Risk-Informed Technical Specifications Initiative 4b provides a process to continue plant operation beyond the existing completion time for selected Technical Specification Required Actions based on configuration risk. The NRC-endorsed process is consistent with the existing configuration risk management used for maintenance rule risk assessment of on-line maintenance. EPM staff includes engineers with the relevant operating plant experience and PRA capabilities to implement the 4b initiative. As a member of the industry Risk-Informed Technical Specifications Task Force, EPM staff are aware of current trends and issues for implementation of this initiative.

EPM staff have experience in all aspects of initiative 4b implementation, including development of the license amendment request per TSTF-505, procedures, training, and PRA modeling for configuration risk management implementation to support this initiative. EPM can assist with development and implementation of initiative 4b to realize outage scope reduction, on-line maintenance optimization, improved safety equipment reliability, and avoided plant shutdowns. EPM staff can also assist in improving the base PRA models, developing a combined model and setting up industry-standard software to take maximum advantage on this initiative. EPM has developed LAR packages, “One-Top" PRA models and on-line configuration risk models for several operating plants.

Risk-Informed Technical Specification initiative 5b relocates surveillance test intervals to a licensee-controlled document, and provides an NRC-endorsed process to change the test intervals without prior NRC approval. EPM staff includes engineers with the relevant operating plant experience and PRA capabilities to implement the 5b Initiative. As a member of the industry Risk-Informed Technical Specifications Task Force, EPM staff are aware of current trends and issues for implementation of this initiative.

With nearly universal adoption of TSTF-425, EPM has shifted to identifying, prioritizing, and implementing the process for extending the test intervals to realize reductions in outage scope and manpower requirements for surveillance testing. The plant implementation is commonly referred to as STRIDE. EPM has developed STRIDE packages for a range of operating plants.

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