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L-3 MAPPS to Upgrade Pilgrim Simulator and Provide New Classroom Simulator

"As the original simulator provider for PNPS, we are delighted to continue our long-standing relationship with Entergy Nuclear," said Michael Chatlani, vice president of L-3 MAPPS Power Systems and Simulation. "It will be extremely rewarding to update the existing simulator with our industry-leading Orchid® technology to ensure maximum capability and performance."

The PNPS simulator currently runs on SGI computers with the IRIX operating system. Once upgraded, the simulator’s servers and instructor station will operate on PCs running the Windows operating system and L-3 MAPPS’ Orchid simulation environment, including Orchid Sound System to replace the simulator’s legacy sound generation system. In addition to maintaining communications with the simulator’s existing input/output (I/O) system, a latest-technology expansion I/O system will be added by L-3 MAPPS, which will operate concurrently with the existing I/O system using Orchid Input Output.

PNPS is currently equipped with multiple classroom simulators that will be migrated to the new environment. An additional classroom simulator will be provided based on L-3’s Orchid Touch Interface technology. The three-bay classroom simulator uses large touch screen monitors with 1080p full HD resolution to display near life-size operable virtual control room panels.

Under the contract, Entergy Nuclear also has the option to upgrade the PNPS simulator’s reactor core model with Orchid Core Builder.

Entergy Nuclear is a business unit of Entergy Corporation, which operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, and it is the second-largest nuclear generator in the United States. The Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station is a 684-megawatt General Electric BWR 3 power plant. The plant’s simulator was delivered to PNPS in Plymouth, Mass., by L-3 MAPPS in 1987.