Being plugged into the activities and decision making at the Institute of Nuclear Operations is important for any plant or fleet.
For training within the Utilities Service Alliance, consider Jim Davis your conduit.
Davis, training manager at USA fleet member Fermi 2, is the newest member of the Council of the National Academy for Training at INPO. He is the sole member of the council from a USA plant — and that is important for the fleet.
“It is important to have a USA member on the council, it helps us share with the fleet what is happening at INPO, which affects each and every one of our plants,” Davis said.
The council provides valuable industry input on matters pertaining to the National Academy for Training, providing input on training projects and activities implemented by INPO.
Since Davis also serves on the Training Core Peer Team, his appointment to the Council provides a way for the entire USA team to provide input to INPO’s training initiatives.
“I will take feedback from USA and provide it to the council,” Davis said. “That is an important and essential link that these two roles provide.”
This is nothing new for Davis, who has served in the nuclear industry for more than 40 years. His first six years were with the U.S. Navy. He then joined the commercial industry in 1981.
From there, he earned an operator’s license in 1983 and a Senior Reactor Operator license in 1986, both at Fermi 2. After serving in the Training Department for several years, he joined INPO in 1990 as a training evaluator and accreditation team manager.
Davis then served as training manager at Lasalle before returning to Fermi 2 in 1997. He first got involved with USA in the early 2000s and served as the management council representative for Fermi 2 and then the chairman of the USA Management Council from 2004 to 2008.
Over the years, Davis said he has seen the value USA provides Fermi 2 and other fleet members.
As an example, he said when the Training Core Peer Team became more active a few years ago, they targeted the accreditation process. It was an area in which USA plants had struggled, with several on probation.
But since its concerted effort, Davis said every plant going through training accreditation has earned it.
“Leveraging the fleet is an invaluable tool,” Davis said. “For each of our training departments, it has undoubtable made us better organizations, helping to drive excellence across our sites.
Fermi 2’s Training Manager Jim Davis participates in an Emergency Response drill. Davis is the newest member of INPO’s Council of the National Academy for Training and the council’s only USA member.