Miscellaneous Lessons

DOE-HDBK-3012-96

MISCELLANEOUS LESSONS

Engage a technical editor, if at all possible, during the second week of the review. The

final report left at the close-out briefing, although a draft, is the site or facility's first

encounter with the full results of the review and as such warrants a technical editing. This

person should stay until all Forms 1, Forms 2, and summaries have been approved, the

executive summary edited, and the final report formatted, collated, and printed. The

introductory material (cover sheet, background, scope, etc.) can be written before the

review is started, thus reducing the workload during the review and allowing the team to

concentrate on issues at hand.

Do not assign any CRADs to the TL, however technically qualified.

Identify an assistant TL. Having an assistant TL can greatly improve efficiency in the

conduct of the ORR/RA. An assistant TL is particularly beneficial during the labor

intensive ORR preparation phase.

Select an RC with previous experience in the ORR/RA process, as this function is essential

in the assimilation of the data provided by the team members. Without accuracy and

timeliness in this function, conclusions are subject to question.

Select the TL carefully. The TL should be senior to the team members. He or she should

not be a peer or a co-worker of the team members. Selection of the appropriate TL is

important in that the TL must exercise some degree of control over the team.

Evaluate OJT, drills, and other training evaluation against the established guidance in DOE

Orders, standards, guides, and handbooks. This helps eliminate the subjective aspects of

the review. Additionally, this intention should be communicated to the contractor for the

conduct of the contractor ORR/RA.

GENERIC LESSONS LEARN WHICH APPLY TO THE DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION,

OPERATION, AND DECOMMISSIONING OF DOE FACILITIES

During startup of new facilities, numerous cases have been observed in which the

surveillance requirement supporting the safety basis could not be completed, or if

completed did not properly verify the safety basis requirement. Surveillance procedures

should be completed, validated, and executed as part of the startup program, prior to the

implementation of the supported Technical Safety Requirements (TSRs). Actually

executing the surveillance will reveal such problems as: test points which are not installed;

test points which are inaccessible; and other interfering interlocks or functions. These

problems have occurred repeatedly in previous ORR/RAs.

Additionally, determination must be made that the surveillance actually tests the function or