Orano’s Fabrication Facilities in North Carolina Achieve ISO 9001 Quality Certification
BETHESDA, Md., December 5, 2024 – Orano USA is proud to announce the recent recognition of its manufacturing quality standards by receiving ISO 9001 certification for both of its fabrication facilities in North Carolina.
The Orano teams manufacture large NUHOMS® stainless steel dry storage used nuclear fuel canisters and packages for the transport of nuclear materials for fuel fabrication, new fuel assemblies, low-level and high-level waste, and HALEU to support
the current and future nuclear fleet.
ISO 9001 is a globally recognized standard for quality management that emphasizes risk-based decision-making, continuous improvement, and enhancing the customer experience. Its requirements define
how to establish, implement, maintain, and continually improve a quality management system (QMS).
“Our teams worked hard to establish and perform at this high-quality standard to earn the ISO 9001 designation,” said Rebecca
Stewart, president, TN Americas. “Our strong team leadership, skilled workforce, established manufacturing processes, and a strong nuclear safety conscious work environment helped to achieve this certification.”
As an example
of the enhanced quality manufacturing, the large-diameter, minimum 14-foot-long dry storage canister shells require precisely cutting, shaping, and welding thick stainless steel alloy sheets and end caps to exact standards and customer requirements.
Each canister is also filled with a “basket” of specially shaped interlocking metal alloy plates that partitions the interior into long rectangular spaces to hold the used fuel assemblies.
“This prestigious certification
highlights our commitment to quality and excellence in manufacturing,” said Michael Cameron, facility director, TNF. “Achieving this certification signifies our dedication to integrating these principles into our daily operations, ensuring
that we consistently meet and exceed industry standards. This commitment is obvious at all levels in our organization, from the welders and I&C operators to shipping and management. I am very proud to be part of this excellent team.”
Located in North Carolina, Orano's fabrication workforce includes 80 employees at two manufacturing workshops with a combined workspace of 140,000 square feet. The assembly and welding workshop in Kernersville manufactures canisters for securely
containing used nuclear fuel inside NUHOMS dry storage modules. The second workshop in Greensboro is dedicated to manufacturing front-end packages, including the UX-30 and the DN-30, for the transport of enriched uranium (UF6) for making nuclear fuel.
The Greensboro site is also testing fabrication methods for Orano’s new 30B-X uranium transport canister for advanced reactor fuels.
To help build its future workforce, TNF and its employees support regional STEM education
programs encouraging students to explore career paths in skilled trades, manufacturing, and engineering.
Learn more about Orano’s TN Fabrication facility in Kernersville.
Multiple manufacturing lines efficiently fabricate dry storage canisters for used nuclear fuel at Orano’s TNF facility in Kernersville, NC.
An employee adjusts the overhead crane’s lifting yoke for moving a NUHOMS EOS canister within the TNF Kernersville facility.
The EOS internal basket is efficiently assembled without welding before being placed inside the canister.
TNF Greensboro is structured to manufacture a variety of fuel cycle front-end uranium transport casks and back-end casks, such as this transfer cask for loading and moving a canister with used nuclear fuel from the reactor’s wet storage pool to onsite dry storage.
Download this press release (PDF).