Quality-System Management of Nuclear-Material Storage Containers

Quality-system management of nuclear-material (NM) storage containers remains the foundation for successfully procuring, designing, testing, and manufacturing NM storage containers for use at United States Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratories. The DOE, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) specifically define quality-system requirements for NM storage containers. Quality-system management addresses the inherent risks and hazards associated with project activities. Implementation of project quality assurance (QA) minimizes environmental, safety, health, and security risks and any additional impacts associated with work processes, while maximizing reliability and performance of the NM storage container. To optimize worker safety, the management of quality-system requirements ensures the control of hazards and associated risks imposed by the work and by the functions required of the NM storage containers. Project QA also provides senior management a level of confidence that both business management and technical processes remain effective and efficient. My presentation will address the importance of quality-system management when procuring, designing, and testing NM storage containers to ensure worker safety and the minimization of environmental, health, and security risks.