Lightweight expanded clay aggregate plant in Novolukoml expands export geography: focus on Russia
The enterprise, which released its first batch of products in 1977, has been a leader in the industry of the Vitebsk region throughout its history.
The consequences of the sanctions pressure from countries unfriendly to Belarus are also being overcome with dignity here. Before the coronavirus pandemic and the imposition of sanctions, the plant had significant sales markets for "ThermoComfort" expanded clay concrete blocks in Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Finland. The export of these products as cement-containing ones to the EU countries ceased with the introduction of sanctions. The enterprise's administration decided to strengthen its positions within its home country and paid closer attention to the construction market of the Russian Federation.
– We have made significant efforts to certify our products in compliance with Russian standards, – said the enterprise director Mikhail Lazarashvili. – We plan to make a strong statement by participating for the first time in the largest international construction and interior design exhibition MosBuild, which will be held in April in Moscow. This will contribute to increasing export volumes to the Russian market.
Currently, expanded clay is supplied to Russia, Latvia, Lithuania, and the Czech Republic; such countries as Bulgaria and Serbia have been added to the geography of export supplies, and supplies of expanded clay to Poland have significantly increased.
The main competitive advantage of the expanded clay gravel plant's products is high quality. The presence of its own accredited laboratory contributes significantly to this. Its equipment, state-of-the-art in science and technology, allows for most tests to be carried out on-site, as well as for providing services to third-party organizations.
The raw material for expanded clay production is dark brown clay. A quarry for its extraction has been developed near the plant. It is noteworthy that in the years when the enterprise first started operating, it was believed that high-quality expanded clay could not be produced from such clays. However, the plant not only managed to achieve high quality of expanded clay but also established the production of fine-fraction expanded clay.
The initial design capacity of the enterprise was 500 thousand cubic meters of expanded clay per year. Currently, as a result of ongoing production modernization, the output volume will increase to 1 million cubic meters per year.
It was in Novolukoml in 2009 that an electromagnetic filter for expanded clay production, developed jointly with the Moscow institute "Giprogazochistka," was first installed in the entire post-Soviet space. This made it possible to reduce inorganic dust emissions from 1240 mg/m3 to 50 mg/m3.
A significant step in the development of the enterprise was the launch of a new workshop for the production of expanded clay concrete products in 2012. From that moment on, the plant became a supplier not only of traditional expanded clay of various grades but also of a new high-quality, market-demanded building material – "ThermoComfort" expanded clay concrete blocks.
– This workshop is our pride, – said Mikhail Lazarashvili. – Last year, we implemented a significant investment project to replace wooden molding pallets with plastic ones, which allowed us to increase productivity from 45 to 60 cubic meters of expanded clay concrete blocks per hour.
When constructing walls from "ThermoComfort" slotted expanded clay concrete blocks with a tongue-and-groove system for wall thicknesses of 200–500 mm, there is no need to lay mortar on horizontal joints, which helps to eliminate "cold bridges." As a result, the thermal resistance of a 400 mm thick wall, with the norm for our country being 3.2 m2∙°C/Вт, is 3.7 m2∙°C/Вт, and for a 500 mm wall, it is 4.55 m2∙°C/Вт. Buildings with increased thermal engineering requirements are built from such blocks. The costs of their heating are negligible.
Solid expanded clay concrete blocks with a tongue-and-groove system for wall thicknesses of 200–300 mm are ideal for ventilated facades. Blocks for interior partitions with thicknesses of 100 and 120 mm have a high airborne sound insulation index.
– In recent years, healthcare facilities in Belarus have been mainly built using our blocks, – the enterprise director says with pride. – For example, the RSPC "Mother and Child" and the hybrid surgery unit at the RSPC "Cardiology", several polyclinics in Minsk, and a new polyclinic in Orsha were built from them. We won tenders for the supply of materials for the construction of three more similar facilities in 2024. Perinatal centers in Russia – Arkhangelsk, Bryansk, Gatchina, Pskov, Smolensk – were built using our products. After all, expanded clay concrete blocks are an environmentally friendly, lightweight, and very durable material.
The enterprise management sees new prospects for the use of expanded clay in the production of single-layer enclosing panels for industrial housing construction. The Belarusian National Technical University has developed a composition of expanded clay foam concrete for the production of enclosing panels with a density of 400–450 kg/m3 with high mechanical and thermal properties. Extra-light expanded clay with an average density of 200–250 kg/m3 is used as a filler. This improves the thermophysical properties of the panels, makes them lighter, and reduces the load on building foundations.
– If you don't develop, you die, – Mikhail Lazarashvili is convinced. – That's why we encourage initiative at the plant. Initiative is a trait of competent, thinking, and caring specialists.
The head of the enterprise noted that currently the company, which employs just over 300 people, is undergoing a generational change. It is necessary to consider the staffing of blue-collar professions. Nevertheless, working at the expanded clay gravel plant is prestigious: high salary, broad social guarantees. For example, the collective agreement provides for the possibility of purchasing housing in installments without interest for those who have worked for at least a year. The administration welcomes the continuity of generations, sending children of employees to universities so that they return to production as young specialists. More than 30 dynasties work at the plant.