Strategic Planning is a tool to combine current and visionary business goals. The first step, and perhaps the most difficult step, is to look at the business from a functional point of view. It is difficult but achievable for business management to release turf boundaries and traditional organizational structures in order to view the business functionally .
Business must look at how they work and what the interaction is between departments. They need to define what makes them unique and competitive within their industry. For example, auto manufacturers all produce the same end product - Automobiles. But what makes a customer choose Ford over Buick? Is it the style of the car, features, customer service, price, or just the name? Why has Microsoft become so successful, whereas IBM is losing its popularity? Strategic Planning and realistic goal setting are tools and methodologies used to increase industry competitiveness and leadership.
The goal of Hanford Site Information Management is to incorporate various types of systems and information into a cohesive support system that gives the operational business units the information they need to accomplish their mission. The same infrastructure supports the flow of information externally to state and local government agencies, environmental organizations, and other key stakeholders.
Building a strategic plan begins with defining the site-specific strategic resources and the infraresources that support the business. This plan identifies twelve strategic business resource life cycles in the Business Model and the functions that are needed to support the resources. Next the types of systems that manage and massage data generated by those functions are defined. During the gap analysis activity, the existing systems were reviewed against the Business Model to determine where we are today and where we need to plan efforts to attain the Business Model. The Business Plan provides a summary of the Gap Analysis conclusions along with actions for future development/acquisition efforts.
It should be noted that this Strategic Information Plan is an integral piece of the Hanford Site effort of better utilizing, managing, and maintaining the vast quantity of data and information available today and continuously being generated. The following page is an excerpt from the Strategic Plan for Hanford Site Information Management published in September 1994. It is evident from every section of this excerpt that the site must adopt and implement a Strategic Information Plan. Increasing emphasis is being placed on efforts to reduce redundant systems, to avoid the development/acquisition of duplicative systems, and to make data more widely available. In these times of increased productivity demands using decreasing resources, even greater emphasis must be placed on the efficient use of systems and data.
The mission for Hanford Site information management is to create a working environment that delivers the right data and information of known quality in a usable form and at an acceptable cost to the people who need it, where they need it, and when they need it.
The vision for Hanford Site information management is to demonstrate organizational and technical excellence in meeting customer needs by:
The purpose of a strategic plan is to define where we are, where we want to be, and what actions are needed to close the gap. This Strategic Information Plan is an interpretation of the strategic resources based on the Hanford mission. Reviewing the site functionally gives a non-biased view of the work needing to be performed by Hanford contractors. The Business Model (Section 3.0) identifies the strategic life cycles of the site and provides the "where we want to be." The Gap Analysis (Section 4.0) provides the "where we are." This section, the Business Plan, provides the "how do we get there."
The following are excerpts from the Strategic Plan for Hanford Site Information Management", DOE/RL-94-69, September 1994:
"The pyramid in Figure 1 illustrates the hierarchial relationship between data, information, knowledge, and decisions. The process begins with the collection of raw data (e.g., facts associated with some type of measurement or observation). The results are combined and analyzed to provide useful information. That information is combined with other information sources to provide the knowledge. Conclusions drawn from this entire process give rise to well-informed decisions.
Information is the key infrastructure element in decisionmaking. Site management and staff make decisions that have tremendous impacts on worker safety, environmental cleanup, science for global problems and economic diversification. The free flow of information during decisionmaking and review processes enables open and active communication and results in decisions that are traceable and defensible.
A Sitewide, multiprogram approach is needed that is streamlined, standardized, networked, and focused both inward on the Site community and outward on critical external stakeholders. This new information management culture will enable data and information to be readily transmitted, shared, and analyzed between organizations."
During the preparation of the Gap Analysis, it became apparent that there are many systems (both manual and computational) that service specific functional areas. While this structure may have met past needs, it is not an effective strategy in today's business environment.
Strategically, we need to concentrate on the information systems that impact personnel, site data, and safety issues. Throughout the business world, personnel and data are considered strategic corporate assets. This is especially true at Hanford, where safety issues are critical because of the hazardous materials we handle and the public perception of the risk involved with those hazardous materials. Creating and demonstrating good safety practices therefore becomes a strategic asset.
The following are general conclusions considered in the preparation to writing this Business Plan.
Below are highlights of the Gap Analysis as they apply to the Business Plan.
The number of and potentially divergent directions being taken by geographical information systems (GIS) is a concern. Many efforts are currently under way to broaden, acquire, and enhance systems at Hanford. Bechtel Hanford Co. (BHI), Westinghouse Hanford Company (WHC), the Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) have GIS projects ongoing at this time. There exists a site committee for GIS systems that is intended to promote sharing. It appears that Hanford has a potential of redundancy between GIS systems and it also appears that the actual data sharing is not adequate. Although the efforts are hampered by the 'barriers' between contractors, however, these efforts must be coordinated. A coordinated effort now could result in non-redundant data, establishing clear ownership of data, ensuring data sharing between systems, and the cost savings to the site.
Other systems required in this resource are few and will be developed as the cleanup efforts progress. Some air and liquid effluent systems exist and should be examined for use across all the contaminated sites at Hanford.
The systems in this resource, for the most part, will be developed later in the cleanup process. Those systems that exist now may be able to be expanded to fulfill the requirements for some time. The Solid Waste Information and Tracking System (SWITS) is a good example of a system to meet Containerized Waste information requirements. SWITS crosses many resource areas and can provide for, through enhancements, other information needs. SWITS should not be viewed, however, as the answer to all system requirements.
The number of facility inventory systems currently in place is a concern. These systems appear to contain and track redundant data and are unable to share data. The Gap Analysis found many systems within the site and from DOE-HQ that need to be examined. Some efforts are underway with individual systems, but there appears to be no coordinated efforts amongst the various system owners to work together. The site has an opportunity in this area to reduce the number of redundant systems and to provide for the sharing of information between systems. Even though this is not a safety issue or even necessarily a high priority, there exists a potential of significant savings by spending some time now planning how to best meet the inventory requirements for Hanford.
Further analysis is required in this area. The Gap Analysis identified a limited number of systems in this resource. The data may exist in facilities systems and other desktop inventories. The site does need to have a ready inventory of infrastructure resources in order to adequately manage the numerous cleanup and research projects.
This resource identifies the Knowledge Library systems and data required to satisfy onsite and offsite users. The longer Hanford delays in getting historical and current data under control, the more expensive the solution will be and the greater the risk of loosing valuable data. The development of a Knowledge Library will satisfy the increasing pressure of regulators and stakeholders for access to data. The library will also assist in many aspects of the cleanup efforts by making the needed data available to the people who need it, where the need it, and when they need it.
Procedure control and access is an area that appears to be changing. The WHC Procedure Control system is being discontinued. In its place, the various facilities and organizations are developing their own operating procedures. These operating procedures supplement the company level procedures at the facility/organization level. These distributed operating procedure systems may be developed in a manner that disallows the sharing of information and with redundant development efforts. The Gap Analysis did not examine contractors other than WHC in this area. WHC has an opportunity to coordinate these efforts and a potential of savings.
The new Hanford Action Tracking System provides an opportunity to have a sitewide tracking system for oversight audits, assessments, findings, and corrective actions. At this time, it appears that there is not full sitewide participation in this system. The responsibility for managing this system has just been changed into an organization that is responsible for other sitewide systems. This action is a step in the right direction and should be supported.
No systems were investigated and, therefore, no gap analysis was completed for this resource.
This area is only just beginning as far as the Hanford cleanup efforts are concerned. Since many systems will be required to document and support this effort, time should be spend now, before many systems are in place, to analysis the requirements and to plan on a sitewide basis the systems and data for this resource.
One area that is in place are the tank farms. The Gap Analysis lists many systems that support the tank farms, some with positive efforts underway to improve the monitoring capabilities. At the same time, it was evident that not all the systems being developed considered the total information requirements. At least one system, the Handheld Data Acquisition for Tank Farms System, does not have an electronic link to the long-term data archival system, the Surveillance Analysis Computer System. Time and resources can be saved if planning is done in advance to more fully understand the information requirements and to develop systems that can share data.
The Solid Waste Information and Tracking System (SWITS) mentioned under the Containerized Waste function, supports the Retrieval function as well. Enhancements to SWITS can quickly assist in the information requirements of this resource.
Efforts underway currently will significantly streamline the systems satisfying the information requirements for this resource. The Training Matrix (TMX) system matches the training requirements with the staff positions, training records (maintained under the Workforce resource), and available courses, then prepares reports for managers as to training that is required. This system along with the new PeopleSoft system will go far in providing the training information needs. Support needs to be continued in this area.
The information requirements for this resource have been examined and a long-term solution is being implemented. Not all of the systems and data identified in the Business Model are included, however, the LABCORE Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) is being implemented over a number of years. LIMS will replace many older, disparate systems with a well coordinated system to track samples, capture raw data, and perform calculations. Since this resource is an early required resource in the Business Model, continued strong support is required to fully implement the system(s) in the Waste Characterization resource. Other systems, such as SWITS and the Hanford Environmental Information System (HEIS), must have links to the these systems. Management of the continued development should include consideration for data sharing electronically with other site systems.
System development in this area is yet to be required. However, as planning for waste treatment facilities are being developed, serious consideration should be given to the systems and data required. Early consideration will provide the opportunity to eliminate the possibility or duplicative system efforts.
Two functions within the Workforce resource are migrating toward well thought out systems and data. The personnel records using the Hanford PeopleCore system are being improved by the new PeopleSoft systems that are being acquired and enhanced in a planned sequence. These systems support the training records requirements as well. Further modules of PeopleSoft are planned and should continue to be supported.
The health management systems in place appear to satisfy the information requirements for that function. Continued efforts are required to monitor new acquisition or development efforts to ensure that duplicative system developments are eliminated. Sharing across the DOE complex in this area of common requirements will reduce the resources needed to support the function.
Creating an effective strategic information plan must be based on a full understanding of the business. Business modeling provides a framework for developing an effective plan that is not influenced by the geographical locations or the organizational structure of the company.
One form of business modeling, called precedence architecture, is particularly useful in developing an effective strategic information plan. Precedence architecture describes the functional infrastructure of an enterprise without regard to where the functions eventually will be executed on a day-to-day basis. This reflects the basic premise of information management, that the company must understand what its functional requirements are before it decides how best to distribute the functions.
Resource Life Cycle Analysis (RLCA) is a technique that has been used to create the precedence architecture for the Strategic Information Plan. RLCA helps to answer the question of which resources come first and why. This technique is based on three fundamental ideas.
Resources. A resource is something of significant scope, substantial complexity, and enduring value that has actual substance and/or structural design, which enables the business to achieve its mission. Within each resource are functions that manipulate, exploit, direct, and/or transform such resources. A function is an activity or management task necessary for the business to accomplish its mission.
A corporate resource generally has the following characteristics.
Life Cycle. A resource life cycle is a value chain of management tasks (functions), each of which enables the next. RLCA establishes the natural precedence among these functions, thus determining which functions enable others to be performed.
Each of the functions in a resource life cycle is a value-adding management task and creates value for the customer either directly or indirectly. Those that indirectly create such value do so for "customers" inside the company. These "customers" in turn manage or perform functions that provide value to customers outside the company.
Precedence. Precedence establishes the sequencing or value chain of functions that exist to support resources, indicated by a precedence arrow. The arrows in RLCA are always unidirectional and are shown in the direction of precedence. Precedence arrows answer the fundamental question of what functions a business must logically be prepared to perform, in order to be able to establish and perform other functions.
Precedence arrows illustrate the true infrastructure of functional capabilities across the various value chains of the entire business. A precedence arrow between resources always indicates that the enabling resource is required in critical, selective ways. Definition of precedence does not necessarily reflect the probable or normal sequence of actual day-to-day execution, frequency, flow of information, relative importance, or organizational responsibilities.
Precedence Architecture. There are two types of resources defined in Appendix C, Precedence Architecture. Site Specific Resources are shown with the precedence arrows because of their strategic importance and uniqueness to the Hanford Site mission. Resources that are strategic, but common to all Site Specific Resources are considered Infraresources. Precedence arrows are not shown for infraresources.
Appendix A, Resource Definition, lists and defines the resources which have been identified for the Site. These resources are further developed into value chains in Appendix B, Resource Life Cycle Definition. Appendix C, Precedence Architecture, identifies the precedence relationships between the functions of the value chains.
Resource Considerations. In developing the resources deemed necessary to accomplish the Hanford Site mission, many assumptions were made about the site. Decisions were based on the strategic value of a resource, not necessarily the function performed or the organizational placement.
Resources such as Funds and Accounting, Material and Supplies Procurement, and Information Systems are important and required for smooth operation of the site activities, but are not strategic for the site. Efficient operation of these functions will help improve the efficiency of achieving our mission, but they are not fundamental capabilities.
When determining the resources used in the business model, many organizations or departments were grouped together to form one resource. The Resource Life Cycle Analysis is a logical view of functions. No attempts were made to distinguish between the management structure of the departments or organizations and the detailed activity performed within those departments or organizations.
Two sources formed the basis for the Hanford Site mission. The FY 1994 Hanford Mission Plan provided the baseline and was supplemented with the Work Breakdown Structure dated February 25, 1994.
Data Models describe the information needs of an enterprise and focus on the relationships between data entities. A Data Entity is a person, place, concept, item, or event that has meaning (information) in the context of the business. Data Entities have characteristics or Attributes that further describe the entity. A Relationship describes the association between two or more entities. Appendix D, Data Subject Areas , identifies the general types of data within a data subject area. Appendix E, Systems Definitions, identifies the types of systems in each resource area. Appendix F, Systems Mapped to Resources, relates the data types and systems to specific resources.
The Application Architecture is a conceptual mapping of information technology applications to support the business model. It is a grouping of typical applications addressed to each resource value chain, taking into consideration the logical assembly of data entities into resource area subject databases and value chain relationships.
The Precedence Architecture (Appendix C) identified major resources and infraresources used to accomplish its mission. Each of these resources contains from three to seven value-added steps which show the life cycle of that resource, as seen from the company perspective. These steps, or value chain nodes, present opportunities for the application of information technology. The fact that one or more resources may enable other resources establishes precedence and is helpful in prioritizing and sequencing application development.
The RLCA methodology creates a subject data area for each resource. Subject data areas are established in precedence order; enabling resources are considered before enabled resources. The RLCA methodology suggests that a data entity appear in only one subject database - the first one, in order of precedence, where it is created.
Appendix G, Resource Relationship to Systems and Data Subject Areas, represents a graphical view of the application architecture. Each page represents a specific resource. The value chain nodes, or steps of the resource, are shown on the left side of the page. In the center of each page, applications that support the value chain nodes are depicted with lines connecting them to the specific node they support. On the right side of each page, the subject databases used by the applications, along with their grouped entities, are depicted.
Infrastructure Elements. The technical architecture is supported by various foundation or infrastructure elements. In the Architecture for the 1990s these elements are described in terms of segments:
The Network Segment includes all mechanisms required to support connectivity and interoperability between client and server components executing on separate hardware platforms.
The Resource Management Segment provides a structure for implementing client/server processing; and identifies tools, interfaces, and data exchange standards needed to implement this architecture.
The Application Segment includes all Hanford Site-specific functional procedures. These procedures communicate with a user through the User Interface Segment, and employ facilities in the Network and Resource Management Segments to access and employ capabilities within the Service Segment.
The User Interface Segment contains procedures for implementing graphical and other techniques through which users may access and use information system resources.
The Service Segment incorporates processes of general utility to all clients. Representative services include database managers, office automation capabilities, and facilities for sharing peripherals.
The Computation Segment consists of hardware and operating system components that support implementation of the architecture. These components include large capacity, shared server systems and single-user, high-performance subscriber workstations.
A gap analysis is intended to identify areas for possible further attention based on the resources defined during the Resource Life Cycle Analysis. Systems that were not seen as strategic have not been evaluated at this time. The existing systems were compared to the proposed applications architecture to identify areas of mismatch. More specific information about the systems is available in Appendix E, System Definition and Appendix G, Resource Relationship to System and Data Subject Areas.
The set of information systems currently in use at Hanford has evolved over time. Many were originally developed for use by a specific organization or facility and later were adapted for use site-wide. Some of these systems now face growth problems in meeting site-wide expectations. In other cases, the information systems have remained facility specific resulting in numerous differing information systems meeting very similar needs.
Since many of these information systems were facility or organization specific, they were not originally designed to be part of an integrated site capability. Differing computer hosts, computer languages, and data naming conventions increase the technical integration complexity and support difficulty. Since the management of these systems is also often facility or organization specific, the management integration issues also present special challenges.
The Resource Life Cycle Analysis describes the organization from a functional and not organizational point of view. Existing systems were typically designed for a specific organization and its responsibility to accomplish specific tasks based on the Hanford Mission Plan and the Work Breakdown Structure. Analyzing those systems using a functional structure increases the complexity of the analysis process. The following review of current systems applicable to strategic resources is general. Detail analysis of the existing data gathered from various systems needs to be completed to make a final determination of possible duplicate data and establish standardization of like data.
4.2.1Contaminated Sites
The CONTAMINATED SITES resource includes the information and systems related to locations on the Hanford Site where spills, leaks, or other discharges of hazardous substances, pollutants or contamination into the environment may have occurred and the process whereby these sites are restored to final condition. Included within the Contaminated Sites system are components that manage data concerning the site geography, site characterization, site material, site monitoring, site release, and restored land.
The following is a list of the management tasks in the resource life cycle and a listing of related Hanford Site systems that are currently operational or in development:
Identify and Map Suspect Sites - Determine and map exact location and boundaries of suspect sites using approved methods of land measurement.
Geographical Information Systems (GIS) (Infrastructure):
Geographical Information Systems (Waste Sites):
Analyze Suspect Site Contamination - Gather the raw data on the composition and location of contamination contained within the suspect site and analyze to determine the nature and extent of the contamination, categorize the suspect site, and determine site cleanup needs.
Establish Contaminated Site Monitor Controls - Establish and provide extended monitoring and surveillance to maintain compliance with safety and operations envelopes.
Access Control:Air and Liquid Effluent Monitoring Systems:
Remove Contamination - Move contamination to interim or long-term storage facilities.
Decontaminate and Decommission Site and Materials - Decontaminate site, equipment, and materials to acceptable disposal levels.
Restore Site - Restore site to final condition.
Conclusions.
It would appear that there is sufficient coverage of Site Geography systems for the site. Coordination is required to ensure that data is collected only once and that the systems can truly share data. It is clear that these considerations are not in place today.
The systems that contain data on the contaminated sites, facility and non-facility, appear to include most sites at Hanford. How these systems interface with the GIS systems isn't clear. These systems need to be examined to ensure data sharing and that they can relate to the GIS systems to clearly identify the locations in a consistent fashion. These systems may provide the basic requirements for meeting the subject data needs for Site Material.
The monitoring systems included above consider liquid effluents, air quality, and facility access. Systems in place at the Tank Farm facility to monitor the stored waste are included under the Retrieval Resource. Coordination between the liquid effluent systems is not evident. Further, systems may be required to monitor other waste areas on site. Systems may be in place for some of these and further investigation is required to determine what is required. These systems meet in part the requirements for the subject data areas of Site Monitoring and Site Release.
The subject data area Site Characterization requires differentiation from the Waste Characterization Analysis subject area. For the purposes of this analysis, the existing systems in this area will be considered under the section of the Waste Characterization Resource.
Separate systems that would satisfy the subject data area Remove Contamination, Decontaminate and Decommission Site and Materials, and Restored Land were not evident. It is likely that the above systems on waste locations may reflect some of this data at this time.
4.2.2Containerized Waste
The CONTAINERIZED WASTE resource includes the information and systems related to waste which has been treated and packaged to allow for final disposition. Included within the Containerized Waste system are components that manage data concerning the long term storage, disposable waste monitoring, containerized waste, and containerized waste shipments.
The following is a list of the management tasks in the resource life cycle and a listing of related Hanford Site systems that are currently operational or in development:
Establish Long Term Storage - Establish onsite long-term storage facility.
Monitor Containerized Waste - Monitor control parameters to maintain compliance with safety and operations envelopes.
Store Containerized Waste - Place containerized waste in controlled, monitored, and protected storage until it can be moved to permanent storage.
Dispose Containerized Waste - Move containerized waste to a permanent location.
Conclusion.
Few systems exist in support of this resource that could be identified. SWITS has the capability to handle the additional scope of tracking, monitoring, and reporting in these areas when the need arises. As the site moves toward the goal of processing the waste and containerizing it, additional systems will need to be developed.
4.2.3 Facilities
The FACILITIES Resource includes special purpose structures acquired to serve a Hanford Site mission objective. Included within the Facilities systems are components that manage data concerning the site facility, facility configuration, and worker management procedures. This resource also uses the plans data included in the Management Systems Resource.
The following is a list of the management tasks in the resource life cycle and a listing of related Hanford Site systems that are currently operational or in development:
Identify Facility Requirements - Identify required facilities as a result of the waste characterized process.
Determine Solution - Analyze the possible solutions to meet the facility requirement and determine the solution.
Acquire Facility - Remodel, construct, or contract-for the required facility.
Operate/Maintain Facility - Operate and maintain the facility in a mode capable of meeting mission requirements.
Procedure Management Systems:
Job Control Systems:
Retire Facility - Retire the facility from use when its mission requirements are complete.
The facility inventory systems need to be examined as a group to eliminate duplicate data being stored. As they are currently, there is a high probability of conflicting data in the various databases. The General Purpose Facilities databases appear to be easily combined since the North Area and South Area data is combined into the Report database. The DOE-HQ Real Property Inventory System appears to contain the most complete information about the facilities. That system, when re-written, should be explored for possible downloading to satisfy local requirements.
The Spatial Information Management Repository (SIMR) project, included under the Contaminated Site Resource above, is examining the possibility of at least resolving the custodian of specific facility information. The project is looking at possible feeds between the various systems to provide increased consistency. The facility inventory systems area requires attention to ensure that disparate data is eliminated and the duplicative efforts are reduced.
The Job Control Systems appear to be linked. It isn't clear that duplicate data is not being maintained, however, the systems do move data between databases as required to track maintenance and calibration requirements, history, and activities.
The above systems cover most of the needs for the Site Facility subject data area. Further examination is required to determine how adequately the data requirements for the Facility Configurations subject data area is included.
The INFRASTRUCTURE Resource includes non-mission specific resources needed to accomplish a Hanford Site mission objective. Included within the Infrastructure systems are components that manage data concerning the infrastructure resource and configuration management. This resource also uses the plans data included in the Management Systems Resource and the worker management procedures described in the Facilities Resource.
The following is a list of the management tasks in the resource life cycle and a listing of related Hanford Site systems that are currently operational or in development:
Identify Requirements - Identify required non-mission specific resources required to accomplish the Hanford Site mission.
Determine Solution - Analyze the possible solutions to meet the requirements and determine the solution.
Acquire Resources - Purchase, lease, or contract-for the required resources.
Operate/Maintain Resources - Operate and maintain the resources in a mode capable of meeting mission requirements.
Procedure Management Systems:
Job Control System:
Retire Resources - Retire the resource from use when its mission requirements are complete.
Few systems that uniquely support the Infrastructure Resource have been identified. The RL Property System includes a broad range of areas including infrastructure data. This area will need to be more fully clarified in order to determine what is needed in additional systems to meet the needs of the Infrastructure Resource and Infrastructure Configuration subject data areas.
The KNOWLEDGE LIBRARY resource includes the information and systems related to a centrally maintained index of the knowledge developed during the cleanup mission. It is the central index of that information to be made available to internal and external stakeholders. Included within the Knowledge Library systems are components maintain the knowledge index.
The following is a list of the management tasks in the resource life cycle and a listing of related Hanford Site systems that are currently operational or in development:
Build Library - Design and implement a Knowledge Library to index procedures, processes, results documentation, data, and history related to Hanford Site operations and projects.
Maintain Library - Add, change, or delete information in the Knowledge Library about the location and nature of applicable information.
Provide Access - Retrieve requested information from sources identified in the Knowledge Library and format for convenient user display.
The activities planned for this year will establish the baseline for the Knowledge Library. Plans to develop and design the Knowledge Library need to be scheduled for the remainder of this year. Alignment with the various groups involved with data management will help ensure success with the implementation of an effective Knowledge Library. Systems or tools such as Training Information Communication Enhancement (TICE), HGIS, TWINS, and Internet Gophers can be used to build and access this index. The introduction of Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) will make it easier to access the current configuration of the Hanford data.
The MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS resource includes information and systems related to the documented standard management methodologies and processes to accomplish the Hanford Site missions. Included within the Management System systems are components that manage requirements, procedures, executive information, plans, and exceptions.
The following is a list of the management tasks in the resource life cycle and a listing of related Hanford Site systems that are currently operational or in development:
Define Requirements - Determine and define requirements required to manage the Hanford Site mission in a safe and cost efficient mode.
Develop and Manage Procedures - Develop policies and procedures to meet mission requirements.
Execute Decision Making Process - Utilize the procedures to enable a decision making process that will ensure safe and cost efficient operations.
Planning Activities - Develop comprehensive plans to direct the successful execution of the Hanford Site mission.
Track Compliance - Monitor compliance with established policies, procedures, and plans.
Resolve Exceptions - Analyze exceptions to correct deficiencies and improve compliance.
The Controlled Manual Report system appears to, in combination with Hanford Info, satisfy the requirements for WHC in maintaining, tracking, and making available controlled manuals. No checking was done at this time into how the other contractors manage their manuals.
The Procedure Control system that is being discontinued provided a sitewide repository of facility operating procedures. Currently most facilities have placed their operating procedures on PCs under their control. The probability exists that the site facilities will increase the diverse ways in which they operate each facility and handle the operating procedures. The requirements appear to be met with distributed systems. However, investigation into this area to ensure that all the operating procedures are adequately being maintained is in order.
From a sitewide perspective, the Site Management System together with the Site Support Program Plan provide a sound planning tool. If in fact, these tools lead to a budget process and provide the basis for lower level planning to happen, then these systems are adequate. The TWRS Performance Measurement Control System is an example of possible next lower level planning. The question needs to be asked as whether a standard to be used by all organizations would be advisable for this level in order to provide for consistency and to eventually provide information back up into an Executive Decision Making system.
Use of the Hanford Action Tracking System sitewide, or at least have the multiple contractors feed electronically required information, would consolidate information on all oversight audits, assessments, along with all of their conditions, findings, and corrective actions.
The subject data areas of Management Procedures and Plans are being covered by the listed systems. The Exceptions subject data area requires further investigation. There were no systems identified for the subject data areas of Requirements and Executive Information in place currently.
The NATIONAL LABORATORY resource includes information and systems related to the projects at the Pacific Northwest Laboratory. Included within the National Laboratory system are components that manage data concerning the projects, opportunities, and resources.
The following is a list of the management tasks in the resource life cycle and a listing of related Hanford Site systems that are currently operational or in development:
Establish Needs and Opportunities - Determine needs that the Laboratory, through research and development, can assist in finding solutions.
Projects Assigned to Laboratory - Hanford Site, DOE, DOD, and other agency projects assigned to the laboratory.
Identify Resources Required to Accomplish Projects - Identify required mission specific resources required to accomplish the projects.
Acquire Resources - Purchase, lease, or contract-for the required resources.
Perform Required Project Activities - Perform the activities required to complete the projects.
Complete Projects - Customer agreement that the project has been completed.
Conclusion.No systems were investigated and, therefore, no gap analysis was completed for the National Laboratory Resource.
The RETRIEVAL resource includes the information and systems related to the process by which untreated waste is retrieved from contaminated sites. Included within the Retrieval systems are components that manage the retrieval process from the initial design, storage, monitoring, retrieval, and disposal of waste and equipment.
The following is a list of the management tasks in the resource life cycle and a listing of related Hanford Site systems that are currently operational or in development:
Design Retrieval Process - Develop and establish strategies and techniques to retrieve untreated waste.
Establish Interim Retrieval Storage and Equipment - Allocate or modify existing structures (containers) to store untreated waste during retrieval process and establish equipment used to retrieve untreated waste.
Monitor Waste - Monitor waste held in interim storage.
Retrieve Waste - Retrieve untreated waste and place in interim storage.
Dispose Retrieval Equipment - Dispose of or decontaminate retrieval facilities and equipment.
The tank farm systems in place and being developed are beginning to more fully address the information requirements in that retrieval area. Continued emphasis is required to ensure that the data is readily available for analysis and trending. There appears to be a continued gap between the separate activities used to collect tank data and the consolidation of that data in a usable location and format. Efforts also need to continue to streamline the data collection activities.
SWITS supports some of the retrieval of Solid Waste information needs currently. As plans for retrieval operations develop further, enhancements to SWITS or possible additional applications will need to be given priority.
The systems required for the Retrieval Resource will be designed and implemented as the process increases in activity. This is an opportune time to examine the data and system requirements across the site before efforts are spent on developing disparate systems by multiple contractors/organizations.
The TRAINING resource includes the information and systems related to courses established and taught for site-specific training needs. Training related systems must provide the ability to react to site-wide training needs quickly and effectively, comply with regulatory certification, interact with Retrieval, Waste Characterization, Waste Treatment, and Workforce resources, and manage the course subject data areas.
The following is a list of the management tasks in the resource life cycle and a listing of related Hanford Site systems that are currently operational or in development:
Identify Special Training Requirements - Determine the business and regulatory courses needed for site-specific regulatory (e.g. NRC mandated) training.
Develop/Acquire Courses - Develop or acquire performance-based courses providing necessary knowledge and skill to personnel assigned to perform unique Hanford Site requirements.
Schedule and Teach Courses - Prepare and document course schedules, register students, and present courses to personnel as required or requested.
Update Worker Records - Track student attendance, course evaluation, and performance.
Coordination for training information systems and streamlining of the numerous systems is actively underway. When the STARS, TMX, and PeopleSoft systems are fully implemented with the links established between them, the site will have a coordinated set of training systems.
There are organization specific training records and tracking systems still in place (such as the Facility Training Records System (FTRS) and the Quality Training and Resource Center (QTRC) registration system). As the coordinated training systems are brought on-line, attention should be given to inactivate the smaller systems.
Overall, the subject data areas in this resource will be met as the new systems are brought online with their electronic links.
The WASTE CHARACTERIZATION resource includes the information and systems related to the process whereby untreated waste is sampled and analyzed. Included within the Waste Characterization system are components that manage data concerning waste characterization procedures, waste sample management, waste sample analysis, and waste characterization management.
The following is a list of the management tasks in the resource life cycle and a listing of related Hanford Site systems that are currently operational or in development:
Establish Waste Characterization Procedures - Identify methods, prepare procedures, and train staff to characterize waste and monitor samples, and provide controls necessary to maintain safety and quality during characterization process.
Sample Waste - Take untreated samples and deliver for analysis.
Perform Sample Analysis - Analyze untreated waste, maintaining strict chain of custody controls and precise data integrity.
Characterize Waste - Determine proper cleanup methods and requirements based on analysis of waste samples.
LABCORE LIMS addresses the management of sample analytical data by providing better tracking of samples and reporting of returned data. There are several systems currently in use that are being phased out during the next few months as their activities are being included in LIMS. Some of the systems being retired are the Analytical Laboratory Procedure Training Tracking System (ALP), the Laboratory Measurement Control System (LMCS), the Relational Laboratory Information Management System (RLIMS), and the Laboratory Customer Communication System (LCCS). This effort is an example of how the total requirements of a process are being met through a coordinated set of modules in a system.
SWITS tracks sample information such as date taken, lab responsible for analysis, and date returned, but does not store the results of the analysis. However, SWITS does not currently interface to any of the waste sample databases, although interfaces to HEIS or LIMS are being considered. This is a potential enhancement to ensure integration of applications and subject databases.
The WASTE TREATMENT resource includes the information and systems related to the processes where characterized and retrieved waste is treated for final disposition. This system also maintains information concerning the disposable waste container and status of the disposable waste.
The following is a list of the management tasks in the resource life cycle and a listing of related Hanford Site systems that are currently operational or in development:
Establish Monitoring - Establish monitoring control parameters to maintain compliance with safety and operations envelopes.
Establish Treatment Capability - Establish treatment facility and develop treatment procedures.
Prepare Container - Prepare storage container to receive treated waste.
Treat Waste - Prepare for and execute required treatment of waste for final disposition.
Containerize - Place treated waste in storage container and seal for final disposition.
Defining systems to support waste treatment are still in the early planning stages. The only "waste operations" functions currently ongoing are storage operations. Requirements for additional systems will be performed during the next few years.
The WORKFORCE resource includes the information and systems related to Hanford personnel and non-Hanford workers required to perform activities to accomplish the Hanford Site mission. Included within the Workforce system are components that manage data concerning job descriptions, compensation, training, and health history for the workforce.
The following is a list of the management tasks in the resource life cycle and a listing of related Hanford Site systems that are currently operational or in development:
Identify Skill Requirements - Identify special needs, inventory existing skills, and establish new or revised skill needs.
Compensate Personnel - Determine compensation, allocate funds, and distribute compensation to personnel.
Establish Workforce - Reassign, hire, or contract personnel to meet skill requirements.
Train Workers - Train personnel to meet skill requirements or to meet site-specific regulatory (e.g. NRC mandated) training.
Maintain Worker Records - Maintain current and accurate worker records to include organizational assignments and responsibilities.
General Personnel Records:
Training Records:
Provide Health Management Services - Conduct health examinations and education sessions, promote sound health practices, and maintain permanent medical and exposure history records.
Terminate/Retire Personnel - Terminate or retire personnel as mission requirements are completed.
Conclusion.The information systems in the Workforce Resource continue to be improved using a documented, phased strategy.
This assessment analyzes technology trends that will affect the way Hanford produces, stores, and distributes its information. The assessment cannot provide an exhaustive list of potential information technologies, but focuses on those that are most widely used or most likely to have a significant impact.
This section discusses information technologies that are no longer progressing along the growth curve. These are technologies that will quickly lose market support and become a constraint on operations. Availability, technical support, and cost will all become concerns once a particular technology begins to fade.
Mainframes. General-purpose systems built with custom parts are becoming increasingly non-competitive. Mainframes, such as the IBM 3090 series, implement an architectural model in which a single, central resource controls all processing and communication activities. This design philosophy led to incredibly complex and expensive systems. When all services depend upon one resource, that resource must have an extremely high level of reliability and availability. This has been achieved to an admirable degree in all modern mainframes, but at a high cost. Parts are over-engineered, and there are many redundant elements. Valuable hardware and software resources are expended to ensure efficient allocation of the remaining resources.
The biggest revolution brought about by the microcomputer was not putting computational resources on the desktop but driving down the price per unit of processing. Microcomputer technology based on mass produced devices has displaced mainframes from their position as the enterprise level computing resource of choice.
Procedural Programming Languages. The use of procedural languages such as Cobol and C to develop line-of-business applications will continue to decline. These languages, at one time considered state-of-the-art, are generally inappropriate for current and emerging computing environments which have such features as distributed client/server architectures, graphical presentation layers, and non-traditional data types such as interactive video and rich text. Code construction in procedural languages remains slow, labor intensive, and subject to high defect rates. The developed code, even when carefully structured, also tends to be rigid and difficult to change. Application development will increasingly be based on the use of standard frameworks, object-oriented programming languages and tools, and extensible commercial-off-the-shelf products to support activities like workflow.
DOS. The first version of DOS was released by Microsoft Corp. in 1981. The only storage devices supported were audio cassette recorders and 160 KB floppy diskettes. In 1983, version 2.0, which supported 360 KB diskettes and hard disks up to 32 MB, was released. The current release is Version 7.0.
Although DOS still has an immense installed base, it is now at its breaking point trying to support third-party and locally-developed applications. New applications require more memory, faster performance, and a more "trustworthy" environment. Network connectivity requirements for production-quality distributed applications place further demands on DOS. The lack of a more robust operating system for desktop computers limits the types of applications that can be provided. Also, the growing complexity of managing various extensions to DOS greatly increases support efforts and reduces reliability. Several DOS additions are used at Hanford, including Microsoft Windows; terminate-and-stay-resident (TSR) programs such as the pop-up phone directory; memory managers such as QEMM ; and device drivers for tape, CD-ROM, and optical drives. DOS was not originally designed to accommodate these additions and there are no consistent rules or guidelines that vendors follow when providing them. This leads to conflicts between numerous third-party device drivers, extensions, and areas of memory allocated to video adapters and other hardware. The number of combinations is huge, and trouble-shooting is often more of a "black art" than a manageable problem.
Next generation operating systems, including Windows NT and Windows 95, address these problems. See Section 5.3 Emerging Technologies.
Proprietary Operating Systems. Operating systems that are propriety and lock a customer into specific vendor hardware. These operating systems include: VAX/VMS from Digital Equipment Corporation, VM and MVS from IBM, Data General's AOS, and MPE from Hewlett-Packard's. These operating systems are becoming increasingly costly to maintain and not relevant to general computing directions. Most vendors, even IBM, are moving toward more "open" operating environments such as the various flavors of Unix or Windows NT from Microsoft.
Non-Structured Wiring. Premise wiring is used within and between buildings as the physical carrier for local area networks. The term refers to the cable and other passive equipment installed, owned, and operated by an enterprise as opposed to communication resources provided by local or long distance phone companies. Much of the premise wiring in use today is a combination of technologies that may be incompatible, proprietary, or unable to accommodate new requirements. The physical layout is often inflexible making moves and changes difficult and expensive. Non-structured wiring is primarily the result of doing design and engineering without a clear set of standards and guidelines. This is now changing with the advent of structured wiring:
[The Electronics Industries Association / Telecommunications Industries Association standard] EIA/TIA-568 presents users and vendors for the first time with precise guidelines governing premises wiring installations. In essence, EIA/TIA-568 is a building code for premise wiring. The standard dictates the topology of cabling installations, the cabling types to be used for a given network speed, and the connection types to be used with a given cabling type. It also defines performance specifications that cables and connectors must meet.
Users stand to gain two substantial benefits...First, the standard ensures that organizations with EIA/TIA-568 wiring will be able to install compliant equipment without having to rewire their buildings...[The] second important benefit is that it will open up the premises wiring market...Until the EIA/TIA ratified its standards...no formal guidelines existed for premise wiring. [Stephen Saunders, "Premise Wiring Gets the Standard Treatment," Data Communications, November 1992, p. 105.]
Technologies are considered "established" when they have been available for several years, are provided by one or more reliable sources, enjoy broad use, are stable and mature enough for production environments, and are unlikely to be displaced in the short-term by competing emerging technologies. An established technology has enough inertia from its installed base to guarantee its existence for several more years. An established technology, however, is also one that continues to support an adequate level of service at a reasonable cost without significantly impacting an organization's mission or competitiveness. In other words, even if there is a newer, more capable technology available, the cost of replacement exceeds the cost of continuing to use the established technology.
The distinctions between emerging, established, and twilight technologies are complex. There can be broad industry agreement that some technologies are clearly obsolete and that others are well-established, but the area between is subject to debate. Deciding when a technology slips from established to twilight may depend on the specific circumstances of a particular organization.
Intel Architecture. This is the most widely used computer architecture in the world. Over one hundred million components based on the Intel architecture are manufactured each year. These are built into everything from very low-end embedded systems to very high-end symmetric multi-processors. It is estimated that in the United States alone over 40 million microcomputers with the Intel architecture were manufactured in 1994. The amount of software, both general purpose and custom, developed to this architecture is enormous. Even though a technical purist may criticize some aspects of the architecture, vendors have been extremely successful in extending and enhancing its capabilities. It is anticipated that versions of this architecture will be around for at least the next decade; and even after hardware using the Intel architecture is no longer built, it will continue to be emulated to support the large body of code written to the platform.
Windows. Windows is the name Microsoft applies to a family of operating system products. Windows 3.x is a graphical user interface and task manager shell that runs over DOS on client workstations. It is the premier product of its class in terms of market share. There are thousands of products that have been written for the Windows 3.x environment, including versions for most of the standard products used at Hanford. However, because Windows 3.x today is so tightly coupled to DOS, it suffers from problems inherent to DOS. These include a limited address space, incredibly messy memory management, the lack of any effective protection between tasks, and the inability to do multithreading (for example, being able to efficiently run a concurrent print job and spreadsheet recalculation). The Windows 3.x product is so well established today that the volume of usage will continue to drive its acceptance.
Unix. A version of the Unix operating system is now available for almost every hardware platform and is offered either standard or as an option by computer vendors from micro to mainframe. While there are many flavors of Unix, the products generally derive from one of two sources and enjoy many common features. Unix is a stable operating system platform that must be considered a serious candidate for network application servers in a distributed client/server architecture. The technology evolved within a networked environment and features an especially rich selection of integrated capabilities and tools to support enterprise level distributed systems. Major software vendors such as Oracle and Sybase (database management systems), and Hewlett-Packard and Sun (network management systems) typically build their products for Unix first and then convert them to alternative operating systems later. New categories of hardware, such as high-end redundant disk arrays and optical jukeboxes, frequently appear first as options on Unix based platforms.
Microsoft's Windows NT operating system presents Unix with a critical challenge. NT has many features that until now have made Unix so attractive including extensive networking capabilities, security certification (important especially to the Federal Government), and extensive resource management capabilities. NT is also hardware independent. Versions for the Intel architecture, Digital's AXP RISC systems, and platforms based on the MIPS RISC chip are already available. Additional ports are planned, including a version for IBM's new PowerPC, which is a key emerging technology. A fundamental distinction between Windows NT and Unix is that Microsoft has no proprietary interest in any particular hardware platform. All versions of NT, regardless of hardware environment, are identical. This simplifies activities such as enterprise system management. Unix at this point, however, still holds a commanding lead as a server operating system. It is mature; it is available on many more hardware platforms with a much broader range of capabilities; and there are a great many more development and application products available for Unix.
RISC Architecture. RISC is a microprocessor design philosophy characterized by simple instruction sets, pipelining, and multiple instruction execution. The aim of the RISC architecture is to achieve impressive raw processing speed with a reduced circuit count. Complex architectures, such as that used by Intel, have very large instruction sets that make it easy to write memory-efficient applications. Since each instruction may do many things, complex programs can be written with a small instruction count. However, because each instruction can potentially do many things, the overall execution time of the processor as measured in MIPS may be slow. Also, it takes longer and costs more to design complex processors because of the intricacy of their instruction sets.
There is no dominant RISC architecture today. The market is fragmented between several vendors.
Ethernet. This is the most widely used local area network (LAN) technology in the world. At 10 megabits per second (Mbps), its throughput is more than adequate for most of today's network applications. The simplicity of the protocol and the ease with which Ethernet LANs can be implemented are among its strongest features. The broad acceptance of Ethernet has dramatically driven down the price of hardware, and each new generation of Ethernet hardware is increasingly reliable. Several recent developments appear to ensure the continued viability of Ethernet for several more years. However, over the next several years other alternatives which are better suited to transporting time-dependent multimedia information (voice, video) will begin to make inroads.
Major personal computer vendors selling into the business market now offer configurations that include Ethernet interfaces integrated directly onto the motherboard. For large users such as Hanford this could be a major cost savings. Desktop units will no longer need to be configured with a separate network board. Personal computer systems will be network ready out of the box. Customers will buy fewer separate parts, will have to do less systems integration, and will have greater assurance that all the pieces work together.
Several vendors are now offering intelligent switching hubs. These are essentially Ethernets in a box. Ethernet is a shared access medium based on the idea of all users taking turns accessing a single cable. Most sites have implemented Ethernet in an extended bus topology; that is, they have strung a single piece of cable through the office and attached all desktop systems to this cable. Hubs implement a star topology. This is the same scheme that is used for telephones. All telephones on the floor of a building terminate in a single wiring closet where they attach to a backbone. Implementing Ethernet in a star topology has several advantages:
In a typical hub configuration, each subscriber is attached to a separate port. Access arbitration occurs within the hub. Usually hubs have very high speed backplanes that support data transfer far in excess of the Ethernet standard of 10 Mbps. As a result, subscribers see essentially no delay, and it appears that each subscriber has a full 10 Mbps on demand. Usually hubs are used within a workgroup environment to provide unimpeded access to shared network servers. The new generation of intelligent hubs can be cascaded to support very large workgroups, or interfaced to network routers for access to the enterprise network.
TCP/IP. Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) refers both to a specific set of protocols for moving data from end-point to end-point within a data network, and a large set of closely related protocols for accomplishing distributed tasks such as file transfer, electronic mail, and network management. This large body of protocols is well-established and widely used throughout the Federal Government and the worldwide scientific and technical community. Implementations of this protocol suite exist for every system of interest to Hanford. Today, there are several million IP addresses worldwide and phenomenal growth in the number of new address added each month.
There are several significant developments now occurring within the TCP/IP community:
SQL and relational databases. Relational database management systems using Structured Query Language (SQL) as their interface are the product of choice for building most shared applications today. Other technologies are just emerging (e.g., object-oriented database management systems), are in their twilight (e.g., IMS), or are proprietary. This technology is an almost ideal fit with the concept of client/server computing. Data management is an integral part of the data management facility itself rather than being embedded in application programs. The definition of the data, navigational paths, edit criteria, integrity criteria, and so forth are all specified within the database. The database is accessed and manipulated via a standard language supported by all relational database vendors. SQL allows the identification of clearly defined units of work (or transactions) which are state-independent. That is, an entire query or update action can be specified within a SQL statement; an action that is independent of any previous action and will not affect any future action. This ability to initiate activities by passing self-contained messages is a key distinguishing feature of a client/server architecture.
Paper. This is the single most widely used information management technology in the world, but is the one most frequently overlooked. The "paperless office" predicted just a few years ago has not yet appeared, and is not likely to appear anytime in the near future. There is little new about the technology of paper, but there are several new technologies for producing information on paper and for handling paper. The deployment of inexpensive laser printers on networks has led to an explosive growth in the volume of paper generated daily. Fax machines have introduced a whole new way of quickly moving information on paper from one point to another. The technology of paper cannot be ignored. Its use is deeply ingrained in most of our existing systems. The low cost and ease of use of paper cannot yet be replaced by any existing automated technology.
This section identifies technologies that have been proved in a laboratory environment and are being moved or will soon be moved into a commercial environment. Potential advantages and risks are identified, and potential applications are suggested.
ATM. Virtually all network vendors are rapidly moving to implement Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) switching technology from the enterprize all the way to the desktop (some are achieving this by teaming, others by offering full spectrum solutions). Over time, ATM is likely to provide uniform communications that spans international, metropolitan, wide area and local area networks. ATM is a low-level, very low overhead, packet transmission technology that will transport high volumes of voice, data and digital video traffic on a single communications line. An appropriately implemented ATM Communication System and supporting software could allow an individual to sit at their workstation and simultaneously carry on telephone and video conferencing activities, use traditional LAN resources and view a broadcast quality video image being delivered from a video server or a satellite down-link. The potential benefits in cost, performance, and user productivity make the exploration of ATMs use at Hanford a high priority over the next several years.
PowerPC architecture. This may be one of the single most important hardware technologies over the next five years.
The PowerPC is a RISC architecture derived from IBM's earlier RISC platforms now used in the RS/6000 product line. PowerPC in different versions and extensions (and probably under different names) is IBM's strategic hardware platform across their entire product range. IBM's key product lines today include the ES/9000 series mainframes, the AS/400 mid-range departmental systems, the RS/6000 systems originally positioned as technical workstations and servers, and several PC models built on the Intel architecture. From a customer's perspective, the essence of an AS/400 or ES/9000 is not its underlying circuit technology but the ability to run existing applications and products. IBM has already announced plans to convert the mid-range AS/400 to the PowerPC platform by 1996. A similar conversion for the mainframe ES/9000 should occur by 1998.
All of IBM's PC products today are based on the Intel architecture. The problem for IBM is, quite simply, that their strategic planning in this segment is paced by Intel's product introduction schedule. For IBM this is an intolerable situation. The PowerPC will allow IBM to regain control over their portion of the desktop market.
With the PowerPC, IBM has formed an alliance with Apple and Motorola. Apple's claim to innovation and ease-of-use for the Macintosh disappeared when Microsoft released Windows 3.0. Apple was faced with an excellent but overpriced line of hardware that was not widely accepted by corporate users. Market share seemed frozen at less than 15% with the prospect of an imminent decline. The alliance between IBM and Apple offered a quick and elegant solution to the problems of both companies. Apple now uses the PowerPC in all new models of the Macintosh. By working closely with IBM, Apple immediately gains legitimacy among the huge base of IBM corporate customers while IBM gains by having a major hardware vendor adopt the PowerPC thus removing the stigma of "IBM proprietary."
Motorola, which has supplied the 680x0 processors to Apple, now supplies PowerPC chips. This allows Motorola to retain a major customer, and under cross licensing agreements with IBM, gives them access to a successful RISC platform. Motorola as a second source for the PowerPC will also encourage other PC and workstation vendors to adopt this technology.
Following are some predictions for the future of the PowerPC.
Next Generation Operating Systems. Windows 95 is in beta release and will go into production in August 1995. It offers preemptive multitasking, built-in networking support, a large "flat" memory address space, extensive multimedia capabilities, and hardware-based memory violation protection. Windows 95 also implements a feature called plug-and-play. Used in conjunction with a new generation of PC components, plug-and-play lets the operating system automatically detect its hardware environment and dynamically configure itself. This will greatly simplify the process of setting up a PC and reduce ongoing support costs. Also, primarily for mobile systems, it will allow components, such as PCMCIA cards, to be inserted and removed without the need to reboot the system.
User Interface Alternatives and Extensions. Pen-based (handwriting and gesture recognition) systems and voice systems are two high profile user interface alternatives. These alternative systems will supplement the more traditional keyboard and mouse-based data entry systems. Over the next 2 to 3 years, increases in pen and voice based system functionality, reduced cost, improved portability, and increased integration with commercial applications will gradually make pen and voice based data entry systems realistic alternatives to keyboards for many activities.
Pen based systems have been around for a number of years to support special purpose data entry applications. However, the lack of maturity of the systems and the lack of integration within commercial applications has tended to relegate them to the "interesting curiosity category" of technology until recently.
The Newton from Apple was the first of a new generation of small, portable personal digital assistants (PDA). This device, which features handwriting recognition, has so far been only moderately successful. Although the technology used for character recognition is mature enough for effective though limited use, the real factor that will determine its acceptance will be the availability of appropriate applications to take effective advantage of the technology. The PDA vendors in particular are seeking to link their devices through various cellular telephony and paging services. By 1996 all major cellular service providers will offer some form of handheld, pen-based device, and the cost of these devices will begin to drop dramatically since the real money is to be made by encouraging people to make more and longer cellular calls.
Applications for pen based systems at Hanford include:
Portable Data Entry. In these applications, the pen based system functions as a portable unit that is completely controlled by pen entries. Information input in this portable configuration is entered by marking on the display screen surface. It could be supplemented by the integration of other data input devices such as bar code readers, test instrument outputs, or voice.
Portable Executive Office. In this application, the pen based system would probably operate in two modes. First, it would function as a traditional business workstation complete with keyboard and color monitor. Second, it would function as a basic pen workstation used by executives to edit text documents, fill in electronic forms, and capture rough notes as images that can be stored in a general information database.
Voice systems will take longer to enter the mainstream. The delay in voice system integration is partially because of the need to reduce the cost of systems and partially because of the need to move from supporting large vocabulary, single utterance recognition systems (each word or phrase must be separated by a short pause) to large vocabulary, continuous speech recognition systems.
A robust, affordable voice dictation machine will be a realistic option for general site experimentation in 1995. Limited use as an affordable keyboard supplement might be possible by 1996.
Voice systems are often a viable alternative to keyboard based systems when data entry is required and the user's hands must be kept free. If the commands and information to be entered into the computer can be structured to use a limited vocabulary (generally 500 to 1,000 words), they are excellent candidates. Some Hanford applications which might benefit from voice input and output include:
As with pen based systems, the use of voice in conjunction with other data entry devices, such as bar code wedges, will be beneficial.
Voice input is often linked with voice output to allow the computer system user to carry on a dialogue with the computer. Relatively inexpensive speech synthesis technology has been available for many years which supports the conversion of ASCII text information to speech. The cost of such technology can run from under $1,000 to many thousands of dollars depending on the quality of the voice output required.
Voice systems can use a visual display system as a form of feedback as to whether the computing system accurately interpreted input, and as a method of prompting for further information or action. Alternatively, the computer can talk back to the user. With voice output the computer could prompt a roving maintenance person on the next required procedure and the operator could talk back to the system to report when a particular procedure is completed or to request information about system status or instrument readings.
Integrated Site-Wide Services. A list of some of the more likely services to be provided onsite over the next few years are briefly described below. Today many of these services are implemented by vendor-specific solutions. As the functionality and standards for communicating with each service develop and we select industry standards, the links between services will be formalized so that a user who wants to exchange information between different services will do so without concern for who provides the service.
Image archive services store information that has been converted from hard copy paper form to electronic images of the document. Generally, this service consists of a database server element and an image server element. The database server is the element that maintains descriptive information about images (document title, author, date written, date scanned, key words describing the document, location of image). The image server is the element that functions like a traditional network file server with large volume storage devices attached (300 to 1,000 gigabytes). Optical disk subsystems are typically used. Image archive services are provided today by BCSR's Document Processing Centers.
Online document repositories with text search services provide Hanford users electronic access to large document repositories (procedures, regulations, reports, etc.) and commercial information (books, periodicals, reference materials, etc.). The content of this information can be electronically searched to identify and view all information that meets specific criteria (key words, phrases, concepts).
Some text search systems can be linked to database services that manage the location and general content of a large body of specific documents. Users access the database server to identify basic classes of documents satisfying a broad set of criteria, then link to the text search service to perform detailed searches of just the subset of documents identified by the database server. The HLAN's "Hanford Information" application will be upgraded over the next two years to provide many of these new services.
Electronic print/copy and distribution services will allow networked users to access production printing and copying services electronically rather than generating paper copies of documents and routing the paper copy for reproduction and distribution.
Application Design and Build Software. Application development software is now an established technology with product offerings that integrate aspects of computer aided software engineering (CASE), integrated data dictionary, application generator, and object reuse libraries. A sample of application design and build software includes A/D Workbench (ADW), Distributed Systems Generator, JAM/CASE, NeXTStep Developer, Oracle ToolCASE/CASE Designer/CASE Dictionary/Forms/Forms Generator, and SES/Object Bench. There are over 200 products on the market today that provide capabilities to either: (1) automatically generate compilable or interpretive sources code, or object code from high-level user specifications, or (2) support the development of distributed applications via software tools and language environments. These products generally are written in C, C++ or SmallTalk. Some tools support the movement toward interoperability through the use of object brokers like OLE (Microsoft's Object Linking and Embedding technology) or CORBA (the Object Management Group's Common Object Request Broker technology). Some of the new technologies for groupware even offer methods for defining processes and having the resulting definition converted directly into supporting groupware applications.
Object-Oriented Technology. The next several years will see development of facilities that collectively support the implementation and operation of a distributed object-oriented environment. In a fully distributed environment, applications will be developed and implemented by selecting and joining various reusable services. These services may range from simple "chunks" of reusable code, similar to the code currently available in subroutine libraries, to entire subsystems, or frameworks, acquired from multiple sources or built locally. The application development model will shift from one in which programmers analyze, design, implement, test, and integrate applications, to one in which much of the work is performed by business analysts; that is, individuals who understand a specific business process but may not be as technically knowledgeable as programmers. In this new environment, the business analysts will consult a catalog of available services and select the pieces they need based on a published list of capabilities that the service provides.
This section identifies technologies that are being developed in a laboratory environment. Promising research does not yet have a timetable for commercialization, but should be considered for long-term opportunity identification.
High-Definition Displays. High-definition, large-screen, flat panel displays will be widely available by the end of the decade. Eventually these displays will be integrated into a single workplace environment. The technology to support high-definition TV is being planned for a 1997 launch. Today, the technology to drive the integrated environment will begin appearing in various consumer electronics products. For example, both IBM with their PowerPC and Silicon Graphics with their MIPS core are working with consumer electronic giants like Nintendo and Sega to manufacture inexpensive interactive game components combining compressed video and high fidelity sound.
Optical Storage. The ability to use optical disk technology to store information comes in three levels: CD-ROM, WORM (write-once, read many), and re-writable. The CD-ROM is rapidly becoming a popular publishing tool, while WORM drives are increasingly used to archive information, particularly where audit trails are important (since the information, once written to the drive cannot be erased or deleted). Re-writable optical drives are available today, but three-dimensional optical memories may be commercially available within 10-15 years.
Superconducting and quantum computers. Quantum computing will continue as a research subject for at least the next decade. Work is already being done on the fundamental technologies needed to produce devices such as single electron switches. Essentially, these switches trap an electron in a two-dimensional "box" so the electron is either there or not there (1 or 0). This differs from current devices which look at large populations of electrons to determine a state change.
Industry trends may have a more significant impact on the availability of technology than physical or technical barriers. The development and deployment of technology depends largely on the perceived market. In the early 1980's integrated services digital network (ISDN) was seen by various international standards groups as a leading technology for providing interactive networking capabilities to large numbers of distributed users. Two other technologies, the personal computer and local area networks, emerged at about the same time. PCs and LANs easily provided more capabilities at a lower cost per user than ISDN. American telecommunication companies, recognizing this trend, invested primarily in the backbone circuits and switching equipment needed to provide dedicated, high-speed, wide area networking facilities for linking LAN segments. Investment in ISDN infrastructure was largely ignored. Whether the perceived market drove investment or investment drove the market, today there is a growing demand for ISDN capabilities in the United States. ISDN is finding a place in the "work-at-home" market, although it continues to present problems in installation due to a lack of consistent implementation. Similar trends can be expected with respect to emerging and promising technologies. If vendors do not perceive a market, the technology will not succeed. Even the "neatest" technology will fail if it does not receive adequate vendor support.
One major change in the last decade has been the increased level of competition and the decreased cost of entry for many types of technology. While mainframe sales continue to decline, a dozens of companies are hotly contesting the PC, workstation, and server market with hardware based on commodity parts from perhaps dozens of other vendors. Hardware companies are no longer necessarily the exclusive distributer for operating system software, and even when they provide the operating system their base code is probably from another source. There is no monopoly on long distance telecommunication services. These can now be purchased from multiple companies. In major metropolitan areas even local loop service is no longer the exclusive franchise of the regulated telephone companies.Today's information management environment reflects two facts: (1) If someone sees a market for any piece of technology, they will provide it; and (2) Artificial barriers that previously paced the introduction of technology have largely disappeared.
There are an enormous number of standards relating to information technology, encompassing everything from the physical specification of optical fiber to the methodology for performing systems engineering. Many of these standards are promulgated by various "official" standards bodies such as the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE). Other standards are de facto, being created through vendor consortia (e.g., the Object Management Group ) or broad general usage (e.g., Windows). Standards typically define functions, interfaces, data exchange formats, or common practices, but do not specify their implementation. What is important about standards is not their written specification but the extent to which the standards have been adopted by vendors and incorporated into products.
Tracking the current status of standards is a full time job for specialists in several areas. The Hanford Site Information Resource Management: An Architecture for the 1990s (Revision 1) identifies several key standards of interest to Hanford. A representative list is provided in Table 5.1.
Table 5.1 Information Technology Standards
| Segment | Function | Component |
| Network | Network Services | TCP/IP |
Resource Management |
Distributed Services Data Interchange - Graphics- Product Data - Document Processing |
DCE CGM PDES/STEP SGML |
Application |
Programming Services |
C/C++ Smalltalk Fortran |
Service |
Database Management |
SQL IRDS |
User Interface |
User Interface |
X/Windows |
Computation |
Operating System |
Extended POSIX |
All of these standards are in flux. From Hanford's perspective it is important to continue identifying and evaluating key standards, both formal and de facto, that may have site applicability, and to understand the general status of these standards. The standards, however, are only important as a metric for selecting specific products. Some standards, such as the Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML), are being encouraged by the Department of Energy and beginning to receive support in products from key vendors. Other standards, such as DME , are "on hold" because they have failed to receive broad support from either Federal agencies or the vendor community. BCSR is addressing the process for developing a more complete list of Hanford site standards, maintaining that list on a current basis, and evaluating products for their conformity with approved standards.
DOE/RL-93-102, Hanford Mission Plan, Volume I: Site Guidance, Richland, WA, September 1994.
DOE/RL-94-69, Strategic Plan for Hanford Site Information Management , Richland, WA, September 1994.
DOE/RL-ADP-89-02 Hanford Site Information Resource Management: An Architecture for the 1990's (Revision 1)
DOE/S-0108, Fueling a Competitive Economy: United States Department of Energy Strategic Plan, Washington, DC, April 1994
Marilyn M. Parker, Robert J. Benson, Information Economics - Linking Performance to Information Technology, Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1988
RL-D94-048, Hanford Site Strategic Plan, Richland, WA, September 1994.
Ronald G. Ross, Resource Life Cycle Analysis: A Business Modeling Technique for IS Planning, Database Research Group, Inc., 1992
Establish Long Term Storage - Establish onsite long-term storage facility.
Monitor Containerized Waste - Monitor control parameters to maintain compliance with safety and operations envelopes.
Store Containerized Waste - Place containerized waste in controlled, monitored, and protected storage until it can be moved to permanent storage.
Dispose Containerized Waste - Move containerized waste to a permanent location.
Identify and Map Suspect Sites - Determine and map exact location and boundaries of suspect sites using approved methods of land measurement.
Analyze Suspect Site Contamination - Gather the raw data on the composition and location of contamination contained within the suspect site and analyze to determine the nature and extent of the contamination, categorize the suspect site, and determine site cleanup needs.
Establish Contaminated Site Monitor Controls - Establish and provide extended monitoring and surveillance to maintain compliance with safety and operations envelopes.
Remove Contamination - Move contamination to interim or long-term storage facilities.
Decontaminate and Decommission Site and Materials - Decontaminate site, equipment, and materials to acceptable disposal levels.
Restore Site - Restore site to final condition.
Identify Facility Requirements - Identify required facilities as a result of the waste characterized process.
Determine Solution - Analyze the possible solutions to meet the facility requirement and determine the solution.
Acquire Facility - Remodel, construct, or contract-for the required facility.
Operate/Maintain Facility - Operate and maintain the facility in a mode capable of meeting mission requirements.
Retire Facility - Retire the facility from use when its mission requirements are complete.
Identify Requirements - Identify required non-mission specific resources required to accomplish the Hanford Site mission.
Determine Solution - Analyze the possible solutions to meet the requirements and determine the solution.
Acquire Resources - Purchase, lease, or contract-for the required resources.
Operate/Maintain Resources - Operate and maintain the resources in a mode capable of meeting mission requirements.
Retire Resources - Retire the resource from use when its mission requirements are complete.
Build Library - Design and implement a Knowledge Library to index procedures, processes, results documentation, data, and history related to Hanford Site operations and projects.
Maintain Library - Add, change, or delete information in the Knowledge Library about the location and nature of applicable information.
Provide Access - Retrieve requested information from sources identified in the Knowledge Library and format for convenient user display.
Define Requirements - Determine and define requirements required to manage the Hanford Site mission in a safe and cost efficient mode.
Develop and Manage Procedures - Develop policies and procedures to meet mission requirements.
Execute Decision Making Process - Utilize the procedures to enable a decision making process that will ensure safe and cost efficient operations.
Planning Activities - Develop comprehensive plans to direct the successful execution of the Hanford Site mission.
Track Compliance - Monitor compliance with established policies, procedures, and plans.
Resolve Exceptions - Analyze exceptions to correct deficiencies and improve compliance.
Establish Needs and Opportunities - Determine needs that the Laboratory, through research and development, can assist in finding solutions.
Projects Assigned to Laboratory - Hanford Site, DOE, DOD, and other agency projects assigned to the laboratory.
Identify Resources Required to Accomplish Projects - Identify required mission specific resources required to accomplish the projects.
Acquire Resources - Purchase, lease, or contract-for the required resources.
Perform Required Project Activities - Perform the activities required to complete the projects.
Complete Projects - Customer agreement that the project has been completed.
Design Retrieval Process - Develop and establish strategies and techniques to retrieve untreated waste.
Establish Interim Retrieval Storage and Equipment - Allocate or modify existing structures (containers) to store untreated waste during retrieval process and establish equipment used to retrieve untreated waste.
Monitor Waste - Monitor waste held in interim storage.
Retrieve Waste - Retrieve untreated waste and place in interim storage.
Dispose Retrieval Equipment - Dispose of or decontaminate retrieval facilities and equipment.
Identify Special Training Requirements - Determine the business and regulatory courses needed for site-specific regulatory (e.g. NRC mandated) training.
Develop/Acquire Courses - Develop or acquire performance-based courses providing necessary knowledge and skill to personnel assigned to perform unique Hanford Site requirements.
Schedule and Teach Courses - Prepare and document course schedules, register students, and present courses to personnel as required or requested.
Update Worker Records - Track student attendance, course evaluation, and performance.
Establish Waste Characterization Procedures - Identify methods, prepare procedures, and train staff to characterize waste and monitor samples, and provide controls necessary to maintain safety and quality during characterization process.
Sample Waste - Take untreated samples and deliver for analysis.
Perform Sample Analysis - Analyze untreated waste, maintaining strict chain of custody controls and precise data integrity.
Characterize Waste - Determine proper cleanup methods and requirements based on analysis of waste samples.
Establish Monitoring - Establish monitoring control parameters to maintain compliance with safety and operations envelopes.
Establish Treatment Capability - Establish treatment facility and develop treatment procedures.
Prepare Waste Container - Prepare storage container to receive treated waste.
Treat Waste - Prepare for and execute required treatment of waste for final disposition.
Containerize Waste - Place treated waste in storage container and seal for final disposition.
Identify Skill Requirements - Identify special needs, inventory existing skills, and establish new or revised skill needs.
Compensate Personnel - Determine compensation, allocate funds, and distribute compensation to personnel.
Establish Workforce - Reassign, hire, or contract personnel to meet skill requirements.
Train Workers - Train personnel to meet skill requirements or to meet site-specific regulatory (e.g. NRC mandated) training.
Maintain Worker Records - Maintain current and accurate worker records to include organizational assignments and responsibilities.
Provide Health Management Services - Conduct health examinations and education sessions, promote sound health practices, and maintain permanent medical and exposure history records.
Terminate/Retire Personnel - Terminate or retire personnel as mission requirements are completed.
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Long Term Storage: Location, structure type, inventory.
Disposable Waste Monitoring: Type, location, status.
Containerized Waste: Type, location, container type, status.
Containerized Waste Shipments: Waste identification, shipping from/to, date.
Site Geography: Type of terrain, available access, grid coordinates, geophysical structure, groundwater conditions.
Site Characterization: Contamination boundaries, background readings, analysis results.
Site Material: Composition, location, quantity, condition.
Site Monitoring: Monitoring equipment, monitoring frequency, logs.
Site Release: Type of contamination released, frequency of release, date.
Restored Land: Location, restoration date, use status.
Site Facility: Location, type of facility.
Facility Configuration: Assigned structures, equipment, maintenance.
Worker Management Procedures: Schedules, scheduled work.
Infrasturcture Resource: Location, type of resource.
Infrastructure Configuration: Assigned resources, equipment, maintenance.
Knowledge Index: Data location, data description, data relationships.
Requirements: Requirements applicable to Hanford (i.e. Orders, Laws, Regulations, etc.)
Management Procedures: Policies and procedures developed and executed to manage the Hanford Site mission, except plant operating procedures.
Executive Information: Summary information (e.g. budget, operations, personnel, etc.).
Plans: Programmatic and budget planning.
Exceptions: Time, place, date, type, responsible individual, impact, corrective actions.
Opportunities: Prospective opportunities and proposals.
Projects: Project specification, required resources, schedule, status.
Resources: Inventory of laboratory resources.
Retrieval Procedures: Procedures developed and executed during the Retrieval process.
Retrieval Operations: Active procedures, schedule, status, process configuration.
Interim Retrieval Storage Facility: Location, condition, special equipment, requirements, configuration, status, contents.
Retrieval Monitoring: Type, location, status.
Retrieval Equipment: Type, location, status.
Course: Course schedule, location, instructor, length, prerequisites, requirements, evaluations, special equipment required, performance criteria.
Waste Characterization Procedures: Procedures developed and executed during the waste characterization process.
Waste Characterization Sample: Waste form, origin of sample, tracking information.
Waste Characterization Analysis: Waste toxicity, composition, concentration.
Waste Cleanup Analysis: Information used to develop techniques and procedures required during the waste retrieval and cleanup processes.
Waste Treatment Monitoring: Type of monitoring equipment, monitoring frequency, log, set points, limits.
Waste Treatment Procedures: Procedures developed and executed during the Waste Treatment process.
Waste Treatment Facility: Type of facility, special equipment, status.
Disposable Waste Container: Location, status, quantity assurance records, contents, custodian.
Waste Treatment Operations: Active procedures, schedule, status, process, configuration, material identification.
Disposable Waste Status: Interim location, method of disposition, date, transfer location.
Jobs: Job specifications, requirements, responsibility description.
Compensation: Compensations schedules.
Worker: Access authorizations, job assignments, training, work location, performance evaluations.
Health History: Dosimeter readings, medical test results.
A composite of organized processes of the information and systems related to waste that has been treated and packaged to allow for final disposition. The following systems relate to the specific functions within this resource.
A composite of organized processes of the information and systems related to locations on the Hanford Site where spills, leaks, or other discharges of hazardous substance, pollutants, or contaminations into the environment may have occurred and the process whereby these sites are restored to final condition. The following systems relate to the specific functions within this resource.
A composite of organized processes of the information and systems related to the special purpose structures acquired to serve a Hanford Site mission objective.
Facility Management System
Facility Configuration Management System
Job Control System
A composite of organized processes of the information and systems related to the non-mission specific resources needed to accomplish site mission.
Infrastructure Resource Management System
Infrastructure Configuration Management System
A composite of organized processes of the information and systems related to a centrally maintained index and access capability of knowledge developed during the cleanup mission. The following systems relate to the specific functions within this resource.
Knowledge Library Management System
Index Maintenance System
Knowledge Library Access System
A composite of organized processes of the information and systems related to the documented standard management methodologies and processes to accomplish the Hanford missions.
Requirements Management System
Procedures Management System
Executive Support System
Site Management System
Non-Compliance Tracking System
A composite of organized processes of the information and systems related to the Pacific Northwest Laboratory.
Opportunity Management System
Project Management System
Resource Management System
A composite of organized processes of the information and systems related to the processes by which untreated waste is retrieved from contaminated sites. The following systems relate to the specific functions within this resource.
A composite of organized processes of the information and systems related to courses established and taught for site-specific NRC required training needs. The following systems related to the specific functions within this resource.
A composite of organized processes of the information and systems related to the process by which untreated waste is sampled and analyzed. The following systems relate to the specific functions within this resource.
A composite of organized processes of the information and systems related to the processes by which characterized and retrieved waste is treated for final disposition.
A composite of organized processes of the information and systems related to personnel hired and compensated to perform activities to accomplish the Hanford Site mission. The following systems relate to the specific functions within this resource.
CONTAINERIZED WASTE | ||
| FUNCTIONS | SYSTEMS | DATA SUBJECT AREAS |
| Establish Long Term Storage | Long Term Storage Management System | Long Term Storage |
Monitor Containerized Waste |
Disposable Waste Monitoring System |
Disposable Waste Monitoring |
Store Containerized Waste |
Disposable Waste Storage System |
Containerized Waste |
Dispose Containerized Waste |
Disposable Waste Shipping System |
Containerized Waste Shipments |
CONTAMINATED SITES | ||
| FUNCTIONS | SYSTEMS | DATA SUBJECT AREAS |
Identify and Map Suspect Sites |
Contaminated Site Management System |
Site Geography Site Characterization Site Material |
Analyze Suspect Site Contamination |
Site Contamination Analysis System |
|
Establish Contaminated Site Monitor Controls |
Site Contamination Monitoring System |
Site Monitoring |
Release Tracking and Reporting System |
Site Geography Site Release Site Characterization Site Material | |
Remove Contamination |
Contaminated Site Management System |
Site Geography Site Characterization Site Material |
Decontaminate and Decommission Site and Materials |
Decontamination and Decommissioning Management System | |
Restore Land |
Land Restoration System |
Site Geography Restored Land |
FACILITIES | ||
| FUNCTIONS | SYSTEMS | DATA SUBJECT AREAS |
Identify Facility Requirements |
Site Management System |
Plans |
Determine Solution | ||
Acquire Facility |
Facility Management System |
Site Facility |
Operate/Maintain Facility |
Facility Configuration Management System |
Facility Configuration |
Procedures Management System |
Management Procedures | |
Job Control System |
Worker Management Procedures | |
Retire Facility |
Site Management System |
Plans |
INFRASTRUCTURE | ||
| FUNCTIONS | SYSTEMS | DATA SUBJECT AREAS |
Identify Requirements |
Site Management System |
Plans |
Determine Solution | ||
Acquire Resources |
Infrastructure Resource Management System |
Infrastructure Resource |
Operate/Maintain Resources |
Infrastructure Configuration Management System |
Infrastructure Configuration |
Procedures Management System |
Management Procedures | |
Job Control System |
Worker Management Procedures | |
Retire Resources |
Site Management System |
Plans |
KNOWLEDGE LIBRARY | ||
| FUNCTIONS | SYSTEMS | DATA SUBJECT AREAS |
Build Library |
Knowledge Library Management System |
Knowledge Index |
Maintain Library |
Index Maintenance System | |
Provide Access |
Knowledge Library Access System | |
MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS | ||
| FUNCTIONS | SYSTEMS | DATA SUBJECT AREAS |
Define Requirements |
Requirements Management System |
Requirements |
Develop and Manage Procedures |
Procedures Management System |
Management Procedures |
Execute Decision Making Process |
Executive Support System |
Executive Information |
Planning Activities |
Site Management System |
Plans |
Track Compliance |
Non-Compliance Tracking System |
Exceptions |
Resolve Exceptions | ||
NATIONAL LABORATORY | ||
| FUNCTIONS | SYSTEMS | DATA SUBJECT AREAS |
Establish Needs and Opportunities |
Opportunity Management System |
Opportunities |
Projects Assigned to Laboratory |
Project Management System |
Projects |
Identify Resources Required to Accomplish Projects | ||
Acquire Resources |
Resource Management System |
Resources |
Perform Required Project Activities |
Project Management System |
Projects |
Complete Projects |
Project Management System |
Projects |
Resource Management System |
Resources | |
RETRIEVAL | ||
| FUNCTIONS | SYSTEMS | DATA SUBJECT AREAS |
Design Retrieval Process |
Retrieval Procedure Management System |
Retrieval Procedures Retrieval Operations |
Establish Interim Retrieval Storage and Equipment |
Interim Storage System |
Interim Retrieval Storage Facility |
Monitor Waste |
Retrieval Monitoring System |
Retrieval Monitoring |
Retrieve Waste |
Retrieval Operations System |
Retrieval Operations |
Dispose Retrieval Equipment |
Retrieval Equipment Disposal System |
Retrieval Equipment |
TRAINING | ||
| FUNCTIONS | SYSTEMS | DATA SUBJECT AREAS |
Identify Special Training Requirements |
Requirements Management System |
Requirements |
Training Requirements System |
Course | |
Develop/Acquire Courses |
Training Requirements System |
Course |
Schedule and Teach Courses |
Training Schedule System | |
Update Worker Records |
Worker Record Management System |
Worker |
WASTE CHARACTERIZATION | ||
| FUNCTIONS | SYSTEMS | DATA SUBJECT AREAS |
Establish Waste Characterization Procedures |
Waste Characterization Procedures System |
Waste Characterization Procedures |
Sample Waste |
Waste Sample Management System |
Waste Characterization Sample |
Perform Sample Analysis |
Waste Sample Analysis System |
Waste Characterization Analysis |
Characterize Waste |
Waste Characterization Management System |
Waste Cleanup Analysis |
WASTE TREATMENT | ||
| FUNCTIONS | SYSTEMS | DATA SUBJECT AREAS |
Establish Monitoring |
Waste Treatment Monitoring System |
Waste Treatment Monitoring |
Establish Treatment Capability |
Waste Treatment Procedures Management System |
Waste Treatment Procedures |
Waste Treatment Facility Management System |
Waste Treatment Facility | |
Prepare Waste Container |
Waste Container Management System |
Disposable Waste Container |
Treat Waste |
Treated Waste Status System |
Waste Treatment Operations |
Containerize Waste |
Disposable Waste Packaging System |
Disposable Waste Status |
WORKFORCE | ||
| FUNCTIONS | SYSTEMS | DATA SUBJECT AREAS |
Identify Skill Requirements |
Job Description System |
Jobs |
Compensate Personnel |
Compensation System |
Compensation |
Establish Workforce |
Job Description System |
Jobs |
Train Workers |
Job Description System |
Jobs |
Training Schedule System |
Course | |
Maintain Worker Records |
Worker Record Management System |
Worker |
Provide Health Management Services |
Health History Management System |
Health History |
Terminate/Retire Personnel |
Worker Record Management System |
Worker |
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