{"id":559,"date":"2022-02-28T17:02:19","date_gmt":"2022-02-28T17:02:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gonefissionpodcast.com\/?p=559"},"modified":"2022-03-28T12:50:28","modified_gmt":"2022-03-28T16:50:28","slug":"doe-facility-offers-training-as-real-as-it-gets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gonefissionpodcast.com\/doe-facility-offers-training-as-real-as-it-gets\/","title":{"rendered":"\u00a0DOE Facility Offers Training \u201cAs Real As it Gets\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |Contact:\u00a0 Michael Butler |\u00a0 (704) 779-1844<\/strong><\/p>\n

Monday, February 28, 2022\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"RICHLAND, Washington \u2013 Imagine a training exercise where you have to follow clues, complete a series of specialized tasks, and \u201cescape\u201d from an enclosed room before your air supply runs out.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s just one of many real-life scenarios students confront at the Volpentest Hazardous Materials Management and Emergency Response \u2013 HAMMER, for short \u2013 training center at the Department of Energy\u2019s Hanford nuclear site in Washington State.<\/p>\n

HAMMER Director Paul Vandervert described the training program in the February 28 episode of the Gone Fission Nuclear Report, a weekly podcast that features news from the Department of Energy\u2019s Environmental Management program nationwide. Hosted by Michael Butler, the episode is available on all podcast platforms and can be accessed at www.gonefissionpodcast.com.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince its inception 25 years ago, HAMMER has emphasized providing high quality training that is focused on realism and retention,\u201d Vandervert said. \u201cOnce workers receive our training and go back out into the field, we want to be sure their training sticks, so when they encounter challenges, they\u2019ll be very well prepared.<\/p>\n

Vandervert said HAMMER is a national and regional training asset that serves other DOE, state, regional, and national needs in such areas as disaster recovery, emergency response, transportation, fire protection, law enforcement, and military readiness.\u00a0It also has a global reach, having trained hundreds of border security officials from more than 70 countries under the sponsorship of the U.S. State Department.<\/p>\n

Situated on an 88-acre state-of-the-art campus on the edge of the Hanford Nuclear Reservation, HAMMER trainers utilize hands-on, performance-based training techniques, including props that allow students to train in a realistic but controlled and safe environment. HAMMER\u2019s training props are configured to create a variety of scenarios ranging from handling hazardous materials to radiation exposure, industrial hazards and workplace accidents.<\/p>\n

A new respiratory protection course at the\u00a0Hanford Site<\/strong><\/a>\u2019s Volpentest\u00a0HAMMER<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0Federal Training Center features an \u201cescape room\u201d with an engaging twist: employees wear supplied air equipment while they answer questions, discover clues and solve puzzles in a simulated work environment.<\/p>\n

They\u2019re under pressure to \u201cescape\u201d or complete the activity safely in a limited amount of time before their air bottles empty. The simulation helps the employees learn the limitations, advantages and disadvantages of respiratory protection equipment.<\/p>\n

Other training scenarios are carried out in facilities like the Search and Burn Building, a 5,235-foot three-story structure which provides realistic training in total darkness or low-light environments.\u00a0 A six-story tower with multiple floor plans and interior and exterior stairways is used for hose and ladder drills, rappelling, incident response and fall protection training.<\/p>\n

HAMMER is managed by Hanford Mission Integration Solutions, a partnership of Leidos, Centerra and Parsons with North Wind Solutions as a key subcontractor.<\/p>\n

The Gone Fission Nuclear Report covers the latest developments in environmental cleanup across the Department of Energy (DOE) complex. DOE is now engaged in the largest environmental remediation program in history, cleaning up nuclear production sites across the U.S. that were used to support national security missions for 75 years.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of the work on these sites dates back to the super-secret Manhattan Project, a national priority to develop the first atomic bomb that helped end World War II,\u201d Butler said. \u201cCleanup of these sites is a multi-decade effort, requiring thousands of trained professionals and highly skilled crafts people with budgets in the billions of dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |Contact:\u00a0 Michael Butler |\u00a0 (704) 779-1844 Monday, February 28, 2022\u00a0\u00a0   RICHLAND, Washington \u2013 Imagine a training exercise where you have to follow clues, complete a series of specialized tasks, and \u201cescape\u201d from an enclosed room before your air supply runs out. It\u2019s just one of many real-life scenarios students confront at… <\/p>\n

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