Learning organizations for nuclear safety

Organizational learning (OL) is a crucial component of operational excellence in nuclear power plants. OL relies on performance assessments, change management and continuous improvements. OL has become increasingly important for the nuclear industry in its adaptation to changes in the political and economic environment, work force, technology in plants, and organizations of the nuclear utilities. A danger in this process is that even minor problems may trigger a chain of events in which the risk of deteriorated safety and/or diminishing trust in the safety standards of the particular nuclear power plant becomes possible. The paper describes a project that considers demands placed on the nuclear power plant management in order to create methods and tools to approach them. The involvement of nuclear power plants in the project provides a unique possibility for interactions between research and practice to benchmark approaches to safety management in different cultures and in stages of change. To ensure the maximum benefit for the participating nuclear power plants, results are tested and adapted continuously in the project.