Senior Reactor Plant Analyst (Thermal Hydraulic)

Role description

Thomas Thor are working in partnership with Morson Talent and Rolls-Royce SMR (Small Modular Reactor) to recruit a Senior Reactor Plant Analyst Technical Lead (Thermal Hydraulic) to join their team in Derby or Warrington, who will be responsible for the technical and programme delivery of the thermal and hydraulic performance analysis to verify reactor protection during transient and faulted operations.

The Company

Rolls-Royce SMR is a start-up joint special purpose vehicle (SPV) business, specifically created to design, construct and deliver a new fleet of Small Modular Reactors power plants that will be a critical and strategic player in the race to Net Zero carbon emissions globally. Spun out of Rolls-Royce with its pedigree in engineering excellence but also attracting world class inward investment this is an exciting new business with an optimistic opportunity to be a global player in the coming years. Their Intellectual Property and resource expertise has grown from an organization that has already designed and delivered over 35 nuclear reactors for use in the UK’s Royal Navy Submarine program. That’s combined with the knowledge and unique aerospace experience of manufacturing expertise, supply chain management and logistics.

SMR is an integrated power station, that takes well understood, existing nuclear technology and applies a factory-based philosophy to its fabrication and assembly to provide clean, affordable energy for all. Just one SMR can power one million homes for sixty years!

The role will involve working alongside systems design team to understand the technical nature of the reactor plant design and produce thermal hydraulic analyses which characterises system performance, informs intelligent design decisions and ultimately verifies the performance and safety of the final design.

The successful candidate will provide technical leadership and coordination of a small team of engineers to ensure the delivery of analysis which supports design development of the reactor protection systems (including scram and boron injection), informs code validation activities and ultimately underpins the reactor plant safety case during Generic Design Assessment (GDA) by the Office of Nuclear Regulation (ONR). This will include leading the development of robust and validated analysis methods using industry standard approaches, the creation and management of representative models, and assessment of transient performance during faulted and safety systems operations.

Key Responsibilities

• Work with the plant design engineers to understand the technical nature of the reactor plant as well as the evidence required to inform technical decision making verify plant performance.
• Apply technical expertise to direct the analysis programme, including definition of the analysis basis, selection and justification of appropriate method, and technical supervision to supporting analysts.
• Define and manage requirement traceability from design through to analysis, models and method validation.
• Ensure appropriate quality is achieved in designated aspects of the analysis programme. Undertake local technical reviews and input to the main project technical review gates.
• Work alongside the method validation lead to ensure appropriate method validation is in place at each analysis stage, and provide technical expertise into the code validation programme and rig design programmes.
• Develop and deliver detailed plans for the assigned technical discipline.
• Act as technical authority for reactor protection analysis internal and external to the company.
• Understand and articulate technical and programme risks, managing them as appropriate with the Reactor Plant Performance Lead.
• Work with due regard to Health, Safety and Environment. Comply with corporate, business and legislative requirements. Champion company values, including Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

Qualifications & Experience

• Qualified to degree level or equivalent in Physics, Engineering or a related discipline.
• Chartered with a relevant professional institute (or equivalent professional accreditation).
• Experience in delivering and leading thermal analysis programmes in support of design development from initial concept through to detailed design definition.

Desirable

• Nuclear industry experience
• Excellent knowledge of reactor plant thermal and hydraulic behaviour and associated analysis approaches.
• Familiarity with nuclear plant analysis codes (including RELAP and CTF)

Their commitment to inclusion

Central to their operations is the creation of an inclusive workplace with a colleague community that is representative of the diverse regions in which we operate. They are committed to equality of opportunity for all employees and applications from individuals are encouraged regardless of age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, and marriage and civil partnerships.