Magazine PROAVTO №2 (02) July-August 2013
Many of you have probably already heard about such a wonderful material as polyurethane. Now many people change the original suspension parts for polyurethane, not because there is a real need for it, but because it is cool – to ride polyurethane! But is all polyurethane good?
First, as I quickly learned, polyurethane can be different, both in properties and in scope, and, for example, polyurethane foam, which is used in construction, or shoe polyurethane is not suitable for the production of auto parts. But let’s dwell on auto parts in more detail. On the Internet, in numerous forums, people share both positive reviews and negative experiences of replacing rubber parts with polyurethane ones. You can find reports on the results of installation and operation of products from different manufacturers, their comparison. This helps to weed out some of the unscrupulous sellers and manufacturers from low-quality material, but it’s still quite difficult to make a final decision and make a choice from the rest, since you can find both rave reviews and harsh criticism about any manufacturer, if desired.
On reflection, I decided first of all to call the organization called, in fact, “Polyurethane”. Their website makes a completely positive impression, the managers of the online store are polite and quite intelligibly and clearly answer questions, advise and help with the selection of parts for the car. In response to doubts about the quality of the products, I was asked to come and look at their products on my own.
When I got there, I got to know the products and employees of Polyurethan LLC better. In response to a question about the manufacturer, I received the answer that all parts are produced here, in Novosibirsk.
Some bushings and bushings that I was interested in externally differed significantly from the original products. As they explained to me, changes in the design are being made to increase the wear resistance of products, and due to the difference in the properties of polyurethane and rubber, manufacturers of original auto parts cannot use such a design initially. I was also asked to test the performance myself by installing the products on my car. LLC “Polyurethan” does not have its own service station and does not perform work on the installation of spare parts. However, at the same time, they have detailed instructions on how to install the silencers on their website, and there are also a large number of service stations in Novosibirsk that cooperate with Polyurethan LLC, in which they will carry out free work to replace spare parts in a warranty case.
Having held the products themselves in my hands, and after talking with the employees of Polyurethan LLC, I arranged a trip to the production facility.
The production workshops of the company are located in the Novosibirsk region, not far from Akademgorodok. By agreement with the representatives of Polyurethan LLC, I will not dwell on all the nuances of the process (since many of its stages are trade secrets), I will only say that the products are manufactured on site, molds for casting and fittings are made here. A separate workshop is engaged in the manufacture of molds and fittings: the noise of working lathes is heard everywhere, on which molds and fittings for new products are milled. All this, as soon as it is ready, goes to another workshop, where the molds and fittings are prepared for pouring: a pallet of new parts is being carried past – still soft and hot, but the next batch of forms is sent for pouring.
And finally, in the adjacent workshop, the final processing of the products takes place.
In addition, a separate department is engaged in replacing the worn rubber layer of various shafts and rollers with polyurethane, as well as developing molds and casting individual orders such as engine mountings, various cuffs and other spare parts for industrial equipment.
Separately, mention should be made of the massive test facility, which occupies a significant area of one of the workshops. Every day, the behavior of silent blocks is tested on it, their tensile strength and resistance to high loads are checked. According to the engineers, each new type of silentblock is necessarily tested at the stand, and, if defects are detected, the production of the product is suspended until the defects discovered during the tests are eliminated.
The range of manufactured parts is huge, and its variety is simply amazing. In addition to suspension parts of all types (not only bushings and bushings, but also engine mountings and CV joint anthers), various mounts and belts are poured here, designed for widespread use in everyday life, various accessories for hunting rifles such as mounts for cartridges on the butt, and much other.
Work in production is literally in full swing. The actions of employees are verified to automatism; precision and professionalism show through in every movement. According to the head of production, the rotation of employees is low, most of the people have been working here since the opening of the organization. All people working in production departments are characterized by a high level of responsibility, a professional approach to business and high quality.
