Lessons Learned from the Assessments of the Integration of Safety into Design of New U.S. Department of Energy Nuclear Facilities - June 2023

June 2023,

Lessons Learned from the Assessments of the Integration of Safety into Design of New U.S. Department of Energy Nuclear Facilities

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Environment, Safety and Health Assessments, within the independent Office of Enterprise Assessments (EA), conducted nine assessments of new DOE high-hazard (hazard category 1 and 2) nuclear facility design and construction projects between January 2018 and December 2022. These projects were under the direction of the DOE Office of Environmental Management, the National Nuclear Security Administration, and the Office of Nuclear Energy. The objective of these assessments was to examine the integration of safety into the design, as well as the development of the safety design basis documents for the new nuclear facilities. This lessons-learned report identifies common strengths and weaknesses, best practices, and recommendations to promote organizational learning and improve performance throughout the DOE complex.