Nuclear Weapons & Stockpile

A story in the Oct. 14 Weapons Complex Monitor (“Bechtel Looks to Cap WTP Off-Gas Installation This Fall,” Vol. 27, No. 40) should have said the melters for the Low-Activity Waste Facility Bechtel National is building for the Energy Department’s Waste Treatment Plant at the Hanford Site were delivered to the site in 2010.

Honeywell on Friday reported third-quarter 2016 sales of $9.8 billion, a 2 percent increase from the same quarter last year, and earnings per share of $1.60, up 4 percent year over year. The company raised its earnings per share guidance for the fourth quarter of 2016 by 10-13 percent, to $1.74-$1.78. Earnings per share guidance […]

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, in the last of three debates, on Wednesday repeated their arguments over the nuclear weapon-related dangers of their opponent’s potential presidency, touching on the strategic stability between the United States and Russia. Commenting on the two nations’ strained relationship, Trump said Russian President Vladimir Putin […]

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, in the last of three debates, on Wednesday repeated their arguments over the nuclear weapon-related dangers of their opponent’s potential presidency, touching on the strategic stability between the United States and Russia. Commenting on the U.S.-Russian relationship, Trump said Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly […]

A recent audit found that the Department of Energy has not developed a long-term strategy for operating the Savannah River Site’s H Canyon – a nuclear materials processing facility that is scheduled to remain open through 2024. The audit, conducted by the DOE Inspector General’s Office, was released on Sept. 26, and also says H […]

Members of Congress have again called on President Barack Obama to adopt a policy of nuclear no-first-use despite the administration’s indication that it will not make such a change during the remainder of the president’s term. The Oct. 13 letter to Obama, signed by 22 members of Congress – including Reps. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), Keith Ellison […]

A recent audit found that the Department of Energy has not developed a long-term strategy for operating the Savannah River Site’s H Canyon – a nuclear materials processing facility that is scheduled to remain open through 2024. The audit, conducted by the DOE Inspector General’s Office, was released on Sept. 26, and also says H Canyon […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration’s Production Office (NPO) has signed off on a safety plan for extending the service lives of two key facilities at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Tennessee. Next up is completion of an Extended Life Program implementation plan for Buildings 9204-2E and 9215 by Nov. 1 of this year, according […]

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) on Wednesday detonated a conventional explosive underground at the Nevada National Security Site, the sixth in a set of experiments meant to enhance U.S. abilities to monitor low-yield nuclear testing and detect underground explosions. The activity, part of the agency’s Source Physics Experiment research, involved the detonation of chemical […]

The Y-12 National Security Complex in Tennessee could take some steps to improve its Chronic Beryllium Disease Prevention Program (CBDPP), the Department of Energy’s Office of Inspector General (IG) said in a follow-up audit of such programs at the Oak Ridge Reservation. The audit found no material weaknesses with the Oak Ridge programs but said […]

The Y-12 National Security Complex in Tennessee could take some steps to improve its Chronic Beryllium Disease Prevention Program (CBDPP), the Department of Energy’s Office of Inspector General (IG) said in a follow-up audit of such programs at the Oak Ridge Reservation. The audit found no material weaknesses with the Oak Ridge programs but said […]

Department of Energy veteran Brian Henry has been appointed portfolio federal project director for cleanup at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, Tenn., DOE announced Monday in a press release. In his new role at the Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, Henry will oversee planning for and execution of current and upcoming Y-12’s cleanup projects, […]

The Uranium Processing Facility (UPF) engineering program at the Y-12 National Security Complex is sound and the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is adequately operating the National Criticality Experiments Research Center (NCERC), the Department of Energy’s Office of Enterprise Assessments (EA) said in separate assessments released Tuesday. Bechtel National is building the UPF at the Y-12 […]

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, in their first of three debates, agreed Monday that the greatest threat facing the world is the proliferation of nuclear weapons but sparred over Trump’s prior comments about the nuclear capabilities of U.S. allies. “The single greatest problem the world has is nuclear armament, nuclear […]

The Uranium Processing Facility (UPF) engineering program at the Y-12 National Security Complex is sound and the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is adequately operating the National Criticality Experiments Research Center (NCERC), the Department of Energy’s Office of Enterprise Assessments (EA) said in separate assessments released Tuesday. The UPF is being built at the Y-12 National […]

The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) is closing its recommendation to the Department of Energy (DOE) to strengthen the regulatory framework meant to protect the public and DOE defense nuclear facility workers, DNFSB Chairman Joyce Connery wrote in a Sept. 23 letter to Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz. DNFSB’s recommendation 2010-1, “Safety Analysis Requirements for […]

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, in their first of three debates, agreed Monday that the greatest threat facing the world is the proliferation of nuclear weapons but sparred over Trump’s prior comments about the nuclear capabilities of U.S. allies. “The single greatest problem the world has is nuclear armament, nuclear […]

Honeywell Federal Manufacturing &  Technology’s internal cost allowability audits have been reliable, the Department of Energy’s Office of Inspector General (IG) found in a Sept. 21 assessment report of the contractor’s audits from fiscal 2012 through 2014. Honeywell FM&T has served as the management and operations  contractor for the National Security Campus at Kansas City, Mo., […]

Consolidated Nuclear Security said this week it anticipates success in its campaign to hire 1,150 new employees in fiscal 2016, which ends on Sept. 30. “More than 800 people have accepted offers in fiscal year 2016 with CNS, and with the remaining offers being extended CNS will meet its hiring goals for this year,” company […]

The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board said this week it has bulked up its technical staff, bringing the headcount at the independent Energy Department watchdog up to 116. Known as DNFSB, the board comprises five civilian members appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate to provide independent oversight of agencies and contractors at […]

Sandia Corp., the management and operations contractor for the Sandia National Laboratories, is working to improve its program to prevent the unauthorized disclosure of classified information following a review by the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Enterprise Assessments (EA) that revealed some issues. EA evaluated two such incidents of unauthorized disclosure that Sandia Corp. […]

Consolidated Nuclear Security, the management and operations contractor for the Y-12 National Security Site in Tennessee, said Tuesday it had sealed a five-year labor agreement with the Knoxville Building and Construction Trades Council. The Council is an umbrella organization encompassing 16 local unions, according to a CNS press release. The labor agreement will expire on […]

Consolidated Nuclear Security, the management and operations contractor for the Y-12 National Security Site in Tennessee, said Tuesday it had sealed a five-year labor agreement with the Knoxville Building and Construction Trades Council. The Council is an umbrella organization encompassing 16 local unions, according to a CNS press release. The labor agreement will expire on […]

BWX Technologies (BWXT) said this week it has appointed James Jaska, Kenneth Krieg, and Barbara Niland, three longtime defense industry leaders, to its Board of Directors as part of the board’s continuing succession planning and refreshment activities. Jaska is president and managing director of Nova Global Services, an operations and advisory firm. He previously oversaw […]

Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz on Tuesday offered strong support for a new plutonium dilution and disposal method in place of the mixed oxide fuel program that the Obama administration is pushing to cancel, calling the latter an essentially “impossible” effort. The controversy over the MOX program will be one of the next administration’s primary challenges […]

Sandia Corp., the management and operations contractor for the Sandia National Laboratories, is working to improve its program to prevent the unauthorized disclosure of classified information following a review by the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Enterprise Assessments (EA) that revealed some issues. EA evaluated two such incidents of unauthorized disclosure that Sandia Corp. […]

The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB) has determined that the Department of Energy’s implementation plan for emergency preparedness and response at the Pantex Plant would properly address safety issues at the Texas site, according to a Sept. 2 letter from DNFSB Chairman Joyce Connery to Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz. This letter came in response […]