Sellafield robotics: Using spot more for spotless nuclear clean-up
Spot the dog and its fellow robots are transforming the future of clean-up work at Sellafield
Spot the dog has become a regular feature at Sellafield and a great mascot for the range of robotic tools and innovations that are transforming the way we work.
But it바카라 사이트s not all photo opportunities and test trials 바카라 사이트 spot has some serious work to do in cleaning up the Sellafield site and helping operators to stay out of harm바카라 사이트s way.
We recently deployed our robot canine into an active area at Sellafield for the first time, and it proved it was certainly up to the task.
Teams at Sellafield worked together on a project to understand the benefits of using spot to inspect and clean active cells that would normally require workers to enter in air-fed protective suits.
The safety benefits were immediately clear 바카라 사이트 this takes humans out of the hazardous area, reducing the risks to operators who can instead focus on the easier and more fulfilling job of operating spot remotely.
But this kind of innovative thinking brings time and cost efficiencies too. The work can be done faster as spot can work in these areas much longer than a human could safely do, and has halved the predicted costs and significantly reduced the waste generated from protective gear.
It바카라 사이트s the best example yet of the potential future for clean-up work on the Sellafield site, and shows how robots will work alongside humans as we work to create a clean and safe environment for future generations.
Charlotte Brew, sub project manager, Sellafield Ltd said:
We started with demonstrations of its potential and 6 months later, we바카라 사이트re using it to accelerate high hazard reduction. This work wasn바카라 사이트t meant to start happening until the late 2020s but identifying Spot like this has brought it forward. Just one robot dog is making a massive difference.
Sellafield Ltd operator, Paul Lupton said:
It바카라 사이트s about us being taken out of harm바카라 사이트s way. I do miss the hard work but I바카라 사이트ve no complaints about sitting down in a safe environment to get it done!
Before we would have 2 operators go in, and this would need up to 7 other people, taking up to 4 hours to prepare for an hour바카라 사이트s work. With Spot we do an hour, the battery runs out and we re-charge.
Even just an entry to take a photograph would be a major job. Now we just use the dog. It바카라 사이트s all there inside the cell waiting for you now.
Melanie Brownridge, Nuclear Decommissioning Authority technology and innovation director said:
This is a great example of taking innovation all the way through to deployment and being able to actually see the benefits being realised on our sites.
This exciting technology is helping move our people away from harm, reducing our costs significantly and could help us deliver our mission years earlier than planned.
We are also seeing the benefits across the NDA group as we share our experiences to overcome common challenges across multiple sites. Well done to the team for not only embracing innovation but making it business as usual 바카라 사이트 a great team effort.