Commercial Grade Dedication (CGD)
The Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant’s four APR1400 nuclear Units will operate for the next 60 or more years, providing clean, reliable and efficient electricity to power the UAE’s social and economic growth.
As a part of the overall maintenance to be conducted throughout the operational lifetime of the plant, Nawah relies on a robust supply chain for spare parts and services. For this, there are two essential categories of items and services:
Safety related Items/Services (Parts, components, sub-assemblies):
- These are specifically designed, manufactured and controlled complying with the adequate code and standards to assure their safety function.
OR
- They can be purchased as commercial grade items (off the shelf) and follow the required dedication program to finally meet the identified critical characteristics and acceptance criteria in order to assure their safety function. In this case they are dedicated to a nuclear application that requires complying with the item or service safety function.
Non-Safety related Item/Services
Non-Safety related items or services follow conventional industrial (as opposed to Nuclear) Quality Assurance principles and rules.
What is a Commercial Grade Item (CGI)?
Per 10CFR21, Rev 2, 1995
For commercial plants licensed pursuant to 10CFR, Part 50
A structure, system, or component, or part thereof that affects its safety function, which was not designated and manufactured as a basic component.
CGIs do not include items where the design and manufacturing process require many in-process inspections and verifications to ensure that defects or failures to comply are identified and corrected.
What is a Commercial Grade Item Dedication (CGID)?
Per EPRI NP-5652 rev1-2014, CGID is:
An acceptance process that is undertaken to provide reasonable assurance that a commercial-grade item to be used as a basic component will perform its intended safety function and, in this respect, is deemed equivalent to an item designed and manufactured under a 10CFR50, Appendix B QA program. (10CFR21 Rev 2).
The Commercial Grade Dedication activity for the Barakah plant must comply with the prescriptions of EPRI NP-5652 (NCIG-07), Guideline for the Utilization of Commercial Grade Items in Nuclear Safety Related Applications and EPRI TR 3002002982, Guideline for the Acceptance of Commercial Grade Items in Nuclear Safety-Related Applications (Revision 1 to EPRI NP-5652 and TR-102260).
What are the Commercial Grade Item Dedication Methods?
Method 1 – Special Tests & Inspections
Method 2 – Commercial Grade Survey
Method 3 – Source Verification
Method 4 – Supplier/Item Performance Record
Industry in the UAE has high levels of capability and potential for manufacturing, maintenance, services and construction. With the support of a long-term vision, the nation has already been able to build a strong supply chain providing goods and services to several industries such as aerospace, oil and gas, and thermal power generation. These existing capabilities offer an opportunity for ENEC & Nawah to make use of local suppliers as part of the commercial grade dedication process.
Commercial items that need to be dedicated are items that cannot be procured as ‘safety-related’ such as bearings, fuses, capacitors, gases, oils and greases, etc. All these items could be procured from the local market and this will have a direct positive impact on the local industry and UAE supply chain.
In addition to the local manufacturing capabilities, the local market offers several accredited laboratories capable of performing most of the testing activities that may be required during the dedication process.
