Tribe.net. Local Connections Richard http://coldwarsurvivors.tribe.net/thread/bb67e734-77d6-4927-b5a6-2bde45bab19f#ab6afc32-4654-4ad4-8779-71c0d4c3e6ac 2005-10-12T21:27:40Z 2005-10-12T21:27:40Z

Source: http://www.knoxnews.com/kns/local_news/article/0,1406,KNS_347_4150917,00.html ========================================================= Ruddy relieved of Y-12 duties General manager out apparently because of a security infraction By FRANK MUNGER, munger@knews.com October 12, 2005 OAK RIDGE - Dennis Ruddy, one of the most powerful men in the U.S. nuclear weapons establishment, has been relieved of his duties, apparently because of a security infraction. BWXT, the contractor that manages the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant for the government, made the announcement late Tuesday, although the company offered few details. "Because Dennis Ruddy can no longer meet the requirements necessary for employment at a nuclear weapons site, he has been reassigned to duties at headquarters (at Lynchburg, Va.)," BWXT spokesman Mike Monnett said. Steve Liedle, BWXT's deputy general manager for programs at Y-12, was named acting general manager until Ruddy's successor is named. Liedle is a veteran Bechtel executive with broad experience in government contracting. Monnett called Ruddy a magnificent leader at Y-12, "an agent of change," and a man of principle. "We sincerely regret the turn of events," he said. The BWXT spokesman said he could not comment on whether Ruddy had lost his security clearance or discuss what led to Ruddy's sudden departure. "I can't mention any specific events at all," he said. Ruddy was unavailable for comment. There have been persistent reports over the past couple of weeks that Ruddy had been cited with a security infraction for a breach of classified information. The reports linked the problem to a Sept. 26 story in the News Sentinel in which Ruddy was quoted about activities related to Libyan nuclear equipment stored at Y-12 since early 2004. Parts of that story also were distributed by The Associated Press wire service and published elsewhere. When asked last week whether Ruddy had been given a security infraction, Steven Wyatt, a spokesman for the National Nuclear Security Administration, said, "It is our policy to not comment on rumors about personnel matters. We also will not discuss matters involving individual security issues or even confirm that such concerns even exist." After BWXT announced Ruddy's reassignment Tuesday, the NNSA issued a statement saying, "This is a corporate matter - we simply cannot comment on this action." In a statement, Bill Brumley, the federal chief at Y-12, said the government was "very pleased" with the work by BWXT, which recently received a five-year contract extension. "Denny Ruddy has been a huge part of that success, and he certainly will be missed," Brumley said. Ruddy, 59, has been president and general manager at the Y-12 National Security Complex for the past 2 1/2 years. The plant employs about 4,700 workers. He directed the Oak Ridge work on nuclear warheads and managed the plant's stockpile of bomb-grade uranium. He also was responsible for developing plans to modernize the aging production and storage facilities, which play a key role in the nation's nuclear defense strategy. In a Sept. 22 interview with the News Sentinel, Ruddy acknowledged that government experts had visited Oak Ridge to evaluate the centrifuge components once associated with Libya's nuclear program. "That's a cooperative thing between us and the lab," he said, referring to the nuclear nonproliferation program at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Ruddy added: "There's a lot of interest in the things we brought back from Libya because a lot of them, looking at them, measuring the tolerances, setting them up and operating them, to a certain extent tells us how close people are to be able to get a system that can work all the way to bomb-grade material." Centrifuges can be used to separate the different isotopes of uranium and concentrate the fissile U-235. The technology is capable of enriching uranium to levels needed for atomic weapons. The enrichment equipment and containers of uranium hexafluoride were airlifted out of Libya in January 2004 and flown to McGhee Tyson Airport in Blount County, then trucked to Y-12. Other shipments reportedly arrived later. The secretly negotiated mission was a coup for the Bush administration, forcing Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi to give up on his nuclear ambitions and abandon efforts to develop weapons of mass destruction. On March 15, 2004, two months after the first shipment arrived in Oak Ridge, the National Security Council and DOE staged a national media event in a parking lot at Y-12. Armed guards stood close watch over the 50 crates of nuclear equipment that were on display while then-Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham and other officials touted the project's importance in stemming the proliferation of nuclear weapons. On July 13, the Libyan equipment was brought out of storage again and displayed for President Bush during his visit to Oak Ridge National Laboratory. "Eight months ago, the centrifuge parts and processing equipment for uranium were 5,000 miles away in the nation of Libya," Bush said in his Oak Ridge speech. "They were part of a secret nuclear weapons program. Today, Libya, America and the world are better off because these components are safely in your care." Last year Ruddy said some of the things taken out of Libya, such as ballistic missile systems, were never destined for Oak Ridge. But the uranium-related stuff came to Y-12 because of the plant's long-standing work with enriched uranium and nuclear weapons, he said. "We have the expertise here to understand the maturity of programs and other things like that," he said. "So, a lot of the forensics will be done here by people at Y-12 or ORNL or visiting people who come from around the (nuclear weapons) complex." Ruddy, a metallurgical engineer by training, came to Oak Ridge in February 2003. He previously served as general manager at the Pantex warhead-assembly plant in Amarillo, Texas. He spent much of his earlier career at the government's Bettis Atomic Power Laboratory, a federal lab devoted to nuclear power operations for Navy vessels. He also spent time with Tenneco, serving as head of global manufacturing for the corporation's automotive parts division. Ruddy, a native of Queens, N.Y., holds degrees from the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn and New York University. From his arrival in early 2003, Ruddy created a stir in Oak Ridge. He made a number of tough, sometimes unpopular decisions, ranging from changes in work schedules to elimination of cooking appliances at the high-security plant. Early this year, he angered union workers with suddenly announced plans for a new four-day workweek, an item that's subject to negotiation in the unions' contract. The Atomic Trades and Labor Council staged a protest outside the plant's gates and ultimately rejected the work proposal. Kenny Cook, president of the ATLC, said Tuesday the labor organization would have no comment on Ruddy's departure. Ruddy often generated strong feelings among employees, but he never wavered when asked to defend his actions. In a 2003 interview, he explained that tough decisions were a part of his management strategy: "You must view the organizational needs higher than the needs of the individuals, and that's an important principle in management. The Marines say that pain is the beginning of weakness leaving the body, and there's a certain amount of that in any philosophy. There are unpleasant things you have to do, and certainly we're not going to run this plant as a place for people to come to get out of the bad weather." Doug Fisher, district director for U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, R-Chattanooga, when asked about the Y-12 management change, said Tuesday, "The congressman cannot comment on this matter." Senior writer Frank Munger may be reached at 865-342-6329.

Richard 2005-10-12T21:27:40Z