Much of the SRTC's work involves finding simple but effective solutions to problems. There is nothing conspicuous about the Savannah River Technology Center. Built following Eisenhower-era standards of intentional blandness, the main building sits low, square and average, indistinguishable from the surrounding government buildings in the Savannah River Site complex. Inside, however, is another story. There, complex sensory equipment measures and quantifies.
Lasers flash and burn and prod at the mysteries of the universe.
Isotopes are corralled like so many wild horses, kept from running wild and free in prisons of glass. Part think tank and part toy box, SRTC is a place where theory becomes fact and science bridges the gap between problems and solutions. The facility was established in the early years of Savannah River Plant, when the facility's primary mission was producing fuel for the United States' nuclear arsenal. Built as an in-house development center, SRTC's original mission was to develop technologies for use within the plant. When the last reactor was shut down in 1989 and the veil of secrecy was lifted from SRS, SRTC found that there was a need to shift its focus in order to justify the millions of dollars spent to keep it active.