URS names new UCOR president, project manager

URS Corporation has named new leaders at UCOR in Oak Ridge and SRR at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina.

Ken Rueter has been named president and project manager of UCOR, a partnership between URS and CH2M Oak Ridge LLC. The URS-led consortium is responsible for the cleanup of the U.S. Department of Energy’s East Tennessee Technology Park, the former K-25 site, in Oak Ridge.

Rueter will become president and project manager on Aug. 1. He will replace Leo Sain, who will lead the URS Decontamination and Decommissioning and Waste Management Strategic Business Group, which is based in Oak Ridge.

“Ken’s prior leadership in UCOR’s successful deactivation and decommissioning of the K-25 facility will be invaluable as we continue the D&D of the K-27 and K-31 gaseous diffusion facilities,” said Randall A. Wotring, president of federal services for URS. “I am confident he will build on the UCOR team’s recent accomplishments as well as his previous experiences at the East Tennessee Technology Park to ensure we continue to make safe progress for our DOE client.”

In a press release, URS said Rueter has 26 years of experience in the nuclear industry focusing on high-hazard nuclear operations, project management and integration, construction, and risk management. In his new assignment, he will be the senior executive for UCOR responsible for all deactivation and decommissioning (D&D) activities at the East Tennessee Technology Park. He was previously president and project manager of Savannah River Remediation LLC, or SRR, and prior to his role there, he was the chief operating officer for UCOR.

The new leader at SRR is  Stuart MacVean, who will be president and project manager. SRR is the URS led-consortium responsible for the closure of radioactive waste tanks, the operations of the Defense Waste Processing Facility, and associated facilities at DOE’s Savannah River Site located in Aiken, South Carolina.

“Stuart is an excellent leader and was instrumental in SRR’s recent success in closing high-level waste tanks,” Wotring said. “During his tenure as chief operating officer for SRR, all three primary operating facilities have safely achieved performance improvements and work production records. I am confident SRR will continue to excel under his leadership.”

URS said MacVean has 30 years of experience in the nuclear industry, with positions of increasing responsibility in operations, maintenance, engineering, waste management, emergency management, decommissioning, project management, and executive leadership. Previously, he served as the chief operating officer and deputy project manager for SRR, and he was responsible for assuring the safe operation of all liquid waste facilities. His background also includes managing high-level waste operations at the West Valley Demonstration project in New York and Spent Fuel Operations at the Sellafield Site in the United Kingdom.

URS Corporation is a leading provider of engineering, construction, and technical services for public agencies and private sector companies around the world. URS provides services for federal, oil and gas, infrastructure, power, and industrial projects and programs. Headquartered in San Francisco, URS Corporation has more than 50,000 employees in a network of offices in nearly 50 countries, the press release said.

SRR is the liquid waste contractor at the Savannah River Site, which is owned by the U.S. Department of Energy. SRR is comprised of a team of companies led by URS Corporation with partners Bechtel National, CH2M Hill, and Babcock and Wilcox. Critical subcontractors for the contract are AREVA, Energy Solutions, and URS Professional Solutions.

UCOR is the Department of Energy’s Environmental Management contractor at the Oak Ridge Reservation. In addition to demolishing the K-25 Building, UCOR is responsible for other specific scopes of work at ETTP, the Y-12 National Security Site, and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. UCOR is comprised of a team of companies led by URS Corporation with partners CH2M Hill and critical subcontractor Restoration Services Inc.