Document: NRC Regulatory Guide
Document ID: 65325e1a-3033-4f91-a5fa-fcd1286b72ec
Document Type: regulatory_guide
Title: Dedication of Commercial-Grade Digital I&C Items for Use in Nuclear power Plants
Source: NRC Regulatory Guide Division 1
Source URL: https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML2200/ML22003A180.pdf
Revision Date: 2023-05
Chapter: 
Section ID: RG-1.250
CFR Part: 
CFR Title: 

Content:
ial-grade equipment for use in safety-related applications may be applied to nuclear power plants. Dedication is an acceptance process to provide reasonable assurance that a commercial-grade item will perform its intended safety function and, in this respect, is deemed equivalent to an item designed and manufactured under a QA program under 10 CFR Part 50, Appendix B. RG 1.164 describes methods that the NRC staff considers acceptable in meeting regulatory requirements for the dedication of commercial-grade items and services used in nuclear power plants. RG 1.164 endorses, with exceptions or clarifications, EPRI 3002002982, “Plant Engineering: Guideline for the Acceptance of Commercial-Grade Items in Nuclear Safety-Related Applications,” Revision 1 to EPRI NP-5652 and TR-102260, issued September 2014 (Ref. 9). In part, EPRI 3002002982 provides guidance for two methods: Method 2—Commercial-Grade Survey, and Method 4—Item/Supplier Performance Record. The use of an accredited SIL certification to IEC 61508 relates to these two methods. EPRI 3002002982 references TR-106439, which the NRC staff evaluated as documented in a safety evaluation report as noted above. Where RG 1.164 and EPRI 3002002982 consider the broad scope of dedication of commercial-grade items, TR-106439 provides guidance specific to digital equipment. In part, TR-106439 provides acceptance criteria and methods of verification for the critical characteristics of dependability. TR-106439 states that the verification of dependability characteristics typically involves a commercial-grade survey of the vendor’s processes (Method 2) and a review of the vendor performance record and product operating history (Method 4). The NRC staff safety evaluation report (Ref. 7) highlights that TR-106439 proposes a combination of methods, including Methods 2 and 4, for digital I&C items. As documented in the NRC staff safety evaluation report for TR-106439, the NRC staff determined that TR-106439 contains an