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Final gloveboxes removed for redundant facility
Sellafield Ltd achieved a major milestone at the end of November as the final of 57 gloveboxes was removed from a redundant fuel fabrication facility on the Sellafield site.
Radiological conditions in the facility meant that the project could only be tackled by air-fed-suits operators.
Using a combination of manual and remote techniques, gloveboxes as large as four cubic metres have been successfully size reduced and packaged into over two thousand, 200 litre drums.
The fuel fabrication facility operated from 1971 to 1992 manufacturing mixed-oxide (MOX) fuel assemblies for the Dounreay Prototype Fast Reactor. The project team is now embarking on the final stages of decommissioning before the facility is ready for demolition.
Kevin Burns, Sellafield Ltd said: “Decommissioning these gloveboxes is not only physically demanding, but we’ve also overcome a number of issues with historic residues, air-fed-suit embargos, regulatory interest and waste routes. I’d like to pay credit to the project for their continued dedication.”
