Members of the Sanford Lab security team from left to right: Catherine Raubach, Kerry Kampa, Brad Wolf and Chad Knight. Not pictured: Dave Trentz, Mike Sunich, Taylor Knottnerus and Brandon Grodzin.
With increasing activity onsite, Sanford Underground Research Facility (Sanford Lab) crews are growing in size and expertise. One such crew, the security team, grew from 3 to 8 members within the last year.
The security team manages a spectrum of responsibilities from access control to safety measures at Sanford Lab. The team staffs the Ross and Yates Gates, monitors badging, aids in communications and ensures all employees, partners and visitors have proper protective gear for their tasks.
Larry Jaudon, director of Environment, Safety and Health (ESH) at Sanford Lab, says a major driver for the security team’s recent growth is increased Kiewit-Alberici Joint Venture (KAJV) activity at the Ross Campus. KAJV’s crews work around the clock at the Ross Campus to prepare Sanford Lab for its role as the far site of Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory’s (Fermilab) Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility (LBNF).
“We recognize that these activities will increase for the next several years, and we want to be in a position to provide assistance at that location 24/7/365,” said Jaudon. Full-time security coverage at the Ross Campus began on Jan. 28, 2020.
Chad Knight became the team’s security supervisor in December 2019. Knight, a member of the security team since 2014, has been a welcoming face at the Yates Gate for six years.
“Chad is doing a great job coordinating work schedules and activities,” Jaudon said. “He has spent a lot of time here and has good knowledge of facility operations.”
Dave Trentz and Mike Sunich have also been core members of the team since 2008 and 2009, respectively. New hires include Taylor Knottnerus, Brandon Grodzin, Brad Wolf, Catherine Raubach and Kerry Kampa.
“Each member of our team lives in the Lead/Deadwood area,” Knight said. “While the pool of applicants wasn’t influenced by location, we found qualified applicants close to home. It’s great to see Sanford Lab providing jobs to local people.”
Knight says the security team emphasizes a “balanced, welcoming approach” as they work regularly with employees, partners and visitors.
“My favorite part of working at the gate was experiencing the excitement of people who had heard about the lab somewhere. People pull up here from all over—East Coast, West Coast, France, Germany, New Zealand, Australia—and they want to talk about dark matter and neutrinos and all the wonderful science happening in Lead,” Knight said. “That excitement always reminded me of what we are doing here; every team member is contributing to the awesome project that is Sanford Lab.”