Two quarto crate frames have been delivered to the Ashinsky Metallurgical Plant for a new rolling mill, which is being built as part of a large-scale reconstruction of sheet-rolling workshop No. 1. Each of the solid-cast structures weighing more than 315 tons has come a long way from a manufacturer in China to an industrial site in Asha.
Currently, the company is replacing the morally and physically outdated equipment of the existing 2850 hot rolling mill with a modern 2800 mill. The beds are the supporting base of the rolling crate. During operation, they ensure the rigidity of the entire structure by absorbing rolling forces and shock loads. The length of each bed is 13.6 meters, the width is 4.6 meters, and the thickness is 2.1 meters.
The equipment went from the manufacturing site in China to Asha for about two and a half months. For its delivery, a special multimodal scheme was developed using automobile, river and sea transport.
The bed was transported by road from Chengdu —Dayang district to Leshan, where it was loaded onto a barge. The equipment traveled through China's inland waterways to the Taicang seaport, from where it passed through the waters of Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the Red Sea and the Suez Canal on a bulk carrier, then through the Mediterranean Sea, the Strait of Gibraltar, the Atlantic, the English Channel and the Baltic Sea. About 40 days later, the cargo arrived at the port of Bronka in St. Petersburg.
From St. Petersburg, the barge-towing train went to Ufa along the Neva, Lake Ladoga, Sviri, Lake Onega, Volga-Baltic Waterway, Volga, Kama and Belaya. The transfer from St. Petersburg to Ufa took about 15 days. A temporary mooring facility has been set up in Ufa to receive heavy cargo. There, the beds were reloaded from a barge onto a specialized road train. The equipment traveled about 110 kilometers from Ufa to Asha by road. A 24-axle road train was used to transport each bed.
The car route was prepared in advance: bridges and other artificial structures were examined, dimensional restrictions and turning radii were analyzed. In some areas, the turning radii were increased, additional filling with crushed stone mixture was carried out and road slabs were laid. Time restrictions were imposed on the route and reverse traffic was organized.
"The delivery of the mill required a detailed study of the entire route — from the manufacturing plant in China to the industrial site in Asha. It was necessary to take into account the timing of sea and river navigation, the possibilities of port and road infrastructure, technology of overloading and restrictions on the transportation of heavy equipment. The arrival of the stands allows us to move on to the next stage of reconstruction — preparation for the installation of the crate.