The Savannah River Nuclear Solutions (SRNS) Supply Chain Management (SCM) met with the Los Alamos National Laboratory to strengthen mutual support agreements for several different initiatives. SRNS SCM and Los Alamos’s Supply Chain Logistics (SCL) have identified since 2023 the best practices for the demands of the pit production mission.
This partnership began in August 2023. Los Alamos representatives visited the Savannah River Site (SRS), and this was to benchmark SRNS SCM best practices. In this last visit, members for each site determined a Center of Excellence in support of critical missions for the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA).
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“This critical and sustainable partnership will provide mission support for both DOE and NNSA,” said Jay Johnson, deputy vice president of SRNS Contracts and SCM. “By collaborating on lessons learned, weapons quality and other elements of the supply chain, we will continue to perform at our maximum potential.”
SRNS and Los Alamos recently signed a collaboration charter to strengthen monthly discussions on the following management issues: best practices, lessons learned, acquisition strategies, risk management, warehousing concerns, and LEAN processes. They will work together in supplier relationship management, inventory and materials management, workforce strategy, acquisition management, and project interface.
“Los Alamos and SRNS have now established a direct line of communication to ask questions, collaborate, and maximize mission execution,” said Erin Blue, Los Alamos SCL division leader. “As the Center of Excellence matures, new ideas will be considered and possibly implemented for a stronger supply base and capacity.”
During this visit, presentations on overviews of their work scope and tours of the various workspaces were given by the Los Alamos personnel. They also gave SRNS representatives a historical weapons tour.
Shannon Blaylock, Los Alamos SCL Technical Project Manager, thinks the new communication platform will unite supply chain personnel to improve standardization and efficiency.
“Los Alamos is tasked with delivery of a first production unit W87-1 pit in the near future,” said Blaylock. “As a result of the supply chain efforts required to meet production deadlines, Low Alamos can offer lessons learned while SRNS offers insight into vendor resources, streamlined processes, and best practices.”
Collaboration on the supply chain issues is necessary for the mission’s success.
“The nation’s efforts to modernize the nuclear security enterprise presents numerous supply chain challenges including competition for specialized manufacturing capacity and a shortage of skilled manufacturing workers,” said Leo Thompson, Los Alamos worker. “The collaboration is a creative way for both pit production sites to jointly address supply chain challenges.”
SRNS needed to acquire the same type of specialized equipment that Los Alamos used in the early stages of the collaboration. This was through an existing equipment manufacturer subcontract. As a result, Los Alamos increased the quantity of their order, which benefited SRNS.
“Improving our communication could ultimately lead to greater efficiencies for the pit mission through coordinated procurement actions like the approach taken for the specialized equipment,” said Thompson.
SRNS and Los Alamos are not only collaborating in the supply chain. There are ten different collaborations between the two organizations, and SRNS has six engineers embedded at Los Alamos to learn about pit production.
SRNS and Los Alamos will continue to work collaboratively to address all challenges.
