in brief - ITER France

News
IN BRIEF
Welcome!
« A lot of ITER expatriates have expressed the wish
to create links with the local French population and
to have access to occasional personalized assistance especially on arrival » says Shawn Simpson in
charge of the intercultural and languages program
in the Welcome Office of Agence Iter France. With
this in mind, the agency offers a simple and effective
system: mentaing. « We give French volunteers
the opportunity to mentor a person or a family, »
she says. A first meeting was held on September
13th at Cadarache Castle where a hundred people of
all nationalities met informally. This lively evening
allowed first contacts to be made and that will be
1125
quickly reinforced by upcoming events. Do not hesitate to volunteer, contact [email protected]. ■
care. First Carlos Alejaldre, Deputy Director General
of ITER Organization, will present an overview of
the ITER site and the next operations planned,
then Gilles Barsacq, Secretary General for Regional
Business (SGAR) at the Bouches-du-Rhône Préfecture, Pamela Jérôme, Director of Agence Iter France,
representatives of the Regional Directorate for the
Environment, Development and Housing (Dreal) and
the Rector will endeavour to answer all questions
during this autumn's meeting. ■
and implementation of new companies. As well as
finding a balance between development and the
conservation of natural areas, the aim is to lay the
foundations for the governance of development
projects. Alongside the creation of a Regional
Interest Operation (OIR), which will result in
the adoption of regional territorial development
guidelines in December 2012, this approach
adopted by the PACA Regional Council also aims
primarily to class projects that will been defined
on the basis of action and development principles
shared by those involved. ■
FACES
number 40 //// sept.-oct. 2012
Wednesday
Workshops
Educational workshops for schools
are organized along with visits
to the ITER construction site.
This is an opportunity to
discover the fascinating world
of fusion energy research and
issues related to the conservation of the biodiversity at
Cadarache.
VISIT THE ITER SITE
graduate of the École Normale Supérieure, the universities of Strasbourg, Paris (Sorbonne) and Montreal (McGill
University) and has more than 30 years of experience in
the management of educational institutions acquired
in New York, Montreal, Washington, Texas, Florida and
France. This year, he will have the pleasure of submitting
the first European Baccalaureate students. ■
Local News
For the Emergence of the Valley of
New Energies
Instigated by the French Federation for Nature
and Environment (FNE), elected officials, environmental associations and institutional bodies met
at the Durance territorial workshop held on
27th September 2012 in Manosque to share their
views on the consequences of developing the Val
de Durance area. With the presence of the CEA
(Commissariat for Atomic Energy and Alternative
Energies) for over 50 years, the construction of
the ITER research facility and the emergence
of the Energy City this valley of new energies is
emerging in terms of projects, jobs, innovation
English version of the AIF newsletter
This is the length in meters of the canal water delivery pipe that
connects the Vinon-sur-Verdon plain and the ITER construction site.
Connection work was completed in early September 2012.
It took the company Bonna Sabla, working for the company Canal
de Provence (SCP), nearly six months to finalise laying the 1125 m
pipeline. Along this new line, an optical fibre connected to a remote
control station will enable SCP to control the opening and closing of
the valves according to the needs of the ITER project.
The New Director
of the International School
Pierre Fronsacq started his first
school year at the ProvenceAlpes-Côte d'Azur International
School along with 520 students
attending the school in Manosque
which opened four years ago. The
former economics teacher is a
and R&D
Figure of the Month
Welcoming the workers
At the public meeting in Vinon-sur-Verdon, on
October 19 th, 2012, the ITER local information commission (CLI ITER) intends to tackle all the questions
about the consequences of accommodating nearly
3 000 to 4 000 workers for the ITER construction
site in Cadarache in the next few years. Subjects
discussed will include the local municipality's housing and accommodation capacities for construction
staff, the issue of transport and the consequences
of an increase in road traffic that could lead to the
eventual saturation of site access or access to health
Industrial Skills
From Monday to Friday!
Visits must be booked in advance.
Each visit is adapted to the profile
and interests of the visitors (general, scientific,
technical, professional, educational...) and
to the constraints of the construction site.
Maximum 50 people per group
Send us a mail: [email protected]
English version of the AIF newsletter
FACES
number 40 //// sept.-oct. 2012
Interfaces is edited by the Agence ITER France and freely distributed
upon request, it provides information about the ITER construction site
which is financed by Europe and France (including a part of the local
authority contributions of the PACA region).
Director: Jérôme Paméla
Editor: Sylvie André-Mitsialis - Tél. : 04 42 25 29 26
[email protected]
Alexandra Maraval,
Publisher: Arc en Ciel
Photo Credits: All rights reserved, S. André, A. Maraval, ©AIF2011,
DR, EIPACA.
IMAGE
OF TH E MONTH
The kaleidoscope effect of the ITER
welcome building. The symmetrical reflection of the
architectonic shapes in the bay window gives the impression that the
structures are built in perfect symmetry. In fact it is just an optical
illusion. The building, designed by the architect Rudy Ricciotti, has a
conference room with a capacity of 50 people.
Comings and Goings
at Agence Iter France
Agence Iter France
Bât 521 - 13108 St-Paul-lez-Durance
Agence Iter France (AIF) is preparing for a
new phase with handovers presently being
organized.
www.itercadarache.org
A
✁
P E F C / 1 0 - 3 1 - 1319
Free Subscription
I would like to take out a free subscription
Surname: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
First name: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Address: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Post Code : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Town : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Alexandra, Magali, Thierry, Béatrice
I have already subscribed but I have changed address
Surname : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
First name : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
New address : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Post Code : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Town : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Send to:
Agence Iter France - Service Communication - Bâtiment 521, centre de Cadarache - 13108 St Paul-Lez-Durance
In accordance with the law n° 78-17 of 6 January 1978 relating to computers, files and liberties, you have the right to access, modify and delete your
personal data. You can exercise this right by contacting Agence Iter France, Centre de Cadarache, service communication, 13108 St Paul-lez-Durance.
Handover from Thierry Brosseron to Fabrice Carle
gence Iter France (AIF), which is organized into project teams, is developing and renewing. It began with
a handover from Laetitia Grammatico who joined ITER
Organization and Beatrice Balp who succeeded her as
Legal Officer for AIF last November.
Having worked as an international tax legal expert in a
lawyers firm in Paris, Beatrice joined the CEA in 1997.
Over the years she honed her skills in the fields of
procurement, insurance and technology transfers before
moving to « purchase / projects in the sales department »
of the CEA / Marcoule until 2011. Another handover is
underway between Thierry Brosseron and Fabrice Carle,
in charge of administration, management, finance and
human resources. Appointed by Bernard Bigot, Director
of CEA, Thierry takes over the task of managing
internal control since 1 st October 2012. No doubt his
25 years of professional experience in finance and
accounting in various entities of CEA along with his
pragmatism will be extremely useful during the creation
of a network and managing and monitoring tools for CEA.
His new mission is to formalize the internal control procedures implemented at different levels and for projects,
management processes, support activities, safety and
security. Fabrice is coming directly from the financial
and management control service of the CEA / Cadarache.
Through joining a structure organized into project
groups he will have the opportunity to increase his range
of skills.
Magali Chabrand and Alexandra Dmitrieva-Sacha both
have international experience.
Magali who has travelled to no fewer than 32 countries
has also lived in the United States and Asia. A graduate
in Management and Business Management, she worked
as a management and accounts controller before becoming
a consultant in business development and a trainer.
Following a temporary assignment, she was recruited
last summer as an assistant in the Agence Iter France.
Born in Moscow of Russian and French nationality,
Sacha studied law in Aix-en-Provence. On her return
to Moscow she landed a job at the Russian Ministry of
Culture and obtained the authorization to represent
the federal agency for culture and cinematography in civil,
administrative or arbitration proceedings. She then
became marketing manager for a bilingual economic
and cultural magazine for which she wrote the articles
in French. She then returned to France where after
working as an expert bailiff clerk in Toulon, she joined
the Welcome Office of Agency Iter France where she
works on welcoming ITER's expatriate employees and
their families. ■
Update
IN BRIEF
ITER Headquarters:
Finishing Line
3
On 17 September 2012, Agence Iter France and Léon Grosse
Provence / Axima gathered on the site of the ITER headquarters along with the future occupant ITER Organization,
Fusion For Energy (F4E) and the engineering companies
for the project to carry out the technical acceptance of
the premises. The meeting began with a visit of the three
buildings and ended with the signing of the minutes marking the acceptance of the work and the beginning of the
reservations phase. ITER Organization are due to take full
possession of the premises on October 5th. ■
80% of Companies
are Regional
Titan test bench at the Research Institute for Fusion by Magnetic Confinement (IRFM)
Industrial skills
AND R&D
Contracts signed so far related to the construction of ITER at Cadarache include contracts for the preparation of
the site, the itinerary for the transport of the ITER components, the construction of the international school in
Manosque and the first buildings. They also include those related to supply contracts of components provided
by Europe or the provision of research and development, engineering and services.
Several French companies have played their cards right winning 991 million Euros
worth of contracts out of a total of 1.7 billion Euros worth generated to this day by
the construction of ITER in Cadarache. This highlights the expertise of companies
in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and has strengthened links between
research and industry.
For example, one of the first components of ITER actually saw the light in Seynesur-Mer as the result of a contract three years ago between Fusion for Energy
(F4E) and Constructions Industrielles de la Méditerranée (CNIM)(1), the company
is renowned for its achievements in the field of energy, for example nuclear and
thermodynamic solar energy. The prototype of the radial plates which they made
is now used as the manufacturing model for the cable-holding system of the superconductive cables in the heart of the ITER toroidal coils, one of the key elements
in the creation of the strong magnetic field that is needed to confine plasma in
the heart of the research facility. The dimension of each D-shaped radial plate is
14 meters long and 9 meters wide and only 120 mm thick; grooves, for guiding
the superconducting cable, are cut according to very strict specifications. CNIM has
developed a special production method using electron beam welding. Use of this
method requires vacuum welding zones. « Of course it is not possible to build a
vacuum chamber that can hold a piece of this magnitude. We just need to use a
small vessel to create a vacuum around each area to be welded », explains JeanClaude Cercassi, in charge of development within the company. This prototype,
which has enabled us to ensure the feasibility of mass production, in particular
through the respect of manufacturing tolerance, is not unique. SIMIC, an Italian
company also sought out by F4E proposes a model welded using the « TIG Narrow
Gap » process. Now, these two companies have combined their skills to answer a
call for tenders for the mass production of 70 radial plates.
Astrium. « When a machine is being made, maintenance of elements already
assembled is just as important as work on the components being integrated. Our
teleoperation work focuses in particular on achieving these procedural techniques
in strict compliance with the norms and constraints of safety and security »
he explains.
Aix-en-Provence, Pertuis and Manosque, Volx and Pierrevert also house branches
set up by companies such as Versaplast, Soditech, the German KraftanlagenHeidelberg, Actin Engineering and C-CON. The initial impact of the project is
therefore clearly visible, not to mention the various service providers used on a
daily basis including IT, telecom and office service companies, travel agencies
and catering professionals.
Local scientific expertise also remains active on the ITER project, in particular
with the involvement of the Research Institute for Fusion by Magnetic
Confinement (IRFM) at CEA/Cadarache, which created a 3D virtual reality
room in December 2010 that is now frequently used in collaboration with ITER
Organization. It is a unique tool for checking the compatibility and smooth
integration of all components in 3D. This room is also a training platform for
assembly and maintenance operations as accessibility is one of the key points
because of the complex geometry of the tokamak. ■
Present in the nuclear field since the 70 s , CNIM provides robotic systems, for example,
and is also present in projects such as the Jules Horowitz research reactor under construction in Cadarache and the George Besse II plant.
(1)
Audio / Video
Amenities
Director of Agence
Iter France
Front façade of the Headquarters office building
Jérôme Pamela
On Course for 2042?
Technical acceptance of the premises
The last strokes of paint have been given in the boardroom
and amphitheatre of the ITER headquarters and the audio
and video systems are now being installed.
Under the contracting authority of Agence Iter France,
installation work on the video projectors, sound systems and
video-conferencing facilities were assigned to the Axians System Com-Santerne joint venture. ■
Amphitheatre
ITER Games
Winners
The second edition of the ITER Games, organized with
the communes of Saint-Paul-lez-Durance and Vinon-surVerdon, brought together 268 athletes in five disciplines:
football tournaments, tennis, bowling, running and a kayak
competition. Among the winners of the bowls tournament
we note a good performance from Agence Iter France with
Magali Chabrand and Charlene Borel taking third place.
But it is not just about performance, conviviality is the
main aim of these sports meetings. ■
ITER Games 2012
Construction
of the ITER Cryostat
Industrial and Research Dynamics
Other companies have also chosen to set
up near Cadarache where the Valley of New
Energies has taken root due to the growing
momentum of ITER, the development of
projects carried out by CEA (Commissariat to
Atomic Energy and Alternative Energies) and
the Capenergies cluster. To support these
projects, EADS Astrium chose to create a
Radial plate in CNIM workshop
branch in Saint-Paul-lez-Durance in July 2009.
« ITER is in charge of the assembly of
the components of the research facility and is currently working on operative
assembly techniques. Our teams assist the project in the assembly procedures of the machine via the management of interfaces and teleoperations
studies to integrate and maintain each machine component, » says Pierre
Ruibanys Chief of the local agency and "ITER Key Account Manager" for EADS
The total amount of contracts awarded by the Agence Iter
France has reached 57 million at the end of two years work
on construction of the headquarters of the ITER Organization. It houses a restaurant with a thousand meal capacity,
a 500-seat amphitheatre and a boardroom able to accommodate more than 120 representatives from the different ITER
member parties. Approximately 80% of this amount has been
allocated to local companies such as the group of architects
Ricciotti-Bonhomme-SNC-Lavalin Cap Ingelec responsible
for project management, Léon Grosse Provence responsible
for construction, EIS Clemessy for the high and low voltage
equipment and APAVE South Europe for quality control. ■
Questions for
Jérôme Pamela
IRFM BRIDGES WITH ITER
Located at CEA/Cadarache since the 80 s , IRFM is working on the design of one of the highfrequency heating systems for the ITER plasma. Indeed, it is part of the Cycle consortium which
signed an R & D contract with the European Agency F4E. The IRFM is particularly involved
in modelling the sheath effects in front of the antenna (plasma disruption), the system
measuring the density of the plasma by reflectometry and the study of the Faraday shield to
protect the antenna and to limit power dissipation. Currently, the institute in answering new
tenders and also working on implementing the WEST platform. This has also led to an evolution
in the profile of the Tore Supra facility, the aim is to be able to validate the components that will
make up the ITER tungsten divertor, prepare for operations and test the specific measurement
instruments that will be involved.
The construction contract for the cryostat awarded by
the Indian ITER Domestic Agency to the Indian company
Larsen & Toubro Ltd, was officially signed on 17th August.
This very big component weighing 3800 tons will be
produced in India and assembled in Cadarache. With a
diameter of nearly 30 meters, this huge "box" will fulfil an
essential role: it will thermally insulate the ITER magnets
so they can be brought down to the temperature of liquid
helium, 273° C below zero, which is essential for obtaining
the superconductive state. Manufacturing is about to begin,
managed by the heavy engineering division of L & T in a
plant located at Hazira near Surat on the west coast of India.
This « shows that our project has now entered a decisive
phase » the General Director Osamu Motojima ITER recently
declared. Too large to be transported in one piece, the
English version of the AIF newsletter
English version of the AIF newsletter
FACES
FACES
number 40 //// sept.-oct. 2012
number 40 //// sept.-oct. 2012
The course to be followed was set in ink in the first lines of
the ministerial decree published on June 29th, 2006: « The
implementation of commitments taken by France for the
establishment of the ITER project in the region ». The first
step was completed in July 2010 when after nearly four years
of work the ITER site, 110 ha of prepared land, was provided
for the project. The land is available to the international
organization for the entire duration of the ITER Agreement,
so until 24 October 2042. But France's commitments go far
beyond this!
Is 2012 a turning point?
Yes, a new phase is beginning with, on one hand, the end
of our ITER site preparation mission, and the other hand,
the increase in new activities. This year has seen the completion of the 400 kV substation and its connection to the
very high voltage line. We also delivered the ITER office
headquarters buildings. All these missions are a result of
the commitments made by France for the ITER project,
and these commitments do not stop here. If we continue
the actions undertaken since 2006 such as welcoming
employees of the international organization and their
families and collecting and monitoring France's financial
contribution to the project, our workload will increase as
new topics are entrusted to Agence. Commissioning of the
road itinerary will require some technical adaptations and
adjustments for the transport of the ITER convoys. We are
also preparing a technical test and logistics test convoy
planned for 2013, before the first convoys planned in 2014.
To prepare the storage of waste that will be produced
during the ITER experimental program, we are now launching
studies of a tritium decay facility, one of the ITER fuels.
It will be temporary storage, the objective being the removal
of the waste elements to an Andra storage site.
France, as host country, will also be responsible decommissioning, it is part of AIF's mission to be involved throughout
the duration of the project to prepare for this important phase
in good conditions.
In addition to our welcome mission for ITER staff, we are also
involved in preparing to welcome construction workers on
the neighbouring Cadarache site.
And finally we must not forget our commitments to natural
land and biodiversity conservation in compensation of the
land clearance operation; conservation measures are being
carried out on the land acquired as compensation and a
biodiversity trail is open for school visits since this autumn.
What are the advantages of
the structure?
The cryostat, a sort of cold metal shell
cryostat will be divided into 54 modules to be delivered to the
construction site at Cadarache. On site, a first pre-assembly
step will be required before the elements can be welded
inside the experimental hall. ■
The advantages of AIF are its organization in project groups
and its flexibility. Each team has clearly defined missions,
the team members have clearly defined responsibilities and
their objectives are regularly updated. This allows them to
work efficiently. It is a fairly small structure, which allows it to
adapt quickly to changes in the missions and meet the varying
and numerous demands of France's commitment to the project. Information travels fast and transparency is the rule,
which ensures a strong team spirit.