Nuclear projects should embrace digital rehearsal processes to improve certainty
Digital rehearsal offers a progressive assurance method for nuclear projects, enabling earlier engagement with design, construction sequencing and safety planning
By integrating 3D models with live project data, teams can identify issues before they occur, reducing rework, lowering cost and improving schedule certainty
As the technology matures, it’s becoming an essential tool in delivering high-value, high-assurance infrastructure
Digital rehearsal drives efficiency and assurance in nuclear delivery
Not many projects in the world are as technically complex and as highly regulated as those in the nuclear sector. Combined with their enormous scale, lengthy construction periods and extensive safety requirements, it is not surprising that delivery has historically been challenging.
The good news is that today digital technology is available that can enable better and wider interaction with designs earlier in the project lifecycle, improving future outcomes and preventing potential problems before they can affect the schedule.
Using a process called digital rehearsal, the design can be interacted with in new ways, bringing forward scrutiny of the project using specialist tools for visualisation, planning and user immersion. These make the design more accessible, enabling regulators and other experts to provide greater input on the design at earlier stages, reducing the risk of extensive changes later. This kind of progressive assurance approach improves overall confidence in the design and, importantly, reduces risk across the project lifecycle leading to better outcomes for all stakeholders.
Image credit: United Utilities
The ability to scrutinise and visualise a 3D design model in new ways, such as through a virtual reality headset or watching a 3D sequencing animation, can capture vital feedback that simply wasn’t possible using traditional processes and technologies of the past. For example, on a recent project installing critical nuclear equipment for the defence sector, our team was able to collect three times more observations in early review meetings. This vital feedback was then incorporated into the design thanks to our use of digital rehearsal, specifically linking the 3D design model with the construction programme to validate design feasibility.
Proven technology
Digital rehearsal is a process that can be used at any point in a project’s lifecycle from facilitating interaction with the design at public consultation stage, to enabling operational teams to train for handover in a virtual safe environment. Some of the biggest benefitshave been captured by using digital rehearsal to improve construction processes and Mott MacDonald has been driving adoption forward across a number of sectors. By combining a 3D design model with the construction schedule to develop a 4D model on our nuclear schemes, we have enabled visualisation of construction sequences and identified issues at critical steps of a build. This approach optimises both sequencing and the project timeline. Not only does this reduce the cost to the client, it also improves safety on site and reduces the need for rework.
As an example of the benefits of digital rehearsal seen in the broader construction sector, Mott MacDonald Bentley used digital rehearsal when working on a £1bn resilience programme for water company United Utilities.Use of the technology reduced the shutdown period required to connect a new 2.5km water supply pipeline to existing infrastructure by over 70%. By visualising the construction sequence with digital rehearsal tools, the team was able to make improvements to the resource planning such as revising the lengths of pipeline and locations of welding activities. Digital rehearsal also enabled the team to visually demonstrate this to the client who then confidently signed off on a shorter shutdown period of just eight days compared to the original schedule of 28 days. The actual work took seven days, 22 hours and 46 minutes, demonstrating how accurate digital rehearsal can be, and how effective it could be for the nuclear industry too.
Integrated transition
To make digital rehearsal an integral part of the nuclear design process, our emphasis is on rapid transition from a 3D model to a final output that meets the required purpose. Frequent changes to the building information modelling (BIM) can lead to digital rehearsal outputs, such as 4D models, falling behind design changes and becoming obsolete. To address this, our teams have developed tools to automate the integration of changes so the 4D output always keeps pace with approved changes to the design and can be relied on to support decision making. All outputs are therefore based on controlled and validated datasets. Only shared or formally submitted information is used, in line with ISO19650 processes, and deliverables are built with controlled and auditable components. This guarantees that only checked content is presented to stakeholders.
Security is also paramount with necessary constraints around information security presenting challenges to use of digital rehearsal by the nuclear sector that require consideration. Mott MacDonald’s digital rehearsal teams are careful to understand and manage the impact of information classification and data aggregation for any work undertaken. Digital rehearsal workflows are integrated with secure platforms and, where access to cloud infrastructure is not readily available, the same functionality can be replicated within closed networks. Emerging technologies in Mott MacDonald are also put through thorough vetting and testing prior to their introduction onto our secure platforms.
Right first time
The savings that digital rehearsal can deliver for the nuclear sector are quantifiable and significant and they can start right from the inception of a project. As work progresses, the introduction of change can have an exponentially large cost impact, but digital rehearsal brings the identification of change forward in the project lifecycle, lowering cost and improving outcomes. Its benefits can then be realised over and over again from construction scheduling through to providing a safe digital training ground for maintenance activities. It can even be used for planning decommissioning activities decades into the future.
Digital rehearsal supports getting things right first time, avoiding the regulatory cliff edge that can befall nuclear projects that don’t apply this kind of progressive assurance. As a result of its positive impact, the technology is gaining traction fast but has yet to realise its full potential for nuclear delivery assets.
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