The picket engineer concept in Swiss Nuclear power plant

The authors propose a description of the organisational structure and typical practices in Swiss nuclear plants under normal operation and in case of emergency, evoking the general training aspects and licence levels for the different operators and engineers. Then, they describe the job of the picket engineer, a specialist engineer who is already responsible for tasks within a technical or operational Division during his normal working days, and whose aim, during his picket engineer assignment, is to maintain the safety and availability of the plant during normal operation as well as during emergencies (the concerned tasks are indicated). Various aspects of requirements and selection of a picket engineer are presented (education, physical and psychological health, professional qualifications). The authors propose an overview of the training programme for operational personnel and for picket engineer (theoretical course, plant's internal basic courses, shift supervisor course, picket engineer course, simulator course), give an overview of the continued education of picket engineers. Finally, the authors propose an evaluation of the picket engineer concept, its advantages and disadvantages