On November 19-21, Moscow hosted the Transport Week, a series of business events bringing together the representatives from many regions of the country and transportation industry leaders.
The Perm Region booth showcased large projects for transportation infrastructure development: a new transport model being implemented in the region, reconstruction projects of the Perm Airport “Bolshoye Savino” and for construction of a transfer hub in the Perm region capital. The booth also displayed IT solutions for road safety management, and unique applications developed by Ural Plant of Deicing Materials (UZPM).
UZPM Group introduced several new products to Governor Maxim Reshetnikov. Specifically, this year UZPM launched production of the first locally-made deicing fluids for aircraft. This is a strategically important development for Russia’s air transportation system.
“The use of deicing fluids is mandatory during aircraft pre-flight preparation during winter. Until recently, Russian airports had no choice but to purchase deicing fluids made on foreign technologies. There is a competitive local alternative, which, incidentally, is more eco-friendly. The product has been certified according to the international and domestic standards. We will supply testing batches of our deicing fluids to a number of Russian airports”– said Dmitriy Pylev, UZPM General Director. Notably, aircraft deicing liquids are included in the list of products due for import substitution.
The Plant also presented its new products for winter road maintenance. Supported by scientists, UZPM developed BIONORD Two-Phase deicer to combat winter road slipperiness. The product is unprecedented in Russia. The properties and melting abilities of the “classic” dry deicer are boosted and amplified by the liquid phase. The two ingredients are mixed in the vehicle’s distribution tray just before road surface treatment. The moistened granules are spread on the asphalt. The substance melts the ice quicker, is more cost-effective and environmentally safe.
The technological process has been improved as well: UZPM has created a storage and refilling infrastructure for the liquid phase, and provides it to customers for the duration of their contract. These stations are compact, easy and convenient to use, fully automated and equipped with a telemetry function for online control. They ensure drastic reduction of refilling time for snow plowing equipment, ensure the quality control of the product dispersed and monitor the consumption volume. Over three years, BIONORD Two-Phase has been successfully applied in Kazan. This season several Russian cities followed the example of the Tatarstan capital, Perm included.
Maxim Reshetnikov discussed the quality of winter road cleaning from snow and ice with UZPM representatives during his booth visit. He mentioned that Perm contractors should master up-to-date practices of using modern technologies in winter road maintenance.
“Help the city get a grip on the deicers. Perm is not the first city to start using deicing materials, but the technology is new and people need to be trained” - he urged the company’s executives.
The new technology requires new approaches in day-to-day operations, believes UZPM Commercial Director Evgeniy Nemirovskiy.
“We have delivered several training sessions to the city contractors with a hands-on demonstration of the technology for road treatment with the deicers. Road cleaning after icy rain went well; sidewalks were a bit problematic. UZPM always recommends purchasing a dedicated deicer for pedestrian areas, the one that contains crushed marble to ensure instant friction effect. For instance, in Moscow which is often cited as an example, winter maintenance requires five types of deicers” – shared Evgeny Nemirovsky.
He stressed that the company is always willing to provide advice to contractors, train them in modern winter road maintenance technology and share the experience of deicers applications from other regions.