COVER STORY | SIMULATION AND REMOTE WORKING
operates in a sandbox environment, air gapped from Sellafield’s IT systems – onto the robot. But the team is optimistic this can be navigated, and the first simulator- tested programme will be running by next year.
The benefits of robot simulation Virtual simulations are not perfect, and some in-cell fine tuning will still be needed. But, all being well, the benefits of such a simulator should be significant. The potential time saving is the most obvious advantage. Sellafield Ltd estimates that a best-case scenario would see the number of days human programmers need to be sent into cells cut from 10 to two. That frees up engineers, but also reduces the cost of sending people into a cell in full air-fed PPE. Risk reduction is just as important. Less time in the cell
means less exposure to hazards. This supports ALARP (As Low as Reasonably Practicable) – a UK safety principle requiring decommissioning sites to keep risks to people as low as possible while at a reasonable cost/effort. The simulator also enables more experimentation. New sequences can be trialled to explore the robot’s capabilities, for example, creating a sequence to pick up a tool should it become dislodged. All of this excites the robot programmers at Sellafield,
who look forward to spending more time at a computer, and less time in uncomfortable suits going through laborious programming motions. Finally, the simulator is a powerful tool for training
for the robot’s operators. Because it mirrors the real cell visually and operationally, the simulator is ideal for SQEP (Suitably Qualified and Experienced Person) training and familiarisation, maintenance rehearsals, and pre-job briefs. Instead of looking through CCTV to make assessments, operators can step inside an interactive, risk-free version of the environment, making learning faster, safer, and more accurate.
The wider potential of Sellefield simulation The PFCS Operational Simulator is a first of its kind at Sellafield but hopes not to be the last. Early candidates
for expansion include the Box Encapsulation Plant (BEP) and the Encapsulated Product Store-Waste Transfer Route (EPS-WTR), where robots carry out waste manipulation, size reduction, bolting, swabbing and other precision handling tasks in areas with little or no human access. In BEP, for example, the level of hazard in some cells will make human entry impossible, and operators will have to rely on camera feeds with limited depth perception to carry out operations. A simulator here would allow safe and accurate programming and troubleshooting, as well as greater availability of training. With two similar robots already in operation, and at
least another 10 coming once BEP is online, there is clear potential for scaling robot simulators across Sellafield. What’s more, other NDA estate sites face similar challenges, and the technology could serve as a blueprint for robot simulations across many sites.
The value of collaboration The ability to create this simulator rests on the combination of expertise brought together through the RAICo partnership. Sellafield Ltd had the knowledge of its own site and has long recognised the value of advanced digital simulation, but did not have the specialist robotics and 3D visualisation capabilities in-house. RAICo, with its blend of nuclear engineering, robotics, and software development capabilities had developed tools and expertise to solve this problem, though working collaboratively with Sellafield to understand the specific on-site setups and challenges was just as important. The result is a robust tool, delivered faster and more cost- effectively – a win for Sellafield Ltd and the taxpayer. Commenting, Rav Chunilal, Head of Robotics and Artificial
Intelligence at Sellafield Ltd, said “this collaboration with RAICo is accelerating our mission and setting a new benchmark for innovation in nuclear decommissioning which can be repeated across Sellafield and other NDA group operating companies.” Simulations are not entirely new. They are proven, well-
Above: The simulator models a 6-axis industrial robot arm used to unbolt empty containers, send them to be filled with waste, and then securely bolt up the returning containers for onward transfer
34 | September 2025 |
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understood, and widely used in industries like aerospace. However, they are still novel in nuclear decommissioning which has been slower to embrace them due to strict safety protocols around deploying new technologies. This project is changing that and, once proven, Sellafield Ltd hopes to accelerate the use of simulators quickly. This project is, of course, part of a wider drive across the Sellafield site and the NDA estate to embrace digital tools to improve safety and efficiency, examples of which range from UAVs and robot quadrupeds, to virtual training and glovebox automation. Nuclear decommissioning is enormously complex and must be done to extremely high safety standards. Today’s decommissioning sites involve a wide range of remediation tasks in a wide variety of challenging spaces – none of which were designed with modern technologies in mind. Robotics and digital technologies hold obvious potential to accelerate this mission. There is no single solution that will solve everything – the challenges and risks are too diverse. Sites like Sellafield must deploy robots and AI with precision, targeted challenge-by-challenge, with each deployment making nuclear decommissioning tasks safer and more efficient – collectively accelerating the process and reducing the risk and cost of nuclear decommissioning. ■
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