Joint Stock Company Borovichi Refractories Plant
A contemporary, dynamic and steadily developing enterprise with vast scientific and technological base and highly-qualified personnel supplying the goods to the Russian and foreign markets. The range of products includes the production of shaped refractories, unshaped refractories, ceramic proppants. In July 2018 the plant celebrated its 161 anniversary.
A contemporary, dynamic and steadily developing enterprise with vast scientific and technological base and highly-qualified personnel supplying the goods to the Russian and foreign markets. The range of products includes the production of shaped refractories, unshaped refractories, ceramic proppants. In July 2018 the plant celebrated its 161 anniversary.
Joint Stock Company Borovichi Refractories Plant is the oldest refractory enterprise in the country which is rightfully considered as the cradle of national refractories. The basis of its development was the richest reserves of refractory clay of the Borovichi-Lyubytinsk deposits in the Novgorod Region. The product range consists of more than 43 items and more than 3,500 standard sizes of products for various industries. The range of products includes the production of shaped refractories, unshaped refractories, ceramic proppants.
The products of the plant are supplied to the enterprises of ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy, construction materials, glass, cement, whiteware, pulp and paper and other industries. The main consumers of the products by JSC BRP are as follows: JSC Surgutneftegas, NLMK Group, PJSC Severstal, PJSC Gazprom Neft, JSC OMK-Steel, JSC Volzhsky Pipe Plant, Rusal, PAO Mechel, the companies forming a part of Evraz and Evrotsementresurs, PJSC Lukoil, PJSC Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works, PJSC MMC Norilsk Nickel, JSC OEMK and many others.
The plant’s successful development strategy is to diversify production activities, proactive investment and social policies, the expansion of the range and quality of the output products.
Putting a focus on implementation of the state-of-the-art technologies, the plant has established its own research center – the Centre of Improvements in Technology and Production, trains young talented engineers in national higher education institutions on an ongoing basis, provides them with a scholarship and also interesting and promising work. JSC BRP pursues an active social policy, supports veterans and youth, replenishes the city treasury, participates in charitable activities for the benefit of Borovichi.
The Plant has many significant national and international awards. Since 2000 JSC BRP has been the award winner of the contest “1,000 Best Russian Enterprises and Organizations”. In 2007 the team earned a honorific mention from the President Vladimir V. Putin for a major contribution to the development of domestic industry. Active social policy of the Board of Directors was also awarded. The plant and the city build their future together. They are facing a long and successful journey.
The Refractories Plant is a socially oriented company. All the plant workers are guaranteed a full social package. A special mortgage lending program is offered at the plant. The plant places a strong emphasis on supporting pensioners of the plant and talented youth of the city. Financial support to educational, medical, social, cultural institutions, churches and monasteries, urban and rural administrations is provided within the frame of charity program. Social facilities of JSC BRP are attended not only by the plant employees, but by the residents of the city and the region.
Historical background:
In 1857 E. Nobel built the first specialized plant “for production of fire enduring bricks from locally available fire enduring clay” in a small country town Borovichi, Novgorod province. There started a gradual changeover from the handicraft ceramic trade to factory production. The information on the first industrial supplies of refractory products from Borovichi dates back to the end of the 70s. The said supplied were facilitated by the construction of Borovichi-Uglovka railway, connecting the city with Nikolaevsk railway.
In the second half of the ХIХth century large factories for the production of refractory, acid-resistant, sewer products from local clays were built: “Pirogranit” (“Terracotta”), K. Wachter’s Plant, TOPGI plant, “Nov”. A major industrial center for the production of fireclay refractories gradually replacing imports from the Russian market was constructed in Borovichi. The protectionist policy of the government which imposed a duty on the imported refractories in 1886 and 1891 contributed to the plant development.
The undisputed leader, “the king of refractories” was Konstantin Wachter, a St. Petersburg’s industrialist, and “Borovichi plant for the production of refractory, acid-resistant products and sewage pipes” founded by him in 1880 (16 years later it was transformed into the joint stock company. K. Wachter’s company united the best Borovichi refractory plants, the plant in Voronezh province and several mines, becoming the largest enterprise in the industry. The production of refractory products made 16.5 % of the total production rate in Russia. Products were supplied to steelworks of St. Petersburg, Sormovo plants in Nizhny Novgorod, Bryansk steel-casting foundry, Tula ammunition plant and many other plants, railways, marine department. The quality of products was comparable with that of European counterparts.
During World War I, K. Wachter’s Company worked almost entirely for the Russian defense industry, increasing by six times the release of acid-resistant products for military factories, including ceramic fans and pumps, not manufactured earlier by Russian plants. Revolution and civil war almost completely stopped production of refractories in Borovichi. In 1919 Borovichi factories and mines were nationalized, restored at an accelerated tempo and in 1922 merged into the “Borkombinat”.
In two pre-war five-year plans in the Soviet Union a powerful refractory industry was created. “Krasny Keramik” plant (as it was named from 1931 to 1957) was the main basis for providing the Soviet industry with major refractories, including the shaped ones and produced 65 % of all the fire clay products of “Refractories” Trust. Borovichi refractories were used for construction of the blast-furnace giants of Kuznetsk and Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Companies. The workers in Borovichi were the first in the country to develop a semi-dry method of products compression, and the first who exported domestic refractories. There emerged the plant’s own workers-inventors. The plant became a “talent foundry” for the infant refractory industry.
When the Great Patriotic War began the Novgorod region was the scene for fierce fighting, and the plant being in the immediate battle area, experienced a massive evacuation of the main process, energy equipment and personnel to the Urals. Production of refractories, which went on in Borovichi over a hundred years, suddenly stopped. Over three thousand refractory employees went to the front. The recovery of refractories production started in May 1942. Process equipment was newly created, teams of the plants and mines were staffed. In 1943, the plant produced 95 thousand tons of refractories.
After the war a radical reconstruction and technical re-equipment began. In 1952, the first in the country short-length tunnel kiln for burning domestic structure products was put into operation, and two new workshops for burning clay for grog with rotary kilns were built. The plant shops were switched to progressive semi-dry method of products compression. In 1962 gasification of the plant started. The shops were provided with the own significant raw materials base. In 1979 maximum amount – 967 thousand tons of refractory clay – was extracted.
In 1967 the design task for the expansion and reconstruction of the Borovichi Refractories Plant was approved by the Decree of the USSR Council of Ministers. The most important facility was a new steel foundry with modern equipment, flexible process flow sheet, which allowed implementation of new production lines.
In 1992 the state-owned enterprise Borovichi Refractories Plant was transformed into a joint stock company – JSC BRP. In the past twenty years passed since that time the development of modern highly refractory materials and entering new markets had continued. Following the age-old traditions of quality, the plant was among the first enterprises in 1994, which began a voluntary certification of its products and had been working since then in compliance with the strict requirements of ISO 9000.
The most successful investment project in the 90s was the development of the granulated powders – proppants – for the oil and gas industry. Refractory men in Borovichi were the first in Russia who mastered the production of proppants, and received the certificate of the American Institute of Oil and Gas for their compliance with the international standard API Q1. Since 2000 JSC BRP is a member of the International Association of Proppants Manufacturers. In 2012 their output made 200 thousand tons. It became one of the core products of the plant together with refractories.
Joint Stock Company Borovichi Refractories Plant is the oldest refractory enterprise in the country which is rightfully considered as the cradle of national refractories. The basis of its development was the richest reserves of refractory clay of the Borovichi-Lyubytinsk deposits in the Novgorod Region. The product range consists of more than 43 items and more than 3,500 standard sizes of products for various industries. The range of products includes the production of shaped refractories, unshaped refractories, ceramic proppants.
The products of the plant are supplied to the enterprises of ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy, construction materials, glass, cement, whiteware, pulp and paper and other industries. The main consumers of the products by JSC BRP are as follows: JSC Surgutneftegas, NLMK Group, PJSC Severstal, PJSC Gazprom Neft, JSC OMK-Steel, JSC Volzhsky Pipe Plant, Rusal, PAO Mechel, the companies forming a part of Evraz and Evrotsementresurs, PJSC Lukoil, PJSC Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works, PJSC MMC Norilsk Nickel, JSC OEMK and many others.
The plant’s successful development strategy is to diversify production activities, proactive investment and social policies, the expansion of the range and quality of the output products.
Putting a focus on implementation of the state-of-the-art technologies, the plant has established its own research center – the Centre of Improvements in Technology and Production, trains young talented engineers in national higher education institutions on an ongoing basis, provides them with a scholarship and also interesting and promising work. JSC BRP pursues an active social policy, supports veterans and youth, replenishes the city treasury, participates in charitable activities for the benefit of Borovichi.
The Plant has many significant national and international awards. Since 2000 JSC BRP has been the award winner of the contest “1,000 Best Russian Enterprises and Organizations”. In 2007 the team earned a honorific mention from the President Vladimir V. Putin for a major contribution to the development of domestic industry. Active social policy of the Board of Directors was also awarded. The plant and the city build their future together. They are facing a long and successful journey.
The Refractories Plant is a socially oriented company. All the plant workers are guaranteed a full social package. A special mortgage lending program is offered at the plant. The plant places a strong emphasis on supporting pensioners of the plant and talented youth of the city. Financial support to educational, medical, social, cultural institutions, churches and monasteries, urban and rural administrations is provided within the frame of charity program. Social facilities of JSC BRP are attended not only by the plant employees, but by the residents of the city and the region.
Historical background:
In 1857 E. Nobel built the first specialized plant “for production of fire enduring bricks from locally available fire enduring clay” in a small country town Borovichi, Novgorod province. There started a gradual changeover from the handicraft ceramic trade to factory production. The information on the first industrial supplies of refractory products from Borovichi dates back to the end of the 70s. The said supplied were facilitated by the construction of Borovichi-Uglovka railway, connecting the city with Nikolaevsk railway.
In the second half of the ХIХth century large factories for the production of refractory, acid-resistant, sewer products from local clays were built: “Pirogranit” (“Terracotta”), K. Wachter’s Plant, TOPGI plant, “Nov”. A major industrial center for the production of fireclay refractories gradually replacing imports from the Russian market was constructed in Borovichi. The protectionist policy of the government which imposed a duty on the imported refractories in 1886 and 1891 contributed to the plant development.
The undisputed leader, “the king of refractories” was Konstantin Wachter, a St. Petersburg’s industrialist, and “Borovichi plant for the production of refractory, acid-resistant products and sewage pipes” founded by him in 1880 (16 years later it was transformed into the joint stock company. K. Wachter’s company united the best Borovichi refractory plants, the plant in Voronezh province and several mines, becoming the largest enterprise in the industry. The production of refractory products made 16.5 % of the total production rate in Russia. Products were supplied to steelworks of St. Petersburg, Sormovo plants in Nizhny Novgorod, Bryansk steel-casting foundry, Tula ammunition plant and many other plants, railways, marine department. The quality of products was comparable with that of European counterparts.
During World War I, K. Wachter’s Company worked almost entirely for the Russian defense industry, increasing by six times the release of acid-resistant products for military factories, including ceramic fans and pumps, not manufactured earlier by Russian plants. Revolution and civil war almost completely stopped production of refractories in Borovichi. In 1919 Borovichi factories and mines were nationalized, restored at an accelerated tempo and in 1922 merged into the “Borkombinat”.
In two pre-war five-year plans in the Soviet Union a powerful refractory industry was created. “Krasny Keramik” plant (as it was named from 1931 to 1957) was the main basis for providing the Soviet industry with major refractories, including the shaped ones and produced 65 % of all the fire clay products of “Refractories” Trust. Borovichi refractories were used for construction of the blast-furnace giants of Kuznetsk and Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Companies. The workers in Borovichi were the first in the country to develop a semi-dry method of products compression, and the first who exported domestic refractories. There emerged the plant’s own workers-inventors. The plant became a “talent foundry” for the infant refractory industry.
When the Great Patriotic War began the Novgorod region was the scene for fierce fighting, and the plant being in the immediate battle area, experienced a massive evacuation of the main process, energy equipment and personnel to the Urals. Production of refractories, which went on in Borovichi over a hundred years, suddenly stopped. Over three thousand refractory employees went to the front. The recovery of refractories production started in May 1942. Process equipment was newly created, teams of the plants and mines were staffed. In 1943, the plant produced 95 thousand tons of refractories.
After the war a radical reconstruction and technical re-equipment began. In 1952, the first in the country short-length tunnel kiln for burning domestic structure products was put into operation, and two new workshops for burning clay for grog with rotary kilns were built. The plant shops were switched to progressive semi-dry method of products compression. In 1962 gasification of the plant started. The shops were provided with the own significant raw materials base. In 1979 maximum amount – 967 thousand tons of refractory clay – was extracted.
In 1967 the design task for the expansion and reconstruction of the Borovichi Refractories Plant was approved by the Decree of the USSR Council of Ministers. The most important facility was a new steel foundry with modern equipment, flexible process flow sheet, which allowed implementation of new production lines.
In 1992 the state-owned enterprise Borovichi Refractories Plant was transformed into a joint stock company – JSC BRP. In the past twenty years passed since that time the development of modern highly refractory materials and entering new markets had continued. Following the age-old traditions of quality, the plant was among the first enterprises in 1994, which began a voluntary certification of its products and had been working since then in compliance with the strict requirements of ISO 9000.
The most successful investment project in the 90s was the development of the granulated powders – proppants – for the oil and gas industry. Refractory men in Borovichi were the first in Russia who mastered the production of proppants, and received the certificate of the American Institute of Oil and Gas for their compliance with the international standard API Q1. Since 2000 JSC BRP is a member of the International Association of Proppants Manufacturers. In 2012 their output made 200 thousand tons. It became one of the core products of the plant together with refractories.