SIMULATOR TRAINING

The excellent operating performance of German nuclear power plants yea r by year attests to the high reliability and safety of these plants. On the one hand, this is due to the mature technical plant concept and , on the other hand, to the safety culture of plant operation, i.e. th e qualified and careful work of the plant personnel running and monito ring the plants and keeping them in top condition technically. Special responsibility rests on the shift personnel operating plants around t he clock. it is for this reason that operators take very seriously the efforts by these staff members to acquire and preserve a high level o f training. Training by simulators, as organized centrally in Essen fo r twenty-two nuclear generating units in Germany, the Netherlands, and Switzerland, plays a major role in these activities. The special char acteristic of simulator training is the combination of two things, nam ely technology and human behavior. The power plant processes, with all their complexities, must be conveyed to human operators, with all the ir skills traits and weaknesses, by means of appropriate simulation. T he requirements resulting from this need, and the solutions adopted at the Essen Simulator Center, are described in this article.