The new $20 million AtkinsRéalis Technology Center opened on April 17 in Richland. Its work includes assembling and storing replacement melters for the Low-Activity Waste facility at Hanford’s Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, or vit plant.
The man who started Bouten Construction immigrated from Belgium as a young boy and went to work building houses with his father at age 13 before eventually starting his own construction company, which celebrates 80 years in business this year.
As many longtime employees begin to reach retirement age, and as some operations and activities at the site ramp up, maintaining and bolstering the Hanford workforce – which numbers more than 11,000 people – is a mission-critical endeavor, officials said.
It can be challenging for small businesses looking for work at the Hanford nuclear site to get a foot in the door. But a U.S. Department of Energy program offers mentoring to small businesses, and it appears to be yielding results.
One out of every 10 people in the Tri-Cities is employed by a job connected to federal funding, whether through the Hanford site, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory or with a subcontractor. This 13,000-person employment cluster’s impact on industries throughout the community remains significant.
When weighing how best to incorporate charitable giving into your estate plan, it makes sense to lean on one specific type of asset to make your charitable gifts.
Each year the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business shines a spotlight on the work being done at the Hanford site north of Richland and how the robust injection of federal dollars weaves a vital thread through our local economy.