SPM technology supports safety and reliability at Hartlepool Nuclear Power Station
Hartlepool Nuclear Power Station on the northeast coast of England is one of eight active nuclear power stations operated by EDF Energy, Britain’s largest generator of zero-carbon electricity. Capable of supplying electricity to more than two million homes, the plant is currently planned to remain in operation, generating safe, reliable power until March 2028.
In nuclear power generation, condition monitoring plays a crucial role in maintaining efficiency and reliability while ensuring compliance with stringent nuclear safety regulations. As such, condition monitoring plays a key role in Hartlepool’s safety and maintenance strategy.
From preventive maintenance to a condition-based strategy
Condition monitoring technologies were first introduced at Hartlepool in the 1990s. Although they helped reduce time-based maintenance, their full potential for driving predictive, condition-based maintenance was not realised at the time.
In 2015, Hartlepool took a new step toward predictive maintenance when it began installing the first Intellinova Compact online systems from SPM on its Fuelling Machine. This asset is located within the Radiologically Controlled Area (RCA), the most critical and highly protected section of a nuclear power plant, which houses all systems essential to reactor safety and containment. Due to access restrictions, measurement data from RCA assets are currently transferred manually from the online units via SD card to the Condmaster analysis and diagnostics software. Going forward, the plan is to connect the Intellinova systems to a plant network, enabling true online condition monitoring even within this tightly controlled environment.
Preparing for decommissioning and beyond
With defuelling and decommissioning scheduled to begin in early 2028, Hartlepool is expanding its condition monitoring coverage and introducing a condition-based maintenance regime. This initiative supports the plant’s requirement to demonstrate asset integrity while minimizing fuel-related risks and optimizing costs. Even after defuelling and decommissioning begins, the Intellinova systems will continue to play a crucial role in ensuring that critical cranes and other assets remain fully operational and reliable, thereby supporting safe defueling operations.
Since the first Intellinova systems were installed in 2015, Hartlepool has continued to invest in SPM technology, installing additional systems in various plant areas to monitor a range of assets, including cranes, hoists, blowers, cooling water pumps, and more. In 2024, an upgrade was initiated for all installed Intellinova Compact systems to the latest versions, along with DuoTech accelerometers, supporting vibration and shock pulse measurement in a single sensor. Completion of this upgrade is planned for 2025.