SUMMER 2006
     

On board again at Bruce A

Bruce Power CEO Duncan Hawthorne reviews plans with Ontario Energy Minister Dwight Duncan.

In June 2006, Ontario Energy Minister Dwight Duncan announced that "nuclear power has an important role to play" in the province’s new power-generation strategy. It was a poignant statement for everyone involved in the Bruce A restarts.

Our work on the restart of Units 3 and 4 included engineering and procurement, and the construction of 45 different modification projects with individual assignments ranging from engineering design, procurement and installation of replacement equipment for existing systems, and to provision of two key safety systems.

After two years of work by more than 1,100 employees and contractors, those two generators returned 1,500 MW of much-needed clean energy to Ontario’s power grid.

Bruce Power’s Bruce A generation station on the shores of Lake Huron has four pressurized, heavy-water CANDU nuclear reactors.

That project provided considerable knowledge of the Bruce Power Engineering Change Control process and tremendous experience in construction and commissioning support on site. The same team was selected in late 2005 to work on the new restart projects.

Alan O’Brien, the Managing Director of Hatch Energy’s thermal business said that “The first restart was a career high, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to join the Bruce team again for Units 1 and 2. The project will be another major milesone for the Canadan nuclear industry."

Once again, ASLF is working as an integrated team with Bruce Power and its Project Management Contractor in the $4.25 billion investment program. ASLF is responsible for engineering, procurement and construction services for fire protection system upgrades and secondary control area installation. Preparatory work for the project began on March 21, 2006 and the first unit is scheduled to restart in late 2009.

Bruce A turbine hall – when complete, there will be 24 new steam generators in place.

Fire protection system upgrades

Numerous upgrades to the fire protection systems are required, including the fire suppression system for the turbine generators and smoke detection systems in various electrical equipment rooms.

Secondary control facility installation

The Secondary Control Area provides independent control systems for the safe shut down, cool down and monitoring of the reactor should the Main Control Room become uninhabitable due to fire, smoke or other circumstances.

Key responsibilities

  • Management, planning and scheduling in order to control activities and provide the necessary interface and coordination with the Project Management Contractor
  • Detailed design and construction in accordance with the ASLF Quality Plan and Project Specific Instructions
  • Issuance of Technical Specifications to identify the technical requirements of procurement items, along with bid evaluations and review of vendor documentation
  • Administration of the safety program for the ASLF restart team
  • Obtaining all necessary regulatory approvals
  • Construction testing
  • Provision of turnover documentation and history dockets
  • Support for system commissioning
  • Documentation close-out activities to ensure future configuration control

Bruce A’s contribution to Ontario’s energy requirements is about to become even more significant – and we are proud to be on board once again.

For further information, please contact:

Mirza RaymanMirza Rayman
Design Supervisor
ASLF, Oakville, Ontario
905 469 3400 ext 3167
mrayman@hatchenergy.com

 

 

 

 

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