Kenneth Fletcher
WC Monitor
10/31/2014
Oak Ridge cleanup contractor URS CH2M Oak Ridge, LLC, earned $3.2 million in award fee out of an available $3.4 million available, almost 94 percent, for the period from Oct. 1, 2013, through March 2014, according to the Department of Energy’s latest fee determination. UCOR’s fee includes $609,749 in project management incentive and $2.6 million in cost incentive. The award is on par for the previous period of April 1 through Sept. 30, 2013, in which UCOR earned about 90 percent of its available award fee, receiving about $3.11 million out of a total of $3.43 million.
UCOR’s latest fee determination, dated July 3, was posted online with little fanfare from DOE. “During this six-month performance rating period UCOR has done an extremely good job executing the scope under the East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP) Contract,” the determination states. “UCOR completed the demolition of the K-25 Building on December 19, 2013, 25 weeks ahead of schedule. The K-25 Tech Area Demolition Debris Loading and Hauling was completed on March 11, 2014. The cost savings associated with the K-25 Project’s schedule acceleration has resulted in the early characterization and demolition planning for the K-31 Facility while continuing to advance the preparation for K-27 Building Demolition.”
UCOR Gets ‘Excellent’ Rating for Project Management
The contractor received an “excellent” rating in project management and business systems, and “very good” ratings in worker safety and health management, quality management and environmental management. Cost incentive received a high confidence rating. “UCOR exhibited excellent coordination between the Decontamination and Decommissioning (D&D) and Waste Disposition Teams, as well as Project Support organizations, resulting in the criticality incredible determinations to begin demolition of the K-25 Building Tech Area, completing demolition of the Tech Area, and completing building debris disposition within this evaluation period,” the fee determination states. “This integrated approach was used to safely address technical issues, accommodate regulatory requests regarding the Environmental Management Waste Management Facility operations, and provide resources to meet accelerated schedules.”
DOE Finds Some Opportunities for Improvement
DOE did, however, note several opportunities for improvement. That includes the delays in removing sodium fluoride traps at the Molten Salt Reactor Experimental Facility. Additionally, UCOR had to suspend a management assessment due to work package issues. “In January, the Contractor Readiness Assessment was stopped by UCOR due to several issues associated with procedures, equipment, and personnel training,” the determination states. “It was concluded that this activity did not have the appropriate amount of senior management attention. UCOR took appropriate corrective actions, which resulted in start-up approval from DOE in March 2014.”
Additionally, lessons learned from the successful K-25 project should be applied to other demolition work at ETTP, DOE said. Following K-25 demo, technetium from the project ended up at an Oak Ridge city wastewater treatment plant through sewer lines below the K-25 site. “In particular, characterization of on-site sanitary sewer lines, monitoring, and as necessary, isolation of these conduits should be conducted in order to mitigate the potential for these lines to serve as a migration pathway for site-related contaminants. Enhanced planning and contamination control measures are expected to result in fewer technetium release concerns during the K-27 Demolition Project,” the determination states.
UCOR Pleased With Evaluation
UCOR President and Project Manager Ken Rueter said this week that the company is pleased with the evaluation. “We are pleased to have done so well in the award fee performance evaluation and appreciate the constructive review by the department, receiving almost 94 percent of the available award fee,” Rueter said in a statement. “The award fee board noted many accomplishments in this determination, such as early completion of the K-25 demolition project, significant cost savings and investment of these savings into critical cleanup work, and implementation of a new Corrective Action Management System. Our great performance on these and several other noted proficiencies is due to the dedication and diligence of our skilled work force, great partnership with labor, and a cooperative and collaborative relationship with DOE. We also take seriously the few areas where the board noted opportunities for improvement and have taken appropriate actions to address those areas in the spirit of being a learning organization.”
