REDUCING NMMSS REPORTING ERRORS

The Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP) submits approximately 2,200 transactions per month to the Nuclear Materials Management and Safeguards System (NMMSS)1. Despite submitting one of the nation’s highest numbers of records, the plant continues to have error rates of less than 2% (0.41% in last 12 months -- see Chart 1 below). Items that have led to a reduced error are 1) having a department structure that lends itself to accountability; 2) striving for zero errors; 3) a “lessons-learned” mentality, combined with a high degree of automation; and 4) a common sense approach to division of labor. These have resulted in a successful reduction of NMMSS errors and a more enjoyable work environment. This article provides indepth information to other sites submitting NMMSS transaction and inventory records on how to systematically reduce NMMSS errors.