The Sellafield Product and Residue Store Retreatment Plant (SRP) project is part of a £1bn-£1.5bn project funded by the NDA (Nuclear Decommissioning Authority) to provide safe storage of special nuclear material for at least 100 years. Delivered through the Programme and Project Partners (PPP) model, the project involves the construction of a seismically designed reinforced concrete structure which will act as an annexe to an existing facility.
Kier awarded the project to Enigma due to both organisations working together previously on significant projects at Sellafield. The project scope includes the provision of an innovative and cost-effective access solution to facilitate the formwork, reinforcement and concreting by Kier.
Enigma has been trusted to deliver complex projects on-site at Sellafield for over a decade and have taken advantage of their partnership with HAKI. Due to the system scaffolding incorporating efficiency and adaptability benefits, coupled with an unrivalled safe system of work, Enigma have been able to achieve productivity far greater than would be possible with conventional scaffolding. The HAKI scaffold structure has been designed by Enigma’s in-house Design & Engineering Team and requires up to 800 tonnes of equipment and will reach a height of 29 metres.
SRP is one of Sellafield’s biggest construction projects and is set to be ready for active commissioning in 2027. It leverages investment from Sellafield Ltd and its delivery partners, creating long-term construction and manufacturing opportunities for the local and national economies.
The storage of degraded SNM packages in several different stores across Sellafield Ltd presents an intolerable risk position from the potential loss of containment from the failure of a single package. The SRP is required to safely and securely treat and re-package that material into new 100-year packages that will be transferred into the Sellafield Product and Residue Store for long-term storage.
SRP was originally initiated under traditional Sellafield Ltd project delivery practices and transferred to PPP in 2019 during the first year of the new contract model. Each of PPP’s current major projects play a vital role in ensuring colleagues can safely empty ponds and silos, manage the waste and store it safely for decades to come.
This has been a pivotal year for SRP as it transitioned from design to construction. Following approval of the full business case, the project has progressed at pace, including procurement of key delivery packages, resulting in being ahead of its overall target schedule.
The casting of the first-floor slab has been completed, construction has commenced on the second-floor walls and the contract is placed for structural steelwork.
To date, the project has successfully awarded 59 contracts including its the supply of a critical glovebox process system and a £40 million heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) contract in February 2022. The HVAC contract marked the first time a major project delivered through the PPP model had awarded a material contract via PPP’s multi-project procurement approach.
The project has also introduced an industry- leading immersive digital experience for the construction site. Building Information Modelling (BIM) has been used on Sellafield projects for a while now, creating interactive 3D plans to guide construction work. The new system provides a ‘BIM cave’ in the project’s open plan office area. The ‘cave’ provides an immersive interactive touchscreen, and is compatible with all software solutions required on the project.
