Development of the Human Factors Engineering Program Review Model

The staff of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is performing nuclear power plant design certification reviews based on a design process plan that describes the human factors engineering (HFE) program elements that are necessary and sufficient to develop an acceptable detailed design specification and an acceptable implemented design. There are two principal reasons for this approach. First, the initial design certification applications submitted for staff review did not include detailed design information. Second, since human performance literature and industry experiences have shown that many significant human factors issues arise early in the design process, review of the design process activities and results is important to the evaluation of an overall design. However, regulations and guidance documents did not address the criteria for design process review. Therefore, the objective of this project was to develop an approach to the design certification review of advanced designs.

The result was the HFE Program Review Model (HFE PRM, NUREG-0711, Rev.2). It was developed as a basis for performing design certification reviews that include design process evaluations as well as review of the final design. A central tenet of the HFE PRM is that the HFE aspects of the plant should be developed, designed, and evaluated on the basis of a structured top-down system analysis using accepted HFE principles. The HFE PRM consists of ten elements: HFE program management, operating experience review, functional requirements and allocation analysis, task analysis, staffing, human reliability analysis, human-system interface design, procedures development, training program development, and verification and validation. Each element is divided into four sections: Background, Objective, Applicant Submittals, and Review Criteria. This design review approach was used in several advanced reactor HFE reviews (see Human Factors Design Review of Advanced Reactors description).

References

O'Hara, J., Higgins, J., Persensky, J.J., P.M. Lewis, and Bongarra, J. (2004). "Human Factors Engineering Program Review Model [NUREG-0711, Rev.2]. Washington, DC: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Last Modified: February 1, 2008

One of ten national laboratories overseen and primarily funded by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Brookhaven National Laboratory conducts research in the physical, biomedical, and environmental sciences, as well as in energy technologies and national security. Brookhaven Lab also builds and operates major scientific facilities available to university, industry and government researchers. Brookhaven is operated and managed for DOE's Office of Science by Brookhaven Science Associates, a limited-liability company founded by the Research Foundation for the State University of New York on behalf of Stony Brook University, the largest academic user of Laboratory facilities, and Battelle, a nonprofit, applied science and technology organization.

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