A NUCLEAR engineering company has helped in a major decommissioning project.

James Fisher Nuclear started deflector plate removal on the Pile Fuel Cladding Silo at Sellafield.

The cutting work is being carried out on one of the oldest and most dangerous buildings on the site.

The plates were originally used to deflect magnox swarf, pile fuel cladding and other toxic waste tipped into the building during the Cold War.

They need to be removed so the waste can be lifted out and put into a safer place when retrievals start in 2020.

Shepley Engineers Ltd is also helping in the work. Both firms are part of the Cumbria Nuclear Solutions consortium.

It was awarded the first phase of the contract in 2012 and would eventually see old steelwork removed in preparation for waste retrieval work.

James Fisher Nuclear used a full-scale mock-up of the silo at its Egremont facility where staff from the firm and Sellafield worked together to tackle the project.

It allowed them to design and manufacture the equipment and processes to carry out them job.

Graham Parker, of James Fisher Nuclear, said: “The first phase of the project to remove debris from on top of the plates went like clockwork because of the preparatory work in the full-scale mock-up of the silo."

Using traditional equipment to cut the metal could create sparks so the cutting is done with an innovative abrasive jet, blasting a mixture of water and finely ground stone at the speed of sound to cut through the steel.

The plates will be carefully cut, using long-reach cutting tools, into 150 pieces through small engineered openings in the side of the building, which has led to the project being dubbed a "metal jigsaw".

The operators can only see what they are doing using cameras as there is no human access inside the silo.

Gary Snow, head of the pile fuel programme, added: “It’s a highly unique and complex engineering challenge, but we have the right people and the right technology to safely make this key step forward in the decommissioning journey of the building.”