The Next EDF Tracking System

EDF’s network of nuclear power plants (NPP) comprises 58 pressurized water reactors. Solid waste arising during plant operation (mainly VLLW, LLW and ILW) are conditioned and sent either to interim storage, an off site treatment plant for additional processing (e.g. the Centraco incinerator or the melting facilities of SOCODEI) or directly to one of the two final repositories operated by ANDRA, the French national radioactive waste management agency. The tracking system allows: - the checking of waste package characteristics against acceptance criteria of the final disposal facilities or off site treatment facilities; and - the transmission of the waste package data to ANDRA and SOCODEI. Since 1992, the EDF computer application DRA has been run on networked computers at EDF and ANDRA, and more recently at SOCODEI. DRA is also a key element in the management of radioactive waste. It allows a large range of inter comparisons to be made between the NPPs in operation and is thus the principal tool used optimize technical and economic performance. After 15 years of use, DRA was technically obsolete and could no longer be successfully developed to meet evolving regulatory requirements. It was therefore decided to completely replace the DRA system and in so doing to introduce new functionality.