Sunday 25 May 2014

NNL Laboratory Fellow, Steve Graham, based in the Engineering Modelling team at Chadwick, has won a Serco Pulse award for his excellent work in developing the ‘Flow Network Solver’.

Steve’s award was in the “Excelling at Innovation” category which is described as “celebrating the true meaning of fostering an entrepreneurial culture. The awards recognise new ideas, new solutions, and new ways of working that have the potential to make a transformationl impact.”The entry in the awards ceremony brochure said:”Steve Graham’s inventiveness and entrepreneurial spirit has resulted in improved software solutions estimated to be worth more than £1 million to the National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL). A Laboratory Fellow, Steve spotted a gap in the NNL engineering simulation associated with predicting fluid flow in nuclear systems. This prediction ability is significant because of the importance of ‘nuclear cooling’. The very high capital cost of nuclear plant means cost effectiveness is all-important and reductions in temperature can mean prolonging operational plant life. Steve worked in his own time at his home computer to come up with his software solution, the ‘Flow Network Solver’, which handles flow data with greater efficiency and effectiveness, potentially saving time and costs.The Flow Network Solver will give NNL an edge in an area of potential development and provide entry into new consultancy markets. Steve’s belief in his project has produced an inventive solution for NNL and its customers, proving that the positive power of innovation continues to thrive at NNL.”Congratulations Steve!!