Mills Advertising

An engineering company best known for supplying blast and fire protection for the offshore industry has won its first major contract in the nuclear decommissioning market.

Mech-Tool Engineering Limited, of Darlington, will design and build a multi services processing module for the Sellafield nuclear facility in Cumbria.

The module, designed to withstand earthquakes, will be delivered in eight split units and assembled as one on site, where it will house a range of equipment for Sellafield’s Sludge Packaging Plant (SPP1).

The £1.5m contract was awarded by Balfour Kilpatrick’s Projects Unit based at their Sellafield Regional Office. The contract award includes design, manufacture, testing and commissioning of EC&I and HVAC systems.

Along with recent high-profile contract successes in the offshore market, it will secure work for Mech-Tool’s 130-strong workforce until early 2010 and could see up 30 technical and manufacturing posts being created.

Phil Dunn, the engineering firm’s business development manager, said: “Mech-Tool has been a leader in blast, fire and acoustic protection for nearly 40 years, supplying products to many sectors, including the nuclear industry, but this is our first major role in nuclear decommissioning and represents a major breakthrough for the company.

“It is estimated that the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority will spend in the region of £500million decommissioning civil nuclear sites in the UK over the next few years and we hope that the successful conclusion to our work at Sellafield could prove an avenue for us to compete not only for other decommissioning work, but on future new-build projects within the nuclear market.”

The module will house equipment including an electrical substation and switchgear, compressor units and HVAC equipment, and a manned control room. It will be fire-rated to protect personnel and equipment for up to 30 minutes, and seismically rated.

It is being designed using the latest 3D-modelling “walk-through” software, and will be built and fully fitted out at Mech-Tool’s main manufacturing centre in Whessoe Road, Darlington. It will be transported to Sellafield by road and assembled on site by March 2010.

Phil Bullock, director of Mech-Tool’s modular products division, said: “Fully assembled, the module is designed as eight inter-connection units which will enable easy and cost effective delivery by road’.

“Over the years, we have invested a lot of research time and 3D-modelling technology in the development of bespoke packaged solutions, primarily for the offshore sector, but more and more for onshore customers, such as petrochemical companies, where the environmental conditions may be different, but the challenges in terms of protecting personnel and equipment are just as real.”

Mech-Tool, has invested significantly in its fit-out facilities in Whessoe Road, where a newly constructed 1,200sq metre building has increased production space to 7,750sq metres and allows work to be carried out on items up to 70metres long. Mech-Tool also has a riverside facility on Teesside where large modules built as a complete unit can be loaded out for sea transportation.

Mr Bullock said a full trial installation of the Sellafield module may be carried out at the Whessoe Road site, prior to delivery.

He added: “The fact the customer can see the module fully assembled and fitted out before it is even transported to the site was vital to winning the contract. Of similar importance in the nuclear sector is safety performance and Mech-Tool is proud of its impeccable safety record, as demonstrated by five successive RoSPA Gold Awards.”

Mech-Tool Engineering Ltd is currently engaged in various UK and overseas projects, new living quarter structures for the Sea Dragon Oban B semi-submersible rig and BP Norge AS Valhall Oil Field, Heerema’s Greater Gabbard project, and the supply of acoustic equipment for two offshore platforms in the UKCS and for various European compressor stations.

For further information contact Phil Dunn on 01325 341576.

View PDF