Oak Ridge Today

Mason leaving ORNL for Battelle

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Thom Mason May 23 2016

Oak Ridge National Laboratory Director Thom Mason is pictured above on Monday, May 23, 2016, in Chattanooga. (File photo by ORNL)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 3:05 p.m.

Thom Mason, the director of Oak Ridge National Laboratory since 2007, is leaving the lab for a job at Battelle.

Mason announced the move in an email to employees on Friday morning.

He will become senior vice president for laboratory operations at Battelle in Columbus, Ohio. Battelle, in partnership with the University of Tennessee, has managed and operated ORNL for the U.S. Department of Energy since April 2000.

“I’m privileged to take on the challenges that lie ahead,” Mason said. [Read more…]

Show of support for AMSE planned for Saturday, Feb. 18

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Submitted photo

Submitted photo

 

A show of support and appreciation for the American Museum of Science and Energy is planned for Saturday, February 18, an organizer said.

“This is a gathering for appreciation and support for the museum and its role as a cornerstone and icon of our community,” organizer David Hackett said in an email. “It is not a political rally or protest as such.”

Hackett said politics and economics have affected the museum. He pointed out that the museum will be smaller after its relocation to the former Sears Roebuck store near JCPenney at the former Oak Ridge Mall, which is now being redeveloped as Main Street Oak Ridge.

“The downsizing comes at a crucial time for the advance of tourism and the creation of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park,” Hackett said. “Just when we should all be pulling together to make the park work, the rug is being pulled from under it.” [Read more…]

‘Handful’ of ORNL scientists from countries included in travel ban, but no effect so far

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Oak Ridge National Laboratory Sign

Photo by Oak Ridge National Laboratory

 

Note: This story was updated at 1:30 a.m. Feb. 12.

A “handful of scientists” working at Oak Ridge National Laboratory are citizens of the seven countries that were barred from entering the United States for up to 90 days under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump last month, but so far, the travel ban hasn’t had an effect at the lab, officials said Friday.

ORNL is a U.S. Department of Energy laboratory. It’s DOE’s largest science and energy laboratory, and it has foreign nationals working there as well as visiting scientists.

The seven countries included in the president’s travel ban, which was issued January 27, were Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.

“Only a handful of scientists working at ORNL are citizens of those seven countries,” the lab said in response to questions. “We’re not aware of any effects of the order here to date.” [Read more…]

ORNL wins four federal lab awards for tech transfer

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Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Open Port Sampling Interfaces for Mass Spectrometry, invented by Gary Van Berkel (left) and Vilmos Kertesz, features simplicity and elegance. (Photo by ORNL)

Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Open Port Sampling Interfaces for Mass Spectrometry, invented by Gary Van Berkel (left) and Vilmos Kertesz, features simplicity and elegance. (Photo by ORNL)

 

Four technologies developed at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have earned Federal Laboratory Consortium awards for excellence in technology transfer, a press release said.

The FLC is a network of more than 300 federal laboratories, facilities, and research centers dedicated to promoting and strengthening the commercialization of federal laboratory-developed technologies and expertise, the press release said.

The honors place ORNL in elite company, according to Donna Bialozor, FLC Awards committee chair, who wrote: “This year, your laboratory is one of a select number of recipients, an indication that your nominations were truly of the highest caliber.”

Mike Paulus, ORNL’s director of technology transfer, noted that it is especially significant that ORNL won four of the 19 FLC awards for excellence in technology transfer.

“With these latest awards, ORNL has now won 55 since 1986, reaffirming the importance and relevance of our research and development,” Paulus said.

ORNL earned recognition for the following technologies: [Read more…]

ORNL receives interest from appliance makers on dryer that uses vibrations, rather than heat

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Oak Ridge National Lab’s Ayyoub Momen demonstrates ultrasonic clothes dryer technology for David Danielson, assistant secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, or EERE. (Photo courtesy DOE)

Oak Ridge National Lab’s Ayyoub Momen demonstrates ultrasonic clothes dryer technology for David Danielson, assistant secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, or EERE. (Photo courtesy DOE)

 

Oak Ridge National Laboratory has received significant interest from appliance manufacturers who could enter into an agreement to continue developing the technology to build a dryer that uses vibrations, rather than heat, to dry clothes.

The cooperative research and development agreement, or CRADA, could develop the technology into a full-scale commercial product.

This month, Oak Ridge Today asked about the current status of the project, which has been highlighted by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. An earlier announcement had said that the project term was from October 1, 2014, to September 30, 2016.

Omar Abdelaziz of ORNL said DOE has continued to fund this work and will fund the laboratory’s efforts in the upcoming CRADA. [Read more…]

UCOR, DOE cleanup contractor in Oak Ridge, earns 94 percent of award fee

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UCOR workers take down the final portion of Building K-27, achieving Vision 2016, a DOE goal to remove all of the former uranium enrichment buildings at the East Tennessee Technology Park by the end of 2016. K-27 was the fifth and final gaseous diffusion building to be demolished at the site. Successful demolitions of the four other buildings were completed from 2006 to 2015. (U.S. Department of Energy photo)

 

UCOR, the U.S. Department of Energy’s cleanup contractor in Oak Ridge, received about $3.4 million for its performance from April through September 2016, or 94 percent of the total award fee available, federal officials said.

The Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, or OREM, recently issued the six-month fee determination scorecard for UCOR, or URS | CH2M Oak Ridge LLC, after completing its evaluation.

“Contractor award fee evaluations determine what will be paid based on performance against stated objectives in accordance with annual award fee plans,” the DOE Office of Environmental Management, or EM, said in the EM Update electronic newsletter on December 29. “EM releases information relating to contractor fee payments to further transparency.”

According to UCOR’s scorecard, the company received an overall rating of “very good” for project management and “high confidence” for cost and schedule based on cost and schedule indexes, the newsletter said. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management cuts costs by $5.4 million

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Sue Cange, who was manager of the Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management and is now EM principal deputy assistant secretary in Washington, D.C., is pictured above at the end of demolition of the K-27 Building on Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

The Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management, or OREM, has cut costs by $5.4 million, federal officials said.

OREM is one of several U.S. Department of Energy Environmental Management, or EM, sites that reduced costs by more than $100 million in fiscal year 2016, which ended September 30.

The costs were reduced in response to a challenge from EM leaders to free more funding for cleanup, DOE said in a December 29 EM Update electronic newsletter.

The Savannah River Operations Office realized more than $34.1 million in cost reductions, officials said. It was followed by the Richland Operations Office with more than $31.6 million; Portsmouth/Paducah Project Office with more than $16.8 million; Office of River Protection with more than $12.7 million; Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management with $5.4 million; and Idaho Site with more than $4 million.

“Reducing our costs by more than $100 million is a tremendous accomplishment, and we are going to continue to look for ways to work smarter and identify further savings in fiscal year 2017,” EM Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Sue Cange said. [Read more…]

With transfer agreement signed, plans call for developing AMSE site, relocating museum, demolishing building

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The American Museum of Science and Energy is pictured above on South Tulane Avenue in Oak Ridge on Monday, Jan. 2, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 1:30 p.m. Jan. 3.

With a property transfer agreement signed, new businesses could be built on the 17 acres that now house the American Museum of Science and Energy, the museum will be relocated, and the AMSE building could be demolished, officials and a business executive said Friday.

The changes are allowed under an agreement approved by federal officials, unanimously approved by the Oak Ridge City Council in December, and signed by U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz and Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch in a Friday morning ceremony at Oak Ridge Associated Universities.

The U.S. Department of Energy said the transfer of the museum property, owned by the federal government, will allow the City of Oak Ridge to “explore future innovative development and economic stimulus opportunities.”

“From the Manhattan Project of World War II to the cutting-edge materials research of today, Oak Ridge has long played a vital role in American science and security,” Moniz said. “This agreement will ensure that Oak Ridge’s history is preserved and shared while providing the city a new opportunity to create jobs and strengthen the local economy.”

When the transfer is completed, DOE public outreach and education missions that are now conducted at AMSE and focused on Oak Ridge history, science, and national security will continue in renovated space in a two-story building that once housed a Sears store next to JCPenney at the former Oak Ridge Mall. The former mall is being redeveloped as Main Street Oak Ridge.

DOE said the AMSE property transfer will save more than $2 million in deferred maintenance costs at the museum and greatly reduce operating expenses. [Read more…]

CareerLink showcases internships, research opportunities for minorities at ORNL

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ORISE, ORNL host 43 faculty and undergraduates from minority institutions for networking event

The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, or ORISE, recently partnered with Oak Ridge National Laboratory to host a CareerLink Event Day that provided a full day of networking and workshops for faculty and undergraduate students from minority institutions.

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists Programs and held at ORNL, this inaugural event benefitted 43 distinguished faculty and undergraduate students from historically black colleges and universities, or HBCUs, and minority education institutions, or MEIs, who are interested in career opportunities with DOE or its national labs.

“Events like this help excite and educate faculty and students from our nation’s minority education institutions about STEM-related careers,” said Craig Layman, associate director with ORISE. “Students learn more about the critical mission areas of ORNL and, at the same time, network with potential mentors who are among ORNL’s top scientists and engineers.” [Read more…]

Secret City Pocket Guide unveiled in anticipation of the 75th anniversary of Oak Ridge, DOE

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The Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association has unveiled a new guide to the historic sites of the “Secret City” of Oak Ridge. The Manhattan Project, Secret City Pocket Guide was prepared by the Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association in cooperation with the National Park Service and the Oak Ridge Schools.

The 44-page guide measures only 4 inches by 7 inches in size, so it easily fits in your pocket, a press release said. It tells the story of the Manhattan Project’s first major nuclear site, Oak Ridge—created less than a year after the Pearl Harbor attack. The guide is priced at $5.

The new guide is packed with historic photos, an introduction to the new national historical park, a driving map of Oak Ridge’s heritage sites, and fascinating factoids on the people who built one of the most amazing technical achievements in history, the press release said.

The guide’s author, Martin McBride, is a member of the Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association Board and a retired nuclear safety division director from the U.S. Department of Energy. [Read more…]

DOE secretary to attend AMSE land transfer ceremony on Dec. 30

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Ernest Moniz

Ernest Moniz

Note: This story was last updated at 12:10 p.m.

U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz will attend the land transfer ceremony for the American Museum of Science and Energy property in Oak Ridge next week.

The ceremony is scheduled for Friday, December 30. Also expected to attend are U.S. Congressman Chuck Fleischmann and City of Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch.

It’s a signing ceremony to formally transfer the roughly 17-acre AMSE site from the U.S. Department of Energy to the City of Oak Ridge.

Under an agreement unanimously approved by Oak Ridge City Council on December 13, the city is then expected to transfer the property in two phases to a company set up by RealtyLink, the South Carolina firm building Main Street Oak Ridge at the site of the former Oak Ridge Mall. [Read more…]

Energy Communities Alliance publishes recommendations for Trump transition team

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The Energy Communities Alliance, an organization whose members include local governments adjacent to or affected by U.S. Department of Energy activities, has submitted its transition priorities and recommendations for the incoming Trump administration. They are included in “A Roadmap for Successful Local Government and Community Engagement.”

The document includes nine key priorities, each with their own set of recommendations, for the new administration to adopt as it engages in discussions regarding ongoing U.S. Department of Energy operations and performance, a press release said.

Here are the nine priorities, grouped into three areas: [Read more…]