PLANTS AND INSTITUTES THE

OCTOBER

CURRENT

REVOLUTION

SEVEN-YEAR

FACTORY

IN T H E

PLAN

F. E. Z a b k o v Translated from Steklo i Keramika, No. 1, pp. 36-38, January, 1962

Workers, engineers and technicians of one of the largest glass factories in the USSR, the October Revolution Factory, have greeted the 22nd Congress of the CPSU with magnificent inspiration, opening up the way to the b r i l liant future-Communism. The factory c o l l e c t i v e is at present faced with the most important p r o b l e m - t o c o m p l e t e and exceed the plans of the Seven-Year Plan. After the 20th Congress of the CPSU the plant carried out many technical measures which led to substantial increases in production. From 1956 to 1962 the output of window glass has increased from 14,700 ,000 to 17,250,000 m z and in c o m parison with 1951 when 8.4 million m 2 of glass was made, the output has more than doubled; the consumption of standard fuel for 1 ton of finished product has dropped during this period from 1416 to 715 kg. The cost of one standard box of glass has correspondingly dropped from 4 rubles 06 kopecks to 3 rubles 02 kopecks. The continuous growth in production has been attained as a result of improvements in technology and introduc~ ing a numbe.r of new technical measures, mechanization of labor-consuming jobs, modernization of equipment, etc. Thus, the total area of glass furnaces has increased in the first system to 289 m z and in the s e c o n d - t o 244 m z. The increase in furnace c a p a c i t y has enabled the width of the vertical drawing (VVS) machines to be increased. At present of the installed 17 VVS machines, 16 draw 2 m glass and one draws 2.5 m glass. Together with the reconstruction of tank furnaces and channels the factory has done much work on m e c h a n i z a tion and automation of production processes and also improving the technological schedules for m e l t i n g glass. The temperature schedule developed by the plant engineers has increased the furnace h e a t c a p a c i t y ; this has increased the glass yield per m 2 of melting area to 1000-1100 kg. The increase in drawing rate is largely due to the change in c h e m i c a l composition of the glass. The changes consisted of reducing the CaO and Na20 and increasing the MgO and AlzO3. The extra alumina was incorporated as kaolin and the M g O - a s dolomite. These changes cut the i n i t i a l - c r y s t a l l i z a t i o n temperature to 930* which meant a forming schedule at lower temperatures. In addition, the hardening rate of the glass was increased at the lower t e m p e r atures. As a result the drawing rate reached 90-100 linear meters an hour. The factory has a u t o m a t e d the control of the pressure of the combustion products in its furnaces, m e c h a n i z e d the change-over of the flame direction and air feed for combustion. In the gas stations, the injection blast under the firebar system has been replaced by a fan system, and the gasification (from coal) system has been altered as a result of sharply increasing (to 40%) the productivity of the gas generators. Particularly important measures were carried out during the first two years of the Plan. The glass furnace No. 2 was converted to sectional regenerators. The project, developed by the plant engineers provided for the erection of a two-story subregenerative channel with double-sided gas evacuation; this m a d e it possible to expand the tank furnace to 7.6 m, increase the m e l t i n g area by 2 4 m 2 without reconstructing the unit and without great extra expenditure,to increase the glass output by 1,083,000 m 2 a year. During cold repairs, furnace No. 1 was partly reconstructed. As a result of altering the ratio of cooling and melting areas, bringing this to 1.33 as against the previous 0.88, the conditions for preparing the glass for working were improved, the glass yield was increased and the output raised to 438,000 m z ( i . e . , the daily output rose from 27,800 to 2 9 , 0 0 0 - 3 0 , 5 0 0 m2). 41

Much has been done in the sphere of mechanization. Devices have been installed for loading the tank furnaces with batch and cullet. A system has been developed for controlling and regulating the glass level in the furnaces. The upper areas of the channels on VVS machines have been fitted with automatic breakers (crackers) for plate glass (V. S. Kolesnikov System) with edge breakers and belt conveyers for supplying whole plates of glass from the VVS machines in the cutting departments to the cutters' tables. The plant has developed, installed and successfully introduced into production a unit for mechanical breaking, transporting and placing on the cutting table, plates of showcase window glass. Its introduction is very important. The plant has also mechanized the packing of glass in boxes; this is done with two crane girders fitted with electric telphers and clamps, and also special transporting units. At present up to 60% of the plant's glass is being packed with these machines. The finished goods warehouse is fitted with a unit for mechanized loading of showcase glass into lorries and open wagons. Labor-consuming tasks in the woodworking department have been mechanized., Here we have established: a SKR-11 transporter with special rollers, transporters for supplying timber to the cutting frames, and also a crane with eIectric telphers for carrying boards from the bench and toading them into the wagons. Shaft electric locomotives of the type AK-2 transport the boards from the woodworking department to the boxmakers. Similar locomotives are used for supplying batch from the batching department to the machine-tank department. Glass furnaces and other heat-technical equipment are being converted to heating with natural gas. This will eventually eliminate the need for gas making for the machine-tank department, the pipe department and the silicateore department. As a result of the measures carried out by the plant the efficiency has increased substantially, reaching 6,500 rubies per worker against 2,a00 rubies in 1951; the glass quality has sharply increased and it has become possible to increase the output of glass for export. The level of mechanization in the factory is 85%, and in 1968 is expected to be 95% as a result of introducing mechanized cutting on special cutting tables, a continuous line for packaging glass,etc.Working projects for part of the new equipment have been developed by the factory in collaboration with the Kharkov TsKB, Gesstroi UkSSR. Much attention is being paid by the factory to the development of new types of product. It is enough to say that merely in the last two years the plant has developed glass thermal resistant pipes with diameters of from 2 to 4 inches, rain gutters and sodium-silicate granules. The glass pipes possess a range of favorable properties making them suitable for use in many regions of the national economy of our country. For example, at the Bormich state farm (Kiev control) an experimental water distribution system 1250 meters long was built from glass pipes with wall thicknesses of 9-11 mm. Tests showed that they were satisfactory; the circuit was tested under a working pressure of 5 aim. At the same time, the town of Konstantinov in the Donets region put into operation a water system made of glass pipes 1100 meters long which has been working at 6-7 atm. It is intended in 1962 to put into use at Konstantinov glass pipe systems amounting to 12,000 meters in length. At present the factory is evaluating the production of 5-6 "pipe and developing a method for drawing pipes with 6-12 n diameters. In the first quarter of 1962 it is intended to put into use a new machine designed by the KB factory which in contrast to the roller machine will produce pipes with diameters of 6 to 12". Important contributions have been made in the technical progress of our plant by inventors and rationalizers. The best are engineers, technicians and worker-innovators: A. S.Ruga, A. N. Simonov, V. G. Parfimovich, G. S. Shripko, B. M. Smolenskii, A. P. Shvets, P. D. Gurinov, D. G. Azovtsev, V. A. Baturina, P. G. Tokarev, F. g. Zyuzya, Ya. G. Cherednichenko, A. I. Makhno, G. G. Semeikin, L. V. Bezborodov, B. S. Kondrat'ev and many others. In the last five years only, of 800 ideas put forward, more than 580 have beer used, saving 650,000 rubles. According to the reconstruction plans for 1962-65, it is intended to build a new batching department with a capacity of 560 tons of batch a day, since the existing department cannot supply the furnaces with batch of high quality and is holding up further growth in the plant's capacity.

42

It is also planned to build a deeDartment for making staple glass fiber and glass mats by the vertical blowing method with a c a p a c i t y of 50,000 m ~ year, a department for hollow glass blocks with two continuous lines with an annual c a p a c i t y of 3.2 m i l l i o n articles, and also a department for glass packets, c a p a c i t y 250,000 m 2 a year. This block will also house the manufacture of curved showcase glass, the output of which will be 7000 m 2 a year. In connection with the conversion of glass furnaces to natural gas, it is intended to partly reconstruct these furnaces to increase their areas so as to make it possible to increase the factory's c a p a c i t y for structural glass to 20 million m z a year. Also planned is the installation of cooling machines which, by creating constant normal t e m p e r a tures in the working atmosghere, will improve the working conditions of the workers operating the VVS machines. The c o l l e c t i v e of workers at the October Revolution Glass Factory, inspired by the great tasks presented in the Program of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, are applying all their forces to ensure further technical r e - e q u i p ping of the factory and are contributing their share to the building of Communism.

43