Pantex and Y-12 employees honored with excellence awards
Employees at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and the Pantex Plant in Amarillo, Texas, recently received the National Nuclear Security Administration ‘s Office of Safety, Infrastructure, and Operations (NA-50) excellence awards.
This year’s awards recognized five Pantex teams and eight Y-12 teams for their exceptional accomplishments during fiscal year 2020.
Consolidated Nuclear Security Chief Operating Officer Bill Tindal said of the award recipients, “We are here today because you found solutions to some of our toughest problems. We are proud to recognize your demonstrated excellence.”
Jim McConnell, NNSA associate administrator for safety, infrastructure and operations, told the recipients, “Your insistence on excellence, your tenacity in doing the job right, and your understanding that teamwork is often the best way to a solution are being recognized by NNSA. You were among the best of the best across the Enterprise in 2020.”
Revitalizing the infrastructure
Updating the existing infrastructure, dating to World War II, has been a significant focus for both sites. Many of the 2020 awards involved stabilizing or dispositioning aging facilities as noted by NNSA Production Office Acting Deputy Manager Susan Morris.
“Your work in revitalizing our infrastructure at Pantex and Y-12 will support the mission for years to come and is a worthy standard for future generations,” she said.
Y-12 winners
With a site more than 75 years old, infrastructure is a primary concern. From replacing sprinkler heads to dispositioning facilities and innovating sanitation during the pandemic, Y-12 honorees completed significant projects to maintain existing buildings and prepare for future needs.
Steve Laggis, director of Y-12 infrastructure programs, said, “As I work with my staff on infrastructure issues, I see on a daily basis the commitment each employee has for planning and getting the job done.”
Pantex winners
Of the Pantex accomplishments, Senior Director of Pantex Infrastructure Shawn Spivey noted that “2020 provided a lot of adversity, but as all great teams demonstrate, necessity is the mother of invention. And, by necessity, we completed many outstanding projects.”
Those challenges included two unplanned projects, as well as two emergency exercises. during a pandemic. Teams received awards for the following projects:
• Weapons Evaluation Test Laboratory Chiller Replacement
• 12-104 Concrete Issue
• Multifunctional Component Storage System
• COVID-19 Emergency Response Exercise Project
• Transformation of a WWII Facility to Optimize Classified Storage Capacity