[quote style=”2″]Demolition Set to Begin on Aug. 15[/quote]
The Umatilla Chemical Agent Disposal Facility (UMCDF) will reduce its workforce by about 100 positions today.
This Reduction in Force (RIF) will include mostly workers from the plant organizations – primarily Operations and Maintenance positions with URS – and 18 Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) employees, the subcontractor that operates the project’s laboratory.
UMCDF has conducted several RIFs since the project completed chemical agent operations in October 2011, all coinciding with a significant milestone. The Aug. 1 RIF is tied to the determination that the site is ready for demolition work.
The contractor hired to demolish the building where the chemical weapons were processed, and the associated pollution abatement systems, is massing its equipment at the site. Northwest Demolition of Tigard, plans to begin demolition work on Aug. 15.
The project will have approximately 165 employees remaining after the Aug. 1 RIF. When the project completed destruction of Oregon’s chemical weapons stockpile in late 2011 it had about 830 employees.
The next major RIF of about 80 employees will occur next March, when the “demolition complete” milestone is reached.
Closure work is expected to continue through next year.
