These activities include:

• operational implementation of the experimental sessions;
• assembly, installation and removal of components, inside or outside the vacuum chamber, in relation with the IRFM groups;
• operation, maintenance and development of systems:
  • plasma fueling and diagnostics closely related to machine operation;
  • articulated inspection arm;
  • data acquisition system, supervision, monitoring and control;
  • cooling system and calorimetry;
  • tokamak vacuum and associated test-benches;
  • superconducting magnets and associated cryogenic plant;
  • electrical distribution and power supplies;
• access control to restricted areas and management of IRFM nuclear materials;
• technical support to other platforms of the institute, mainly on mechanics, vacuum, fluid distribution (standard and cryogenic), electrical engineering, electronics, data acquisition and control systems;
• contribution to different major projects (including JT-60SA, ITER, DEMO) in the Department’s areas of expertise.

The Head of STEP also has complementary responsibilities covering:

• the technical coordination of the WEST operation;
• the technical coordination and planning of all technical activities associated with IRFM platforms, in particular for the management of shared technical resources;
• the coordination of the WEST systems maintenance in operational condition, and of the technical documentation for the operational costs of the machine.

STEP is structured in 6 groups:

• Superconducting coils Group (Groupe Aimants supraconducteurs - GAIM)
• Machine Assembling and Pumping Group (Groupe Machine Assemblage et Pompagne - GMAP)
• Fuelling and Plasma Operation Group (Groupe Pilotage et Alimentation en Matière - GPAM)
• Electronic, Data Acquisition and Control Command Group (Groupe Electronique, Acquisition de données et Contrôle-commande - GEAC)
• Electricity Group (Groupe Electrique - GELEC)
• Cryogenic and Cooling systems Group (Groupe Systèmes Cryogéniques et Réfrigération - GSCR)