The Orano Melox industrial site manufactures MOX nuclear fuel assemblies from uranium and recycled plutonium. Matthieu Rosenberg shares his feedback on his first collaboration with Psycle.
What did you need to monitor?
Matthieu Rosenberg: Our fuel comes in the form of pellets approximately 9 millimetres in diameter and 13 millimetres high. The diameter must be perfectly controlled because these pellets are inserted into zirconium tubes over 4 metres long. To achieve this, they pass through a grinding machine enclosed in a glove box. They are then loaded onto a tray at the end of the conveyor belt, and it is this operation that we needed to monitor constantly because sometimes the pellets are positioned incorrectly. If we do not correct the problem, they fall off the tray and become unusable.
Psycle’s AI-assisted vision solutions fit perfectly with the culture of operational performance that we have established in our factory.
What did Psycle offer you?
MR: Our machine was already equipped with a camera, and Psycle offered to make it smart by capturing the video feed and analysing it with its algorithm. The vision solution is linked to the machine to stop the process and alert the control room as soon as a problem is detected.
How did the implementation go?
MR: Everything went smoothly, thanks to the involvement of the machine operators. They contributed their ideas on the layout of the equipment and fed their expertise into the algorithm. The Psycle team worked alongside them in the field, determined to find the right solution for our needs.
Are you satisfied with the results?
MR: Yes, very much so. We have practically eradicated the problem. Given our production targets and the value of the fuel pellets, the return on investment is very positive.