RLUOB. Courtesy/NNSA
NNSA News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) was recently presented with the Secretary’s Award for Project Management Excellence for delivering the Chemistry and Metallurgy Research Building Replacement (CMRR) Radiological Laboratory/Utility/Office Building (RLUOB) Equipment Installation (REI) Project at Los Alamos National Laboratory $2 million under budget and ahead of schedule.
At the same event, Everett Trollinger, the CMRR/REI Federal Project Director (FPD), also was honored as the Department’s Federal Project Director of the Year.
“What NNSA achieved with its contract partner on the RLUOB/REI Project is our goal—safe, high-quality, state-of-the-art facilities that provide a great value to the taxpayer,” said NNSA Associate Administrator for Acquisition and Project Management Bob Raines. “The NNSA and the RLUOB/REI Project team demonstrated that final metrics of cost and schedule can be achieved when clear expectations are set, the federal and contractor site and headquarters teams are aligned and all parties accept accountability for their role in project delivery.”
The Radiological Laboratory/Utility/Office Building (RLUOB) project was the first facility to be constructed by the Chemistry & Metallurgy Research Replacement (CMRR) Program. The RLUOB provides 19,500 net square feet of radiological laboratory space; centralized utilities for RLUOB and adjacent plutonium facilities; and office space for 350 employees, site training facilities, a security entrance control facility, facility operations center, and emergency response capabilities. Construction of the RLUOB was completed in June of 2010.
The RLUOB Equipment Installation (REI) project immediately followed the completion of the RLUOB facility. The REI installed glovebox and other enclosure systems, analytical and test instrumentation equipment, and telecommunications and safeguards/security systems within the RLUOB. Construction of the REI was completed in June of 2013.
The NNSA’s Office of Acquisition and Project Management appointed Trollinger as the FPD for the CMRR/RLUOB-REI Project when NNSA assumed responsibility for the project, one year prior to completion. At that point, the project was projected to deliver $8 million over budget and several months late. NNSA’s leadership engaged with Bechtel corporate and lab leadership to evaluate the on-site team delivering this work.
Senior federal and contractor staff were changed and the new team, now under the leadership of Trollinger, developed and carried out an execution plan to complete all remaining work, including the start-up. The CMRR/RLUOB REI Project is the largest nuclear facility capital asset project completed ahead of schedule and under budget by NNSA.
Under the leadership of NNSA and Everett Trollinger, the RLUOB/REI Project serves as an example of the ongoing cultural change within NNSA to deliver on its commitment to hold federal and contractor partners accountable for executing major capital asset projects within the approved cost and schedule baselines.
Over the past three years, NNSA has delivered a $725 million project portfolio approximately $50 million—or 7 percent—under budget. NNSA has been recognized by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and Congress for progress made in these areas, and as a result has been removed from GAO’s high risk list for projects less than $750 million.
Established by Congress in 2000, NNSA is a semi-autonomous agency within the U.S. Department of Energy responsible for enhancing national security through the military application of nuclear science. NNSA maintains and enhances the safety, security, reliability and performance of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile without nuclear testing; works to reduce global danger from weapons of mass destruction; provides the U.S. Navy with safe and effective nuclear propulsion; and responds to nuclear and radiological emergencies in the U.S. and abroad. Visit www.nnsa.energy.gov for more information.
