Jefferson Lab Weekly Briefs June 6, 2012

Jefferson Lab Weekly Briefs
June 6, 2012

12 GeV Upgrade

The installation plans of the 12 GeV Upgrade team have been integrated into the lab-wide integrated schedule for the long shutdown, and monthly progressing has started. As installation activities increase in the completed conventional facilities, weekly meetings with Facilities Management and Logistics ensure coordination and support. The 12 GeV Upgrade project has finalized all transportation, material handling equipment, space, storage and waste/recycle needs. Evaluation of needs will be updated throughout the shutdown.

Physics

The removal of the Q-weak experiment continues in order to ready Hall C for Super High Momentum Spectrometer installation. Most of the shielding blocks for the electronics bunker (dog house) and around the Qtor power supply have been removed from the hall. As-found alignment surveys of the experiment are being done and have included measurements of the Compton Polarimeter, beamline elements and the Q-weak quartz bars.

Summer Lecture Series 2012 Calendar Posted
The calendar for the student-level talks on JLab technologies and science that will be presented this summer has been posted on the Graduate Student and Post-Doc Association wiki.

Accelerator

This week saw the first full week of running beam for the Polarized Electrons for Polarized Positrons (PEPPo) experiment. The injector region ran fine during the week, supporting PEPPo beam and detector commissioning. On Friday, a high temperature on a helium compressor caused a shutdown of the Central Helium Liquefier, pausing the experiment for a short while. On Friday night, a tornado spun things up in nearby Hampton. The first actual use of JLab's outdoor siren prompted staff to seek shelter below ground in the North Linac stairwell. Once given the "all clear," they emerged to find no damage, allowing them to quickly recover the accelerator and restore the beam. The weekend saw instabilities in the spectrometer magnet power supply for PEPPo. Electrical Engineering Support (EES) came in and changed out the power supply, but the instabilities continued somewhat at a rate that could be managed manually. As the new week was starting, the radiofrequency capture cavity, which provides the initial acceleration of the beam from 130 KeV to 500 KeV, began to exhibit instabilities. EES-RF staffers were able to re-tune the resonance control of the cavity to bring it under control.

Free-Electron Laser

The FEL team set up the system for lasing in the ultraviolet for the planned vacuum-UV user experiment next week. Work to install and set up the DarkLight apparatus is ongoing.

Engineering

The Mechanical Systems Installation and Vacuum groups are two weeks into the down for the 12 GeV Upgrade and have made excellent progress. The vacuum group has completed labeling components, venting and beamline removal for the east recombiner, west spreader, west extraction, transport channel, North Linac and the 45 MeV dump. In addition, five warm region girders (component girders between cryomodules) have been rebuilt for the North Linac. Work continues with girder modifications and rebuilds in the vacuum lab and beamline removal in the beam switchyard. The Installation group has removed the 45 MeV dump and its shielding, disconnected the low-conductivity water system, girders and dipole magnets in the east recombiner and west spreader. The warm region girders in both the North and South Linac have been removed to support the 12 GeV cryomodule installation. As of June 4, a total of 20 girders and 15 dipoles have been removed from the machine.

Facilities Management and Logistics

JLab Energy Reduction Annual Test Set for Thursday, June 14
JLab has been notified by Virginia Dominion Power to reduce its electric demand on Thursday, June 14, as part of the annual electric load reduction test. For planning purposes, don't start heavy electrical load work, power ups or tests after 1 p.m. on June 14. Additional information will follow.

JLab Calendar of Events

June 4-6: JLab Users Group Workshop and Annual Meeting
June 6: End of 6 GeV Era Party
June 14: Accelerator Colloquium and Public Lecture: ADS and the MYRRHA project
June 18: Safety Shoe vendor onsite
June 18-22: Program Advisory Committee Meeting (PAC39)
June 27: Colloquium and Public Lecture: Hurricanes!
July 4: Independence Day holiday, JLab closed
June 4-22: Hampton University Graduate Studies summer school
 

Environment, Safety, Health and Quality

Beat the Heat for Health
According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration website, thousands of workers across the country suffer from serious heat-related illnesses every year. If not quickly addressed, heat exhaustion can become heat stroke, which has killed – on average – more than 30 workers annually since 2003. Labor-intensive activities in hot weather can raise body temperatures beyond the level that normally can be cooled by sweating. Heat illness initially may manifest as heat rash or heat cramps, but quickly can become heat exhaustion and then heat stroke if simple prevention steps are not followed.

"For outdoor workers, 'water, rest and shade' are three words that can make the difference between life and death," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. "If employers take reasonable precautions, and look out for their workers, we can beat the heat. It is essential for workers and employers to take proactive steps to stay safe in extreme heat, and become aware of symptoms of heat exhaustion before they get worse."
 
At JLab, the Heat Index is on the weather page, and notifications are broadcast to supervisors of potentially affected workers. If any worker suspects they are suffering from heat stress, the worker should drink water and move to a cool, shaded area or seek help from Occupational Medicine, x7539.

JLab Preps for Hurricane Season: June 1-Nov. 30
Hurricane season began June 1 and ends November 30. JLab has elevated its status to Hurricane Preparedness Condition 1 (HPC-1) and is monitoring the National Weather Service forecasts. A brief presentation (only accessible from onsite computers) has been prepared to help you better understand JLab's pre-determined HPC levels. For more information regarding JLab's preparations during Hurricane Season, visit the Emergency Management webpage. If you have questions concerning your role or responsibilities during this season, contact JLab Emergency Manager Tina Menefee, 768-4030.

Computing and Networking Infrastructure

Critical Windows Security Patch Planned for Tonight
The CNI Group is planning to release a critical Windows security patch this evening to all Windows systems. Plan to reboot your system as soon as you can on Thursday, once the patch has been installed. If you have any questions or any time you experience difficulties with your JLab computer, contact the IT Division Helpdesk.

Email Migrations into New System Continue
The CNI group is continuing to migrate staff and some users into the new email and calendar suite, Zimbra. These migrations are going well, with nearly 700 staff and users migrated into Zimbra and about 190 still left to migrate. These migrations are occurring overnight, and you will receive an email around noon on the day you are scheduled to be migrated. For more information, see the article in the March 16 OnTarget newsletter.

JLab Target of Intense Phishing Activity: Be Vigilant; Report Suspicious Emails
The lab has been the target of intense phishing activity. Fake email messages regarding webmail accounts, online bank accounts and unclaimed money came from a number of different sources. In the case of one of these, simply following a link in the message could compromise the victim's machine. Be vigilant and suspicious of any email that asks for personal information or computer account information. If you have any doubt about the validity of a message, forward it to the IT Division Helpdesk.

Announcements

Foreign Travel Order 551.1 Revision Q&A Sessions Offered
On May 2, the JLab Weekly Briefs announced that there had been revisions to the DOE Foreign Travel Order, which affected JLab policy. To answer questions that have been asked about the revisions, Travel Services will hold a briefing on June 13 in CEBAF Center Room L102/104 at 10 a.m. The first 45 minutes will be devoted to discussion of the "Impact on the Traveler." At 10:45 a.m.,  the discussion will shift to "Impact on the Paperwork and Processes." JLab travelers and coordinators are invited to attend this briefing. At the end of each discussion, there will be an opportunity to get the answer to any questions not covered in the briefing. If you would like the agenda, email Carol Kinsey.

6 GeV End of an Era Party June 6 for Lab Staff, Students & Users
The Jefferson Activities Group is planning a 6 GeV End of an Era Party for JLab staff, students and users on Wednesday, June 6, 3:30 – 6 p.m. on the SURA Residence Facility field. The event will include food and drink, music and games. Come celebrate the end of an era (and the dawning of 12 GeV). Volunteers are needed to help with a variety of preparation, event and cleanup tasks. Visit the JAG webpage for more information and for the online volunteer signup page. For more information, contact JAG Chair Bridget Paul.

Education Seeks Projects for Summer Honors Interns
JLab's Science Education team is seeking ideas and suggestions for projects, and project and mentor volunteers, for the lab's 2012 High School Summer Honors Program, June 25 to Aug. 3. Students chosen for the program will have a strong academic record and a strong desire to learn about the lab's science and technology. Lab scientists, engineers and other technical managers who are interested in serving as a mentor to these high-achieving high school students and have a project, or number of projects, to be accomplished this summer, are asked to send a description of the work to be assigned to Brita Hampton, x7633, as soon as possible.

Tracking Thomas at JLab
Little Thomas is visiting all corners of the JLab campus. If you can identify his location this week, email Kandice Carter with your guess. Guesses are accepted through Friday.

Congratulations this week go to Michael McCaughan, who was the only person to correctly identify the May 30 location. A special thank you to Rob Mahurin, who helped to get Little Thomas into last week's location. Check out the Tracking Thomas webpage for a better view of his last location and this week's new mystery photo.