Training needs assessment: identification of competence fields for the dismantling of nuclear power plants
Authors: Thomaschewski Lisa , Weyers Benjamin , Kluge Annette 
Published: November 2021

Abstract. The dismantling of nuclear facilities is a continuous process of change
encompassing the complete site. Thereby, the focus changes from a stable and
standardized operational phase to a situation characterized by constant
changes in the facility as well as in the facility organization. Thus,
employees and managers are confronted with a markedly changed working
environment: processes and methods must be continuously re-evaluated and
adapted, qualification requirements change or shift and new interfaces
emerge. Furthermore, compared to the operational phase, the regulatory depth
is reduced, decisions must be made faster and more flexible and the mode of
operation changes from hierarchically organized routine standard operational
procedures to an efficiency-orientated project-based mode of operation with
limited resources at the same time. To make dismantling efficient and safe,
this change should be actively managed by a change project in terms of the
human technology organization approach (MTO approach, Strohm and Ulich, 1999). Against this background, our BMBF-funded collaboration project (“Die Kompetenzen von Führungskräften und
MitarbeiterInnen für den Rückbau stärken –
Rückbaukompetenzen”; funding number 15S9426A) aims to identify the
dismantling-related requirement changes and the associated competence shifts
as well as to develop and support the changed roles of managers and employees
by scientifically based training (Goldstein and Ford, 2002; IAEA,
1998). Thereby, seminar-based training (knowledge-based and
demonstration-based, e.g., Sitzmann and Weinhardt, 2019) will be complemented
by exercise-based and experience-based training (Cannon-Bowers and Bowers,
2010) with multimodal mixed reality applications, which allow experience-based
learning with the help of virtual reality-based representations (via data glasses,
tablet or PC) and can be adapted to the individual usage and learning style
preferences of the trainees. The training will be developed and implemented in
cooperation with our project partner GfS
(Gesellschaft für Simulatorschulung mbH). After project completion,
the GfS will provide the training to nuclear power plant operators and, if
necessary, develop them so that a sustainable contribution to the preservation
of the specialized knowledge in the nuclear energy sector is achieved. To identify the needs for dismantling-relevant training objectives and
competencies in the first step, a document analysis (safety alerts and monthly
reports from our project partner PreussenElektra GmbH and over 500 reportable
incidents from 28 nuclear power plants from 2012–2020), as well as
10 expert interviews, were conducted. The document analysis was used to
investigate the incidents for (1) differences between operational phase and
decommission, (2) differences in events between in-house and contractor
personnel and to identify the incidents with the highest frequencies. The objective of the expert interviews was the qualitative context analysis as
well as the identification of dismantling-relevant competence fields. The
analysis allowed us to identify nine dismantling-related competence fields for
employees and managers and a further three specifically for managers. These 12 competence
fields will be discussed and defined in more detail in further interviews with
approximately 20 managers and 30 employees. Based on these findings, training
objectives will be formulated and training content designed. The presentation outlines the analysis described above as well as the
identified fields of competence and sketches the further procedure of the
collaborative project.