From April 3 to 13, 2019, Shanghai Nuclear Engineering Research & Design Institute (SNERDI) was invited to attend the Technical Committee of Nuclear Instrumentation (known as TC45) for International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC)  in Paris, France  hosted by the Association française de normalisation (AFNOR).

As the project leader of IEC 63186, SNERDI overviewed the project background, briefed its progress and presented revisions made to the working draft (WD) based on comments from IEC circulations in this meeting. Through efficient exchanges with experts from other national committees, all remaining issues and comments of IEC 63186 WD were resolved accordingly. The project was approved to go from WD to the next stage that successfully achieved the first major milestone since its official approval.

In addition to IEC 63186, SNERDI also proactively participated in technical discussions on cyber security, ageing management and safety classification, and shared China’s experiences in developing advanced nuclear power plants. IEC 63186, Nuclear Power Plants - Instrumentation and Control Systems Important to Safety- Criteria for Seismic Trip System, is the first international standard in the nuclear power sector where China plays the leading role. This project was proposed in 2017 by SNERDI, and approved by IEC in Feb. 2018, with 100% approval rate and exceptionally high participation from 8 countries.

The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a not-for-profit, quasi-governmental organization, founded in 1906, which prepares and publishes International Standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies. The Technical Committee of Nuclear Instrumentation, i.e. TC45, was set up in 1960 and its scope is “to prepare International Standards relating to the electrical and electronic equipment and systems for instrumentation, specific to nuclear applications.” TC 45 maintained an agreement with IAEA and its standards implement principles and terminology of the IAEA safety and security guides. TC45 maintains consistency between IAEA and IEC documents and specifies detailed technical requirements for IAEA safety principles and requirements.