History

February 28, 1917 is celebrated as the official establishment date of the company when it manufactured its first batch of ammunition for supplying the country’s army forces in WWI. Steel shell casings were filled with explosives.

The company became nationalised and was re-named as the Bogorodsk Munition Filling Factory.

The Factory launched its manufacture of gas masks, activated carbon and carbon dioxide-absorbing canisters. Up to 12000 gas masks and up to 60 tonnes of activated carbon were being produced per month.

Manufacture of chemical projectiles and personal protective equipment is mastered.

The Bogorodsk Munition Filling Factory was re-named to become Bogorodsk Factory No. 12.

A process was developed for manufacturing granulated absorber to entrap carbon dioxide and load it into the applicable cartridges for high-altitude balloons (stratostats). Thereby, in 1933-1934, the Soviet stratosphere pilots reached the world’s record altitude at the time – 22.000 km.

A new screw-feeder charging process was implemented, which substantially reduced the ammunition filling time. E.g., pilot models of one-tonne aerial bombs, which had previously taken two weeks each to fill, were now loaded within one hour.

The Factory was the first in the country to start mass production of M-8 and M-13 - the latest types of ammunition for artillery rocket systems know as “Katyusha”. By the end of the war, the Factory had manufactured 6.7 mln items of ammunition, i.e. essentially every alternate rocket projectile fired at the enemy.

By the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, the Factory was awarded the Order of Lenin for the implementation of a new continuous conveyor loading process for the majority of ammunition ranges. This flow process was replicated at other industrial plants.

The first melt of metallic uranium was carried out at the Factory, which set off the large-scale fabrication of uranium slugs required for Pu-239 breeding – the principal nuclear weapon component. In the fourth quarter of 1945, the plant manufactured the first 137 kg of metallic uranium.

In October, 36 tonnes of metallic uranium slugs required for F-1 (the “Physical First”) reactor start-up were manufactured and delivered. Obtaining a self-propagating chain reaction at F-1 reactor signified the beginning of the atomic era in the USSR.

The signed Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR awarded Factory No. 12 with the second Order of Lenin for mastering new flow processes related to armaments.

The fuel batch for the world’s first NPP in Obninsk was manufactured at the Factory, which marked the inception of its new area of activity.

The first USSR nuclear submarine was launched. And the fuel for its reactor core was manufactured by the Factory.

Lenin - the first USSR nuclear icebreaker was commissioned. The core for it was manufactured at the Factory, including nuclear fuel and rod cluster control assemblies.

The plant started series manufacture of FAs for NPPs. The first among them were Beloyarsk (AMB-100 ) NPP and Novovoronezh (VVER-210) NPP.

Factory No. 12 (p/o box No. А-7340) was re-named to become MSZ Machine Manufacturing Plant (Mashinostroitelny Zavod).

The shop for series manufacture of uranium fuel pellets and fuel rods for VVER-440 and RBMK-1000 reactors was established.

Mastering the process of FA manufacture for BN-600 fast breeder reactor at Beloyarsk NPP and series manufacture of VVER-440 FAs started.

The first core for Bilibino NPP was delivered.

An instrumentation shop for tooling and instrument manufacture for the core shops of the Plant was put into operation.

The first BN-600 reactor for Beloyarsk NPP was delivered. Earlier, the Plant had already manufactured and delivered nuclear fuel for BOR-60 (Russia) and BN-350 (Kazakhstan) fast breeder reactors.

First in the global practice, the automated line for RBMK-type (light-water-cooled graphite-moderated nuclear reactor) fuel rod manufacture was put into operation, making it possible to switch to the flow line manufacturing process with almost no human involvement.

The world’s first automated VVER-440 fuel rod manufacturing line was put into operation.

The launch of the automated RBMK-1000 fuel rod manufacturing line was awarded the State Prize of the USSR.

The established automated VVER-440 fuel rod line was awarded the State Prize of the USSR.

Square-type FA manufacture for PWR and BWR reactors of Western design was started in cooperation with a French company.

A highly automated dry conversion plant for uranium dioxide powder fabrication used in nuclear fuel manufacture was put into operation. The company’s output capacity reached 400 tonnes per year.

An array of FAs for CEFR China Experimental Fast Reactor was delivered.

Nuclear fuel as well as control and protection systems were manufactured for Akademik Lomonosov floating nuclear heat and power plant.

The first fuel rod for the spacecraft electric propulsion system was manufactured. The fuel rod design ensures its operability at high temperatures and their rapid changes as well as at high-dose radiation.

The company received the certificate of compliance with the requirements of ISO 50001:2011 energy management standard.

Nuclear fuel with increased operational life was manufactured for Vaygach nuclear icebreaker reactor.

Two cores, including control and protection systems, were manufactured for the first series all-purpose nuclear icebreaker Sibir.

FAs were manufactured for the first loading into VVER-1200 reactor at Belarusian NPP unit 1.

Photo: www.atomic-energy.ru

Acceptance tests of the pilot batch of UO2+Gd2O3 fuel rods for Kudandulam NPP were carried out.

A new site of uranium dioxide fabrication for fuel pellet manufacture was constructed. This project has improved environmental safety of nuclear fuel manufacture.

FA mock-ups and a test FA for the core of a small nuclear power plant (SNPP) were manufactured.

The start of fuel pellet manufacture for CFR-600 China Fast Reactor.

PIK-2 FA mock-up tests for the high-flux research reactor, located at the site of the FSBI B.P. Konstantinov St. Petersburg Nuclear Physics Institute in Gatchina, were successfully carried out.

Photo: www.atomic-energy.ru

The core with PIK-2 upgraded FAs was manufactured.

Alexander Ryumin/TASS

The core for the first fuel reload at Akademik Lomonosov floating nuclear heat and power plant was manufactured and shipped.

Photo: iceberg.sp.ru

Shim rod manufacture for Lider Project’s lead nuclear icebreaker Rossiya was launched.

The core set was manufactured for the second reactor at Yakutiya all-purpose nuclear icebreaker under construction at Baltic Shipyard in Saint Petersburg.