Non-MAA Storage Consolidation at Y-12

The Y-12 National Security Complex has completed yet another milestone in the site’s effort to reduce the storage footprint of Non-Material Access Area (MAA) material. For nearly a decade, the Y-12 Nuclear Material Management and Storage (NMM&S) Program has progressively fulfilled the requirements of Department of Energy/National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA) to 1) reduce inventories to the minimum level required to meet the sites mission, 2) consolidate material/facilities for a reduction of footprint and costs, and 3) provide fully compliant storage for retained items. The consolidation of this non-special nuclear material (Non-SNM) was completed in September of 2011. The effort consolidated the operations of four facilities and reorganized them into a single location, reducing the storage footprint by ~ 28,000 square feet and eliminating three Category 3 Nuclear Facilities. Additionally, the original storage facilities were going to require costly upgrades to maintain their status and would have costs the Department of Energy (DOE) approximately $800,000 annually in facility maintenance costs. The project required the complete deinventory of Non-MAA material from three facilities and the transfer of it into a facility that had earlier been used for storing MAA material. The security and safety basis requirements for the receiving facility were substantially modified to allow the final relocation of the Non-MAA materials. In conjunction with this activity, other non-MAA materials from other locations within Y-12 were consolidated, supporting other site-wide footprint reduction initiatives. Y-12 NMM&S planned and coordinated the extensive work efforts involving multiple organizations across nearly two years to successfully complete the mission.