Talking Shop: Celebrating NNSY’s Radiation Indication and Computation Calibrations Laboratory (Shop 52)

Photo By Troy Miller | Norfolk Naval Shipyard’s Shop 52, the Radiation Detection, Indication and Computation Calibrations Laboratory, Electronic Measurement Equipment Mechanic Christopher Burke performs equipment inspection. Burke brings a wealth of knowledge, talent and skills that he gained before joining the NNSY team six years ago. “For the first 14 years of my 20-year Navy career, I was an Aviation Electrician's Mate (AE), where I served onboard aircraft carriers. Then for the remaining six years of my career, I was a Fire Controlman (FC) onboard submarines,” said Burke. “One thing I did while serving in the Navy that benefits me today here at the shipyard is that I oversaw the northern region of Japan for surveys and equipment frisking for the Navy and Air Force during Operation Tomodachi, which was a humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operation conducted by the U.S. Armed Forces to support Japan following the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami.”  

PORTSMOUTH, VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES

08.04.2025

Story by Troy Miller 

Norfolk Naval Shipyard

Hospitals, research institutions, industrial companies, food irradiation companies, defense contractors, environmental consulting firms, regulatory agencies, emergency responders, industrial radiography, nuclear power plants and the Department of the Navy are places where some jobs may have occupational ionizing radiation exposure. However, the policy of the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program is to reduce personnel exposure to ionizing radiation associated with naval nuclear propulsion plants to as low as reasonably achievable. In carrying out this policy, the program has consistently maintained personnel radiation exposure standards more stringent than those in the civilian nuclear power industry or in other government nuclear programs. No civilian or military personnel in the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program have ever exceeded the federal lifetime radiation exposure limit or the federal annual limit in effect at the time. Since 1968, no personnel have exceeded five rem per year, which was the program’s self-imposed limit until it became the federal limit in 1994.
Norfolk Naval Shipyard’s (NNSY) Shop 52, the Radiation Detection, Indication and Computation Calibrations Laboratory (RADIAC) calibrates radiation monitoring equipment to ensure all equipment is within regulatory guidelines. Like most equipment that provides a numerical output, it needs to be calibrated regularly to ensure the equipment meets the robust requirements of the program and indicates within the tolerances associated with the work.
“Radiological surveys serve many purposes. It validates expected radiation and contamination levels, validates no unexpected changes, and verifies engineering controls have worked, to name a few,” said RADIAC Laboratory Supervisor Joshua Brickhouse.
NNSY has a large amount of RADIAC equipment and gear. At any given time, the RADIAC Laboratory has on average 100 pieces of equipment awaiting calibration on any given day. Although the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Safety and Regulatory Compliance Directorate (SEA 09) mandates that the equipment must be calibrated within 30 days after receiving any given item, the RADIAC team manages, in most cases, to finish the calibration, maintenance and repair in 10 days or less.
“Every six months, our shop is inspected,” said Brickhouse. “For the last three years, we have passed all of our audits with no discrepancies. That goes to show you how dedicated and experienced the RADIAC team is when it comes to performing their jobs.”
The dedicated efforts of the six personnel who comprise the RADIAC Laboratory help ensure that Norfolk Naval Shipyard continues to repair, modernize and inactivate the Navy’s warships and training platforms.

• Date Taken: 08.04.2025
• Date Posted: 08.04.2025 07:10
• Story ID: 544661
• Location: PORTSMOUTH, VIRGINIA, US