Task force - RA building optimisation #10

Thursday 18 Jun 2026, 14:30 → 16:10 Europe/Zurich

CERN

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EDMS meeting 11062026

Summary of Actions :
1. Remove storage-level information from the layout presentation and indicate only whether 
components are storable or not. Add Xavier Lopez and Fabrice Gautheron to the requestor 
distribution list. Cedric => closed
2. Consolidate the B954 layout, reorganize the bunker area, and define the final storage 
configuration and dimensions. Cedric/Yann => closed
3. Confirm the storage for activated shielding blocks and validate whether a swap remains 
necessary. Thomas/Yann [dedicated meeting organised by T Zickler] 
4. Define buffer zone constraints and identify solutions minimizing additional shielding 
requirements. Thomas/Cedric 
5. Measure the concrete blocks and determine their radiological status before relocation. 
Yann 
6. Submit the request for removal of components on top of the mezzanine, before block 
handling and transportation activities begin. Elsa => closed
7. Define and validate dose-rate criteria for cartridge handling. Yann => closed
8. Evaluate the use of the south-west access doors of Building 954 in view of future access 
constraints around BA80 and Building 954. Cedric/Elsa  
9. Rename the current "cumulative surface" metric to improve reporting clarity. Alexandre => closed
10. Separate floor-space occupancy from rack and stack storage indicators. Alexandre

14:30 → 14:40 Approval of previous minutes and review of actions

https://edms.cern.ch/project/CERN-0000279699

Speaker: Dr Germana Riddone (CERN)

Minutes of the prervious meeting

14:40 → 14:50 General news

Shielded refuge area
Caterina raises a concern that the ambient radiation dose in Building 954 could become very high once it is filled with highly radioactive equipment. While studying upgrades for remote handling (electrified crane hook, fiber-optic cameras with no lag), she requests that a shielded refuge area be included in the building design where personnel can safely operate a remote-handling control station and monitor camera feeds.

Yann confirms that the ambient dose rate in Building 954 will indeed increase. To mitigate this, the plan is to concentrate the most radioactive items inside shielded bunkers:

Magnets, collimators, and the hottest chambers will be enclosed by 80 cm-thick concrete block walls.
XTAX tables will be enclosed by 80 cm-thick walls plus a shielded roof.

He also agrees that a dosimetric refuge area for installing a control desk should be included in the design.

EN-CV cartridges
Jani Lehtinen explained that EN/CV considers the management of these cartridges to be part of routine operation rather than LS3 project storage, which is why no formal storage request was submitted. He noted that approximately 95 cartridges are currently stored in Building 954, and that around 15 additional cartridges from SPS cooling stations may soon require storage.
Germana Riddone reminded the group that only storage requests declared in the Storage Planning (SP) process before the deadline of 28 November 2025 can be considered in the current planning for Buildings 954/955. Requests submitted after that date cannot be accommodated within the planned storage capacities.
Serge Deleval clarified that no additional storage capacity is being requested. Instead, EN/CV needs support from SCE, RP, and THE to characterize and measure the cartridges already stored in Building 954 so that some can be removed and space can be freed for six activated cartridges arriving from the SPS North Area. According to Serge, this is part of the normal operational cycle before YETS and LS periods and should be organized before the start of LS3.
Thomas Zickler then asked for clarification on whether Serge intends to remove all 95 existing resin containers from Building 954 or only six containers to make room for the incoming cartridges.

Speaker: Dr Germana Riddone (CERN)

RE remote handling area in b 954.eml

14:50 → 15:00 Update of the requests and update of layouts

B955 - mezzanine
F. Plasse discussed the situation with the Foselev foreman. EN-THE will be able to move the equipment currently stored on the mezzanine, but a significant amount of handling will be required to optimize the available floor space.

The location of each piece of equipment will also need to be updated in Kiosk.

As Building 955 is currently quite congested (GDES waste and pallets awaiting transfer to Building 879), initiate the handling EDH to clear the mezzanine starting on 22 June for a period of 15 days.

Also needed to plan the dismantling of the guardrails and the steel plates connecting the wall to the mezzanin.

Speaker: Cedric Halbert

20260618_RA_components_storage.pdf

20260618_RA_components_storage.pptx

15:00 → 15:15 Tranfert of assets from B879/954/955 to other storage buildings and to B157

Collimators:
Fabien shared a preliminary delivery schedule for the collimators, agreed with Régis. Deliveries are expected to start on 27 July 2026, and the collimators will need to be stored lengthwise in the racks located in Building 955.

Speakers: Cedric Halbert, Elsa Clerc (CERN)

20260520 Infor B954 B955.xlsx

15:15 → 15:30 Dashboard of 879/954/955

Dashboard link

Speaker: Alexandre Foraz

15:30 → 16:00 Status of the support structures

Lifting beam
There appears to be general agreement that using an existing, already validated lifting beam could be an attractive option. However, this differs from the chassis-based solution that had originally been envisaged by RP, the Transport team, and the equipment owners for handling the tanks. The preferred strategy therefore needs to be clarified and agreed upon during the meeting scheduled for 24 June.

Speaker: Julien Prosic

16:00 → 16:10 AOB