Factory "Hammer and Sickle". Sickle and Hammer Factory, Moscow

Metallurgy has almost always been the main support of our country, supplying much-needed raw materials for the production of machines for the national economy, the army and science. Of course, its development went through many difficult stages, because everything began in quite somber times ...

One of the brightest representatives of the metallurgical industry is the Serp i Molot plant.

How it all began

In 1883 an enterprising businessman Gouzhon built in Moscow a small enterprise intended for the smelting of steel. In seven years the first open-hearth furnace began to work , fuel for which in those days served as fuel oil. In 1913 almost 90 thousand tons of steel were smelted, and by that time seven furnaces had already been working. The plant was mainly engaged in the production of not too high-grade steel, rivets, wires and bolts.

After the Revolution

In 1918, the enterprise was nationalized. The plant, which practically lost all qualified personnel, got a very difficult legacy. Compared with 1913, the output decreased by 50 times. In 1921, IR Burdachov was appointed to the post of director of the enterprise, who in the past himself worked as a metal worker. In many respects it was thanks to him that the production was completely restored and modernized.

In the same year, the Serp i Molot plant appeared. By 1925 the director was PF Stepanov, who by 1928 still managed to bring the amount of steel to 1913 level. By 1931 the plant became one of the leading enterprises of the association "Spetsstal", which provided the country with quality raw materials for production.

Martial law

Since 1938 the production was headed by GM Il'in. It is with the surname of this talented leader that a sharp increase in the amount of steel smelted is associated. Already in 1939 he was awarded the Order of Lenin, which in those years was awarded a large sum of money and universal recognition.

During the war years, production did not stop for a minute. Despite the fact that the workers of the enterprise were not subject to conscription to the front, hundreds of talented steelmakers and metallurgists still left the plant to fight the invaders. The brunt of the work fell on the shoulders of young workers and women. As follows from the records of those years, the plant "Hammer and Sickle" played a significant role in defeating the enemies.

But it was hard for his workers: in the archives of those years there was a lot of information about how metallurgists simply fell into a hungry swoon near the stoves. It remains only to marvel at their courage: such hard work exhausts even physically strong men, what can we say about half-starving adolescents!

The post-war period

Despite the hardest postwar devastation, in the postwar years the enterprise rapidly increased production rates, mastered new methods of smelting high-quality steel. So, already in 1949 the collective of the plant was awarded the State Prize for the technology of using oxygen in the smelting of metal in the Marten furnace. Soon this technological process was widely used not only in domestic factories, but also in foreign factories.

In addition, a year later a similar award was awarded to steelmakers who managed to drastically reduce the time spent on metal smelting. A significant increase in the quality and culture of production was achieved at about the same time that the furnaces were transferred from fuel oil to gas. From 1945 to 1971, the number of rolled products increased two-fold.

New technologies of smelting

Since 1963, the program for converting the entire production to electricity began. So, it was in those years that the technology of electroslag melting (ESL) was created and improved. Already in 1978, domestic computers were introduced into production.

Thanks to all these measures, only in five years the production of high-quality stainless steel was increased by 21% at once. Despite the fact that in 1973 there was a massive restructuring of the plant, steelmaking did not stop for a single day. Only in 1976 the last open-hearth furnace in Europe was stopped: further smelting of metal was continued by much more advanced technologies.

All the subsequent time, up to the very collapse of the Soviet Union, the amount of raw materials produced was continuously increasing. The needs of agriculture and the army grew, a huge amount of metal was required to quickly build up the power of the Navy, the country built hydroelectric power stations and nuclear power plants, for the construction of which, too, needed metal in large quantities.

Most of the needs of the European part of the country was provided by the Moscow plant "Serp i Molot".

The 90s

As for many enterprises in the country, this time was marked by heavy changes in the life of the country. The number of state orders fell to zero, the agonizing state was not up to the release of steel. In 1990, production was virtually completely stopped.

Until the 2000s, the Hammer and Sickle factory was engaged in the periodic production of products, which often had no relation to the main profile of the enterprise.

New time

When in the early 2000s, through the territory of a neglected plant, the Third Transport Ring began to pull, dozens of proposals for the most promising construction projects arose. As usual, dozens of ministries feuded among themselves, and so it was not possible to reach an agreement.

By 2007, it was finally decided that the huge abandoned territory of the Hammer and Sickle Factory would be used to build the next business center.

By December, the plans have changed somewhat: it was planned to build not only shops, but also commercial, as well as residential real estate. It is not known why, but in 2012, not one foundation was laid. Independent sources suggest that the case in those 52% of the shares of the plant, which belong to the Government of the region, and therefore the building permit was not so easy to get.

Development prospects

In what will the territory, on which the plant "Serp i Molot" is today, become? Moscow believes that new business districts should appear on this site. In addition, the construction of entertainment centers, a water park and other social infrastructure facilities is not excluded.

Unfortunately, to date, there is not a single hint that "Hammer and Sickle", a metallurgical plant that provides the state's needs for high-quality steel in the recent past, can be restarted. However, many political and environmental organizations say that this is quite justified: a huge amount of dangerous emissions into the atmosphere, and even in the center of a densely populated megacity, the citizens obviously did not add health.

In addition, the feasibility of commissioning a large metallurgical plant, which is an object of strategic importance, near the western borders, also raises doubts. Many experts agree that it would be better to place it on the territory of Siberia.

Other companies

Where else is there a "Hammer and Sickle" plant? Saratov also has an enterprise of the same name, which also deals with the smelting of steel. In contrast to his Moscow "colleague", at present the company is engaged in its profile work. It is being reconstructed and modernized.

The same name plant is also in Kazan. He is engaged in the production of products for the machine-building industry and instrument making.