STUK's new website was implemented on time without compromising on quality

In May 2023, our new website STUK.fi was published. When designing the website, we studied carefully who it is primarily aimed at and who we specifically want to target, how we serve our key target groups and how we ensure that the website meets the objectives set for it. Only eight months was reserved for designing the website and producing the content, but it succeeded thanks to the close cooperation between STUK’s experts. 

STUK’s website has a wide user base – including licence holders from the nuclear power industry, health care and industry, beauty experts, media representatives, students, international partners and other parties interested in nuclear and radiation safety. The website is visited approximately 15,000 times a month.

The primary objective of our website is to provide reliable, timely and open information about matters, decisions and current events relating to radiation and nuclear safety. As an authority, we have an obligation to communicate matters fairly, to follow the government’s communication guidelines and to produce information at least in Finnish and Swedish pursuant to the Language Act. This will not be compromised on the new website. We also want to provide extensive information about STUK’s operations so that the information is provided in a sensible and understandable manner and meets the user’s need for information. 

From the very beginning of the planning it was clear that providing information was not enough. The website also required service paths which help customers to contact STUK and use STUK's services. The instructions and service paths developed for the website are part of STUK’s strategy for developing the customer experience. 

Seamless collaboration for success 

A large group of STUK experts from different fields were involved in revising, producing and renewing the contents on the website. Rebuilding the website allowed us to go through all the old content carefully. We deleted and combined content and boldly redesigned the structure of the website from scratch. This is to ensure that the content is up to date, uses a clear official language and works in the new system. 

From the start, it was clear that the timeline for producing the content was tight. This challenge for our experts was increased by the fact that they were working with the content alongside with their other tasks. However, the desire to succeed and communicate about radiation and nuclear power in a comprehensible way, the good team spirit in the project and helping each other made it possible to launch the website on schedule.

Another key to the success of the project was that we built the new website from the beginning and it was possible to follow the building phase on the public network throughout the project.  In this way, we were able to correct any errors and eliminate any inconsistencies on the website already during the building phase. We also encouraged our own employees, customers and other users to give feedback on our website during building process.

Accessibility has been a key theme throughout our website redesign project. We are continuing to invest in this and strive for accessibility in everything we do. We conduct regular accessibility checks and improve the website based on the feedback received to ensure smooth use of the website for all population groups, regardless of the terminal device. In addition to technical issues, accessibility is also taken into account in the content. 

According to the analysis, visitors to our website are interested in the current radiation situation in Finland, topical content and information related to radon, for example. In the summer season, content about the solar UV radiation is also among the most read content. We are constantly improving the quality indicators on the website to get better data to support the development of content. 

The old cliché is true – the website is never ready and the development is ongoing. The functionality and content of the website must be reviewed on a regular basis in order to meet the diverse and changing information needs of our customers, stakeholders and users. Our new website enables us to continuously improve the content and the functionalities used in cooperation with other users of the service. 

Text: Leeni Pellinen 
The author works as a Communications Specialist at the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority and was the Project Manager for the STUK.fi website project.