Bruce Power’s Major Component Replacement (MCR) Training Facility was officially opened on April 25, signalling an important step forward in the mobilization of the project.

The 129,000 sq. ft. facility, located off Sutton Street, Kincardine, offers unique training tools that will allow skilled tradespeople the opportunity to practice executing the highly technical MCR programs, as the life of the site is extended to 2064. This will ensure the project is executed safely, to a high quality, and on time and on budget.

“Bruce Power is very excited about the benefits the MCR Training Facility will provide to our workforce, and we thank the Municipality of Kincardine and the neighbours for welcoming this incredibly important aspect of our MCR Project into their corner of the community,” said Mike Rencheck, Bruce Power’s President and CEO. “By providing hands-on, in-depth training to the people executing these highly technical programs, we expect our Unit 6 MCR to remain on time and on budget, while seeing incremental improvements in time and budget as we progress onto other units.”

The new building features a two-storey office area including office space; classrooms and amenities for the occupants; a one-storey, high-bay shop area to host training; room for 330 office workers and space for an additional 150 in the shop space; and parking, amenities, and facilities for about 500 employees.

The training facility is part of the Bruce Power Life-Extension Program, which started in January 2016 and remains on time and on budget. With the Unit 6 MCR set to begin in early-2020, Bruce Power is upgrading or building new facilities both on site and off site, as it prepares for the influx of contractors and supplier partners who will be part of the project.

Rencheck was joined in the ribbon cutting by local dignitaries such as the Hon. Lisa Thompson, Minister of Education and Huron-Bruce MPP; the Hon. Bill Walker, Minister of Government and Consumer Services, and MPP for Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound; David Piccini, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities, and MPP for Northumberland-Peterborough South; and Kincardine Mayor Anne Eadie.

For Eadie, the new facility is an extension of the ongoing collaboration between the municipality and Bruce Power.

“Kincardine is proud to host Bruce Power’s Major Component Replacement Facility, which will bring more people to our area and benefit local businesses,” the Mayor said. “The Municipality of Kincardine continues to work closely with Bruce Power and its nuclear supplier partners as they prepare for the MCR Project.”

Bruce County Warden Mitch Twolan said the benefits from opening the facility will be felt across the county, and enhance the county’s standing in the global nuclear industry.

“The MCR Training Facility is another excellent economic development opportunity for all of Bruce County,” the Warden said. “With hundreds of people working and training in this state-of-the-art facility every day, we continue to prove that Bruce County is becoming a world leader in nuclear innovation.”

Minister Thompson said the opening of the facility is the latest initiative by Bruce Power to assist in growing the economy across the county.

“Bruce Power is the driving force in Bruce County’s economy, and the upcoming MCR project and opening of this centre will be crucial to that,” said Minister Thompson. “Bruce Power is hiring local people, drawing young families to the area, and providing a major boost to our local economy. As a result, the region is becoming a hub of innovation, environmental protection, and skilled trades, all in support of the thriving nuclear industry.”

Minister Walker said Bruce Power’s MCR Project is the central building block of local economic development in the region.

“A joint initiative between Bruce Power and the County of Bruce, the Economic Development and Innovation Initiative has brought over 40 nuclear supplier companies to Bruce, Grey and Huron counties,” Minister Walker said. “In the region, these suppliers have opened local offices, created new businesses, and expanded their operations. The opening of this MCR centre is only one part of the enormous impact Bruce Power has on Ontario and the community.”

source: media release, Bruce Power