Canada-based L-3 MAPPS has been awarded a contract to upgrade the simulator at EDF Energy’s Sizewell B pressurized water reactor in the UK. The company will also provide ‘a host’ of other training devices, including classroom simulators and a 3D plant component library.
Work is already underway and is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2015.
The scope of the simulator upgrade includes ‘replatforming’ the current UNIX operating system-based simulator to new PC/Windows-based computers running L-3’s Orchid® simulation environment. The reactor core model will be upgraded with Orchid Core Builder to provide a higher-fidelity model, offering improved 2D and 3D visualization of the core parameters. The simulator’s containment model will also be upgraded in Orchid Modeling Environment.
In addition, L3 says the enhanced simulator will be equipped with new cameras and microphones to record training sessions and that it will include Orchid Sound System, which is used to generate control room sounds depending on the simulator scenario.
This will be the second time L-3 has worked with EDF Energy to upgrade the Sizewell B simulator following a renovation project in 2000-2002.
In addition to the simulator upgrade, the recent contract also includes the delivery of six classroom simulators based on L-3 MAPPS’ Orchid Touch Interface solution, supply of four touch-screen trainers, a 3-D PWR transient fundamentals trainer and a 3D plant component library.
Photo: Sizewell B simulator (Source: L-3 MAPPS)
