NEA Mandates and Structures

Expert Group on the Application of Robotics and Remote Systems in the Nuclear Back-end (EGRRS)

Chair(s):	Ladislav VARGOVCIK, Slovak Republic Paolo PICCA, United Kingdom	Secretary:	Alexia MERCIER (alexia.mercier@oecd-nea.org)
Vice-Chair(s):	Emmanuel WOZNIAK, France Laurent VELNOM, Germany Shinji KAWATSUMA, Japan Nicklas TJERNLUND, Sweden
Member(s):	All NEA member countries^*
	Russia (Suspended*)
	^*Russian Federation suspended pursuant to a decision of the OECD Council.
Full participant(s):	European Commission Under the NEA Statute
Observer(s)(International Organisation):	International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) By agreement
Date of creation:	15 November 2019
End of mandate:	31 December 2025

Mandate (Document reference):

Summary Record of the 52nd Session of the Radioactive Waste Management Committee held on 19 March 2019 [NEA/RWM/M(2019)6]
NEA Radioactive Waste Management Committee Statement [NEA/RWM(2019)2]
Mandate of the Expert Group on the Application of Robotics and Remote Systems in the Nuclear Back-end (EGRRS) [NEA/RWM(2019)10/FINAL]
Summary record of the First Plenary Session of the Expert Group on the Application of Robotics and Remote Systems in the Nuclear Back-end (EGRRS) held on 7 December 2020 [NEA/RWM/M(2020)6/FINAL]
Summary record of the 54th Meeting of the Radioactive Waste Management Committee held on 11-12 March 2021 (RWMC) [NEA/RWM/M(2021)2/FINAL]
Mandate of the Expert Group on Application of Robotics and Remote Systems in the Nuclear Back-End (2022-2023) [NEA/RWM(2021)5/FINAL]
Summary record of the Third Plenary Session of the Expert Group on the Application of Robotics and Remote Systems in the Nuclear Back-end (EGRRS) held on 7 December 2022 [NEA/RWM/M(2022)5/PROV]
Summary record of the 56th Meeting of the Radioactive Waste Management Committee held on 22 March 2023 (RWMC) [NEA/RWM/M(2023)2/PROV]
Mandate of the Expert Group on the Application of Robotics and Remote Systems in the Nuclear Back-end (EGRRS) [NEA/RWM(2023)6/FINAL]

Mandate (Document extract):

Extract of document NEA/RWM(2023)6/FINAL

[...]

Objectives

The EGRRS will advise member countries under the RWMC and CDLM on leading and emerging issues which focus on the development of strategic approaches to facilitate the implementation of RRS in radioactive waste management, decommissioning and legacy management at national and international levels.

The EGRRS will also enable NEA member countries to support the comprehensive application of RRS to benefit the progress of scientific and technical knowledge.

Specifically, the EGRRS will:

promote the exchange of information on RRS development and application amongst the participants; collect and analyse inputs from participants;
study the major and emerging challenges concerning RRS application; identify the main factors influencing RRS application; arrange the identified factors and elaborate a plan of actions to support the development in the area of provision of the nuclear back-end programmes with RRS, including future innovative programmes (e.g., advanced types of nuclear reactors);
develop recommendations to the member countries on establishing a framework, allowing the wider application of RRS in the nuclear back-end area; strive to achieve shared approaches and standards, where appropriate; and
support the development and implementation of common procedures, rules, standards, etc. that can facilitate the process of RRS application amongst the potential users of the systems.

Following the second EGRRS mandate, the EGRRS focused on benchmarking practices in back-end RRS applications, identified and analysed factors influencing the regulatory licensing of back-end RRS applications, and developed a preliminary cost-benefit methodology to RRS applications in the back-end field. In the scope of this mandate, the EGRRS will focus on the following topics:

Human issues with the adoption of RRS technologies in the nuclear back-end programs;
Optimisation of regulatory approval pipelines for emerging RRS technologies;
Development of self-sustaining innovation pipelines for RRS technologies;
Integration of the activities and contributions from the last ad-hoc groups.

Working methods

The mode of operation of the EGRRS is based upon plenary meetings and an ongoing, project-oriented working programme.

A Bureau including the Chair and one Vice Chair will lead and organise the work of the EGRRS. The Bureau will meet once or twice a year, with one meeting being held in conjunction with the annual EGRRS meeting. Additional Bureau meetings will be organised, when necessary, as requested by the Bureau and in accordance with the capacity of the Secretariat (NEA Division of Radioactive Waste Management and Decommissioning - RWMD).

Communication within the EGRRS will primarily take place through annual plenary meetings. Other appropriate communication channels will be considered as well, if needed.

The EGRRS will report to the RWMC at its plenary meetings and the RWMC and CDLM during joint sessions (with the agreement of both committees). The main directions of future development of recommendations to member countries are to be identified, documented and reported to the RWMC and/or to the joint plenary sessions of the RWMC and the CDLM (as appropriate).

The EGRRS will report to the RWMC Bureau and the joint RWMC and CDLM Bureaus (with their agreement) at least once per year unless decided otherwise by the respective committees.

Additionally, the EGRRS will: (i) identify resources and schedules for its activities; (ii) form task groups to work on specific projects and to organise workshops, as appropriate; and (iii) conduct an annual review of the programme of work and the effectiveness of the programme.

Membership

The EGRRS is a task-oriented expert group. It aims for a composition, which includes a diverse range of senior specialists who have considerable experience and knowledge in the area of the development and application of RRS in the nuclear back-end and are able to mobilise appropriate professionals in their organisation as well as in the country they represent.

Delegates to EGRRS include decision-makers and senior representatives of R&D institutions/organisations in the field of RRS, test sites, laboratories and facilities, regulatory bodies (various fields) and technical supporting organisations to the regulatory bodies, developers of the main and auxiliary elements for maintenance and repairing of remote/robotic systems, RRS producers/suppliers/service providers, soft and electronic elements developers, environmental organisations and public communication experts and other relevant specialists.

Interactions

The EGRRS will co-ordinate its work with the RWMC and the CDLM to support a holistic approach to radioactive waste management, decommissioning and legacy management. The work of the EGRRS is complementary to the activities of other international organisations, thus using or taking into account the outcomes of related activities of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the European Commission (EC), as well as other relevant organisations. When appropriate, the EGRRS can provide input relevant to the activities of these organisations and institutions.

In fulfilling its mandate, the EGRRS will be primarily supported by the RWMD staff of the NEA Secretariat. In addition, the EGRRS will co-operate with the subsidiary bodies of other NEA standing technical committees when relevant. It may also collaborate with the NEA Co-operative Programme for the Exchange of Scientific and Technical Information Concerning Nuclear Installation Decommissioning Projects (CPD).

Deliverables

The EGRRS will produce relevant report(s) and organize various workshops, conferences, and webinars with the support of the NEA RWMD Secretariat.