Safety Software Quality Assurance - Central Registry

The Department of Energy maintains a list of "toolbox" codes that have been evaluated against DOE Safety Software Quality Assurance (SSQA) requirements of DOE O 414.1D, Quality Assurance, and its safety software guidance, DOE G 414.1-4, and accepted as toolbox codes. The toolbox codes are used by DOE contractors to perform calculations and to develop data used to establish the safety basis for DOE nuclear facilities and their operation, and to support the variety of safety analyses and safety evaluations developed for these facilities. The following is a list of specific versions of toolbox codes that comprise the DOE Safety Software Central Registry.

Prior to inclusion into the Central Registry an evaluation, sometimes referred to as a gap analysis, of each code was conducted to identify any "gaps" between the SQA practices being allowed and DOE's requirements and criteria for safety software. Code-specific guidance reports are developed where needed to identify applicable regimes in accident analysis, default inputs, and special conditions for using the toolbox codes for DOE applications. These documents as well as general information are available through the toolbox code links provided above.

The codes in the Central Registry were mostly developed outside of DOE (e.g., in the private sector or other Federal agencies). Access to the toolbox codes or their use is subject to agreements, conditions and restrictions established by the code owners or Federal agencies.

The Office of Quality Assurance (AU-33) is responsible for managing the Safety Software Central Registry. However, the toolbox code owners are responsible for ensuring that the codes are maintained in accordance with established requirements. Newer versions of these toolbox codes representing major changes to codes are reviewed as necessary for inclusion in the Central Registry.

Use of the Central Registry toolbox codes is not mandatory. However, using the codes offers a number of advantages to the DOE and its contractors. Some of these advantages include: 1) the gap analysis evaluation performed provides valuable information on the code regarding application of SQA requirements, 2) the evaluation extends beyond the DOE safety software quality assurance criteria to the review of the code's capability to properly perform safety basis calculations, 3) the DOE specific guidance documents identify limitations and vulnerabilities not readily found in other code documentation, and 4) due to the established pedigree, assessments of the toolbox code by Field Office and site contractors may be reduced in scope.

If other toolbox code versions are used, DOE sites should determine that the quality assurance level meets the DOE SSQA requirements and the applicable provisions of the Quality Assurance Program (QAP).