Y-12 Blog

Posted: Monday, July 25, 2016 - 5:26pm

CNS Supply Chain Manager Skip Skelton addresses Blount Partnership members at New Hope Center.CNS Supply Chain Manager Skip Skelton addresses Blount Partnership members at New Hope Center.

Members of the Blount Partnership Chamber of Commerce toured the Y-12 National Security Complex. For most, it was their first time on the site.

“What a great opportunity for our Chamber VIP members to learn about and see the Y-12 property,” said Tammi Ford, vice president of the Blount Partnership.

The tour, which was attended by 27 business men and women, was sponsored by CNS and the Blount Partnership. As part of their visit, the members also received information on how they might do business at Y-12.

CNS Vice President for Operations Support Darrell Graddy told the VIPs about the enduring importance of Y-12’s national security mission and how local business can help and profit.

“The opportunities for small business are enormous,” Graddy said to the group.

The VIPs also heard from CNS Director of Supply Chain Management Skip Skelton and Uranium Processing Facility Acquisition Services Manager Rich Brown. Skelton talked about how to do business with CNS and Y-12; and Brown discussed the business opportunities surrounding the $6.5-billion UPF project.

“We were enlightened on the history, the future plans of the site and the opportunities available for small business,” said Ford. “It was a great relationship building event and our hope is to do an expanded tour in the future.”

Posted: Monday, July 25, 2016 - 5:00pm

Director of Assembly/Disassembly Operations Abe Mathews (left) gives the USS Tennessee sailors a behind the scenes look at Y–12.Director of Assembly/Disassembly Operations Abe Mathews (left) gives the USS Tennessee sailors a behind the scenes look at Y-12.

When the USS Tennessee patrols the world’s oceans, stealthily submerged to depths unknown, the Ohio Class ballistic missile submarine is capable of carrying a payload of Trident II missiles tipped with W76 or W88 warheads.

The crewmembers — and the nation — have come to accept the steadfast reliability of those warheads that are produced as a result of work at Y-12, Pantex and elsewhere across the Nuclear Security Enterprise, but during a recent visit to Oak Ridge, five USS Tennessee sailors got a first hand look at exactly what goes into ensuring the safety, security and effectiveness of the nation’s nuclear arsenal.

“It gave us an appreciation of the infrastructure that is there to enable this capability for us to go out and perform our mission,” said the USS Tennessee’s Commanding Officer Chas McLenithan.

It was the first trip to Y-12 for McLenithan and four others.

While in Knoxville for Navy Week, they made a special visit to Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Y-12, touring a production facility and the Highly Enriched Uranium Materials Facility. Joining McLenithan was Lt. Colin Williams, the submarine’s assistant weapons officer, as well as Master Chief Stacy R. Hammann, First Class Petty Officer Bryan Lynch and Second Class Petty Officer Merlin Hyland.

During the tour, they were briefed on assembly and disassembly operations at Y-12 and saw where the nation’s highly enriched uranium is stored. With the importance of the nuclear deterrent as significant as it was decades ago, they emerged with a message that reinforced the credibility of U.S. nuclear arsenal.

“It definitely gave me a newfound appreciation for this part of the mission,” Williams said. “You do the same processes day in and day out, but you see all these patriotic people doing their job and doing it well. Everyone was very energetic and so enthused about what they did, explaining their processes to us as the end user. It was a great experience to talk to them and to say you guys make a great product. We know we can always count on them.”

Williams added, “What we saw was pretty amazing stuff, stuff you don’t get to see in your everyday job. Us being the end user, it definitely stood out in my mind.”

Their submarine may bear the name Tennessee, but what was tucked in the hills of Oak Ridge was still a revelation.

“The amount of generations that have built up the capability they have there, the initial developers and the maintainers now, and the technical ability that goes into that and is still invested in keeping us able to do our mission was a real eye opener,” McLenithan said.

Posted: Thursday, July 7, 2016 - 9:16am

Pantex’s Darla Fish greets an Ascension Academy student as teams check in for the National Science Bowl® at the National 4-H Youth Conference Center in Maryland.Pantex’s Darla Fish greets an Ascension Academy student as teams check in for the National Science Bowl® at the National 4-H Youth Conference Center in Maryland.

Our nation’s capital recently played host to the country’s future science and technology leaders during the U.S. Department of Energy’s 26th National Science Bowl®.

The 116 regional winning teams and their coaches, hailing from the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, assembled at the National 4-H Youth Conference Center for an action-packed five days of science activities, sightseeing and competition.

Three of the teams — Amarillo High School and Ascension Academy (middle school) from Texas and Cedar Springs Home School (high school) from Tennessee — won regional competitions sponsored by Consolidated Nuclear Security, LLC.

Learn more on the Pantex website.

Posted: Thursday, July 7, 2016 - 9:16am

The RoHAWKtics robotics team at Hardin Valley Academy, sponsored by Consolidated Nuclear Security, LLC, achieved a top 50 ranking at the FIRST® Robotics Championship in St. Louis. The RoHAWKtics robotics team at Hardin Valley Academy, sponsored by Consolidated Nuclear Security, LLC, achieved a top 50 ranking at the FIRST® Robotics Championship in St. Louis.

Our nation’s capital recently played host to the country’s future science and technology leaders during the U.S. Department of Energy’s 26th National Science Bowl®.

The 116 regional winning teams and their coaches, hailing from the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, assembled at the National 4-H Youth Conference Center for an action-packed five days of science activities, sightseeing and competition.

Three of the teams — Amarillo High School and Ascension Academy (middle school) from Texas and Cedar Springs Home School (high school) from Tennessee — won regional competitions sponsored by Consolidated Nuclear Security, LLC.

Learn more on the Pantex website.

Posted: Thursday, July 7, 2016 - 8:37am

Pantex’s Felicia Bellis uses controls to move a turntable of the microfocus X-ray machine, one of many technologies Pantex technicians use to ensure quality.Pantex’s Felicia Bellis uses controls to move a turntable of the microfocus X-ray machine, one of many technologies Pantex technicians use to ensure quality.

Pantex and Y 12 are hotbeds for the advancement of science and technology. The scope of our research and development has widened from a single focus World War II defense mission to a plethora of capabilities to address today’s nuclear security challenges.

Y-12 recently developed a high-efficiency thermal neutron detector. The detector is a single-crystalline device that could be used in handheld nuclear nonproliferation and homeland security applications to locate fissile materials. This solid-state neutron detector offers the significant advantages of portability, sensitivity, simplicity and low cost.

Pantex is home to the world’s only X-ray inspection system, known as CoLOSSIS, for nuclear weapon components. At approximately 32,000 pounds, the lead-shielded CoLOSSIS is nearly 100 times more powerful than medical computed tomography, or a CAT scan.

Visit the Pantex and Y-12 websites to learn about these and other research capabilities and technologies.

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