OREANDA-NEWS. Modernization of the vertical heating gas furnace has been successfully accomplished at OMZ Special Steel, part of OMZ Group.

The furnace features advanced gas burner units with integrated recuperation as well as advanced automated control system with testing devices produced by Siemens. KERATECH heat-insulating materials are used for equipment refractory. The modernization allows to conduct heat treatment of the units up to 8 m in diameter, 6.5 m long and 320 tonnes produced from special steel grades with hardening temperature up to 1100°С. The reconstructed furnace complies with all the standards and requirements for the new generation shaft furnaces (control accuracy ±5°C, heating rate up to 100°C/h).

Reconstruction of the heating furnace was conducted in line with the VVER-TOI project. In early 2014 OMZ Special Steels has manufactured a unique 6-meteres shell ring for the active zone of the new generation reactor VVE-TOI developed by the major NPP design engineering company Atomenergoproekt, part of Rosatom. The blank has been primarily heat treated at OMZ Special Steels and mechanical processing at Izhorskiye Zavody. In the near future the shell ring will undergo general heat treatment at the modernized OMZ Special Steels furnace.

OMZ Special Steels conducts equipment modernization under the investment programme supported by its financial partner Gazprombank. Total investment into the project for heating furnace modernization accounted for 50 million rubles.

Open Joint-Stock Company United Heavy Machinery Plants (Uralmash-Izhora Group) is one of the top companies in the heavy machine-building industry specializing in engineering, manufacturing, sales and servicing of equipment for nuclear energy sector, petrochemical and oil & gas industries, mining and in special steel making and the provision of industrial services. OMZ manufacturing facilities are located in Russia and the Czech Republic. The group is controlled by Gasprombank (Open Jont-Stock Company).