Over the last couple of years, AI hyperscalers like Meta, Google, Amazon, and Microsoft have all been investing in both extending existing nuclear facilities and expanding new nuclear generation, presumably to support the data center growth that makes their businesses possible. Last year, a cross-industry group of large energy users (including Google, Amazon, and Meta) signed a pledge […]
Place ALARA Shielding Right Where You Need It
Preferred Engineering’s custom designed products are built, originally, for the needs of a specific customer. However, once they are designed, our customers find them useful in many other situations for many other nuclear facilities. One great example is the Portable Cavity Shield Frame, which was initially designed for a customer who needed to create an ALARA zone inside […]
Data Center Grid Interconnection is Slow Going
Every month, we read more and more articles about energy constraints for data centers. It’s on everyone’s mind and it is clear we are not going to solve the data center power problem any time soon. On July 2nd, Data Center Dynamics published an article stating that the average data center grid interconnection time in the US had […]
Data Center Power Demand is Leading to Bottlenecks
In this blog, we’ve been discussing the urgency behind power planning for data centers. The International Energy Agency’s (IEA’s) recent article confirms this urgency with their updated data. According to the IEA, electricity demand from data centers increased by 17% in 2025, while global electricity demand only grew by 3%. The agency also projects that total data center […]
How to Make Your RPV O-Ring Installation Easier
When every second counts, tools that speed up the job make all the difference. That’s the case with the RPV O-Ring Clips and Installation Tools. The RPV O-Ring Clips and Installation Tools speed up installation of the RPV O-rings into the RPV head. This not only saves time during tight outage schedules but reduces radiation exposure time for nuclear technicians. […]
What are the Onsite Energy Options for Data Centers?
Onsite energy is an important part of infrastructure planning for data centers – whether it’s backup power, or to replace grid reliance entirely. As we discussed in last month’s blog post, Bloom Energy’s Data Center Power Report claims that over a third of all data centers expect to use only onsite power by 2030. So, what are the […]
Custom Nuclear Seals That Actually Hold, with No RTV
We talk a lot about custom engineered solutions here at Preferred Engineering. That’s because we know that every nuclear facility has its own unique needs, requirements, safety concerns, and bottlenecks. What works perfectly for one facility won’t be the same for any other. So, while every facility may need an inspection hatch seal, for example, the exact requirements […]
Gear up for Data Center Onsite Power Generation
The data couldn’t be clearer in Bloom Energy’s second annual Data Center Power Report; data centers are gearing up to rely on their own onsite power sources at a rapid rate. While we may want to take their findings with a grain of salt (Bloom Energy is a Fuel Cell company, after all), we can’t deny that their […]
Outstanding Safety in a Lightweight Package
What can you do when you need a safety railing where there isn’t one built into your nuclear facility? It’s not always the best option (or even possible) to attach a permanent structure. That’s where Preferred Engineering’s Lightweight Railings come in. We know that OSHA standards require a standard of safety, but even more than standards, we want […]
Today’s Boiler: Visibility and Control in the Boiler Room
SCADA Systems: The Backbone of Modern Boiler Room Operations Managing a modern boiler room means juggling burners, fuel systems, feedwater equipment, pumps, valves, and instrumentation all at once, all in real time. One missed signal can mean downtime, safety risks, or worse. So how do today’s operators stay ahead of it all? The answer is SCADA. Supervisory Control […]