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Assigning programme administrators

5. ESTABLISHMENT AND ADMINISTRATION OF FOREIGN MATERIAL

5.4. Assembling programme governance and administration

5.4.1. Assigning programme administrators

The owner of the operating license for the facility is accountable to the public (and other stakeholders) for the proper implementation of the plant’s programmes, processes and procedures for safe and reliable electricity generation. This proper implementation also includes the FMMP and associated processes, procedures and practices for foreign material free operation as a part of ensuring nuclear and radiological safety and performance.

Furthermore, it is the ultimate responsibility of every individual to observe, recognise, question, identify and report not only in the correction of immediate issues but also in the improvement of current and future state of the programme. However, specific ownership and governance responsibilities and accountability of the FMMP are assumed by the individuals based on the levels of decision making, administration, coordination and execution levels, for example, similar to that is shown in Figure 16.

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FIG. 16. Different decision levels of foreign material management (FMM) governance and implementation.

Assigning individuals and organisations to these specific roles, responsibilities and activities will be in accordance with the programmatic tasks that are determined to be necessary with considerations of optimum way to perform them, examples of which are discussed in Section 5.6.

It is also important that decision making boundaries and authorities on programme administration, coordination, implementation and improvement need to be clearly established and communicated to the entire organisation to be completely understood and agreed. For example, all project/plant personnel need to understand that FMM Programme Coordinator, shown in Fig. 16, may have some degree of decision making authority that is only applicable and limited to activities involving processes and procedures at the coordination level, while carrying role and responsibility for providing specific advice and perspective on the programme implementation and performance.

The following subsection describes key FMMP administrator roles to be filled from the highest-ranking officer down to the people conducting the FMMP related activities, i.e. from the authorisation level to execution level. Section 5.6 further discusses the specific individual and organisational responsibilities for the programme governors, together with the roles and responsibilities all plant personnel and organisations implementing, maintaining and improving an effective FMMP in every task.

5.4.1.1. Decision authority

The individual who is at the highest level of management on a nuclear plant/project site with the most authority, responsibility and accountability for overall governing decisions for the plant is the decision authority. He/she is authorised to make executive decisions on behalf of the ultimate decision making body (plant or project owner, board of governors, executive board/committee, etc.) by considering all the factors and perspectives (e.g. legal, financial and human resource allocation, programmatic, administrative or practical, etc.) at the authorisation level in an integrated and binding manner [57]. The decision authority will make decisions in various phases of nuclear power plant/project development and utilisation, starting with consideration of and commitment to nuclear energy in the energy mix and continuing until the nuclear power plant is safely and efficiently decommissioned. Although the title of the highest level may differ in different phases, the responsibility and accountability for making that governing decision need to be assigned to one person at the highest level in the decision making entity at a certain phase of project/plant lifecycle (e.g. government, nuclear power plant project company, nuclear power plant owner/operating organisation). The responsibility and accountability for making that governing decision at a nuclear power plant/site/project is always assigned to one person8 and cannot be delegated.

In a typical organisation of a nuclear plant/project, the ‘Plant Manager’9 is the ultimate decision-making person with the most authority (i.e. the decision authority, as described in Section 5.4.1.1) in the plant/site/station. As the person who is the ultimate decision maker and sets the plant/project goals, expectations and policies in accordance with the corporate commitment, the decision authority is also responsible and accountable for establishing and communicating FMM policy, expectations and objectives for all activities performed by everyone (including contractors) at the site. His/her executive decisions will be the foundation of the FMMP framework and will set the direction for administering and managing the FMMP and coordinating with all programmes, processes and activities relating to FMMP.

5.4.1.2. Programme authority

An organisation needs to establish and assign a high-level programmatic and administrative authority role, responsibility and accountability to a person in the organisation who will make management level (i.e. administration level) decisions with authority on the governing programmatic and administrative activities. Programme authority is the person with this responsibility and accountability for making decisions and directing the administration and implementation of a specific policy and associated programme activities.

As such, the FMM programme authority, typically called FMM Programme Owner, determines, describes, controls, manages and assesses FMMP. The responsibility and accountability for owning and overseeing the FMMP is assigned (by the decision authority) to a senior manager in the next layer of management below the decision authority10 to assume the

8 As noted in Ref. [57]: “although it is a common practice to have decision making body (i.e. a group of people such as an executive committee or commission), the decision authority can accept or reject the view of such a committee or commission, as he or she is the person carrying the accountability and authority”.

9 The term ‘Plant manager’ can have different titles in different Member States and different NPPs, such as, chief nuclear officer, chief engineer, site manager, executive vice president, executive president, etc. The title used herein indicates the highest level of manager in a nuclear plant/project (e.g. nuclear power plant project company, nuclear power plant operating organisation) who is responsible for overall executive decision making for the site/project which cannot be delegated.

Therefore, hereafter, it will be referred in quotation as a representation of the position, not the title.

10 In other words, the head of leading organisation, for example, the vice president of operations of a nuclear power plant organisation as it may be structured for a particular operation phase.

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responsibility and accountability for the development and continuous improvement of the FMMP towards foreign material free operation and no-adverse effect of foreign material goals for safe, reliable and efficient generation of electricity, as described by the FMM policy.

Section 5.6.1.2 provides FMM Programme Owner’s specific responsibilities, in detail.

As discussed in Ref. [57], unlike the decision authority, the programme authority (but not accountability) could be delegated to a responsible individual (e.g. the high-level technical manager in responsible support entities).

In some owner/operating organisations, due to significant involvement and performance of activities that may have direct impact on FMMP and plan, certain directors/managers may be delegated to carry the ownership and administration level decision making authority for the FMMP as the FMM programme authority, commonly referred as the FMM Programme Manager (see also Section 5.6.1.3). This delegation is proposed by the FMM Programme Owner and needs to be approved by the decision authority based on premise of certain department or group having more opportunities for implementation, prevention and improvement.

For example, the construction manager may be appointed to own, implement and assess the programme as the FMM Programme Manager during the construction phase while operations manager may assume that role during the commissioning phase. Similarly, during the operation phase, the maintenance manager, for example, may assume responsibility as the FMM Programme Manager of the plant for the ownership, administration, implementation and improvement of the FMMP towards prevention and elimination of FM hazards and events at the facility.

5.4.1.3. Programme coordinator

The programme coordinator in an organisation is the individual with ownership of the information and knowledge to understand and assess the programmatic aspects in decision making at the coordination level and the ability to convey and explain the programme’s basis, criteria, status, requirements and characteristics, as well as objectives, expectations and good practices. Accordingly, the FMM Programme Coordinator is an individual with FM and FMM expertise who is the owner and conveyor of FMM information and knowledge and understands and assess the FMMP aspects to make decision on FMMP coordination. He/she is the focal point and the coordinator of FMMP administration, implementation and maintenance at the site.

The FMM Programme Coordinator is appointed by, and reports to, FMM Programme Owner/Manager and is given sufficient authority and organisational freedom to observe, control, identify, report and implement FMMP activities and measures, whenever and wherever necessary or requested. He/she assumes the roles and responsibilities as FMM expert (or expert

‘body’) of the nuclear power plant (project and/or plant) in coordination level decisions on the implementation of tasks relevant to the administrative aspects of the FMMP (see Section 5.6.1.4 for FMM Programme Coordinator’s specific responsibilities, in detail).

5.4.1.4. Programme conscience

The FMM programme conscience of an organisation is a group of experts with ownership of FMM information and knowledge to interpret and to convey the programmatic and technical aspects in decision made at the execution level, i.e. at the task level. The programme conscience roles and responsibilities can be delegated to various individuals and/or organisations, such as

departmental FMM programme coordinator(s) or departmental, internal and external subject matter experts and consultants.