Entradas
Ensa collaborates with the University of Cantabria and the CSIC in a project on non-destructive ultrasonic testing techniques
Maliaño, December 17th, 2018 – Equipos Nucleares S.A., S.M.E collaborated with the University of Cantabria and the Higher Council for Scientific Research in a project related to the techniques of non-destructive testing by ultrasound whose objective was that the Cantabrian company improve its training in two new generation techniques Phased Array and TOFD.
The execution of this project is translated in terms of innovation for Ensa, due to the fact that the advanced ultrasound tests can contribute to guarantee the quality of the welds in the welding station itself.
This collaboration has served to launch a new inspection technology project aimed at robotizing tests for the ITER project with which the Cantabrian company and the UC will continue working together.
The project was financed by the Ministry of Innovation, Industry, Tourism and Trade of the Government of Cantabria through the European Regional Development Fund .
Ensa participated in the Heavy Fabrication Summit (HFS2018) in Finland
Maliaño, December 12th, 2018-. Equipos Nucleares S.A., S.M.E participated in the Heavy Manufacturing Summit held at the Pemamek headquarters in Loimaa, Finland whose main objective was to make known the latest welding trends to increase quality, productivity and efficiency in heavy manufacturing.
The event was attended by over a hundred participants from companies around the world who came together to learn about the latest trends in heavy welding , recent innovations in this field and ways to increase production capacity. In addition, there were live demonstrations of six different automated PEMA welding and production solutions. Domingo Lima, head of the Center for Advanced Technology represented the Cantabrian company there.
Ensa collaborates again with SANDIA and PNNL (USA ) and BAM (Germany) laboratories
Maliaño, December 3, 2018 – Equipos Nucleares S.A., S.M.E has reached a new agreement with the American research laboratories of SANDIA and PNNL – with whom already collaborated in a project to measure vibrations during the transport of its ENUN 32P cask in 2017 – by which it will make available to SANDIA the 1/3 scale model of the cask, so that a series of new tests can be carried out in the facilities of the BAM research Centre, in Berlin . Ensa’s technicians will support SANDIA, PNNL and BAM through the tests that will be carried out in this Centre.
The foreseen tests are framed in the verification of the behaviour of the cask and the spent fuel for compliance with the safety requirements indicated in the Normal Conditions of Transport, which are required in the licensing processes of casks for the Transport mode, according to the current IAEA regulations .
As indicated above, the scale model to be used was built in Ensa for the tests performed under Normal Transport Conditions and Hypothetical Accident Conditions, carried out at the SANDIA facilities , to validate the design of the ENUN 32P cask and the impact limiters of all the casks of the ENUN family, checking the accelerations suffered by the cask, while in this new project the accelerations suffered by the fuel will be checked in greater detail.
Once the tests are completed, all the equipment will return to Ensa while SANDIA and PNNL will be in charge of post-processing and analysing the results obtained. This new collaboration confirms the preparation of Ensa’s technological equipment and its positioning in the research of more advanced products.
Ensa’s new success in ITER robot welding
Maliaño, November 16, 2018 – Equipos Nucleares S.A., S.M.E continues with success the execution of welds of components destined to the ITER project .
The robotic TIG welding system developed in the Advanced Technology Centre by the Automatic Unit with the Welding Development Unit, in collaboration with the personnel of the Production Welding Unit, has made possible to complete the vertical upward welds on both sides of one of the ITER sector components assigned to the Cantabrian company, obtaining magnificent results in the quality and productivity of the process in the 3 welded components.
PARTICIPANTS IN THE COROMA PROJECT hold their general meeting in Ensa
Maliaño, November 13, 2018 – The European project COROMA, in which Equipos Nucleares S.A., S.M.E participates as an end user, continues and the second anniversary of its beginning is celebrated, two working days were organized in the company’s facilities. The main objective was to expose the most significant advances of this important project whose aim is to develop an autonomous modular robot, easily programmable, safe in its interaction with humans and other machines and able to adapt to changes in its environment.
The first day was of a technical nature and served to share their experiences. In the different presentations details of their developments were shown and the operation of their modules was explained. At the end of the day, all the participants visited Ensa’s workshop and showed their interest in the processes and components it manufactures.
The second day was attended by two experts in charge of evaluating the work carried out. After the presentations of those responsible for each of the work packages and the subsequent analysis, the evaluators showed their good impression of the level reached so far in each of the sections.
In the following months, work will continue on the integration of the different modules, after which, in the last four months of 2019, final tests will begin on the applications proposed by end users.
The COROMA project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 723853.
Ensa participated in the 8th NDA Estate Supply Chain Event in Manchester
Maliaño, November 6, 2018 – Equipos Nucleares, S.A., S.M.E participated in the 8th edition of the NDA Estate Supply Chain Event held in Manchester; the most important event in Europe related to nuclear dismantling.
This fair, organised by industry for industry, provided the opportunity to establish contacts with more than 300 exhibiting companies in the nuclear industry. On this occasion, the Cantabrian company was able to share its experience in the dismantling of both Spanish plants and experiences outside Spain .
Ensa assisted to the 12th General Assembly of CEIDEN
Equipos Nucleares S.A., S.M.E assisted to the 12th General Assembly of the Nuclear Fission Energy Technology Platform held at the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities.
During the session, the latest developments regarding energy policy were discussed and the main technical programmes of the platform were presented, among which the analysis of national investments in nuclear R&D+i corresponding to 2016 stood out. It also hosted the conference «The Integrated Energy Network» held by representatives of the Electric Power Research Institute .
The objectives of CEIDEN, of which Ensa has been a member since its beginnings in 2007, are to coordinate the different national R&D plans and programmes, as well as participation in international programmes, trying to coherently guide the efforts of the entities involved.
The Cantabrian company was represented by Luis Magdalena, coordinator of R&D Improvements and Javier Matarredona, from the Marketing and Sales Department.
Ensa welcomes ENUSA President
Ensa welcomes ENUSA President
Maliaño, October 22, 2018 – Equipos Nucleares S.A., S.M.E received the visit of José Vicente Berlanga, president of ENUSA INDUSTRIAS AVANZADAS, S.A., S.M.E , who was accompanied by Pablo Zuloaga, Government delegate in Cantabria.
Eduardo González-Mesones, president of the Cantabrian company; Rafael Triviño, general manager and Ángel Cosío, director of Human Relations and Corporate Social Responsibility, explained some of the most relevant aspects of the company’s activity focused on the design and manufacture of large components for the nuclear industry, spent fuel management and which provides different services in the plant covering its entire life cycle, including dismantling.
During his visit to the workshop, Berlanga was able to gain first-hand knowledge of some of the equipment currently in different stages of manufacture and showed special interest in the fuel heads of the Spanish nuclear power plants that Ensa has been supplying to ENUSA since 1998. «I have been able to verify in situ that a Spanish company such as Ensa is a technical reference in the manufacturing of components for such a demanding sector as the nuclear sector», he declared.
For its part, Zuloaga valued this meeting very positively and expressed its commitment to visit the facilities of the company based in Maliaño on another occasion and in greater detail.
SEPI Group
Both companies belong to the SEPI Group, Ensa 100% owned and ENUSA 60% owned, a holding company that covers a total of 15 public companies directly and majority owned, with more than 74,000 professionals. It also has a supervised public foundation and minority direct shareholdings in nine other companies and indirect shareholdings in more than one hundred companies.
Ensa successfully completes the loading campaign at the Ascó II Power Plant
Maliaño, 19th October 2018.- Equipos Nucleares S.A., S.M.E successfully completed the loading of 2 casks at the Ascó nuclear power plant in Tarragona.
With this work, the Cantabrian company has completed the loading campaign this year for a total of 6 casks; 4 in group I between March and April and 2 in group II between September and October.
In addition to the loads, Ensa received 4 new casks manufactured by the company itself, two of which were used for Group II.