The UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) has extended its multimillion-pound Engineering Design Services Framework with nine companies, following a successful four-year period of delivering various engineering and design projects. This Framework, valued at up to £9m, plays a crucial role in fostering UK’s industrial supply chain capability, enabling close collaboration with UKAEA on fusion energy research initiatives.
Colette Broadwith, UKAEA’s Strategic Procurement Business Partner, highlighted the Framework’s importance in enhancing efficiency and collaboration within the fusion supply chain. She emphasized that the renewal for another four years will further leverage the engineering and technical expertise of industrial partners to accelerate the commercialization of fusion energy in the UK, thereby supporting economic growth.
The renewed Framework will continue to facilitate collaboration among suppliers across various disciplines such as Mechanical Engineering, Process Engineering, Systems Engineering, Electrical, Control & Instrumentation Engineering, Computer-Based Modelling, and Specialist Nuclear Services. This collaborative approach is aimed at advancing UKAEA’s mission to develop commercial fusion energy while involving industry comprehensively.
Over the past four years, successes under the Framework include significant contributions to projects like the Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production (STEP), focusing on Tritium transport, breeder blanket modelling, shielding concepts, and heat transfer enhancement assessments. Additionally, work on coolant flow loops, breeder blanket concept designs, and projects at the Joint European Torus (JET) have demonstrated the Framework’s effectiveness in advancing fusion energy technologies.
Furthermore, initiatives like the Fusion Innovation Challenge have been pivotal in addressing complex challenges in fusion energy research, underscoring the Framework’s role in driving innovation and technical excellence within the industry.
As UKAEA continues to advance its research and development efforts in fusion energy, the renewed Engineering Design Services Framework stands poised to further strengthen collaboration and drive forward crucial advancements in the field of sustainable energy production.