The hour-to-hour control and operation of a nuclear power station is under the supervision of the shift charge engineer or shift manager. The title of charge engineer or manager depends upon the structure of staff at the particular location but they have similar responsibilities (shift manager will be used henceforth). The shift manager has a team of staff to help him manage the most likely set of circumstances for w:hich he may be responsible.

The team which he heads will be typically made up as follows:

• A group of engineers who will control through their functional responsibilities all the activities which make up the operating package at the time. [30]

• A group of health physics monitors to carry out monitoring functions, headed by a health physics foreman.

• A group of maintenance craftsmen of mixed disciplines headed by a maintenance foreman. The group’s prime responsibility is to carry out emer­gency work but in the absence of this will do rou­tine maintenance.

• A security group with specific responsibilities to secure the site.

The shift manager will normally have through ex­ternal and internal communications other specialist engineers and managers who can give advice on any topic on which he feels he may require opinions and/ or instructions. In describing the role of the opera­tor the following notes apply to all members of the manager’s staff to a greater or lesser degree depending on the role they play, but with all members contri­buting to the success of the operation.