Remote Waste Retrieval provides design and equipment for remotely handling nuclear waste, including size reduction, compaction, and encapsulation. They have extensive experience designing specialized equipment like remote retrieval machines to safely containerize and categorize waste. Their solutions include remotely operated vehicles, shielded transfer enclosures, and transportation equipment. They have designed innovative machines for removing intermediate-level waste and mechanical systems to retrieve waste from legacy storage sites.

1. REMOTE WASTE RETRIEVAL
REMOTE WASTE RETRIEVAL
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2. Remote Waste Retrieval
Assystem Energy and Nuclear has extensive experience in the design and installation of waste
retrieval equipment. Providing designs and equipment to meet the needs of remotely performing all
types of waste retrieval operations, including size reduction, compaction and encapsulation
processes in the treatment of low and intermediate level nuclear waste.
In decommissioning tasks where the remote handling of nuclear waste is involved, Assystem
Energy and Nuclear can provide solutions through the design and supply of equipment to safely
‘containerise’ and ‘categorise’ the waste. Remotely operated vehicles, special shielded transfer
enclosures, container handling and transportation, all feature prominently in the solutions provided
to our customers to date.
Example 1: Waste Retrieval Machine
Assystem Energy and Nuclear designed an
innovative waste retrieval machine (RM2)
for UKAEA Harwell to remove ILW under
shielded conditions. The machine was of
modular design capable of retrieving
drums from a maximum of 25 storage
tubes in one campaign. Modules included:
Containment cell
3.3m x 3.3m x 3m high for the deployment
and storage of the waste retrieval
equipment.
Shielding
200 tons of lead filled steel shielding in
modules of less than 10 tonnes.
Hoist assembly
Provision of the main facility to lift waste
cans and debris from the storage tube and
transfer to the shielded flask
Debris grab
Latches to the hoist mechanism with the
assistance of the dual master slave
manipulators.
Assystem Energy and Nuclear also
designed all interface equipment, operators
control console, ventilation and
decontamination systems required to
support the RM2 facility as part of a full
turnkey package.

3. Case Studies
Example 2: Waste Retrieval Facility
Assystem Energy and Nuclear’s role in the
successful consortium comprised electrical and
mechanical design of the remote waste
retrieval machines, associated rails and
tooling, hydraulic power system, a number of
ancillary building facilities and a complete
trials facility.
The B243 Beta Gamma Waste Store
comprises eight concrete waste cells, originally
constructed in 1951 to house sand bed filters.
Sellafield’s site remediation programme
includes retrieval and storage of remaining
potentially mobile beta gamma waste from the
B243 cells.
A new mezzanine floor was to be
constructed, sealing the tops of the
waste cells, above which would be the
operating cell. Waste was to be
recovered via a remote transfer
system below the floor, accessed
through a waste chute.
We carried out detail design and
substantiation and stress/structural
calculations on this legacy waste, with
unknown contents and extent of
corrosion.
There were constraints on the retrieval
machine weight and there was
proprietary loader crane technology,
which we had to adapt to suit remote
operation in a nuclear environment.
The proprietary design was augmented with a bespoke auxiliary boom, tooling and control system
to achieve Sellafield’s functionality and safety requirements.
At the conclusion of the design Assystem Energy and Nuclear had been able to substantiate a waste
retrieval system capable of meeting all foreseen tasks. The design was underpinned by extensive
analysis and documentation demonstrating compliance with the building safety case.
The original loader crane hydraulic system had been significantly enhanced to provide failure
recovery modes and three layers of protection against excessive overturning moments. A hydraulic
power system was specified to operate two cranes and other waste handling equipment in the
operating cell.

4. Case Studies
Example 3: Vault Retrieval Machine
Assystem Energy and Nuclear recently designed,
manufactured and demonstrated a prototype Vault
Retrieval Machine (VRM) for the removal of Fuel
Element Debris (FED), drums and gravel from active
waste vaults at Berkeley Power Station.
Based on a proprietary lorry loader boom and a
bespoke mast, the VRM was capable of retrieving
250kg payloads anywhere within an 18.3 x 8.4 x
6.4m deep vault accessed via a central vault
aperture.
Load cycle times varied from 2 – 10 minutes
according to reach.
The 13.5 tonne machine was demonstrated and
tested in an adjacent facility to our Preston Test and
Development Facility.
The photograph (above) shows a 17.5m
headroom in a full scale part section of the
6.4m deep vaults.
Contact the Energy & Nuclear Team E&NInfo@assystemuk.com or call 01772 645000
Visit www.assystem.com for more information