RICHLAND, Wash. 鈥� Just over a year after breaking ground, crews recently completed construction of a protective enclosure, or 鈥渃ocoon,鈥� around another former plutonium production reactor at the Hanford Site, leaving just one more to go.

This EM 2022 priority, completed ahead of schedule and under budget, marks a significant accomplishment in the EM risk-reduction cleanup mission along the Columbia River.

One of EM鈥檚 key construction priorities for 2022, the huge steel structure is more than 120 feet tall and 150 feet wide. The interim safe storage structure will protect the K East Reactor building while the radioactivity in the deactivated reactor core decays over the next several decades, making it safer to complete disposition of the reactor in the future.

鈥淥ur team continues to deliver taxpayer value by safely completing projects that reduce risks to our region. This achievement is monumental and continues the exceptional progress we are making in cleaning up the Hanford site.鈥�

Workers with the 爱神传媒 led EM contractor Central Plateau Cleanup Company (CPCCo) broke ground on the project last fall after awarding a subcontract to a local business for the work in August 2021.

Earlier this year, crews finished backfilling and compacting the area around the former reactor with approximately 34,000 cubic yards of sand and gravel to level the site before pouring a 6-foot-thick concrete foundation to support construction of the cocoon. The first steel columns for the enclosure were placed in mid-May with construction of the frame and installation of metal sheeting on the walls and roof continuing through the summer.

The cocoon鈥檚 design allows for routine inspections of the reactor every five years. During this 鈥渃heckup,鈥� radiation technicians will confirm that no contamination is leaving the sealed reactor core, and that nothing is entering the building from the outside. Additional safety features include new lighting between the structure and the reactor building, as well as upgraded lighting inside the building.

鈥淚鈥檓 very proud of our team鈥檚 performance on this complex project. So many different skillsets were needed to successfully complete this work. From laborers to trades and crafts to the support of the Department and our regulators, it was a true collaborative effort, and we did it all with a spotless safety record.鈥�

The K East Reactor operated from 1955 to 1971 and is the seventh of Hanford鈥檚 nine former reactors to be cocooned. The nearby K West Reactor will be the eighth. The ninth, the B Reactor, has been preserved as the world鈥檚 first full-scale plutonium production reactor and is part of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. Hanford鈥檚 other six reactors were cocooned between 1998 and 2012.

John Eschenberg

President, CPCCo

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When learning about digital engineering, I could not help but reminisce on my 12^th grade AP physics class, in which this language and business major happened to get an A+. Inevitably, in every homework assignment, was the dreaded word problem. Oh, how I hated the word problems and their obnoxious attempts at real-world applicability.

A constant force of 1200 N is required to push a car along a straight line. A person displaces the car 45 m. How much work is done by the person?

The answer to that question is of course, 鈥淲ay too much. They should鈥檝e called AAA.鈥� Also, why was it always a car in these problems, and who in their right mind is pushing a car 45 meters? For the record, I think these word problems are why I ended up majoring in foreign languages and business, not engineering.

Jokes aside, in learning how the laws of physics governed everything in the observable universe 鈥� from a feather falling in a vacuum to the escape velocity of space shuttles 鈥� I began to see everything as a math problem with infinite possible inputs and outputs. From the infinitesimally small to the incomprehensibly large, physics could model just about anything.

While the idea of creating models to solve problems is not new, technology is now at the stage where we can realistically create digital models of the physical world by taking in all the 鈥減hysics鈥� data. There are no physical prototypes made of F1 racing cars. Every aspect of the racecar is modeled with digital twins from the mass, engine torque, turn handling, tire interaction with the road, and even the driver鈥檚 handling ability. Only one physical racecar is built.

Ok, maybe the word problems about cars make sense!

So, what is Digital Engineering? At 爱神传媒, we view digital engineering as the application of computer hardware, software, networks, systems, and cloud technologies to model highly complex physical environments over real-world scenarios. We have made several investments to help our customers realize a digital engineering transformation.

Advancing Our Clients into the Future. 爱神传媒 established a 6,000 sq. ft. Model Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) Collaboration Center complete with a comprehensive digital engineering tool suite. We offer Object Management Group (OMG)-Certified Systems Modeling Professional (OCSMP) certification and training. Our subject matter experts have developed a Digital Engineering Playbook that aligns with both the and the to define our standards and practices.

Successes. These investments have led to numerous successes for our customers. We created a full digital twin of an entire U.S. Navy nuclear submarine including models for all mechanical, electrical, fire suppression, hull integrity, navigation, and non-propulsion electronic systems. This digital twin is a critical MBSE solution for the Columbia-class submarine acquisition category (ACAT I) program. Our team has also created digital twins which simulate hundreds of Electro-Optical/Intra-Red (EO/IR) and Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) sensor nodes and sensor data fusion to support the Army鈥檚 replacement of the multiple integrated laser engagement system, or MILES, for soldier field combat exercises.

Through our investments, our customers across DoD have realized several benefits of digital engineering:

1. Reduction in Acquisition Risks: Systems are designed, assembled, tested and sustained using digital models thereby reducing learning curve and integration risks. Even partial digitization can reduce risk in systems.
2. Reduction in Maintenance: The ability to test via data driven analysis promotes accurate change impact analysis by enabling traceability from requirements to solution. Ultimately this allows sustainment costs to be compared and more accurately predicted.
3. Preserving Material Resources: Entire systems can be designed and integrated before having to bend any metal. It provides risk-free experimentation because changes can be made without affecting the supply chain.
4. Integrated Data Environment: Diverse data streams can be pulled into a unified model for a 鈥渨all of truth.鈥� This model aids and improves communications by adopting a common language that ensures standardized semantics, clarity, and consistency for representing system architecture and design.

Conclusion. 爱神传媒鈥檚 robust digital engineering practice is extremely well aligned with our customer鈥檚 MBSE requirements.

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Security group photo features currently adoptable lab mix Miss Ruby Shae

Last week, members of the One 爱神传媒 corporate security team held a team building event at a local no-kill animal shelter, Friends of Homeless Animals (FOHA) in Aldie, Virginia. Twelve security team members volunteered to assist the local non-profit by cleaning the adoption center, the welcome center and the catteries, performing laundry services, splitting wood for public donation, and exercising a number of really cute dogs that are up for adoption.

鈥淥ne of our teammates, Elizabeth Rauenzahn, regularly volunteers at FOHA, and brought the idea forward to management and we found considerable interest and support from the security team,鈥� said Paige Greenaway, VP Program Security. 鈥淲e agreed to take some personal time and effort to get to know each other better and help out a great cause!鈥�

Sean Scott, a security team volunteer, said 鈥淭his was a wonderful event and a great teambuilding opportunity brought about by one of our own that further demonstrated the commitment to teamwork at One 爱神传媒, and helped cement our internal relationships.鈥�

The FOHA has more for individuals or groups, including cat snuggling or dog walking, and is holding an through November 4.

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Management of groundwater is a major concern as our population continues to grow. Groundwater provides drinking water for as much as 50% of the global population and accounts for 43% of all of water used for irrigation. Globally, 2.5 billion people depend solely on groundwater to satisfy their basic daily water needs. Solving groundwater management problems are essential to ensure clean drinking water for the global population, including the people in the United States.

Additionally, groundwater supports rivers, lakes, and wetlands and the major threat to groundwater is pollution resulting from human activity that has created chemicals and wastes which leak into the subsurface. Pollution degrades the quality of groundwater and poses a threat to human and ecological health.

A major threat to groundwater is pollution resulting from chemicals and wastes that have leaked into the subsurface. Pollution reduces the quality of groundwater and poses a significant threat to human and ecological health. As the human population continues to grow, more demand will be placed on our groundwater resources. The need for understanding our groundwater systems and for managing them correctly, is greater than ever.

Protecting Our Groundwater

Recently, a new set of emerging contaminants has been found to be widespread throughout the United States and in drinking water supplies. Our federal agencies are taking action to address this issue. The groundwater contamination challenge across the country exists in various geological formations, making a solution at one site, not effective for a solution at another.

The challenge is to find the correct set of remediation tools that will remove the groundwater contamination as quickly and as cost effectively as possible. Some of the tools that can be implemented include pump and treat in situ remediation, and thermal remediation. These tools, when combined, can effectively shorten the remediation timeline, and make for a cost-effective solution.

爱神传媒’s Capabilities in Solving the Problem

爱神传媒鈥檚 experience with the Department of Energy and other federal and state agencies is enormous鈥�.we take on the most hazardous, the most complex chemicals in very challenging environmental locations. Our capabilities with environmental monitoring, predicting the outcomes through sophisticated groundwater modeling, developing, and deploying appropriate technology, operating it safely and compliantly and in open relationship with the client stakeholders and the public make us uniquely situated to help solve this emerging problem.

爱神传媒 is committed to our role in addressing the groundwater crisis. With proven experience in high hazard environments and diverse capabilities that span the full life cycle of the environmental market, 爱神传媒 is uniquely positioned to address current needs and lead the way in discovering answers to groundwater challenges yet to be solved.

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John Heller, third from right, joined UCOR and other 爱神传媒 officials on a tour of UCOR work sites, including ORNL’s Building 3010, pictured.

John Heller, CEO of 爱神传媒, visited the Oak Ridge, TN nuclear reservation recently and toured sites at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Y-12 National Security Complex, and East Tennessee Technology Park. He also met with local community leaders, including Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch, Oak Ridge City Councilman Pastor Derrick Hammond, Roane County Executive Wade Creswell, and President of Roane State Community College Dr. Chris Whaley.

鈥淭he 爱神传媒-led UCOR team is doing superb work in achieving the DOE Environmental Cleanup mission at the Oak Ridge Nuclear Reservation. Our visit last week was a great opportunity for 爱神传媒 senior leadership, including CEO John Heller, to see firsthand the cleanup accomplishments at ETTP, ORNL and Y-12,鈥� said Mark Whitney, President of 爱神传媒鈥檚 National Security Group.

爱神传媒 senior leaders received a UCOR program overview and briefings on reindustrialization and economic development and workforce development, before touring UCOR critical project locations.

About UCOR

UCOR is a joint venture responsible for cleanup and remedial actions at the East Tennessee Technology Park (ETTP), and cleanup of excess facilities at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Y-12 National Security Complex. UCOR efforts include design, construction, and operation of the new onsite Environmental Management Disposal Facility, operational activities and surveillance and maintenance for multiple facilities, and core functions for central and project services. The contract is a single award IDIQ contract with a 10-year ordering period with an estimated contract ceiling of approximately $8.3 billion. 爱神传媒-led UCOR has a long history of supporting the DOE鈥檚 environmental management programs and recently delivered historic success in cleaning up DOE鈥檚 uranium enrichment complex ahead of schedule and under budget at the 2,200-acre ETTP complex.

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鈥淲e provide our clients a proactive edge by leveraging an advanced program that enhances data quality through real-time visibility, improved inspections and data readings to increase our asset knowledge and predictive maintenance capabilities and analysis,鈥� said聽Dr. Karl Spinnenweber, President of 爱神传媒鈥檚 Critical Missions Group. 鈥淥ur award-winning approach decreases mean time to repair and increases mean time between failures for our client鈥檚 key assets by taking advantage of the quality data gained via Maximo鈥檚 Mobile Informer app and analyzing it through a robust data analytics platform.鈥�

鈥淲e are honored to receive this recognition from IBM and value our long-term partnership. Our Maximo Center of Excellence is based on data centered decision-making,鈥� said聽Jill Bruning, President of 爱神传媒鈥檚 Engineering, Science and Technology Group. 鈥淎nd, thanks to our innovative and progressive approach to implementing IBM Maximo, we are making the best possible decisions for our clients based on the highest quality analytical data.鈥�

爱神传媒 provided faster response time to its clients by improving productivity, reducing costs and downtime, and leveraging mobility for rapidly routing and dispatching assignments. The level of insight and intelligence into asset data allows 爱神传媒 to most accurately track labor, materials, and the overall cost of maintaining an asset.

爱神传媒’s emphasis on mobility has also resulted in significant gains for its clients’ sustainability initiatives. 爱神传媒 was able to eliminate reliance on paper-based procedures and immensely improve data collection and quality, leading to one client in particular saving tens of thousands of dollars in annual paper, toner, and labor costs, as well as a near 20,000-pound reduction in annual C02 emissions.

Another of 爱神传媒鈥檚 clients, a prominent construction equipment manufacturer, saw asset availability increase five percent while corrective maintenance work order volume and labor hours decreased an average of 50 percent.

Through its superior asset data governance, 爱神传媒 fosters excellent data quality, asset knowledge, and decision-making for its clients around the world.

Figure 1 L-R: Jill Bruning, President ES&T; John Heller, CEO; Vlad Bacalu, SVP Strategic & Technical Solutions; Dr. Karl Spinnenweber, President CM

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The meeting, set up by the 爱神传媒 longtime partner Tri-City Development Council (TRIDEC), featured representatives from TRIDEC, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and local agriculture who all shared ideas for economic recovery, diversification and expansion in the Fukushima Hamadouri area.

The Japanese delegation has created a sister organization 鈥� Fukushima Hamadouri TRIDEC 鈥� to emulate the successful framework TRIDEC uses in the Tri-Cities area. The group has partnered with local business, municipal governments, institutions of higher education and other organizations to create a vibrant and thriving community surrounding the Hanford Site.

John Eschenberg, center, recently joined, from left, Jens Rasmussen, AgriNorthwest; David Reeploeg, TRIDEC; Karl Dye, TRIDEC; Mark Triplett, PNNL; Takayuki Nakamura, FH-TRIDEC; and Rina Matsumoto, FH-TRIDEC to discuss ideas for community revitalization in Fukushima Hamadouri, Japan.

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The catch phrase of the post-quarantined workforce seems to be, 鈥渨ork where you are most effective鈥� – meaning effectiveness can happen anywhere, whether the employee is working from home, a coffee shop, or the office.

This phrase perfectly captures the value Americans place on individualistic culture over the collective culture. Replace the word you with your organization and you get, 鈥渨ork where your organization is most effective.鈥� Individual effectiveness should not be at the expense of the organization. Organizations are a collective culture, a team of teams. Greater value should always be placed on the teams鈥� effectiveness over the individuals.

However, the American workforce is changing. And it was happening well before the pandemic. The pandemic just magnified an already changing dynamic in the way Americans work. Even before COVID鈥檚 Great Resignation, there was the rise of the Gig Economy triggered by declining dynamism is the U.S. labor market. People are fundamentally thinking differently about how they want to manage their lives, schedules, and work.

According to a study by , approximately 20% of the workforce could work remotely three to five days a week as effectively as they could if working from an office. The study goes on to analyze work production by the activities with the highest potential for remote work and the lowest potential for remote work. Not surprisingly, the tasks with the highest potential for remote work included online seminars and interaction with computers, whereas jobs requiring collaboration with physical products and people offered the least opportunity for remote work.

Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. In business school we are taught to turn weaknesses into strengths and threats into opportunities. The pandemic has certainly provided a serious threat to 鈥楤usiness As Usual,鈥� but it has also granted businesses the opportunity to quantifiably measure team productivity in a way that is unbiased by a mere physical presence at an office. Measuring organizational effectiveness often comes down to production. What is effectiveness if not the ability to successfully produce?

Authenticity. Businesses should not lament the perceived loss of team culture in a virtualized environment. The pandemic has given teams a truer view into the individual鈥檚 authentic selves thereby increasing our empathy and willingness to support the greater team. There are many best practices available for building remote teams for a distributed workforce.

A great equalizer. Remote work has become a great equalizer in some ways because now both organizational and individual effectiveness are measured by productivity. Work is about production. Employees cannot hide a lack of productivity behind the water cooler anymore. Unconscious biases (age, gender, race, attractiveness, or even perceived dedication) that may arise merely from an employee鈥檚 physical presence at work are minimized in a virtual environment.

Right size team efforts. A remote workforce allows leaders to focus the team on what is strategically important. We have the opportunity to rebalance the 鈥�20% of the workforce who perform 80% of the effort鈥� and have fair production across the team.

Make the most of in-person engagements. Offsites, teambuilding exercises and in-person training are more fruitful now because the team makes the most of limited time spent face to face. Quality over quantity means less frequent, but more impactful face to face time.

Utilize technology. Business can take advantage of monitoring technology which provides metrics on when employees start work, how much time they spend on given tasks, or how much time their computer is idle. These tools can provide better insights into employee performance or how productive each employee is.

Independent consultants. IRS data on the number of issued W-2 and 1099-MISC forms can illuminate the changing nature of the American workforce. There has been a significant increase in the percentage of 1099-MISC issued since the year 2000. And contrary to popular belief, this is not due to the gig economy. The significant rise in the 1099 workforce began nearly a decade before Uber was founded in 2009 and Airbnb was founded in 2008. According to an article published by the , this trend has been happening due to declining dynamism, or decreasing rates of gross job gains and losses, in the U.S. labor market.

In closing, Corporate America must adapt to the Me vs. We, while still maintaining a competent, productive workforce and a culture that attracts the top candidates. Remote work provides several opportunities that can enhance effectiveness and productivity.

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Strategic partnerships with locally owned and regional small and small disadvantaged businesses benefit everyone and are fundamental to successful business outcomes. Customers benefit from the strengths and offerings each organization brings to the table, and employees expand their development opportunities by being exposed to new perspectives and expertise. There鈥檚 no better approach to solving complex challenges and strengthening the economy.

Fostering Partnerships

爱神传媒 has a very robust, proactive, and successful small business program that consistently exceeds our client鈥檚 subcontracting goals. Recognizing the benefits of maximizing small business participation not only results in significant cost efficiencies, but these partners serve a vital role in contributing to job growth and economic stability.

Our outreach initiatives include contracting with federal, state, local, and private small business development organizations. We attend small- and minority-business procurement conferences and trade fairs on a regular basis, and we maintain an extensive internal database of potential small businesses. From innovation to price point and community support, the benefits of strategic partnering with locally owned and regional small and small disadvantaged businesses are significant.

Did You Know:

• Small businesses produce 16x the patents per employee than larger firms
• They help reduce overhead costs
• Small businesses tend to live and work in their communities, partnering allows us to give back to those communities
• Their unique local perspective improves performance

Big breakthroughs and progress don鈥檛 happen in silos. Working collaboratively with partners generates the kind of energy that fuels growth, innovation, and creativity. Developing value-aligned partnerships that focus on common goals and complementary strengths is key to ensuring successful outcomes for all.

If You鈥檙e a Small Business Interested in Partnering鈥�

While the rewards are great, strategic partnerships require thoughtful consideration to ensure success is achieved. If you鈥檙e a small business considering a partnership with a larger company, we suggest the offer be examined critically and carefully.

The following are a few tips to consider:

• Do Your Research: Some partnership offers sound great on the surface but may not yield happy results.
• Develop a Unique Positioning Statement (UPS): Your UPS or value proposition should be compelling and feature your standout capabilities.
• Respond to Sources Sought: It鈥檚 vitally important for you to respond to sources sought notices or Request for Interests (these are not actual bids or proposal solicitations, it鈥檚 a solicitation of interest) with highly effective capability statements. Also, request a debriefing.
• Attend Outreach Sessions: Take this opportunity to network with other contractors
• Don鈥檛 Be Intimidated: You run a viable business of value, don鈥檛 let the trappings of the corporate world and government bureaucracy be intimidating.
• Maintain Independence: Autonomy is assured if you maintain ownership, be leery of turning over too much equity in the business in exchange for financial help.
• Establish Clear Open Communications: Good communication practices are essential to all business relationships, both internal and external. Alliances with a large company is no exception.

爱神传媒 is Proud to Help You Grow

爱神传媒 values the local knowledge of our small business partners across all the markets we serve, and we recognize the tremendous entrepreneurial spirit and innovation that exists in the small business community. We鈥檙e proud to help you build your capacity and improve your ability to compete for prime contracts.

We have a proven record and a well-defined process to mentor, guide, and train small business subcontractors who support the execution of our projects. The Federal Government has recognized our excellence in this area with multiple awards, and we continue our commitment to supplier diversity, awarding 53% of total corporate spend to a variety of small businesses in various categories.

爱神传媒 is committed to providing small businesses with maximum contracting opportunities and we proudly support locally owned and regional small businesses.

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Tomorrow鈥檚 Issues Are on our Doorstep Today

Environmental remediation, which includes soil, sediment, and groundwater cleanup, is extremely difficult. Unique geologic, hydrogeologic, and geochemical conditions could complicate the selection of an appropriate remediation approach. This may impact site and project objectives, adding complexity to the long-term cleanup strategy. Geology, including fractured bedrock and low-permeability media, determines pathways for contaminant migration. By understanding site-specific geologic conditions, clear data quality objectives are established to properly assess subsequent hydrogeology and geochemistry data sets. The data quality objectives guide the process that identifies the decisions to be made, specifies the quality requirements for those decisions, and develops a defensible sampling and analysis plan, which validates the remediation approach.

To Automate or Not to Automate鈥hat is the question

A robust groundwater sampling program is a key component in validating the effectiveness of the environmental remediation effort for a contaminated site. The overall goal is to obtain samples with no alteration in water chemistry within the formation. Data sets collected from monitoring wells, which help to understand contaminant transport and distribution within deep aquifers, are sometimes muddled by improper processes.

Automation is not always the best approach. Pneumatic pumps, operated by automated controllers, are typically chosen for low flow purging and sampling evolutions. However, automating the drawdown for low flow conditions is not an appropriate approach for wells with slow recharge. An unwanted instantaneous purge may occur when the rate of recharge is slower than the pumping rate or drawdown. Rapid removal of fluid in low hydraulic conductivity formations increases the velocity of liquid flowing back into the well. This creates turbulence and increases turbidity as the well recharges, which results in the inclusion of otherwise immobile artifactual particles. This phenomenon can overestimate certain analytes of interest, such as hydrophobic organic compounds and some metals, which may incorrectly conclude that the remediation efforts were unsuccessful.

Actinide Separation Techniques and Advances in Analytical Chemistry

Low-level determination of radionuclides (i.e., femtogram [10-15] level) within environmental samples previously involved a lengthy process, which was further complicated by low recoveries and poor precision. However, advances in analytical chemistry and actinide separation techniques have improved precision and increased sample recoveries. Automatic online separation methods using alpha spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry reduces the analytical time and effort required to determine low-level transuranic radionuclides in various sample media. This hybrid approach uses stacked extraction chromatography cartridges and vacuum box technology to facilitate rapid separations. By adjusting laboratory methods and separation techniques, the magnitude of compounding errors is minimized, which reduces the uncertainty within a data set.

Importance of Strong Stakeholder Relations

Sites are not only confronted with technical challenges regarding environmental remediation efforts, but they face nontechnical challenges including broad societal expectations and social acceptability, which impact long-term cleanup plans. Civic engagement creates and maintains a community that is educated, aware, motivated, and supportive. Strong stakeholder relationships are important because they allow sites to consider public values, concerns, and ideas before making a decision. If the public is not informed or integrated into the decision-making process, they may have reasons to doubt, criticize, or challenge permit renewals. It is crucial that leaders, who manage complex sites undergoing remediation, ensure that public engagement activities are informative and meaningful.

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