Richard Seston
Director of external communications, Derby, United Kingdom +44 1332 22 5660
SNC-Lavalin’s Nuclear business has been awarded funding to build a fully autonomous robotic system to sort and segregate radioactive waste, as part of the ‘Sort & Seg’ innovation competition which is being run by the UK Government’s Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA), Magnox Ltd, Sellafield Ltd and Innovate UK.
The organisation was awarded the contract after successfully progressing from the first stage of the competition, which asked companies to submit proposals on how they could bring together innovative techniques and technology to optimise radioactive waste removal.
SNC-Lavalin will lead the development of a fully autonomous system, which transforms commercially off the shelf items and state-of-the-art robots into systems and software that can effectively and efficiently sort and segregate radioactive waste.
Chris Ball, Managing Director – Nuclear & Power, Atkins EMEA, said: “We’re always looking for ways to drive efficiency and safety, and securing funding for our prototype provides us with a great opportunity to apply innovative solutions to do this in the nuclear industry. This contract builds on our expertise in successfully designing and installing pioneering systems, and consolidates our position as a leader in this expanding market.”
The project will be led by SNC-Lavalin and supported by a consortium of automation company Cyan Tec Systems, equipment supplier Parajito Scientific Corporation and the Manufacturing Technology Centre, a research institute.
The appointment builds on SNC-Lavalin’s extensive portfolio as a trusted partner throughout the nuclear lifecycle, which includes designing, testing and installing robotic systems in the nuclear sector, across inspection and monitoring, maintenance, refurbishment and decommissioning.
Notes to editors
Atkins
Atkins is one of the world’s most respected design, engineering and project management consultancies, employing over 18,300 people across the UK, North America, Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and Europe. We build long-term trusted partnerships to create a world where lives are enriched through the implementation of our ideas.
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