Hanford Site Virtual Tours
Volpentest HAMMER Training and Education Center

HAMMER
[Time 01:01] 28/56K / Broadband

 The 80-acre Volpentest HAMMER Training and Education Center (HAMMER) was constructed in 1995 and the facility was dedicated in 1997.

HAMMER started as an acronym that stands for Hazardous Materials Management and Emergency Response. However, at the dedication ceremony, the name officially changed to the Volpentest HAMMER Training Center. HAMMER serves as a training complex for workers and emergency responders for many federal, state, county and city agencies. It is a unique complex that combines more hazardous materials and emergency response training facilities than any other complex in the United States. The location on the Hanford Site reflects DOE's need to transport various hazardous materials on roadways across many regional jurisdictions.

DOE is the lead agency in managing HAMMER, but other agencies are also part of the HAMMER partnership, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Transportation, the Federal Emergency Management Administration, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The Hanford Atomic Metal Trades Council (HAMTC), the Central Washington Building Trades, and international labor unions that need such training for their workers also are active partners, as are some regional tribal governments. This partnership is important in order for HAMMER to reach its goal of reducing training costs while improving worker and public safety as well as increasing worker productivity.

The HAMMER complex cost $29.9 million, and includes a Classroom and Administration Building, as well as a Training Support Building. Additionally, the complex houses a 23-meter (75-foot) tall (six story) training tower, a two-story burn building with propane-fueled lines, an artificial pond with pumphouse, several training props including a simulated buried waste pit, simulated waste tanks (both above and below ground), a two-story, self-contained breathing apparatus search-and-rescue building, a confined space and fall protection prop, and a completely engineered underground mockup of a Hanford Site crib.

Several concrete pads also serve as other specialized training stations. The latter include a flammable liquids burn pad, a liquid petroleum gas burn pad, a railroad/truck tank burn pad, a 90-day waste storage pad, an above ground pipeline pad for practicing leak protection, and a hazardous materials training pad. Simulated characterization and remediation waste sites also exist, as do areas for ladder exercises, hose drill, and high-angle rescues. A mock-up laboratory at the HAMMER facility is used for training in laboratory incident response and cleanup.

A Learning Resource Center (LRC) at HAMMER offers courses in safety and health, basic skills, computer programs, and professional development to Hanford and offsite workers in the LRC. Developed by Tulane and Xavier Universities of Louisiana, with funds granted by DOE, these classes provide educational support services and a library for the HAMMER facility.