Y-12 National Security Complex
Overview
- One of the Nation's premier nuclear materials facilities.
- Critical to National Security.
- Focus on the production and refurbishment of weapons components, storage of nuclear material and prevention of the spread of weapons of mass destruction.
- Managed by BWXT Y-12, a limited liabilityenterprise of BWXT and Bechtel National Inc., for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA).
- Employees participate in Integrated Safety Management and Behavior Based Safety - the practice of incorporating safety into every aspect of work .
Mission
- Produce, refurbish and dismantle nuclear weapons components.
- Safeguard special nuclear materials.
- Prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
- Provide the U.S. Navy with safe, militarily effective nuclear propulsion systems.
- Provide support for other national security needs and customers, as required.
Notable Accomplishments
- Received Critical Decision 1 Approval to begin preliminary design of the Uranium Production Facility (UPF), a consolidated facility for enriched uranium operations including assembly, disassembly, quality evaluation, metal working and product certification. UPF will consolidate the enriched uranium operations footprint by 60 percent and will significantly reduce annual operating costs.
- Relocated 1,500 employees from more than 50 separate buildings into two privately financed buildings, enabling Y-12 to tear down a large number of obsolete and inefficient 1940s-era facilities.
- Completed more than 60 percent of the Highly Enriched Uranium Materials Facility, which will replace multiple aging facilities and allow storage of HEU in one central location for maximized physical security protection with minimal vulnerabilities and operating costs.
- Received two R&D 100 awards from R&D Magazine, which recognizes the year's most significant technological innovations. Y-12 received the 2007 awards for its Rapid Deployment Shelter System (RDSS) and Personal Annunciation Device (PAD).
- Received one of 16 government-wide 2006 White House Closing the Circle Awards. The Y-12 Pollution Prevention team has completed more than 600 pollution prevention projects including recycling projects that resulted in the elimination of more 1.7 billion pounds of waste at an estimated cost avoidance of $44 million.
- Signed 20 mentor-protege agreements with small disadvantaged firms-more than any other site in the NNSA weapons complex.
Contract/Budget
- Facility managed by BWXT Y-12 since November 2000.
- Contract extends to 2010.
- Funding for FY 2007 is more than $875 million.
Infrastructure
- Y-12 covers more than 800 acres.
- Complex is almost 2.5 miles long and more than 0.5 miles wide.
- More than 500 buildings and over six million square feet of floor space.
Workforce
- More than 4,500 people are employed by Y-12.
- Approximately 90 NNSA employees at the complex.
- Approximately 1,500 employees at Y-12 represented by the Atomic Trades and Labor Council, an umbrella organization of 16 local trade unions. The International Guards Union of America represents the protective force.
Community Impact
- Has direct economic impact on the local community of more than $900 million through payroll, procurements, utilities and taxes and an indirect.
- Contributes more than $710,000 in corporate contributions to nearly 100 charitable organizations (2006). Employees donate thousands of hours of volunteer service for projects such as refurbishing sites in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and simultaneously building three Habitat for Humanity houses.
- Is one of the top four largest manufacturing employers in the state, and disbursed more than $148 million annually to 11,000 retirees.
- Supported Tennessee economic development initiatives, such as the Technology Corridor Summit and the East Tennessee Economic Council.
- Contributed more than $27,000 to local colleges and universities through employee and matching corporate contributions, and to area schools for equipment and supplemental classroom resources.
- Donated more than $1 million to Oak Ridge Schools Education Foundation to support the renovation of Oak Ridge High School.
- Created a permanent endowment for an engineering scholarship at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville.
For Additional Information
B&W Y-12, LLC
P.O. Box 2009
301 Bear Creek Road
Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37830
George E. Dials, President and Chief Executive Officer
(865) 574-3620
dialsge@y12.doe.gov
Mike Monnett, Manager of Public Affairs and Communications
(865) 241-5872
monnettmg@y12.doe.gov
