AGR Core Hoist
| Contract: | AGR Core Hoist |
| Customer: | British Energy |
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| Details: |
NES has completed a contract for the manufacture, assembly, and works test of a seventh core inspection hoist. Commissioned by British Energy, the hoist will be used at all of their Advanced Gas-Cooled Reactors (AGR) around the country. Destined for service at the seven BE stations, the steel framed (3 m x 1 m x 2 m high) hoist, with its polycarbonate containment box, will be used to deploy a series of tools via two duplex chains, to undertake various inspection duties within the reactor cores. A typical inspection duty is to drill out samples from the moderator (graphite core bricks) and retrieve them to the containment box to allow analysis of the sample to be undertaken. An integral camera at the top of the chains monitors the tools as they are lowered and relays the images back to a screen mounted on the control console. Built-in glove ports in strategic positions in the containment box also assist working with the inspection tools. The contract covered the manufacture, assembly and test of the hoist, but extended to, at British Energy’s request, some significant design modifications to the system to simplify operation, overcome redundancy issues and improve functionality. |