OREANDA-NEWS. December 29, 2009. Chusovoy Metallurgical Works (CMW, Perm Territory), part of United Metallurgical Company (OMK), has nearly completed the installation of a new thermal line for the production of spring leafs at the CMW Automotive Spring Workshop. The line commissioning is scheduled for January 2010.

The latest equipment required to fully complete the line was supplied by HVD Kuczpiol GmbH, Germany. The new thermal line, designed for the production of multi- and leaf-(parabolic) springs, is the technological continuation of the set of German-made rolling mills installed in the CMW Automotive Spring Workshop two years ago for the production of parabolic spring blanks.

The new thermal line will help to achieve high geometric accuracy in spring leaf production. The equipment system includes a hydraulic press required to manufacture Z-shaped arms for air suspension. With the launch of the new thermal line, CMW will become Russia’s only entity producing Z-shaped arms on a commercial basis.

Design solutions applied in modern spring-manufacturing equipment enhance its reliability, extend operating life between repairs, and substantially reduce energy intensity. The expected natural gas consumption in the new thermal line is 40% lower than in existing domestic thermal lines.

“We continue modernizing the spring facilities at the Chusovoy Metallurgical Works in spite of the economic turbulence,” said Sergey Oborin, Director of the Spring Facilities of the CMW Automotive Spring Workshop. “High-quality springs will enhance CMW’s profile in the domestic market and open prospects for our products to enter international markets.”

United Metallurgical Company (OMK) is one of Russia's largest producers of pipes, railroad wheels, and other metal products for energy, transport, and industrial companies. OMK comprises 7 largest enterprises in the metallurgical sector. The OMK Pipe-Rolling Division comprises Vyksa Steel Works (Nizhni Novgorod Region), Almetyevsk Pipe Plant (Republic of Tatarstan), and Trubodetal (Chelyabinsk Region); the OMK Steel Works Division comprises Chusovoy Metallurgical Works and Gubakha Coke (Perm Territory), Shchelkovo Steel Works (Moscow Region) and Casting and Rolling Complex (Nizhni Novgorod Region)

In 2008, OMK products accounted for 16% of pipes consumed in Russia, including 35% of large diameter pipes, 63% of railroad wheels, and 80% of automobile springs. In 2008, the OMK enterprises produced 1.5 million tonnes of pipes of various sizes and 783 thousand railroad wheels. The main consumers of OMK products include such leading Russian and foreign companies as Gazprom, Russian Railways, LUKOIL, Transneft, Surgutneftegas, Rosneft, TNK-BP, ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch/Shell, General Electric, and Samsung. OMK supplies its products to 20 countries.