An instrument, not an authority
OpenPRA ORG Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit. It builds open-source tools and methods for probabilistic risk assessment, and gives them away.
What we are trying to do
Bring researchers, practitioners, vendors, and regulators into one non-competitive space where models, data, and methods can actually be inspected. Not because openness is virtuous, but because a risk model nobody outside the organisation can read has never really been reviewed.
What we are not
We do not certify anything, endorse any design, or issue findings. The platform quantifies what you give it and shows its working. The judgement stays with the analyst and the regulator.
How we work
- Transparency and openness. Data, software, and methods in public, including what does not work yet.
- Collaboration and inclusivity. A non-competitive space for researchers, industry, and regulators, wherever they are.
- Accessibility. Everything free and open source. No paid tier.
- Quality and rigour. Peer review, benchmarks against reference solutions, and stated scope.
- Portability. Models leave as easily as they arrive.
Origins
The work grew out of the Probabilistic Risk Assessment Group in the Department of Nuclear Engineering at NC State University, and was introduced formally at ASME IMECE in 2023. OpenPRA ORG Inc. is a separate organisation from any university or company that contributes to it.
Three lines of work
Software
Free, open-source PRA software and libraries: a unified analytical environment for hybrid models, scalable quantification, and web interfaces that let engineers compute and see risk insights without installing anything.
Standardisation
Standard data models and formats so different tools interoperate — a universal, software-independent representation for PRA models, including automatic generation of models from systems engineering descriptions (MBSE).
Education and community
Training and outreach for the next generation of practitioners: webinars, collaborative forums, classroom use, and worked examples anyone can open.
Ways in
Write code
TypeScript, C++, or Python. The contribution guide is in the monorepo.
Contributing guide →Build models
Reference models, benchmarks, and worked examples are as valuable as code — and rarer.
Existing models →Review and document
Read a schema definition against a standard and tell us where it falls short.
[email protected] →Not a coder? Writing a tutorial, building a worked example, or editing the documentation is as useful as a pull request.
Thank you
We are grateful to the academic, industry, and government partners who support this work, to our funders, and to the wider PRA community for the contributions and criticism that shape it.
Get in touch
[email protected]
github.com/openpra-org
OpenPRA ORG Inc. is recognised as a public charity under section 170(b)(1)(A)(vi).