Mission Support – Making the dream work!

With almost 5,000 employees, the ORNL campus is a lot like a small city, with some of the same types of jobs too! The people of Mission Support do the jobs that make science possible. They keep the lights on, the water hot, the roads maintained, the workers safe, the food hot and fresh and much, much more!

ORNL operates a fully functional fire department, police service, mail service, line crew, and vehicle repair shop… just to name a few! 

In case of emergency

Stepping into the role of emergency dispatcher, guests will see how Laboratory Protection (police) and Health Services work together to provide Emergency Response and Security at ORNL.

Facilities, engineering and utilities – Heroes behind the scenes

Explore a piping valve display and learn how valve and gauge configurations allow air to flow to different parts of a system. Explore how engineers use instruments that read in rotations per minute (RPM) to detect fan speeds without having to take equipment out of service.

Protecting workers on the job

Explore how health and safety experts utilize local exhaust ventilation, such as chemical fume hoods, to keep workers safe from chemical exposures. How loud is too loud? The sound wall highlights certain sound levels that are hazardous to hearing and how to avoid them. The “rad wall” allows visitors to use detectors to see different radiation levels in nature, and a “time-distance-shielding” display explains how workers are protected from dangerous levels of radiation.

When the weather is nice, displays outside the exhibit demonstrate the work of linemen/linewomen, electricians, hoisting and rigging crews, and personal protective equipment!