Oak Ridge Today

Two songwriters advance in state contest

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Image courtesy Explore Oak Ridge

Two songwriters from Oliver Springs and Nashville will advance in a state competition after qualifying in Oak Ridge on Wednesday.

The two songwriters who advanced were Rachel McIntyre-Smith of Oliver Springs and Sam Hatmaker of Nashville. They were selected from a field of 20 contestants in a qualifying round at Oakey’s Bar and Grill in Oak Ridge on Wednesday, February 8.

“Each competitor was judged based on their overall performance, originality, and connection to the audience,” Explore Oak Ridge said in a press release.

The songwriters played their original compositions before a panel of expert judges and an audience of supporters. The judges’ panel featured a mix of musicians and songwriters from the area representing various musical genres and expertise, including former “American Idol” finalist Janelle Arthur.

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CNC Bootcamp returns to Oak Ridge High School this spring

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Roane State and Oak Ridge High School educators joined specialized instructors over fall break for a CNC Bootcamp at the high school. The session welcomed the youngest-ever ACE training participant, Oak Ridge student Harry Shanafield, who was 13 when the camp took place. (Photo courtesy RSCC)

A popular bootcamp is returning to Oak Ridge High School this spring thanks to a recent partnership between Roane State Community College and the Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI).

Roane State announced its workforce training partnership with IACMI last year, making the college just the third location in the State of Tennessee to offer specialized no-cost machine tool training opportunities through America’s Cutting Edge (ACE), a press release said.

ACE is a joint Department of Defense and Department of Energy effort launched in 2020 to re-establish American leadership in the machine tool industry through transformative thinking, technology innovation, and workforce development, the press release said.

Roane State and Oak Ridge High School educators joined specialized instructors during fall break for a CNC Bootcamp at the high school. The session welcomed the youngest-ever ACE training participant, Oak Ridge student Harry Shanafield, who was 13 when the camp took place.

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Roane State Dental Clinic offering free cleanings for kids

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Free dental cleanings for children ages 4 to 12 are being offered through the end of March at the Roane State Dental Hygiene Clinic.

The clinic is located on the first floor of the Coffey/McNally Building on Roane State’s Oak Ridge Branch Campus, located at 701 Briarcliff Avenue.

The free procedures include teeth cleaning, all necessary dental X-rays, and a fluoride treatment, a press release said. The clinic is open Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern time, and on Fridays from 8 a.m. until 12 p.m. during the spring semester.

The free cleanings for children are only offered during the months of February and March 2023. Availability is limited due to demand, so parents and caregivers are encouraged to book quickly, the press release said.

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UCOR announces management change

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Tom Dieter

United Cleanup Oak Ridge LLC, the lead cleanup contractor at federal sites in Oak Ridge, has announced a top management change that will be effective April 1.

UCOR Chief Operating Officer Tom Dieter has announced he will retire March 31, and Kent Fortenberry has been appointed to take his place.

In a press release, UCOR said Dieter has had a 30-year career, and during that time, he has earned a national reputation, leading more than $3 billion in cleanup successes in complex nuclear enterprises in several states.

“Tom led UCOR’s transition for our 10-year, $8.3 billion Oak Ridge Reservation cleanup contract, and we’re grateful for his leadership in the company maintaining a strong safety performance in our first year,” said UCOR President and Chief Executive Officer Ken Rueter.

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Y-12 honored with DOE sustainability partnership award

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Pictured above are Y-12 refrigerant cylinders to be sent for reclamation. (Photo by CNS Y-12)

The Y-12 National Security Complex recently received a U.S. Department of Energy Sustainability Award for Strategic Partnerships for Sustainability.

The Y-12 team was recognized for its efforts to improve efficiency, sustainability, and resiliency of the site through partnerships with other DOE contractors and private companies, a press release said.

Through its sustainability program, Y-12 said it is reducing greenhouse gases, minimizing waste, and improving waste treatment on a large scale.

The partnership efforts for which the team was recognized include Energy Savings Performance Contract implementation, including helping to reuse refrigerant, using additive manufacturing for unique part production, and implementing wastewater treatment process improvements.

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Speakers mostly support TRISO-X fuel facility at meeting

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TRISO-X has proposed a nuclear fuel fabrication facility on 110 acres at Horizon Center in west Oak Ridge. (Photo from TRISO-X environmental report to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission)

A small group of residents who spoke at a public meeting on Wednesday were mostly supportive of a proposed nuclear fuel facility in west Oak Ridge. None of the seven local speakers opposed the project, but they had some suggestions for what the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission should consider as it prepares an environmental impact statement. That was the type of input the NRC had requested.

The nuclear fuel facility would be the first manufacturing facility of its type in the United States. It has been proposed by TRISO-X, and it would be on 110 acres at Horizon Center. The coated particle uranium fuel produced there could be used in new types of nuclear reactors such as small modular reactors.

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UPF construction could cost more, take longer

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The entrance sign at Y-12 National Security Complex at Bear Creek Road and Scarboro Road is pictured above on Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2023. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The Uranium Processing Facility at Y-12 National Security Complex was supposed to be completed by 2025 for no more than $6.5 billion, but that might no longer be the case.

In the past week, federal officials said construction projects across the country, including UPF, have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain delays, inflation, labor shortages, and increased labor costs. Those factors have led to higher construction costs and longer project timelines, the federal officials said.

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Y-12 celebrates new fire station, emergency operations center

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Y-12 Site Manager Gene Sievers talks about the plant’s new fire station and emergency operations center during a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday, Jan. 26, 2023. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A new fire station and emergency operations center at the Y-12 National Security Complex will replace “severely outdated” buildings that were constructed in the 1940s, about eight decades ago. The new buildings will improve working conditions, consolidate operations now conducted in separate places, and provide ample space for large equipment like fire trucks, federal officials and Y-12 leaders said during a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday.

Workers at the plant, which manufactures components for the nation’s nuclear weapons, among other activities, have been talking about the new facilities for at least 13 years. The start of construction was celebrated with a groundbreaking ceremony in April 2021. The new buildings, reported to have cost $68 million, are part of a “huge transformation,” an effort to modernize the site.

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One person seriously injured in Wednesday crash

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Two people were taken to a hospital, one with serious injuries, after a crash between a dump truck and a sport utility vehicle in Oak Ridge on Wednesday evening.

The crash was reported at about 7 p.m. Wednesday at Melton Lake Drive and Edgemoor Road (State Route 170). The Oak Ridge Police Department, Fire Department, and Public Works Department all responded, and so did Anderson County EMS (the ambulance service).

The crash involved a commercial vehicle (a privately owned dump truck) and a passenger vehicle (a mid-size SUV), the City of Oak Ridge said.

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Oak Ridge EM prepared for cold weather to prevent failures

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From DOE Office of Environmental Management’s “EM Update” newsletter

UCOR employees Andy Rodgers, left, and Alex Johnson install heat tracing to protect systems at the Environmental Management Waste Management Facility during the holiday 2022 cold snap in Oak Ridge. Temperatures did not reach above freezing for more than four consecutive days. (Photo courtesy UCOR/DOE EM)

UCOR employees Andy Rodgers, left, and Alex Johnson install heat tracing to protect systems at the Environmental Management Waste Management Facility during the cold snap in Oak Ridge. Temperatures did not reach above freezing for more than four consecutive days.

Much of the nation experienced an extreme cold snap over the recent holidays, and Tennessee was no exception with temperatures dipping to nearly zero degrees in Oak Ridge. Despite the bitter weather, preparations and recent upgrades helped prevent infrastructure failures during that time.

Many employees with EM cleanup contractor UCOR reported to work over the holidays to ensure issues were resolved at several essential facilities. (EM stands for environmental management.)

At the Environmental Management Waste Management Facility, advanced planning and preparation protected critical water management systems during the deep freeze over the nearly weeklong cold snap, including a 6.5-hour unplanned power outage.

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Covenant Health donating land for Roane State health science center

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Covenant Health is donating about 10 acres of land for Roane State Community College’s new $75 million regional health science training center in west Knox County.

The Knox Regional Health Science and Simulation Center will be along Sherill Boulevard, across the street from Parkwest Medical Center. That hospital and medical center is near the intersection of Interstate 40 and Pellissippi Parkway (State Route 162).

Officials from Roane State Community College, the Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) Knoxville, and Covenant Health will celebrate the land transfer on Friday.

The new center was announced in early 2022. Roane State said project construction is expected to begin later this year.

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School board approves aviation career path

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The Oak Ridge school board on Monday unanimously approved an aviation career pathway that could eventually allow students to get a private pilot’s license. The board also approved a contract extension for Superintendent Bruce Borchers and the purchase of a truck for a mobile STEM laboratory.

Regarding the aviation path, school administrators said aviation programs can prepare students for a range of possible careers, including as pilots, aircraft engineers, air traffic control specialists, aircraft mechanics, and airline statisticians.

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