Mr. Golyakevich, it is known that You came from the academic sphere What did stimulate You to organize an independent work, i.e. selection of «free floating»?
Here, there are several reasons. The experience of development of fluxcored wires and organizing of their manufacture and also the experience of implementation in solution of definite industrial problems, which was gained at the E.O. Paton Electric Welding Institute, and, surely, the wish of self-realization.How did You start? What first steps of You and your company were defined as most important?
The first steps were coming from circumstances, arisen at the beginning of the 1990s, connected with a rupture of trade-economic relations. The delivery of metal strip for flux-cored wire manufacture from Russia to Ukraine was interrupted. Therefore, the Russian-Ukrainian joint venture, «TM.WELTEC Ltd.», was founded, allowing us to regulate the delivery of strip from Lipetsk Metallurgical Works to Ukraine and to provide at the same time the delivery of flux-cored wires, manufactured at OJSC «Dneprometiz» (DMPO) to the CIS market. All this took place at the conditions of absence of own capacities for manufacture of wires. Team, consisting of specialists of the E.O. Paton Electric Welding Institute, arranged the raw material supply to DMPO, organized research-experimental development of flux-cored wires for the new appeared needs of enterprises, provided marketing and engineering accompanying of the products. This scheme of cooperation of «TM.WELTEC Ltd.» and DMPO occurred to be very challenging, as it allow us to preserve the production base in DMPO, not to lose the skilled specialists and simultaneously to realize the modernization of capacities for improving the quality of the manufactured products.What is the further progress of the enterprise?
Having overcome the first difficulties, the further steps became clear for increasing the volumes of production and nomenclature with a continuous improving the quality. It was at this step when the production enterprise TM.WELTEC Ltd. was distinguished from the joint enterprise. The capacities were rented for manufacture of flux-cored wires (including all the cycle of technological operations) in DMPO. Potential of the enterprise was increased by inviting the young specialists passed the professional training by skilled workers. The systematic work was organized for study of demand for surfacing and welding materials at the enterprises of a number branches of industry. Simultaneously, the work was organized for revision (modernization) of compositions of the earlier manufactured wires taking into account the remarks and requirements of the customers.What are the strong sides of the enterprise?
You have modernized the production. What did this give for enterprise?
The modernization of the existing equipment was realized almost at all the operational areas of the production. Installed additionally were line for strip cleaning, two six-roller mill, several units of crushing and grinding equipment, furnaces for heat treatment of charge materials and ready products, etc. The carrying out of these measures made it possible to widen greatly the nomenclature of manufactured wires, to increase the efficiency of the process of manufacture and, more important, to increase the quality of products.The company can produce up to 5000 tons of flux-cored wire per year. In fact, the volume of production during recent years is 1000 tons per year. What are the prospects for increasing the volumes of production?
During recent years many new wires for different branches of industry were developed. As our practical experience show, the time of passing from pilot-industrial types to the mass implementation into production takes from three up to five years. Coming from our capacities we believe to increase the volumes of sale up to 3,000 tons per year, if we have the favorable situation at the market.To what countries do you deliver the products and what are prospects for widening the geography of delivery?
Except Ukraine our products are supplied to Russia, Belarus, Czechia, Turkey, Baltic countries, countries of Middle Asia and have challenging prospects for coming to the markets of some more countries.Concerning the quality of products. Do you apply the Quality Management System at the enterprise?
Since 2004 the Quality Management System was implemented and operate successfully, which is in compliance with requirements of ISO 9001:2009, certified by UkrSepro and Russian Maritime Register of Shipping. All the main types of wires were certified by UkrSepro. Wire of TMV-7 grade was certified (and already during 15 years the certificate is confirmed) by Lloyd’s Register (Great Britain) and Russian Maritime Register of Shipping. The real characteristic of quality of the manufactured wire is a low share of subquality products (about 0.8—0.9 %).What additional services are provided by the Company?
Cutting of strip, crushing and grinding of raw materials. Since 2013 the lines of surfacing and manufacture of oversized metal structures were put into service. In cooperation with partners a specialized surfacing equipment is designed and manufactured.What are the terms of orders fulfillment?
This depends on volume of delivery and complications in products manufacture. We are shipping from 5 kg up to railway cars. We can produce up to 7 tons of wires, simultaneously up to 5 grades of diameter from 1 up to 6 mm per one working shift.What are the prospects of cooperation with the PWI and other research centers and prospects for production of the more high-tech products?
We have a rather beneficial cooperation for a long time with the PWI Department (moreover, the definite results were obtained both in research and production spheres). We also cooperate effectively with Lvov Physical and Mechanical Institute, Priazovsky State Technical University, Dnepropetrovsk University of Railroad Transport, V.N. Bakul Institute for Superhard Materials of the NAS of Ukraine. We support also relations with a number of foreign institutes. We believe that the further widening of cooperation with PWI will enable us to increase the competiveness of products, manufactured by the TM.WELTEC Ltd., in improving their quality, development of new grades of wires, that in its turn will guarantee the significant increase in volume of production, and also widen the markets, including those in countries of Europe and Eurasian Union.
