A new baseline

Principal Deputy Director General Nominee, Norbert Holtkamp "Now the ITER Organization has begun operation, the first point on the agenda is to formulate a new and updated baseline design for the ITER device. Currently, the design review is under way, which aims at presenting a new baseline to the ITER Council late spring next year. The review is carried out by experts from the ITER Parties and the ITER Organization, and ouside experts, who all have been invited by ITER to contribute their expertise. The experts review so-called issue cards, descriptions of design issues which have been submitted by experts from all over the world. "Some meetings, such as those on safety and code standards, heating systems and magnets, have already happened, and more are planned. The meetings proceed very constructively, with people eager to solve the problems and focussing on key questions. The progress on the various issues will be reported in a meeting on 12-14 December, where we will discuss how to put appropriate resources to these issues in order to keep to our construction schedule. We are happy to see that we have put a process in place that functions well, and fulfils its purpose."