Do you need the Volsky cement plants in Russia?

The cement plants of Russia are mostly based in the early years of the twentieth century. They were erected quickly and were equipped with advanced equipment for their time.

On the question of how to create building mixtures that, when saturated with water, would form rapidly hardening stone-like substances, scientists and chemists have fought for a long time. Such building material should have a certain strength, quickly harden, and at the same time its price could not be high.

After the invention of Portland cement by Joseph Aspdin in 1824, it took more than a quarter of a century to appreciate this material. The technology was based on the process of grinding lime rocks in combination with heat treatment.

The map of Russia's cement plants, both at the beginning of the 20th century, and today reflects geological data on the presence of Cretaceous deposits (the so-called apocs). Quite a logical consequence of this, and at the same time a very good coincidence, is the fact that such raw materials are most often mined on the banks of rivers and seas. Consequently, in most cases the transportation of finished products by water transport is not a problem.

An example of how the cement plants of Russia developed could be the enterprises of the city of Volsk, Saratov province. In 1897 the merchant Glukhov opened the production of building materials under the trademark "Partnership for the production of the Gluhozero Portland cement", for the first time using such a modern technology as roasting in rotating drum furnaces. In the years of Soviet power, this enterprise was named Bolshevik. 1912 was marked by the appearance of another player in the building materials market of the Russian Empire, the Saratov joint-stock company.

The Russian-Swiss production of Pligin and Seifert opened in 1903. Soon the Swiss joint-stock company Asserin launched another cement plant. Photos stored in the local history museum of the city of Volsk, recorded for the time of the moment the bookmark production workshops.

So, in less than a decade and a half a small county town turned into an advanced industrial center with four factories, loaded with orders of one hundred percent, and sometimes more. In the spring and summer period, seasonal workers were employed, for which so-called barracks were built.

The quality of the Volsky cement has always been the highest. It was used for the construction of fortifications, and then for the construction of the Ostankino Tower.

What is the secret of such an intense interest in cement by representatives of the business community? First, the availability of high-quality raw materials, which would be expensive to carry from afar. Secondly, a favorable investment climate. To conduct business in our country before 1917 was as simple as in Europe or the North American States, so the cement plants of Russia were so rapidly developing.

What has changed since then? Unfortunately, much. Of the four plants, only one remained, the same Glukhoozero "Bolshevik". Of course, the sources of raw materials are partially worked out, but it will last for hundreds of years. The Volga is in place. It is impossible to assert that the sale of such important building material has decreased. With the staff, including the highest qualification, there are still no problems. So what is needed to revive the best cement plants in Russia?