Difference between revisions of "Nuclear knowledge management"

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==Definition==
 
==Definition==
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'''Source:''' [[Knowledge management for radioactive waste management organisations ]]
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'''Source: [[Process oriented knowledge management]]'''
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== Summary==
 
== Summary==
One paragraph summary which summarises the main ideas of the article.
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Nuclear knowledge management is an integrated, systemic approach applied to all stages of the nuclear knowledge cycle. It impacts on human resources, information and communication technology, process and document management systems. Thus, corporate and national strategies relating to nuclear safety can be significantly influenced by our ability to manage knowledge both now and in the future. Managing knowledge is an essential enabler of any nuclear power programme.
  
== Description==
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==Description==
Nuclear knowledge management is an integrated, systematic approach applied to all stages of the nuclear knowledge cycle. It impacts on human resources, information and communication technology, process and document management systems. Thus, corporate and national strategies relating to radioactive waste management can be significantly influenced by our ability to manage knowledge both now and in the future. Nuclear knowledge management is not just useful — it is essential. Further discussion of the need for nuclear knowledge management can be found in related IAEA publications (for example Ref. [8]).
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Knowledge is the nuclear energy industry’s most valuable asset and resource, without which the industry cannot operate safely and economically. In addition to being essential, [[Nuclear knowledge|nuclear knowledge]] is also very complex, expensive to acquire and maintain, and easily lost. Member states, suppliers, and operating organizations that wish to obtain the benefits of peaceful applications of nuclear technology must also accept the responsibilities that go with it, and this includes a primary responsibility to ensure that the associated nuclear knowledge is sustainable and is sustained.
  
'''Source:''' [[Knowledge management for radioactive waste management organisations ]]
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The industrial infrastructure required to create and maintain the full scope of nuclear knowledge. It can represent a significant economic and technical burden for many Member States. This infrastructure includes research and development (R&D) and technical support organizations, laboratories to handle a wide variety of nuclear materials, research and power reactors, hot cells, reprocessing plants, demonstration facilities and disposal sites. These have to be supported by skilled operators, health physicists, regulatory and licensing bodies, quality and financial controllers. In recent years, the cost of maintaining such an infrastructure has risen. Willingness to share nuclear knowledge means more Member States, particularly in
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developing regions, are likely to have access to life-changing technology without the crippling burden of infrastructure costs.
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Effective management of nuclear facilities requires suitably qualified personnel. An important element of human resource management is the management of knowledge — the knowledge that individuals need as part of the competence requirements for assigned tasks and the additional knowledge they acquire in carrying out those tasks. This knowledge will be needed by several generations of the workforce during the lifetime of the nuclear energy programme. As the nuclear workforce ages and retires, the number of suitably qualified and experienced staff will decline and the knowledge they possess may be lost. Action is being taken to address this with the development of higher education programmes that focus, specifically, on nuclear technology and its application. However, many of these programmes in many countries are still in their infancy, and rely on concerted government and academic support — and both bodies are under constant pressure to demonstrate that they make best use of public funding. In some case it could take decades of support before the benefits are realised and, in the meantime, nuclear safety and security may be at risk. Furthermore, innovation will be compromised. Specialist knowledge is needed to apply nuclear technology in medicine, agriculture, industry, disease prevention, water management, electricity production and mineral exploration. If the knowledge accumulated to date is lost, applications will stall and many generations could have a less secure and sustainable future. These factors have led to the need for effective [[Knowledge management strategy|strategies and policies for knowledge management]] in [[Nuclear organization|nuclear organizations]] [1].
  
==Description==
 
[[Nuclear power plants|NPPs]] operate in a highly [[Regulatory requirements|regulated environment]] with stringent requirements. Effective management systems must be in place to ensure compliance with a number of regulatory and operating licence requirements including, for example: [[Safety|nuclear safety]], [[Environmental protection|environmental controls]], [[Equipment reliability|equipment reliability]] and qualification, nuclear quality assurance, nuclear security, [[Radioactive waste management|nuclear waste management]] and [[Safeguards|safeguards]], [[Radiation protection|radiation protection]] and monitoring, [[OPEX|operating experience feedback]] and [[Corrective action process|corrective action programmes]], work management and control, outage planning and management, and [[Design basis information management|design basis]] configuration management. All of these are knowledge intensive processes that involve [[Knowledge management|knowledge management]] considerations.
 
Knowledge management in the NPP context presents many challenges and issues and these stem from many factors such as:
 
* A [[Complex technology|complex technology]] base and infrastructure;
 
* Lengthy technology and plant life-cycles;
 
* [[High cost|Highly capital-intensive]] plant assets;
 
* A reliance on multi-disciplinary technologies and expertise;
 
* [[Competing operational objectives|Competing operational objectives]] (i.e. safety, economics, and production);
 
* Potentially [[High hazard|high hazards]] that must be systematically managed to demonstrably low tolerable risks; and
 
* An organization that is a complex [[Socio-technical system|socio-technical system]].
 
  
There is an on-going need in NPPs for coordination and alignment of often inter-dependent knowledge processes. There is also a frequent need for risk-informed technical decision making, both from a design basis management perspective and from an operations and maintenance perspective. Nuclear plant organizations are heavily knowledge-dependent and their operational needs demand a high level of expertise and knowledge-based infrastructure. Knowledge is embedded in humans, the underlying plant technology, and work processes and methodologies. The terms ‘knowledge-worker’ and ‘knowledge organization’ are all the more relevant to the multi-disciplinary environment of NPP organizations. For these reasons, NPP managers are interested in understanding and influencing the factors that affect not only the building and retention of the corporate knowledge base, but its effective utilization. The KM issues and priorities will vary in each NPP organization and this will depend on both internal organizational factors, and factors such as the national industry and infrastructure issues.
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Nuclear knowledge management is the management of nuclear [[Knowledge process | knowledge processes]] to achieve NKM goals. It supports the organization's business processes, and involves applying knowledge management practices to address the characteristics and specific needs of [[Nuclear knowledge |  nuclear knowledge]] and nuclear organizations. It can include the application of knowledge management practices at any stage of the nuclear knowledge life cycle: research and development, design and engineering, construction, commissioning, operations, maintenance, refurbishment and life time extension, waste management, and decommissioning. Nuclear knowledge management issues and priorities are often unique to the particular circumstances of individual Member States and their nuclear industry organizations. Nuclear knowledge management may focus on knowledge creation, identification, sharing, transfer, protection, validation, storage, dissemination, preservation or utilization. Nuclear knowledge management practices may involve the application of any of a wide range of knowledge management practices to enhance and support traditional business functions and goals such as human resource management, training, planning, operations, maintenance, projects, innovation, performance and risk management, information management, process management, organizational learning and information technology support.
  
'''Source:''' [[Impact of Knowledge Management Practices on NPP Organizational Performance – Results of Global Survey]]
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Nuclear organizations need to develop and implement a [[NKM strategy|nuclear knowledge management strategy]] that provides a framework for establishing principles, policy, priorities and plans to apply knowledge management practices in the workplace. Clearly defined [[NKM objectives | objectives]] will help establish the role of knowledge management in the nuclear organization.
==References==
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[1]
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Knowledge Management Systems support nuclear organizations to focus on strengthening and aligning the knowledge.
  
==Related articles==
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== IAEA approach to Nuclear Knowledge Management ==
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[[File:NKM holistic model Subject are mapv65.png|thumb|right|500px|Fig. 1. The Nuclear Knowledge Management Framework]]
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Many generic models have been developed describing knowledge management. These models are applicable in a general way, independent of the domain to be considered. For the specific domain of Nuclear KM, IAEA has developed a framework based on the experience of the member states and the long engagement of IAEA in knowledge management. This framework is depicted in Fig. 1. The framework models all fundamental components of nuclear knowledge management and their interrelations, thus presenting an integrated or holistic view of KM in the nuclear domain.
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It is well recognized that knowledge management has to serve the mission and purpose of an organization with clearly defined objectives, in contrast to early attempts to just introduce knowledge management in the vague anticipation of possible benefits. Therefore, the nuclear organizations and the business process established to reach their goals are central to the framework. A KM strategy is needed to implement KM, and must be aligned with the organization's objectives and its business processes. KM needs to address the challenges of the organization, and to show the benefits in resolving them.
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The business processes are supported by knowledge processes. Knowledge processes cover a broad scope in knowledge generation, validation, and maintenance: they are keys in building new knowledge, maintaining acquired knowledge and applying knowledge. The knowledge processes are enabled by tools, which include KM methods and the IT environment supportive of knowledge related activities.
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The focus on people as the most important component of KM ("people-focused KM") is underlined by recognition of the need for competent workforce, which is crucial particularly in the nuclear field. Competence management and provisions for education are the means to achieve and maintain a high competence level. The development and growth of knowledge and competence depends substantially on an open organizational culture.
  
[[Nuclear knowledge]]
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[[Knowledge management]]
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==Related articles==
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[[NKM objectives]]
  
[[Nuclear power plants]]
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[[NKM policy]]
  
[[:Category:Challenges]]
 
  
[[Category:Business processes]]
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[[Category:Nuclear knowledge management]]

Latest revision as of 10:20, 7 April 2016


Definition

Knowledge management in the nuclear domain

Summary

Nuclear knowledge management is an integrated, systemic approach applied to all stages of the nuclear knowledge cycle. It impacts on human resources, information and communication technology, process and document management systems. Thus, corporate and national strategies relating to nuclear safety can be significantly influenced by our ability to manage knowledge both now and in the future. Managing knowledge is an essential enabler of any nuclear power programme.

Description

Knowledge is the nuclear energy industry’s most valuable asset and resource, without which the industry cannot operate safely and economically. In addition to being essential, nuclear knowledge is also very complex, expensive to acquire and maintain, and easily lost. Member states, suppliers, and operating organizations that wish to obtain the benefits of peaceful applications of nuclear technology must also accept the responsibilities that go with it, and this includes a primary responsibility to ensure that the associated nuclear knowledge is sustainable and is sustained.

The industrial infrastructure required to create and maintain the full scope of nuclear knowledge. It can represent a significant economic and technical burden for many Member States. This infrastructure includes research and development (R&D) and technical support organizations, laboratories to handle a wide variety of nuclear materials, research and power reactors, hot cells, reprocessing plants, demonstration facilities and disposal sites. These have to be supported by skilled operators, health physicists, regulatory and licensing bodies, quality and financial controllers. In recent years, the cost of maintaining such an infrastructure has risen. Willingness to share nuclear knowledge means more Member States, particularly in developing regions, are likely to have access to life-changing technology without the crippling burden of infrastructure costs. Effective management of nuclear facilities requires suitably qualified personnel. An important element of human resource management is the management of knowledge — the knowledge that individuals need as part of the competence requirements for assigned tasks and the additional knowledge they acquire in carrying out those tasks. This knowledge will be needed by several generations of the workforce during the lifetime of the nuclear energy programme. As the nuclear workforce ages and retires, the number of suitably qualified and experienced staff will decline and the knowledge they possess may be lost. Action is being taken to address this with the development of higher education programmes that focus, specifically, on nuclear technology and its application. However, many of these programmes in many countries are still in their infancy, and rely on concerted government and academic support — and both bodies are under constant pressure to demonstrate that they make best use of public funding. In some case it could take decades of support before the benefits are realised and, in the meantime, nuclear safety and security may be at risk. Furthermore, innovation will be compromised. Specialist knowledge is needed to apply nuclear technology in medicine, agriculture, industry, disease prevention, water management, electricity production and mineral exploration. If the knowledge accumulated to date is lost, applications will stall and many generations could have a less secure and sustainable future. These factors have led to the need for effective strategies and policies for knowledge management in nuclear organizations [1].


Related articles

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NKM policy