired.
WRPS reduced worker injuries serious enough to require a doctor's care by 48 percent from the previous year, it said. It also had 68 percent fewer worker injuries that resulted in days off work, restricted work activities or a transfer to other job duties.
The new contractor has started an employee incentive program that pays workers a minimum of $1,000 bonuses a year if the contractor meets certain goals, said spokesman John Britton. But no money is paid out if safety goals are not met first, he said.
The improvement in the safety record came as more than 200 new workers were hired and trained to Hanford safety standards, Britton said.
WRPS also has had its safety management system recently certified by the Department of Energy as meeting the requirements in its contract.
The Integrated Safety Management System "is much more than just safety," said Fred Beranek, WRPS manager of safety, health, quality and environment, in a statement. "It's how we execute our work, from the contract requirements on down to how individual procedures are implemented in the field."
The certification followed a two-week DOE assessment that included 120 observations of work being conducted, more than 300 employee interviews and the review of 640 documents.
WRPS now is working to achieve DOE's highest safety standard, Voluntary Protection Program Star status, for all its work. Its base operations organization and the 222-S Laboratory, operated by WRPS, also have Star status.
Star status is awarded to contractors who demonstrate excellence in management leadership, employee involvement, work site analysis, hazard prevention and control, and safety and health training.
-- Annette Cary: 582-1533; acary@tricityherald.com; More Hanford news at hanfordnews.com
Similar stories:
Hanford tank farms chief retiring
Hanford tank farms chief retiring
Chuck Spencer, who led work on two of the Department of Energy's prime contracts at Hanford during the past five years, announced Friday that he will retire
Jan. 20.
He came to Hanford as president of Washington Closure Hanford, leading work to successfully turn around a project that had been plagued with a string of problems over 18 months.
In 2009, he took over leadership of one of Hanford's most challenging projects, operation of the tank farms, where 56 million gallons of radioactive waste are stored in underground tanks.
'Game-changing' large robotic arm removing waste at Hanford
'Game-changing' large robotic arm removing waste at Hanford
A large robotic arm has begun retrieving radioactive waste from one of Hanford's underground tanks, raising hopes that the slow and difficult work to empty tanks will become more efficient.
"We believe this new system will be a game changer for us and allow us to move more waste out of our tanks faster and at less cost," said Kent Smith, the tank retrieval manager for Department of Energy contractor Washington River Protection Solutions, in a statement.
The Mobile Arm Retrieval System, or MARS, already has changed how work is done at the Hanford tank farms, after Hanford workers cut the largest hole ever in a U.S. radioactive waste tank to install the system in December.
Hanford contractor achieves Star safety status
Hanford contractor achieves Star safety status
Mission Support Alliance will be flying the Department of Energy safety star flag after being awarded Star status in DOE's Voluntary Protection Program.
The Star status, DOE's highest level of excellence in employee safety and health programs, covers the Hanford contractor's mission support services group. It provides services across Hanford, including utilities, training and information technology.
"I think of MSA as our top performer in safety," said Matt McCormick, manager of the DOE Hanford Richland Operations Office, at a Richland ceremony to present the award.
Hanford Advisroy Board split on vit plant safety
Hanford Advisroy Board split on vit plant safety
The Hanford Advisory Board may have ended up more confused than ever after trying to get to the bottom of what it will take to operate the Hanford vitrification plant safely.
After being unable to reach agreement on what to say to the Department of Energy and its regulators on the issue during committee meetings, it took the unusual step of holding a "sounding board" to let all 31 members plus their alternates have a say at at its recent full board meeting in Richland.
The board heard DOE officials describe the systems in place to ensure that safety concerns are taken seriously and what improvements are planned. But then it also heard from current and former Hanford workers who showed up for the public comment period to say the system is broken.
1,100 Hanford layoffs planned
1,100 Hanford layoffs planned
The Department of Energy has authorized its environmental cleanup contractors at Hanford to lay off up to 1,100 more workers in the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1.
That's in addition to up to 1,985 layoffs already announced this year, the majority of which will be Sept. 29.
Hanford started the year with about 12,000 employees, meaning the potential layoffs announced this year would cut jobs by about a quarter.
Print
Email Story
