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UT-Battelle's Delivery of Science Highlights Strong DOE Performance Ratings

Newswise - Led by a number of scientific breakthroughs and operational milestones at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, UT-Battelle has again earned high performance ratings from the Department of Energy.

The annual DOE "report card" graded UT-Battelle's management performance with "A-" scores in all eight evaluation categories. The report covers UT-Battelle's performance from October 2008 through September 2009. Last year's scores contained seven "A-'s" and one "B+."

The 2009 assessment was based on three key measures related to ORNL's scientific research programs and five criteria that rate efficiency of the lab's operations. In a letter to ORNL Director and UT-Battelle CEO Thom Mason, the DOE's Oak Ridge Operations Manager Gerald Boyd said, "You and your staff are to be congratulated for achieving a high level of performance in the management and operation of ORNL."

Lab officials said UT-Battelle takes pride in combining the highest levels of science with good management. "Every day for nearly ten years, our goal has been to deliver science that will make a lasting difference in people's lives," Mason said. "These high marks are evidence of DOE's confidence that our staff are achieving that goal."

UT-Battelle's management contract fee awarded is based on scores from the DOE performance rating. UT-Battelle's total fee for operating ORNL in fiscal year 2009 is $10,058,000, or 94 percent of the maximum fee.

A number of ORNL achievements in 2009 contributed to the laboratory's high performance scores. Included among the laboratory's science highlights in 2009:

• Researchers in ORNL's nuclear energy program fabricated a coated particle fuel that set a world record for advanced high temperature gas-cooled reactor fuel.

Operational high points at the lab over the past year include:

• Energy efficiency improvements expected to reduce energy consumption by 50 percent, water usage by 23 percent, and fossil fuel use by more than 80 percent.

Oak Ridge National Laboratory is managed by UT-Battelle for the Department of Energy Office of Science.

Source: NewsWise