7.1.3 Preparing for commissioning and start of operation

After the staff have undergone the initial training they should be associated with the experts of the reactor vendor in preparation of commissioning, operating and maintenance procedures and the technical specifications for operation that will include surveillance and in-service inspection schedules and administrative requirements. The O&M staff should also be involved in the process of review of such documents by the regulatory body.

A preliminary safety analysis report (PSAR) of the reactor and support­ing technical documents are provided by the reactor vendor. These docu­ments describe in detail the safety requirements laid down for the design and how the plant is able to meet these requirements under normal operating conditions, upset conditions and design-basis accident conditions. The PSAR also describes the engineered safety features and procedures for operator intervention to control the progression of beyond design-basis accidents and for mitigation of their consequences. The PSAR is a very important document not only for understanding the safety design of the plant but also for obtaining good familiarity with the behaviour of the plant under normal as well as abnormal conditions. The PSAR review together with the progressive review of the results of commissioning will be the basis for the regulatory body to issue a licence for initial fuel loading in the reactor core, first criticality of the reactor, ascension of power in stages and operation at rated power. A thorough study of the PSAR and the support­ing documents by the operating staff and their participation during the review of the PSAR by the regulatory body helps in acquiring good famili­arity with the design and operational safety aspects of the plant. Various modifications implemented during construction and those based on review of the commissioning results are suitably incorporated in the PSAR to produce the final SAR that correctly reflects the as-built plant.

Study of the SAR, the design and operating manuals of reactor systems and the equipment manuals and training on the reactor simulator will form the major component of the training of operating staff. The proficiency of the operating staff should then be checked through a system of getting checklists for individual systems signed by senior engineers, a plant walk­through, a written examination and an oral interview by a licensing board for their formal licensing for NPP operation.