Thank you to our employees for coming out for our 21st Anniversary Celebration! We hope you enjoyed your time at the party, as the day was filled with new and familiar faces, joy and laughter, and meaningful conversations and connections.
The significance of this occasion was MADE by you all.
A massive thank you to Kate Honebrink and her band of party preppers for pulling together such an awesome event.
Recently, Strata-G’s Senior Industrial Hygienist, Charlie Satterwhite, and Safety and Health Manager, Angie McGill, presented on an Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) and Human Performance Improvement (HPI) Synergy webinar, hosting 346 attendees.
The webinar focused on how investigators can incorporate HPI principles and demonstrate high Emotional Intelligence (EI) to establish the foundation for good communication rapport and collaboration in IAQ problem-solving. One of the key takeaways from this webinar includes the importance of active listening, showing empathy, regulating emotions, and responding early and appropriately, all of which help ensure a positive IAQ outcome.
Charlie Satterwhite, MPH and Certified Industrial Hygienist, has extensive experience in Environment, Safety, and Health (ES&H) and has been heavily involved in nearly every facet of Industrial Hygiene, including Indoor Air Quality, for 40 years. He currently works as a Senior Industrial Hygienist, supporting UCOR in the Safety Systems and Services organization.
Angela McGill, MPH, is the former Safety and Health Manager for UCOR, and has worked in safety and health for more than 33 years. She currently supports the Safety Systems and Services organization in her role as UCOR’s Human Performance Improvement Subject Matter Expert.\
Well done, you two!
Do these two gentlemen look familiar to you? Pictured in front of the Haul Bridge, from left to right, are Strata-G team members, Work Planner Tyler Hand, and Project Site Safety Representative Stanley Woods.
Recently, the UCOR Waste Operations Team conducted routine bridge inspections on the Haul Road. This road is primarily used for shipping and receiving waste to and from onsite facilities, eliminating the need to use public roadways. These biennial inspections over Highways 58 and 95 are to ensure the structural and operational soundness of the bridges.
Tyler and Stanley are integral to making certain that processes like these bridge inspections are executed safely and compliantly. Excellent work, you two!
For more footage of the bridge inspection process, click here, courtesy of UCOR videographer, Cameron Jacobs.
Recently, Strata-G was recognized one of the fastest-growing UT Knoxville alumni-owned or alumni-led businesses, along with 39 other organizations.
As such, our team was presented with the Rocky Top Business Award! Well done, Elliott and team!
We are pleased to announce the addition of a new Nuclear Services Division to our current Strata-G organization to be led by Michael Russell.
Michael has 30+ years of technical project management experience in the areas of nuclear operations, engineering, quality assurance (QA) and compliance, regulatory/licensing support, performance improvement, construction, information technology, and software and hardware development.
Strata-G recently surpassed 300 employees, and we feel that this new organizational structure will improve our ability to stay connected with one another. Michael’s new division will be key strategically as we seek to grow our existing capabilities and expand our reach into the next generation commercial nuclear industry.
“The most important thing about leading our people is communicating with and facilitating among our great and diverse employees, their varied work places/clients, the Strata-G home office, and corporate resource groups. It has been amazing to get to know all the folks in my and other groups, their experiences, their families, personal stories, history, and the great work each of them is doing. This is one of the greatest jobs I could imagine.”
Thank you, Michael, for assuring the highest quality in the work that you do, personally and professionally, and for generating such great opportunities for our team.
Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm toured the Uranium Processing Facility (UPF) Project construction site in October 2022 with Strata-G Senior Communication Specialist, Courtney Branton. Courtney has been a contractor with the National Nuclear Security Administration Y-12 Acquisition and Project Management Office for 10 years next month and manages all the tours and visits for the project. This project aims to support key missions of the Y-12 National Security Complex and ensure the long-term viability, safety, and security of enriched uranium capabilities in the United States.
Courtney was thrilled to meet Secretary Granholm and show her around the facility. Thank you, Courtney, for delivering excellence in all that you do.
Congratulations to Strata-G, LLC and UCOR’s own Radiological Support Specialist, Tim Hughes, on being selected as President-Elect of the East Tennessee Chapter of the Health Physics Society (ETCHPS). The ETCHPS is a scientific and professional organization whose members specialize in occupational, environmental, and medical radiation safety.
When asked about his awarded involvement with the ETCHPS, Tim responds, “I am honored to be selected by my peers to serve in this capacity. My initial goal is to get our membership numbers back to pre-COVID levels and improve communication within the group.” Tim went on to explain that members are not only DOE or DOE contract employees but include personnel from NRC and state regulated entities (e.g., Tennessee Valley Authority’s Watts Bar Plant, University of Tennessee, etc.).
This coming May will mark Tim’s 40 years of experience working in the nuclear industry.
Tim is currently supporting United Cleanup Oak Ridge, LLC (UCOR) in their operations and activities on the Oak Ridge Reservation, where he provides technical support for their radiation protection program, assists with the development and implementation of rad protection training, and is qualified as a lead assessor evaluating regulatory and procedural compliance.
Throughout the years, Tim has not only grown in his passion for health physics, but also in his passion for music. Those who do not know Tim would be pleasantly surprised to learn that Tim and his lovely Jazz Quartet are often recruited for their musical capabilities, having performed at functions on behalf of the ETCHPS; Energy, Technology and Environmental Business Association (ETEBA); and Strata-G, LLC annual events.
Thank you, Tim, for demonstrating passion for the work you pursue and for delivering excellence in all that you do.
Congratulations to Brian Oakley, third from the left back row, for being selected as a winner of a UT-Battelle Operational Performance team award in the Excellence in Operations category. Brian and his team were recognized for successful and innovative planning, design and shipment of spent nuclear fuel sample examination waste from Building 3525 for ultimate disposal at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in New Mexico. This significant effort involved developing new procedures and processes, designing new shipping containers, and coordinating with multiple organizations to pioneer a system that can now be used in the future by all ORNL programs to support spent nuclear fuel testing and waste removal.
Competition for these awards is intense, with nominations detailing a variety of outstanding accomplishments and contributions to UT-Battelle. Winners are selected by committees composed of ORNL managers and peers. It is rare for subcontractors to be included and honored at the UT-Battelle Awards Night.
Well done, everyone!
UCOR began work on the new Oak Ridge Cleanup Contract in March of 2022 starting with a three-month transition period that has since moved towards development and execution of task orders. Under the new cleanup contract, Strata-G is a preselected subcontractor for the next 10 years with the possibility of an additional five-year extension. A critical project necessary to meet the objectives of the new cleanup contract is the design, construction, and operation of the Environmental Management Disposal Facility (EMDF).
Strata-G President, John Patterson, has been the EMDF Project Manager since June 2020. In the midst of Covid working remotely, and in the years following the pandemic, the EMDF team developed regulatory, design, and program management documents that enabled approval of the EMDF CERCLA Record of Decision (ROD) in September 2022. The EMDF is planning to safely and compliantly dispose of 2.2M cubic yards of low-level waste, hazardous waste, and mixed waste. Strata-G’s Steve Kenworthy, PhD, led the development of radiological waste acceptance criteria (WAC) that was essential to obtaining Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) approval of the EMDF ROD.
The EMDF Project has now pivoted to execution of the subprojects starting with early site preparation (ESP) activities which include re-routing Bear Creek Road and the EMWMF Haul Road, clearing and grubbing the EMDF footprint, and completing water and electrical utility line extensions necessary to support the EMDF footprint development. The EMDF footprint is located in central Bear Creek Valley approximately two miles west of Y-12. Strata-G’s Josh Pemberton has been supporting ESP activities and will serve a significant role of Construction Manager of the EMDF in the future.
Public outreach is a key component of the EMDF Project as public interest in the project is high. On December 8, 2022, the EMDF Project held an outreach event at the Scarboro Community Center in Oak Ridge. Over 50 members of the public attended as did three press outlets. John Patterson was one of the presenters, and he expertly answered many questions over the course of the two-hour public outreach event.
Way to go, John!
This year, Strata-G is thankful to receive several military awards. All three awards reflect our team’s dedication to supporting the military community through our recruitment practices. Way to go, team!
