Robotics and VR combine to tackle one of the world's most hazardous nuclear sites

Three companies will combine robotics, virtual reality and radiation mapping in an attempt to decommission one of the world’s most hazardous nuclear facilities.

Babcock International Group, its subsidiary Cavendish Nuclear and OC Robotics said they are developing the “next generation of world-leading robotic technology” for safer, faster and more cost-effective decommissioning at Sellafield.

The system combines a robotic ‘laser-snake’ arm, gamma dose rate scanning technology and VR. Snake-arm robots are highly flexible and can travel through cluttered and tightly-packed environments.

Operators will use VR applications revealing radiation maps of facilities to programme the robots’ cutting sequence. The remote system will then access sealed areas, cut up the contents – including large vessels and miles of pipework – before removing the waste for treatment and safe storage.

The companies are competing to put their system to work at Sellafield’s Magnox reactor and thermal oxide reprocessing plants, which are both due to close after fulfilling their roles.

“We are combining technologies developed across different sectors of industry to deliver a breakthrough in the reduction of risks to workers, increased productivity, more efficient management of waste, reduced timescales and lower overall costs,” said Cavendish Nuclear’s project leader Alan Rutherford.

The three companies hope to demonstrate the technology late this year.