VITKOVICE KLEMENT GOTTWALD IRON WORKS: NEW STEEL WORKS, VITKOVICE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00810A005000210003-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Sequence Number: 3
• Content Type: REPORT

INFORMATION REPORT
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SUUECT Vitkovice Klement Gottwald Iron Works:
New Steel Works, Vitkovice
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DATE OlIN. 9 December 1954
NO. OF FADES 5
NEOU FAWJNT NO. RD
THE SOURCE EVALUATIONS IN THIS ASPOW AM DEFINITIVE.
THE APPRAISAL OF CONTENT IS IMAMS.
(FOR MV S111 WOOD
The construction department is on the east side;
25X1
2.
Of the employees in this plant about 10 are women,! About 40 Orieoners from
the prison camp at Vitkovioe also work there, unloading trucks, There was also
a work-brigade of 50 persons from the military acadeny in Hranifts esployed In
the factory as unskilled labor. In addition, about 20 voluntary brigade workers
from various branches of trade and elsewhere work there.
brigade terms of six months.
They Ttork volmttasy
3.
Equipment (numbers refer to attached sketch):
1. The new steel works of the Vitkovice Klement Gottwald Iron Works is located
on the eastern edge of Vitkovice, east of the Vitkovice-Hrabuvk; road, in an
area about 2,000 meters long and 1,000 meters wide. The plant is surrounded
by a fence mostly of iron bars about two and one half meters high. On the
north side the fence is of wood, about two meters high. The railroad from the
old steel works to the blast furnaces leads past the north side of this Pao-
tort'. The transport department of the whole national enterprise is behind
the Vitkovice - Hrabuvka road, which runs along the west side of the factory.
a. Casting shop for manganese (17); two furnaces, each producing five tons
of manganese in one tapping. There are generally two tappings per furnace
during a shift.
h. Casting shop (20): 2 casting furnaces. One (1) produces 75 tons of steel
per tapping and the other (2) 150 tons: The tapping of the Martin furnaces
is always at 7 o'clock. "There are also eight Talbot furnaces, which always
have 1 tapping per shift. Each furnace has a capacity of 225 tone. These
furnaces are not always in production, but only according to the dsaand for
high-quality steel.
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c. Annealing furnaces (23): eight annealing furnaces in which 15 ingots are always
heated at one time,
d. Old rolling mill shop'(33): 1 rolling mill with five sections (40), 1 hydraulic
shearing machine (41).
e. New rolling mill, still under construction. So far no machinery has been in-
stalled.
f. New steel works: five cranes for 100 torn to 150 tong, three for 15 tor4sand four
for 10 tons. They are all overhead cranes. At the annealing furnaces there are
four crane., with a carrying capacity of 4 ton.
Electric current comes from the let-of-May Power Station by direct cable.
Raw materials are brought in by rail as follows,
a. Ores from the USSR, Sweden, Poland, Czechoslovakia.
b. Scrap iron mainly from Poland and from Brno and Pilsen plants.
c. Manganese ore from Sweden.
d. Dolomite from Poland.
e. Chromium arrives in crates measuring 100 x 60 x 60 (cm?) cortaining about 150
kg each. Origin unknown.
f. Silicon is brought in crates measuring 100 x 60 x 60 (cm?) weight 150 kg .
Origin unknown.
6. Monthly production is as follows: The casting shop molds three large pieces weighing
about 120 tons., which are made into crank shafts. In the casting shop are also molded:
9000 ingots for rail productions-alloy type III;
9000 ingots for plate production, alloy type VI)
;000 armor plates, 150 x 110 x 35 centimeters, alloy type P7;
20 ingots of high quality steel for production of axles and shafts, alloy type P12.
Ingots for rail production are finished in the rolling shop for rails and profile iron.
7. There is a shortage of metals for the production of high quality steel. In the January
1953 inventory it was found that on an average 45% of production in the rolling shop
was ruined. This discovery led to the transfer of all the foremen from the new steel
works to other places of work.
8. Shipment of products is as follows,
a. Rails are mostly sent to Korea.
b. Large molds for shafts for ships are finished in the old steel works and then
sent to bw~tzerland,
c. Ingots for plates are sent to an unknown destination,
d. Armor plates are sent to the USSR for further processing.
e. Ingots of high-quality steel go to the forge at the old steel works for finishing.
9. The new steel works fulfills the Five-year plan on an average of 88%. There is about
30% absenteeism.
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11. There are always two gatekeepers at the entrance, armed with pistols, and at night.
two works militia guards, armed with revolvers, patrol the plant. On Sundays a fire
g card patrol is also on duty.
12. Workers dislike their work and prefer to loaf in the canteen. They are dissatisfied
with financial conditions. Most of the workers live in private apartments. Only
party officials are alloted works apartments.
130 rolitical instruction takes place twice a week, always either before or after a shift,
for one hour. Officials are sent to advanced instructor courses for three months.
After that they act as instructors.
Key to the plan of New Steel Workst
1. Martin furnace.
2. Martin furnace.
3.- 10, Talbot furnaces.-
11. Chimneys of furnaces.
12. Bunker for lime, 15 x 3 x 4 meters.
13. Bunker for dolomite - 15 x 3 x 4 meters.
14. Bunker for magnesite - 15 x 3 x 4 meters.
15. Empty bunker - 15 x 3 x 4 meters.
16. Magnesite mill - 15 x 20 x 10 meters.
17. Casting shop for manganese - a two-story building, 20 it 30, height 8 m.
18.,19. Furnaces for smelting manganese.,
20. Workshop for Martin and Talbot furnaces. )
21. Entrance to workshop. ) Two story building,
22. Store for chamotte bricks. ) 120 it 60 x 30 meters.
23. Annealing furnaces shop. )
24i-31. Annealing furnaces.
32. Laboratory.
33. Rolling shop, 60 x 30 x 30 meters.
34. Newly constructed rolling shop, 60 x 40 x 30 meters.
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Pumping station for rolling shops and Martin furnaces, tyro-story
building, 30 x 20 x 12 meters,
Narrow-gauge track.
Standard-gauge railway track.
Road to Hrabuvka.
Fence.
Rolling mill.
Hydraulic shears.
Temporary store for rolled material.
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New Steel Works, Vitkovioe