A qualitative leap forward

Orsha Tools Plant has opened an innovative tool workshop

A new subdivision of the enterprise has been established as part of the second stage of the Organisation of Modern Metal Cutting and Auxiliary Tools Production with the Introduction of Innovative Technological Processes investment project, the implementation of which started in 2018. Its completion is expected next year. During a visit to the plant in August 2018, the President clearly outlined the purpose of the project — to set up the production of high-tech innovative tools that are imported and not mass-produced in Belarus.

CNC machine adjuster Andrei Lisov and CNC machine operator Yana Voitova   
     

On modern technologies

Leonid Moyzhik, Director of the Orsha Tools Plant, spoke about the tasks that the enterprise had to solve towards the goal and the results achieved so far. Thus, to date, all the necessary construction and installation works have been completed in the workshop, and a part of the equipment in the amount of 25 units for mechanical, thermal, and galvanic processing of parts worth Br35.7m has been purchased. 
The head of the plant paid special attention to the fact that about 90 percent of the machinery is equipped with a numerical control system. Modern technologies have allowed the enterprise to significantly expand the range of products manufactured in this workshop and improve quality. 
“We have mastered the technology of applying a wear-resistant coating, the production of monolithic carbide tools and end mills with replaceable hard alloy plates. No one makes this unique tool on a mass scale in Belarus. Its features include increased durability, precision, and productivity. The tools are supplied both to the Belarusian market and abroad,” informed the head of the department.
Touching upon the specifics of the workshop, Leonid Moyzhik noted that so far this is the only production facility of its kind in Belarus, and the technologies that are introduced into the workflow are unique, “Over the past year, about 1,500 employees of other domestic enterprises visited us as part of the experience exchange. I am sure that in the near future they will adopt some of our techniques to improve their production culture.”
The investment costs of the project were financed from the Republican Centralised Innovation Fund, borrowed funds from the Minsk Tractor Works (MTZ JSC), and at the enterprise’s own expense. The implementation of the project’s investment stage continues. Part of the planned range of tools has already been mastered. The Orsha Tools Plant intends to start production of a full line of high-tech tools this year. To this end, in December 2023, the enterprise signed a contract for a line of 19 units of equipment supply for the manufacture of taps with control and measuring equipment and tooling. The line is expected to be delivered in July, and its commissioning is scheduled for October. All work is carried out within the project implementation schedule. Full completion of the project will allow the enterprise to significantly strengthen its position in the domestic and foreign markets.
Leonid Moyzhik also stated that currently the product range produced in this workshop includes 800 units, “By the end of the year, taking into account the introduction of additional equipment, it will expand to 1,500. The volume of production in monetary terms by the end of the year will amount to Br600,000 per month, and at the beginning of the next year we are guaranteed to reach Br1m.”

Orsha Tools Plant has entered a new stage of its development, becoming a modern innovative production facility that is already a worthy competitor to foreign manufacturers in its niche on external markets. In general, the enterprise is contracted for 3-4 months in advance, and for 8-10 months for a separate product range.

Process engineer Richard Logvinov

Planned goals

Outlining the plant’s prospects for the near future, Leonid Moyzhik stated that, in general, the enterprise is contracted for 3-4 months in advance, and even for 8-10 months for a separate product range, “We manufacture both standardised products and special tools according to individual customer drawings. The list of permanent partners includes about 25-30 customers from Belarus and Russia, who actively use the products of the tool workshop.”
Sergei Avramenko, Deputy Director General of MTZ JSC, Technical Director, emphasised the strategic goals of the Orsha Tools Plant, “We have to substitute imports to the Republic of Belarus to the maximum extent possible. The competencies that this enterprise possesses, the product range that it has already mastered, allow us to replace by 70 percent what we produce inside the holding. Taking into account the specifics of the domestic machine-building industry, the plant can also scale these volumes to our other enterprises — MAZ, BELAZ, and MZKT.”
Along with this, Sergei Avramenko pointed out that tool replacement is not a one-step process, “The Orsha Tools Plant is moving in this direction, and in 2025 it should make a qualitative leap forward. As for the underutilisation of the tool workshop, due to certain foreign policy events last year, the enterprise had difficulties with the supply of equipment. We have successfully solved this issue and fully established the production of all tools. At this stage, all that remains is to work.”

In a new workshop for the production of innovative tools

By Olga Bogacheva

Photos by Anton Stepanishchev