We are pleased to report that the NRC’s triennial inspection of the Company’s Quality Assurance Program at the Corporate Technology Center in Marlton, New Jersey, was concluded on June 27, 2014. During the exit interview, the NRC inspection team cited NO violations. The weeklong audit by four NRC inspectors evaluated the processes and implementation of various aspects of the Company’s QA Program including engineering design and analysis, configuration and process control, corrective action, audits, training and 10CFR72.48 implementation. In the close-out meeting, the inspection team praised several elements of our quality program including the composition and comprehensiveness of the technical reports and the corrective action program as well as our document control system.
As is NRC’s practice, the headquarters management reserves the right to modify the inspection conclusions in the final report, which is expected within 45 days.
Earlier this year, the NRC’s triennial inspection of Holtec’s Manufacturing Division (HMD) was also performed (week of March 10-14, 2014). During this inspection, three inspectors from the NRC evaluated implementation of the manufacturing controls at HMD to verify compliance to applicable codes and standards, Holtec’s licensing commitments and Holtec’s QA Program. In addition to the review of manufacturing controls, the inspection also evaluated procurement processes, vendor qualification, and commercial grade dedication controls which are primarily implemented at Holtec’s Corporate Technology Center location. NO violations were identified during the inspection of HMD. While a violation-free inspection by the NRC is uncommon, we are pleased to recall that we had a similar inspection outcome seven years ago in 2007.
Congratulating the Corporate Technology Center personnel by an email from London, Dr. Kris Singh, Holtec’s President and CEO, asked them to remain focused on “our relentless drive for excellence that has brought us this success”, adding the cautionary note “it is hard for anyone to learn any lessons from success. We must remain vigilant because success breeds complacency. We must continue our quality enhancement initiatives with undiminished vigor if we are to remain an industry leader in quality assurance.”
Holtec’s QA Program is maintained on NRC’s Docket #71-0784. Mark Soler, Holtec’s Vice President of Quality, is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and life-long quality professional with over 27 years of stewardship of the Company’s quality program under his belt. The Company’s quality department consists of 38 in-house staff (quality managers, quality engineers and inspectors) and 14 contracted inspectors located in 4 operation centers. The quality department hosts a large number of audits and surveillances by clients and client groups, such as the Nuclear Procurement Issues Committee (NUPIC), each year.
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