Hazardous Waste

Buying advice

HAZWOPER duties stay with your team

A remote vehicle changes how close people get, not who is responsible. In the United States, 29 CFR 1910.120 requires a written safety and health programme, site characterisation before entry, decontamination procedures and training, with general site workers receiving at least 40 hours of off-site instruction and three days of supervised field experience. Use the robot for early characterisation where it keeps people back, but write its own decontamination, recovery and failure procedures into the site plan. Budget for operator training on the robot separately from that baseline training, and ask the maker for a course syllabus and a refresher schedule.

Retrofitting arms into existing containment

Not every hazardous task suits a free-roaming vehicle. At Sellafield, Sellafield Ltd and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority report a world first in fitting and operating a robotic arm inside an active nuclear glovebox, with the aim of removing hands from gloveboxes. Projects like that start from the openings and services the plant already has. If you are considering the OC Robotics Series II or another manipulator for fixed plant, ask the maker how it would enter through existing ports or penetrations, what a full-scale mock-up trial would involve, and how the arm itself is decontaminated, maintained or disposed of at the end of the job.

Duty cycle decides between the vehicles

On a check in October 2026, prices shown here started near $200,000 with the AB Precision Poole EOD and climbed to near $400,000 with the OC Robotics Series II, and none needed a quote. The AB Precision Poole EOD and Telerob tEODor carry bomb-disposal names, so ask whether each is built for short, intense call-outs or for daily handling shifts, and how service intervals change under heavy use. Ask about tool kits sold separately, lead times for spares, simulator or classroom training and how long the maker commits to supporting the model. Check who can repair a damaged manipulator and whether the machine would have to travel abroad for it.

What to look for

• Manipulator reach, lift capacity and the tools it can carry
• Control range, tether options and camera views for the operator
• Terrain, decontamination and radiation tolerance for your environment

Common questions

What is a snake-arm robot?

A slender, multi-jointed arm that can follow a path through tight openings, carrying cameras or tools into spaces that people and conventional arms can't reach.

Who operates hazardous-handling robots?

Trained operators control them remotely from a safe position. Operator training and site procedures are part of any deployment, so plan for them when you request a quote.

Sources and further reading

• 29 CFR 1910.120: Hazardous waste operations and emergency response — US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (eCFR).
  US rules on safety plans, training, protective equipment and decontamination for hazardous waste operations.
• RrOBO: World first demonstrates the future of nuclear clean-up is in safe hands — Sellafield Ltd and Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.
  Account of retrofitting and operating a robotic arm inside an active nuclear glovebox at Sellafield.