The Neckarwestheim nuclear power plant has now been dismantled for three years. To ensure that this work could continue to run smoothly, the more than 30-year-old sluice carriages in blocks 1 and 2 had to be made operational again. This important task was taken on by our team.

The rail-mounted transfer carriages are not only used to transport small parts and tools in and out of the reactor building, but also to transport all equipment and parts removed from the reactor building. This makes the smooth operation of the sluice carriages indispensable during dismantling.

The project included the following work:

• The wired control panel has been replaced by a radio remote control, giving the operator more freedom and a better overview.
• In future, the drives will be controlled by frequency inverters to enable smooth starting and braking of the sluice carriage. In the event of an emergency stop, the frequency inverter brakes the sluice carriage before the mechanical brake is applied, which means that the brakes wear out much more slowly.
• The old contactor control system was replaced by a PLC control system with a safety function.
• All limit switches and emergency stop buttons have been replaced.
• The old remote controls and the wired control panel of the lock cars were replaced by a new radio remote control.

This work enabled our team to modernize the outdated lock cars within two weeks. Nothing now stands in the way of the further dismantling of the nuclear power plant at this point.