Pantex Blog
Lessons learned from summer interns
The temperature may not feel like it, but summer is winding down. More than 50 interns at Pantex and Y-12 recently wrapped up their two month work experience with an Intern Expo. A few share what lessons they learned and memories they take with them.
Steven Keosouvanh, West Texas A&M University, major: computer information systems and business analytics
What surprised you the most during your internship at Pantex or Y-12?
I was surprised at how happy each organization is to improve their workers so they can grow to be better and find their passions. I have heard so many stories of people starting in one place and pursuing their careers start to finish here and stories of people who became passionate in a different area of work then changing careers all while at CNS.
What event or task did you enjoy the most during your time?
For me, I enjoyed building workflow process with my intern team. It was great to have an intern team that was so motivated and collaborated so well together. I don’t think we could have completed our task alone if it weren’t for everyone’s motivation and the support system we had in Project Controls.
Why should today’s college students consider Pantex and Y-12 ?
The mission we have here is important, and Pantex and Y-12 are great places to work for those with experience and those who are new. It is built into the core philosophy of the company to embrace both ends of the experience spectrum.
What is some work advice you learned from a veteran employee?
Be clear when speaking to people and make it as unambiguous as possible so people can see my vision. I hope to take this advice and make an impact using technology and data driven thinking in my career.
Jonas Rivero, West Texas A&M University, major: mechanical engineering
What surprised you the most during your internship at Pantex or Y-12?
My biggest surprise during this internship was having the encouragement to ask any question and having coworkers and supervisors open to answering all of those questions. I felt comfortable reaching out to anybody without feeling like I was going to annoy someone, and I knew they encouraged asking more questions.
What event or task did you enjoy the most during your time?
I most enjoyed the tours provided to us through the internship. I had various tours and saw some very impressive things that I was very grateful to see.
Why should today’s college students consider Pantex and Y-12 ?
I think there is a very high importance for college students to consider a field that supports the mission because there are various opportunities. From having the opportunity to further your educational studies to moving on to another role within the plant, the opportunities are endless, and you have an important task no matter what role you have.
What is some work advice you learned from a veteran employee?
A big piece of advice I received from a veteran employee was that there are a lot of knowledgeable people here, and you can learn something from everyone. I really listened to that advice and have really listened to what anybody who I encountered had to say. I’ve learned a lot of things that you can say I wouldn’t have learned in school, and I’m grateful I was able to experience this.
Serée Sturdivant, Texas Tech University, major: chemical engineering
What surprised you the most during your internship at Pantex or Y-12?
The thing that surprised me the most during my internship was the people. How nice and knowledgeable everyone was, how willing everyone was to help me get started and help me connect academic knowledge with industry needs and applications, and just how much I genuinely enjoyed working with my department. Everyone I reached out to wanted to help me however they could and taught me so much about where I fit in to the mission. I could not have asked for a better group of people to work/interact with!
What event or task did you enjoy the most during your time?
During my internship, I most enjoyed getting to design an advanced chemical reactor/chemical processing system for one of my projects. It was a true design project and pushed me to the limits of my current knowledge and capabilities, which allowed me to push beyond those limits and learn so much more.
Why should today’s college students consider Pantex and Y-12 ?
It is important that college students consider a field that supports the Pantex and Y-12 mission because the mission is integral to our continued safety and freedom as a country. There are so many different paths within Pantex/Y-12 — no matter what major you are or what your interests are, there is a place for you! You do your best work and are most happy/fulfilled in the work that you do when you are passionate about the mission your work supports.
What is some work advice you learned from a veteran employee?
Some work advice I learned from a veteran employee was more by what he did than what he said. My manager, Steve Velarde in Mission Engineering, tackled every problem that arose with patience, knowledge, and understanding. He always had solutions to issues that arose along the processes of the two projects that I was working on and gave me a completely different perspective on how to lead with direction while allowing maximum creativity and learning. I want to simulate his work/leadership style while I begin my career.
Delaine Stiltner, Tennessee Technological University, major: civil engineering
What surprised you the most during your internship at Pantex or Y-12?
The initial shock of the security aspects of the job were a bit surprising at first. Security at Y-12 is one of the reasons this job is so unique.
What event or task did you enjoy the most during your time?
I enjoyed getting to work on several different projects this summer. I feel that I have grown significantly and have learned so much over the short time span of my internship. My favorite part about my job was getting to meet so many great people and working with different types of engineers!
Why should today’s college students consider Pantex and Y-12?
Working at Pantex and Y-12 helps provide a service to our community and our country while allowing yourself to grow in a supportive and family driven environment.
What is some work advice you learned from a veteran employee?
Some of the best advice I learned was to always ask questions and make sure you document everything!
Recognizing winners of the NNSA security awards
Congratulations to the recipients of the 2021 National Nuclear Security Administration’s security awards. The results were recently announced by NNSA's Associate Administrator and Chief of Defense Nuclear Security Jeff Johnson, and three of the four awards went to either Consolidated Nuclear Security or NNSA Production Office employees. A ceremony was recently held for those receiving the honors.
These awards recognize employees whose contributions to NNSA represent excellence and dedication to our national nuclear security.
Byron Logan, Pantex Plant, NNSA Security Manager of the Year
Pantex’s Byron Logan, who was named NNSA Security Manager of the Year. Logan is responsible for Safeguards and Security Performance Testing, Self Assessments, and Issues Management.
Logan is responsible for Safeguards and Security Performance Testing, Self Assessments, and Issues Management. In 2021, under his leadership, the Office of Enterprise Assessments completed a successful multi topic assessment of the Pantex S&S program. Working within COVID-19 federal restrictions and safety measures implemented, the Office of Enterprise Assessments completed force on force testing and 16 integrated performance tests. His performance assurance program covers performance testing, self assessments, and issues management for all S&S topical areas: Protective Force, Physical Protection, Material Control and Accountability, Information Protection, Personnel Security, and Program Management Operations.
The Y-12 Nuclear Material Control and Accountability team
The Y-12 Nuclear Material Control and Accountability Team, NNSA's Security Team of the Year.
The Y-12 Nuclear Material Control and Accountability team has made positive contributions to national security by successfully and aggressively working to increase productivity and quality gains. This team successfully reduced inventory time and operational downtime, improved performance testing through 3-D printing and medical isotope data collection, initiated enhancements in reporting automation, and much more. The team’s collaborative efforts allowed them to exceed the previous reporting timeframe for final inventory to Nuclear Materials Management and Safeguards System.
John Fromberger, NNSA Production Office, NNSA Bradley A. Peterson Federal Security Professional of the Year
Roxanne Van Veghten, NPO assistant manager for Safeguards and Security, presents John Fromberger his award.
Fromberger, the NPO Protection Program Management federal program manager, has worked to strengthen relationships with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to effectively carry out responses to emergency operations and events on site. Fromberger coordinated with multiple agencies to conduct a complex “Fresh Pursuit” exercise that ensures effective response to potential large scale events.
New employee orientation
One of the New Employee Orientation classes during 2022 at Y-12’s New Hope Center.
Starting any new job is overwhelming, but starting work at a nuclear weapons production site is even more so. Human Resources and Communications led an effort to improve the onboarding experience for new hires at Pantex and Y‑12, with substantial engagement from other organizations. The goal was to create an onboarding experience that empowers employees with a clear understanding of our mission and enables them to contribute to our mission more quickly.
The enhanced orientation program acquaints new employees with goal‑setting, provides intensive employee training with presentations about both sites, and connects each new hire to an organizational ambassador from his or her business area. By the end of orientation, new employees have a deeper understanding of their individual roles in achieving the mission. They also have a clearer organizational picture, familiarity with the Pantex and Y‑12 strategic plans, and continued support through the connection and relationship built with their organizational ambassador.
As an organizational ambassador, Leslie Mathews of Y‑12 Production Operations provides one‑on‑one support to new employees during their first 90 days of employment (and often longer). “I hired in almost 15 years ago,” she said. “I did not get all of this information on day one. It takes lots of time to understand the magnitude of what we do, but with the onboarding structure, new hires have the opportunity to learn so much at the very beginning.”
“The engagement of senior leaders and organizational ambassadors in onboarding has been a game-changer,” said Senior Director of Communications Jason Bohne. “New employees are not only learning how they connect with the mission but are also gaining perspective on our priorities and beginning to build a network of people who can help them be successful in the short term and throughout their careers. Welcoming them and giving them the tools to succeed helps make us all successful.”
Making sure new employees are introduced to how they fit in our national security mission falls to Recruitment and Placement Specialists Zuleyma Carruba-Rogel and Jay Aspray.
“We’re always asking ourselves, ‘Is this the best that we can be?’ That constant reflection and adjustment lets us know we’re on the path to success,” Carruba-Rogel said. “When we see and experience the community that new hires are creating; when they respond to content and tell us they feel welcome; or when they talk about what a great experience onboarding was for them — that’s when we get to reap the fruit of those labors.”
Pantex Deputy Site Manager Kenny Steward said, “In our sites’ histories, we have rarely had to compete with a broad range of employers to attract talent to Pantex and Y‑12. Orientation is one of the opportunities we have to show new employees that they made the right choice and have joined a team they can be proud of for the rest of their careers. It’s our new employees’ introduction to life and culture in a high‑hazard, nuclear production environment, allowing us to set the stage for tying each employee to our critical nuclear deterrent mission and ensuring they know the dramatic value they add to the important work done at our sites.”
We Are Mission Success: Richard Dumas and Samuel Sturkie
Take 5 minutes and learn about CNS’s Richard Dumas (left) and Samuel Sturkie (right), Pantex production technicians. All views and opinions are the employees’ own and do not necessarily reflect those of CNS.
The Pantex Production Optimization (PPO) effort was commissioned to lead and establish a path forward to deliver and maximize our production throughout this year and into the future. Since its launch, the PPO team has made significant progress in tackling actions to maximize the current weapons workload deliverables. In a recent CNS Connect from Chief Operating Officer Colby Yeary, he said, “We’ve gone from having significant concerns regarding our ability to deliver to reinstating customer confidence and demonstrating that our processes will help us continue to deliver in the future.”
A large part of the progress is attributed to the work of the production technicians, the employees who do the actual hands-on work to ensure the nuclear deterrent is safe, secure, and effective. Production technicians have a wide variety of responsibilities, including assembling/disassembling nuclear weapons, testing components associated with the stockpile, keeping accurate records, operating equipment, performing repairs, and more. Pantex has made it a priority to hire more than 200 PTs by fall 2022 to improve production output and deliver planned future weapons work.
Samuel Sturkie and Richard Dumas are two production technicians representing opposite ends of the nuclear security experience spectrum. Sturkie has worked with Pantex for 16 years, while Dumas is relatively new to Pantex with 18 months of experience serving as a production technician. Prior to employment with Pantex, Sturkie was a machine operator at a local Amarillo container board facility. Dumas had spent a couple years working on the road building gas plants, and many years managing a local family-owned BBQ restaurant in Amarillo. Both provide a unique perspective to what it means to be a Pantexan and be part of the PPO efforts.
What daily task lets you know you’re helping achieve the CNS mission?
Dumas: I think a great thing is getting to meet some of the pilots that use the things we create here at Pantex and see that they are excited about what we are accomplishing here. They come in and thank us, when we should be thanking them for putting their lives at risk by doing what they are doing. We get to go home every day and spend time with friends and family. I believe all service members past and present need to be thanked.
Sturkie: I would say stand up/stand down is the greatest indicator. It’s like a real-time report of how all the pieces are fitting together and what page everybody is on.
As an employee, what do you want to be remembered for?
Dumas: I wouldn’t really say that I want to be remembered for anything specific; I believe that if you come to work and put forth your best effort and teamwork that it will show on its own when you are gone.
Sturkie: Probably my packaging skills. I want someone to look at a MKQ (Mark Quality) part and say, “the guy who packaged this part really cared.”
Are you doing what you envisioned as a young adult?
Dumas: I never imagined I would have an opportunity to work here at Pantex, but things work in mysterious ways. And hope that I can make it another 20 years and retire here in Amarillo.
Sturkie: Yes, ever since I wrote a research paper on nuclear winter in high school, I became interested in doing something in the nuclear field. My dad worked at Pantex for almost 30 years, so growing up I always wanted to work at the place that my dad worked.
What work advice would you offer someone who is new to Pantex?
Dumas: I would say be patient. You aren’t going to know and pick up everything the second you walk in the door. And for new PTs, trust in your team as in your trainers. Senior PTs, trust your core team guys. Most of these guys have been here a while and are very knowledgeable about what we are doing; if you have questions ask them. This is probably a very different job than what a lot of us came from, and it takes some adjusting. But these guys are very helpful at helping you when needed.
Sturkie: If you have a new idea or a different way of doing things, don’t be shy; bring it up.
What’s your favorite outside-of-work activity and why?
Dumas: I enjoy golfing, cooking, and traveling. These are all things that make me happy. Golf for the outside fresh air, cooking for an inside or out (BBQ), and traveling get to see a lot of history all over.
Sturkie: I would have to say playing video games. They help me relax and recharge my batteries, so I can come back to work refreshed.
Pantexans attend UW Legacy Induction
Pantex Site Manager Jeff Yarbrough and Deputy Site Manager Kenny Steward were recently in attendance at the inauguration of the lifetime givers into the newly founded Community Chest Society of the United Way. This elite society is comprised of corporate donors and individual donors who have given $25,000 and above. Since 1996, as a company Pantex has donated over $1 million to United Way of Amarillo and Canyon. This number does not reflect the millions of dollars that have also been donated by employees over those years, and several Pantexans were also in attendance to be honored for their individual contributions.
