Nuclear power plant energizes parts storage

The Susquehanna nuclear power plant, a Talen Energy facility located near Berwick, Pa., is one of the largest nuclear power plants in the United States, with a capacity of more than 2,600 megawatts. Using a series of vertical lift modules (VLMs), the facility was able to improve the accuracy and security of small parts inventory.

“At Susquehanna, every decision we make is safety driven,” said Tom McAvoy, logistic services supervisor responsible for warehouse operations at the Susquehanna plant. “Maintaining on-site inventory of parts and tools required for equipment maintenance is a top priority.”

The 56,000-square-foot main warehouse on site currently has more than 58,000 active SKUs needed for mandatory preventative maintenance work and scheduled shutdown maintenance in inventory. With inventory expanding yearly and the main warehouse nearing capacity, Susquehanna replaced approximately 5,000 square feet of shelving with eight VLMs (Kardex Remstar, kardexremstar.com), freeing up roughly 4,100 square feet of floor space.

A ninth VLM stores gasket materials, which were previously subject to dirt and deformity. The enclosed environment of the VLM ensures clean and usable gaskets while providing employees easy ergonomic access. A 10th climate-controlled VLM was added to store circuit cards and circuit boards in accordance with standards. “A temperature- and humidity-controlled environment is a good solution for our storage of circuit cards and circuit boards,”  says McAvoy.

The enterprise resource planning (ERP) software selects a random number of parts to cycle count per day based on an inventory cycle-count requirement. The VLMs also provide a higher level of secured access, allowing only warehouse employees access to the machines. McAvoy says cycle counting combined with the secured storage environment has resulted in inventory accuracy greater than 99%.

Refueling a nuclear reactor also requires Susquehanna to schedule a complete shutdown every two years. This scheduled shutdown requires about 1,200 additional contracted workers to perform hundreds of maintenance tasks, requiring access to 6,000 to 8,000 parts.

“Organized, accessible and accurate parts inventory is critical in our industry,” McAvoy says. “The VLMs have supported our ability to create a reliable parts management system.”