Certrec Announces Enhanced “Living” UFSAR Management Solution

Fort Worth, TX (PRWEB) May 30, 2013 — Certrec, a leading licensing and regulatory compliance provider of NRC, FERC, and NERC licensing and compliance solutions, announced today an enhanced version of their Updated Final Safety Analysis Report (UFSAR) Management solution for nuclear licensing managers. 

Certrec’s “living” Updated Final Safety Report offering is a web-based solution that simplifies and streamlines FSAR updating, document management, and electronic submittal preparation. Certrec’s UFSAR solution has proven to free up constrained licensing resources by 30% or more. 

“UFSARs are highly complex, technical documents that present numerous challenges to licensing managers who update them on an infrequent basis,” says Ted Enos, Certrec CEO. “Our document experts are on a continual mission to streamline the UFSAR process through tools that make the job easier, quicker, and more effective for licensing managers.” 

The renewal and continuous maintenance of the UFSAR is an obligatory task with updates of changes to be completed every 18-24 months and submitted to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). The UFSAR should reflect all changes implemented within 6 months prior to the date of filing. 

However, Updated Final Safety Analysis Reports are comprised of multiple documents, authored by multiple parties on an infrequent basis – often by new or different personnel. To assist time-constrained personnel, better manage authoring complexity, Certrec’s enhanced UFSAR web-based solution now offers the ability to duplicate a utility’s existing change management process through a web-tool, thus allowing for minimal change management, the bridging of geography, and the ability to work on the FSAR from any location that has access to the internet. 

Consistency of document format is imperative for electronic submittal of UFSARs, yet many plants are still working from hard copy documents, emails, and outdated document applications. Rekeying information from paper documents to electronic files is time-consuming and increases the possibility of error. Certrec’s UFSAR solution mitigates these issues by moving the files into either Microsoft Word or Adobe FrameMaker and managing the revisions using a sophisticated version control system. This allows the UFSAR to be revised by x,y section and maintained according to the exacting requirements of the NRCs electronic submittals. 

To streamline the FSAR updating process, Certrec’s UFSAR solution can mimic the existing change request process, handle all of the document editing, streamline the review process through email notifications, utilize PDF commenting for reviews, and can process the packing slip for electronic submittal to the NRC. 

Lastly, electronic submittal of FSAR documentation to the NRC is a highly technical process requiring precision. Certrec’s UFSAR reduces the complexity and increases submittal accuracy through web-based tools for online access, electronic submittals, and version control. 

“For those plants that seek personal assistance, Certrec FSAR experts work one-on-one with the designated Program Administrator to implement UFSAR Update Services,” states Enos. “Our technical experts help customize the living UFSAR to establish a process suitable for change requests, coordinate the update and review process, and manage the electronic submittal to the NRC.”

Certrec has a history of managing large, complex Licensing Basis documents such as Combined Operating License Applications (COLAs), Design Control Documents (DCDs), and UFSARS for many nuclear utilities and vendors.