Interview with General Director of ZVK "BERVEL" Yu. V. Medvedev in the magazine "Fasteners, adhesives, tools and..." No. 3, 2019.*.
— Yuri Viktorovich, from the answers to previous questions it is obvious that your vision of the development prospects for Russian fastener production is noticeably different from the plans that are voiced at hardware conferences. And what BERVEL did—mastered the production of high-strength fasteners from weather-resistant steel—probably could have been done by other factories that have been producing fasteners since Soviet times. Moreover, the issue of producing similar fasteners in Russia for bridge structures has already been on the agenda for quite some time**. Why, in your opinion, haven’t other fastener manufacturers done this?
— I cannot answer for other fastener manufacturers, I can only express my assumptions. And the first, the simplest thing: ZVK "BERVEL" turned out to be technologically more prepared for the development of this particular product than other enterprises. But, in addition, the reasons here may be approximately the same as when developing many other new products. The development of almost any new type of product is a rather expensive process. As a rule, significant research work and costly production preparation are required. Without understanding the market capacity, this is a risk for the manufacturer. But there is no such understanding. There is a vicious circle effect here: the use of weather-resistant steels is hampered, in particular, by the lack of fasteners, and the emergence of weather-resistant fasteners is hampered by the lack of a sufficient market for structures made of weather-resistant steels and an understanding of the prospects of this market. Whether our risk will be justified or not, only time will tell.
— What were the difficulties in mastering the production of this fastener?
— Recommended weather-resistant steel for high-strength fasteners is 40KhGNMDF. This is a new steel, and there is no experience working with it, much less mass application. So we had to go the full route. The metallurgists did their best and clearly fulfilled all the requirements for a complex chemical composition. And then the fun began. The development of the technology for producing high-strength fasteners from this steel went in a circle: “regimes of spheroidizing annealing - experimental stamping - heat treatment.” For this steel, everything matters: the grain size, the ratio of spherical to lamellar pearlite, stamping patterns, and, of course, final heat treatment modes.
— How did you manage to overcome these difficulties? What helped - science or experienced specialists?
- One cannot exist without the other. Since metallurgy is an empirical science, a bare theory, not supported by practice, is usually untenable. We are developing very quickly. Our plant has been operating, in fact, for only three years, if you count from the start of production. However, during this time we have traveled a path that took some enterprises more than a decade to achieve. We actively attract both scientific personnel and experienced specialists.
I think that to a large extent we were helped by the fact that our plant is new, and therefore the specialists of ZVK "BERVEL" are “sharpened” precisely on the development of new products, since for a young enterprise, essentially all the products are new, even those that other plants have been producing for decades.
— Now everyone can buy this fastener from BERVEL?
- Like any other fastener. We didn't just release a pilot batch. We have mastered mass production. And now these products are in our line of offerings.
— Perhaps BERVEL has a backlog of orders for new fasteners?
— Yes, we have orders for this fastener, but, as I said above, it is too early to talk about large-scale use and a stable portfolio of orders.
— Are bridge builders not the only consumers of such fasteners?
- So far the only ones. The next industry, in our opinion, is energy. We really hope this is just the beginning. Abroad, weather-resistant steels are actively developing the civil construction market. I think that in our country, expanding the scope of application of weather-resistant steels would be logical and justified.
— What about the regulatory documentation for this fastener??
- Just like with any other. The foundation has been laid, but much more work is required. At one time, a number of institutes developed technical specifications, but life does not stand still. GOST standards for high-strength fasteners have changed, and some nuances have emerged during mastering. Amendments to this specification are currently being prepared, and we are actively participating in this. However, in order not to stop the process, we have issued the enterprise’s STO, based on GOST R 53664-2009 and technical specifications. We have received approvals and are producing absolutely legitimate products.
— And finally, a question about the implementation of your vision for the development of Russian production. What steps, in your opinion, are advisable and possible to take in this direction?
— I believe that Russian production should develop along the path of improving product quality and bringing it at least to world standards, replacing imports and introducing innovations. This is not new and it is absolutely fair that these are the priorities that are being set today at all levels of government. There is nothing to argue with here, of course, this is exactly what needs to be done. Another question is that without understanding the market prospects, it is very difficult for a manufacturer to invest in the future (and this is exactly what is needed to solve such problems). Most often, the manufacturer is simply forced to live for today and not invest in the development and modernization of his own production, since it is simply not clear to him whether tomorrow he will have a sufficient sales market for the products in which he will invest today.
*Beginning of the interview in the magazine “Fasteners, adhesives, tools and...” No. 2, 2019.
**Bridges made of weather-resistant steel. Authors: Doctor of Technical Sciences A. D. Konyukhov, engineer A. K. Shurtakov (JSC VNIIZhT), Candidates of Technical Sciences V. P. Kharchevnikov (JSC TsNIICHERMET), A. I. Shelest (JSC TsNIIS), engineer T. N. Vorobyova. “Bulletin of VNIIZhT” No. 4, 2011.
