Westinghouse Electric Company, Spanish engineering firm Tecnatom and US consulting and training services provider Accelerant Solutions have agreed to form the Nuclear Excellence Academy (NEXA), a nuclear training programme for utilities in the USA and Canada.
(Left to right): Billy Mack of Accelerant Solutions, Pamela Cowan of Westinghouse, and Francisco Sanchez of Tecnatom after the signing of the Teaming Agreement (Image: Westinghouse)
The three companies have signed a Teaming Agreement to launch NEXA, which they say will "leverage the companies' unmatched knowledge of industry standards and digital technology innovations to provide in-person, digital and on-demand training for nuclear personnel at American and Canadian utilities. The programme ensures practical, cost-effective, and compliant approaches to nuclear operations".
The partners said the programme "unites the industry expertise of Westinghouse and Accelerant Solutions with Tecnatom's world-class digital products and services to offer the current and future nuclear fleet a comprehensive and efficient solution for training needs".
Pamela Cowan, President of Global Engineered Systems and Solutions at Westinghouse, said: "This effort demonstrates Westinghouse's commitment to provide innovative solutions to our customers. NEXA uses a digital platform to optimise the learning process, enhancing competencies, worker engagement, and performance excellence for the long-term".
"NEXA offers a solution to utilities seeking to retain and hire nuclear professionals who have the highest qualifications," said Francisco Sanchez, Vice President of Safety, Operation and Training at Tecnatom. "The training will be standardised to fit the needs of all utilities."
"This agreement ensures that centralised nuclear training delivered through NEXA is innovative, cost-effective, and compliant," said Billy Mack, President of Accelerant Solutions, which says it has partnerships with all 28 American utilities that operate nuclear power plants.
Writing in a blog in February, Mack said: "NEXA brings together the right people with the right experience and the right technology to modernise and transform nuclear training. Through sound analysis, design, and development, NEXA finds the right place and balance for VR/AR, adaptive learning, gamification, AI, and SME mentorship in nuclear training".
Canadian education system
Last month, leaders from Canada's nuclear industry wrote to the country's ministers of education to highlight the need for more female engineering graduates.
"Among the rapid advances being made in the nuclear sector is the development of small modular reactors (SMRs) which harness nuclear fission to generate heat to produce energy ... However, there are not enough university graduates or skilled tradespeople required for the construction, installation, operation and regulation of SMRs," the letter said.
It continued: "Ensuring that Canada has a diverse labour force with the right skillsets to succeed is fundamentally important to safety. Diverse voices bring a broader range of viewpoints and ideas to innovation, which results in a better safety outcome in the nuclear sector. Having a diverse nuclear workforce is to everyone's advantage - but we're falling far short, particularly with respect to gender equality."
The letter calls for the Canadian educational system to promote greater interest in STEM subjects overall, and "particularly among K-12 girls (the school grades prior to college), so that more of them go on to pursue studies and careers in STEM. Very specifically, we must encourage greater interest in the nuclear sector if we are to meet the 2050 net-zero goals that policy-makers have set for us."
It concludes: "For decades, Canada has been a leading industrialised economy and an innovator in nuclear technologies. But we will never reach our net-zero goals without a significant shift in our educational system. We have to do better to prepare our workforce of the future."
The signatories of the letter include: Rumina Velshi, President and CEO of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission; Lori Clark, President and CEO of New Brunswick Power Corporation; Rachna Clavero, President and CEO of CANDU Owners Group; Fred Dermarkar, President and CEO of Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd; Tim Gitzel, President and CEO of Cameco; Ken Hartwick, President and CEO of Ontario Power Generation; John MacQuarrie, President and CEO of BWX Technologies; Joe McBrearty, President and CEO of Canadian Nuclear Laboratories; Rupen Pandya, President and CEO of SaskPower; Michael Rencheck, President and CEO of Bruce Power; Laurie Swami, President and CEO of Nuclear Waste Management Organization; and Jay Wileman, President and CEO of GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy.
