From February 1-4, 2016, AdSTM, Inc. and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) conducted an IRDP workshop on Research and Test Reactors (RTR) at the Thailand Office of Atoms for Peace (OAP) in Bangkok, Thailand. The audience was composed of operators of the Thailand Research Reactor (TRR-1/M1), a 1.3 MWth TRIGA® research reactor at the Thailand Institute for Nuclear Technology and OAP nuclear regulators from the Thailand Bureau of Nuclear Safety, whose responsibility encompasses various aspects of research reactor oversight including inspection, program management, emergency response and security. The OAP RTR Workshop was delivered subsequent to the Vietnam/VARANS RTR Workshop, which was delivered the preceding week.
The workshop was supported by Adstm staff, Mr. Rich Holm, Dr. Steve Reese, and Ms. Tammy Way; and Mr. John Nguyen and Mr. Gene Carpenter, both representing the NRC. Over the four day workshop instruction focused on the current regulatory approach for RTRs in the United States including inspection programs, initial licensing, license renewal, license amendments, emergency planning, security, safeguards, facility modifications, operator licensing, and enforcement. The course was intended to assist Thai efforts in the continued development of RTR rules and regulations, particularly on licensing of existing and future RTR development. The workshop also provided Thai nuclear experts with an excellent practical view of current U.S. regulatory experiences.