| GLOBAL NUCLEAR Game changer A new approach to one of the most complex project portfolios in Europe


Above: Steelwork for Sellafield’s new SRP facility, one of the major projects led by PPP Image courtesy of Sellafield Ltd


IN TERMS OF ORGANIZATIONAL SCALE and complexity, decommissioning the Sellafield nuclear site in the U.K. ranks alongside building the Channel Tunnel. So says David Morton, who leads Jacobs’ role as design and engineering partner for Sellafield Ltd, the company that is cleaning up the site on behalf of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, a government body. A mechanical engineer by qualification, David worked in oil and gas for more than 30 years before this unique opportunity tempted him into the nuclear industry. David says: “I was attracted by the potential for immense


growth and development here, especially given Sellafield management’s desire to see West Cumbria emulate the way Aberdeen transformed itself on the back of North Sea oil into a diverse, global centre of excellence.” Over the next 19 years, Jacobs and its fellow members of


the Programme and Project Partner (PPP) framework – KBR, Morgan Sindall and Doosan Babcock – will be responsible for delivering a £7.5bn engineering and construction program. This comprises a series of major projects, each costing hundreds of millions of pounds, including a new ion exchange plant, a new plant to repackage thousands of cans of special nuclear material, and a huge upgrade of the site’s analytical laboratories.


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All are vital to the 100-year program to retrieve, treat and


safely store waste at Sellafield, which is home to the world’s largest store of civil plutonium. Jacobs employs 200 people on PPP – in Cumbria and


Warrington – in a variety of disciplines: mechanical; heating ventilation and air conditioning; control, electrical and instrumentation; civil, structural and architectural; plant design management; safety; environmental; and process. Sellafield Ltd has described PPP as a ‘game changer’


for the supply chain, creating long-term relationships with partners, developing closer working practices, and delivering projects and hazard reduction faster without compromising safety standards. David, Jacobs’ PPP Programme Director, says: “We have


put together a diverse team of talented individuals – from many different industrial sectors – to help lead this change and deliver some of the most complex portfolios of construction projects in Europe. Sellafield is going to be one of the most interesting places to work in the next few years for engineers who relish the challenge of innovative, first- of-a-kind projects, so it’s a great time to join us.” David’s aim is for PPP engineering to make such a


difference that it transforms not only Sellafield but also the public image of the nuclear industry.


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