Protecting People and the EnvironmentUNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
UNITED STATES
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D. C. 20555
October 12, 1982
To: All Power Reactor Applicants and Licensees
Subject: Reactor Operator and Senior Reactor Operator Requalification
Examinations (Generic Letter No. 82-18)
Gentlemen:
This letter is to inform you that NRC-administered requalification
examinations for licensed reactor operators and senior reactor operators
will begin at your facility sometime after October 1, 1982.
Following the Three Mile Island Accident, the Commission directed the staff
to administer examinations as part of the requalification program for all
licensees and applicants. In response to SECY 82-232, "Use of
Non-Plant-specific Simulators for Initial, Replacement, and Requalification
Examinations for Licensed Reactor Operators and Senior Operators," the
Commission approved staff recommendations regarding the use of simulators
for requalification examinations. A copy of SECY 82-232 is attached for your
information. To implement these directives, the NRC staff intends to conduct
requalification examinations at your facility. The procedures for the
requalification examinations are still under development and review.
Additional information will be provided to you later this year.
Subject to timely approval of the procedures for conducting the
requalification examinations, we intend to administer a written and an
operating examination to at least 20% of your licensed personnel per year.
In this way, all licensed personnel will be examined at least every five
years and the impact on your requalification training program will be
minimized. Detailed schedules will be worked out with your training staff.
The NRC plans on making two visits to your facility during the year for
replacement examinations and one visit for requalification examinations.
Therefore, scheduling of replacement and requalification examinations,
including reexamination of failures will need to be closely coordinated to
prevent the number of licensed operators from being reduced to unacceptable
levels and to ensure timely reexaminations can be given.
An objective written examination consistent with the scope of the
requalification program required by Appendix A to 10 CFR Part 55 will be
administered to selected licensed personnel. If your plant has a
plant-specific simulator, an operating examination will be conducted on that
simulator. Otherwise, an operating examination will be conducted at your
facility. Unsatisfactory performance will necessitate removal from licensed
duties and accelerated retraining in weak areas. This is consistent with
your in-house requalification program currently in place. Reexamination by
NRC may be required in unsatisfactory areas. Renewal licenses will continue
to be issued to licensed personnel who are enrolled in your approved
requalification program, provided the NRC requalification examinations do
not indicate significant weaknesses in that program.
8210130019
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This program should not represent a significant departure from the
requalification program you already have in place, since you are required to
conduct examinations at the reactor operator or senior reactor operator
level as part of that program. It will, however, provide the NRC and the
public with additional assurance that continued operator training is
effectively being conducted. We encourage you to submit training material
and examination questions and answer keys to NRC for our use in developing
examinations.
In addition, in response to SECY 82-232 the Commission removed the
requirement for NRC conducted simulator examinations for those plants that
do not have plant specific simulators. The NRC staff is conducting an
evaluation of the role of simulators in training and examinations to be
completed by July 1983. When this study is completed, we intend to
incorporate any changes into revisions to 10 CFR Part 55, Regulatory Guide
1.8 or into new regulatory guides, if necessary. Until then, the
requirements for requalification training in Appendix A to 10 CFR Part 55
and NUREG-0737 remain in effect. You should refer to NUREG-0094 and
Regulatory Guide 1.8 for additional guidance on initial and requalification
training.
You will be contacted at a later date to schedule requalification
examinations If you have any questions on this program, please contact Mr.
Don H. Beckham of the NRC's Division of Human Factors Safety at
(301)492-4868.
Sincerely,
Darrell G. Eisenhut, Director
Division of Licensing
Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
Enclosure:
SECY 82-232
