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Hello and welcome to the ACT 
Pop. 

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This is the part of the show 
where we take a conversation 

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from the main episode and slow 
things down a bit, unpack some 

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of the terms and explain how the
nuclear industry actually works 

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behind the scenes. 
In the episode with Ahmed 

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Topanar from Bechdel, we talked 
about something that shows up 

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constantly in major 
infrastructure projects but 

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doesn't always get explained 
clearly. 

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That term is EPC. 
EPC stands for engineering, 

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procurement, and construction. 
If you've ever wondered who 

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actually builds a nuclear power 
plant, the answer usually 

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involves an EPC company. 
Utilities operate plants. 

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Reactor vendors design reactors.
Regulators license them. 

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But EPC companies are the ones 
who take the entire system and 

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physically bring it into 
reality. 

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They turn thousands of drawings,
analysis, safety systems and 

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regulatory requirements into 
concrete, steel, pipes, control 

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systems, and eventually a 
working power plant. 

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So today we're going to break 
down what an EPC actually means 

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and more importantly, why these 
companies are going to matter 

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enormously over the next two 
decades as the world tries to 

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build more nuclear plants Again,
First, engineering. 

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Let's start with the E In EPC, 
engineering is where the project

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becomes technically real. 
When a reactor vendor develops a

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design, whether that's a large 
reactor or a small modular 

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reactor, that design still has 
to be adapted to the specific 

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site where it will be built. 
That means engineers have to 

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answer questions like how does 
this reactor integrate with the 

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electrical grid? 
How will the cooling systems 

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interact with the local water 
source? 

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How do we design structures that
can withstand earthquakes, 

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floods, and extreme weather? 
How do we route thousands of 

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pipes, cables, and safety 
systems through the plant 

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without interfering with one 
another? 

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And in nuclear plants, this gets
extremely complex very quickly. 

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A single nuclear facility can 
contain 10s of thousands of 

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components and millions of 
individual parts. 

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That means all of the nuclear 
parts have to meet nuclear 

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safety standards, inventory 
requirements, and quality 

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assurance protocols. 
That means engineering isn't 

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just design, it's systems 
integration. 

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It's figuring out how mechanical
systems, electrical systems, 

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civil structures, 
instrumentation, and digital 

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controls all work together in a 
way that is safe, testable, and 

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licensable. 
And the better the engineering 

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is upfront, the smoother 
everything else goes later. 

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Next, procurement. 
Now we're on to the PE and EPC. 

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This is where the project turns 
from drawings into physical 

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components. 
Procurement involves sourcing 

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the massive list of equipment 
and materials needed to build 

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the plant. 
And for nuclear projects, this 

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is not like ordering office 
supplies. 

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These components can include 
things like reactor vessels, 

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steam generators, pumps and 
valves, control systems, 

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specialized piping, concrete 
structures, steel modules, and 

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electrical equipment, to name a 
few. 

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Many of these components require
specialized manufacturing, 

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sometimes years in advance. 
And because this is nuclear, 

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every component has to meet 
extremely strict quality 

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assurance and traceability 
standards. 

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You need to know where a 
material came from, how it was 

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fabricated, how it was tested, 
and how it was transported. 

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Procurement teams coordinate 
with manufacturers all over the 

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world to make sure these parts 
arrive at the right time, in the

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right order, and meet the 
required specifications. 

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If procurement slips up, 
construction can grind to a 

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halt. 
So this phase is actually about 

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supply chain orchestration at an
enormous scale. 

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If we're serious about building 
the next generation of nuclear 

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power plants, we need more than 
concrete and containment dones. 

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We need people. 
Engineers, welders, licensing 

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professionals, project managers,
Inc specialists, operators. 

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The people behind the build. 
That's where a nuclear talent 

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scout comes in. 
We source directly for companies

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to find the people who can 
actually move projects forward. 

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The ones who understand safety, 
culture, regulatory rigor, and 

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how to execute on time and on 
budget. 

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If you're ready to step into the
next phase of nuclear or you're 

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hiring for it, head over to 
nucleartownscout.com because the

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future of nuclear energy isn't 
just designed, it's staffed. 

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Now back to the show. 
Finally, construction. 

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That's where we reached the sea 
and EPC. 

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This is the phase most people 
picture when they think about 

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building a power plant. 
Huge cranes, concrete pores, 

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steel structures rising from the
ground. 

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But nuclear construction is also
one of the most precision driven

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construction environments in the
world. 

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Components have high tolerances 
measured in millimeters. 

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Installation must follow 
detailed procedures. 

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Welding inspections and testing 
are performed under strict 

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oversight. 
The sequencing matters a lot. 

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You can't install certain 
systems until the structures are

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complete. 
You can't energize electrical 

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systems until safety 
verifications are done. 

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You can't load nuclear fuel 
until an enormous amount of 

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checks and regulatory approvals 
are completed. 

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Construction is really the 
culmination of everything that 

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happened in the engineering and 
procurement phase. 

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It's where all of those plans 
and parts finally come together.

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So why does all of this matter? 
Because over the next two 

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decades, the world is going to 
need a lot more energy, which 

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means a lot more nuclear 
infrastructure. 

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Not just reactors, but the 
entire ecosystem around them. 

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If countries want clean, 
reliable electricity, industrial

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heat, hydrogen production, and 
potentially nuclear powered 

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shipping or remote energy 
systems, they will need 

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companies capable of executing 
extremely complex builds. 

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That's where EPC companies come 
in. 

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They provide the organizational 
capacity to manage massive 

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projects that involve thousands 
of workers, dozens or hundreds 

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of suppliers, complex regulatory
environments, and multi year 

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construction timelines. 
They coordinate engineers, craft

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workers, manufacturers, project 
managers, safety teams, and 

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regulators. 
And they do it while trying to 

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keep projects on schedule, on 
time, on budget. 

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Historically, nuclear 
construction slowed down in many

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countries over several decades, 
which means one of the 

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challenges now is rebuilding the
workforce and industrial 

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capability needed to deliver 
these projects consistently. 

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That includes licensing 
engineers, welders, project 

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managers, quality assurance 
specialists. 

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In other words, building nuclear
plants isn't just about reactor 

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technology, it's about 
industrial capacity. 

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There are a few trends that EPC 
companies are focusing on to 

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make future builds faster and 
more predictable. 1 is modular 

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construction. 
Instead of building everything 

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piece by piece at the site, 
larger components or entire 

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sections of the plant can be 
fabricated in factories, then 

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transported to the construction 
site. 

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That allows for higher quality 
control and potential shorter 

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construction timelines. 
Another area is digital 

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engineering and project 
management tools. 

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Modern modelling, simulation, 
and digital twin technologies 

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help teams coordinate design, 
track construction progress, and

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identify issues earlier. 
And finally, there's a big focus

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on standardization. 
If multiple plants use the same 

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reactor design and construction 
approach, teams can replicate 

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successful builds rather than 
reinventing the process every 

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single time. 
This is something countries like

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France and South Korea 
demonstrated in their earlier 

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waves of nuclear construction, 
and it's something many 

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developers are trying to return 
to as the industry grows again. 

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So when you hear the term EPC, 
remember that it represents the 

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full arc of bringing a nuclear 
project to life, engineering, 

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design and integrating the 
system's procurement, sourcing 

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the specialized components and 
construction, assembling the 

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facilities safely and precisely.
It's the bridge between reactor 

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innovation and actual power 
plants producing electricity on 

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the grid. 
And as the world looks towards 

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expanding nuclear energy in the 
future, EBC capability will be 

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one of the biggest factors 
determining how quickly and how 

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successfully those projects can 
happen. 

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If you want to hear the full 
episode with Ahmet Toknar from 

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Bechdel, check out the main 
episode where we go deeper into 

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how these projects are actually 
managed and what the future of 

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nuclear construction could look 
like. 

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On our next episode, we'll be 
hearing from a laborer and 

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welder who actually worked on 
Vogel Units 3 and 4. 

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Thank you so much for listening 
to Naked Iglier. 

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Until next time, stay curious.