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Title: Design engineer perceptions and attitudes regarding human factors application to nuclear power plant design

Conference ·
OSTI ID:22030153
;  [1]
  1. New Plants Engineering, AREVA NP Inc., 7207 IBM Drive, Charlotte, NC 28262 (United States)

With the renewed interest in nuclear power and the possibility of constructing new reactors within the next decade in the U.S., there are several challenges for the regulators, designers, and vendors. One challenge is to ensure that Human Factors Engineering (HFE) is involved, and correctly applied in the life-cycle design of the Nuclear Power Plant (NPP). As an important part of the effort, people would ask: 'is the system-design engineer effectively incorporating HFE in the NPPs design?' The present study examines the sagacity of Instrumentation and Control design engineers on issues relating to awareness, attitude, and application of HFE in NPP design. A questionnaire was developed and distributed, focusing on the perceptions and attitudes of the design engineers. The responses revealed that, while the participants had a relatively high positive attitude about HFE, their awareness and application of HFE were moderate. The results also showed that senior engineers applied HFE more frequently in their design work than young engineers. This study provides some preliminary results and implications for improved HFE education and application in NPP design. (authors)

Research Organization:
American Nuclear Society, 555 North Kensington Avenue, La Grange Park, IL 60526 (United States)
OSTI ID:
22030153
Resource Relation:
Conference: NPIC and HMIT 2006: 5. International Topical Meeting on Nuclear Plant Instrumentation Controls, and Human Machine Interface Technology, Albuquerque, NM (United States), 12-16 Nov 2006; Other Information: Country of input: France; 7 refs.; Related Information: In: Proceedings of the 5. International Topical Meeting on Nuclear Plant Instrumentation Controls, and Human Machine Interface Technology| 1430 p.
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English