JSC Donaerodorstroy

In 2021, JSC Donaerodorstroy (part of the Group of Construction Companies Don) celebrated its 65th anniversary. During this time, thousands of kilometers of roads have been built, hundreds of significant objects have been erected in the Rostov Region and other regions. Year after year, the Company confirms its status as one of the leaders in the road construction industry and strengthens the once established traditions: the use of modern materials and technologies with consistently high quality and production standards. But the most important result of the road builders work is the trace that they left in the history of the country: good roads that are needed both by the contemporaries and the future generations.

Leave a Large Footprint in the Sands of Time

Pages of history

The Company was founded in 1956. The military builders of the 8th military division after the Victory began construction of a new highway that connected Rostov-on-Don with Baku. In the autumn of 1956, the enterprise was renamed into Construction Department No. 15. Its first task was to create a fundamental network of intercity and inter-settlement roads in the Rostov Region. Perhaps it was the military roots that made the precise fulfillment of the tasks set principles to be the main ones in the road builders work. Then the enterprise was renamed into Dondorstroy Trust. The road builders erected key sections of the state highways Moscow - Volgograd, Moscow - Kharkov - Simferopol, Rostov-on-Don - Ordzhonikidze, as well as the airports of Volgograd, Taganrog, Volgodonsk, Rostov-on-Don, the runway in the stantiza (village) Veshenskaya.

For more than half a century of its existence, the enterprise has experienced several reorganizations, and all of them were associated with the stages of the country's formation. The 1990s of the last century called into question the very survival of the organization in the new economic conditions. It could repeat the fate of many others who did not stand the test and left the market. The year 1991 became a landmark for the Company: the Trust became a joint-stock company and was renamed into Donaerodorstroy. The second wind of the Company is associated with the names of Alexey Knyshov, Nikolai Imedashvili and Vladimir Kirsanov - managers and investors who were able to find a way out of a seemingly hopeless situation.

Starting from the 2000s, the new management managed to gradually form an efficient structure of the enterprise, increase production capacities and expand the geography of its presence. One of the business cards of the organization became M-4 Don Highway - it was reconstructed by the Company within the boundaries of the Rostov Region, on the section with a total length of 342 km. The road of the third technical category with a roadway width of 7 m and two traffic lanes has become the main traffic artery connecting the north of the country with the south. Among other significant objects are the eastern and western bypasses of Rostov-on-Don, bypasses of Semikarakorsk and Novocherkassk, a section of the Morozovsk-Volgodonsk Highway with a bridge across the Don, sections of the federal highways M-23 Rostov-on-Don - Taganrog - the border with Ukraine and M -6 "Caspian".

In the face of pandemic

At present time, JSC Donaerodorstroy is part of the Group of Construction Companies Don and performs a full range of road construction works, implementing projects of any complexity. Every year, the enterprise builds, reconstructs or overhauls more than 100 km of the federal and regional roads. Obviously, COVID-19 has been on the agenda for the last two years. The pandemic has made a significant impact on many segments of the economy.

"2020 turned out to be a difficult year for the whole country, including for the road industry, - said Vladimir Ivanov, Director General of JSC Donaerodorstroy. – Due to the spread of coronavirus infection, some organizations closed or suspended their activities, others have transferred their employees to a remote work mode. However, the road construction organizations were classified as continuously operating, so we kept to work."

Moreover, in the summer of 2020, Donaerodorstroy was included in the list of the fundamental organizations of the Russian economy.

Definitely, we had to make adjustments to our current activities: the enterprise took all security measures and complied with all the requirements of Rospotrebnadzor. In particular, sanitary measures were strengthened, the necessary amount of personal protective equipment and disinfectants for processing office and industrial premises were purchased. On the territory of the workers' camps located in the Rostov and Volgograd Regions, in the Krasnodar Territory and other regions, a thorough disinfection of residential and industrial premises was carried out. All these measures made it possible to survive the lockdown without loss. To date, all the employees have already passed several tests for coronavirus.

Despite all the constraining factors, Donaerodorstroy managed both not to slow down the pace of work compared to the previous year, but also to exceed the scheduled targets. Therefore, at present, the Company's contracts portfolio has several major projects, including the reconstruction of M-4 Don Highway as part of the construction of stages I and II of the Aksai bypass, the first stage of the road bypass of the hero city of Volgograd, the far western bypass of Krasnodar, as well as the northern bypass of Rostov-on-Don. The total value of the contracts portfolio in 2020 amounted to about RUB 20.2 billion. This year the Company intends to achieve the same figure as well.

Aksai bypass

For many years, JSC Donaerodorstroy has been a strategic partner of the Avtodor State Company, which is responsible for operational management of the M-4 Don Federal Highway. Currently, the most important infrastructure project in the Rostov Region is construction of the bypass around the city of Aksai. The construction is divided into several stages, JSC Donaerodorstroy is the general contractor at the two of them. In particular, this is reconstruction of the road in the sections 1072 km - 1091 km (the first and second stages) and 1024 km - 1036 km (the third stage), Vladimir Ivanov said.

In December 2020, the section from 1024+000 km to 1036+823 km was put into operation (Novopersianovka village of the Oktyabrsky district - Novocherkassk interchange on M-4 Don). Notably it happened in record-breaking time - a year earlier than stipulated by the contract. The 12.5 km section was brought to the parameters of the highest technical category with six lanes. Previously, during the summer holidays, extremely high loads were recorded on this section every year, which caused traffic jams on the highway.

"These results have been achieved thanks to the use of modern equipment and works production technology, introduction of automatic control systems for road construction equipment and automation of asphalt concrete and concrete plants, as well as due to improvement of labor organization, - commented Vladimir Ivanov. - Our technological solutions ensure that the work is completed on scheduled targets, using the most economical, energy-saving methods."

At the moment, the reconstruction works continues on the section 1072+321 km - 1079+943 km, 1081+866 km - 1091 km (interchange to Volgodonsk on M-4 "Don" Highway - the village of Sukhodolsk, Azov Region). The works have been deployed along the entire length: the reconstruction of main gas pipelines and power lines is being completed, about 40 units of special construction equipment and more than 50 qualified specialists are involved at the object. The active phase of construction will begin in April. The project provides for construction of the pedestrian overpass and eight bridges and overhead roads, including overhead roads with ramps through the Salskoye Koltso traffic circle at 1084 km. The overhead road will become part of the main M-4 Don route. Five supports with beams have already been installed. Works completion under the contract is in December 2022, however, it is likely that the road builders will repeat their record and put it into operation earlier.

Northern bypass of Rostov-on-Don

Equally significant project for the Rostov Region is construction of the northern bypass of the city of Rostov-on-Don, where JSC Donaerodorstroy is also the general contractor. The tender results became known at the beginning of February 2021, and in already March the road workers entered the site. The project implementation feature was the need to remove the engineering communications from the construction and reorganization zone: two high-voltage power lines, three strings of main gas pipelines and one oil pipeline. After the fundamental issues were settled, the road builders began their work: at present, they are clearing the site from the forest, are removing the soil and vegetation layer through the entire length of the site. About 15 units of various special equipment are involved.

The route under construction of the northern bypass of Rostov-on-Don with the length of about 12.75 km runs between the highways Rostov-on-Don - Rodionovo-Nesvetaiskaya - Novoshakhtinsk and Rostov-on-Don - Taganrog, bypassing the village of Chaltyr in the territory of the Myasikovsky District. The bypass section includes two bridge structures: overhead roads with the total length of 192.11 m. At the intersection with the Krasny Krym-Sultan-Saly highway, the project provides for construction of a traffic interchange, then the route will pass in a new direction until a smooth merger with the traffic interchange at 9 km of A-280 Federal Highway. In addition, outdoor lighting, noise-protective acoustic screens, metal barrier fence and traffic management systems will be installed on the northern bypass.

If we talk about the materials used, then the project includes the use of ShMA (Macadam and mastic asphalt concrete) - 15. The entire volume of the asphalt concrete mix is produced at the Donaerodorstroy’s plants according to the recipes of the own accredited laboratory. This coating has high wear resistance, long service life and low noise level during traffic. It remains stable under mechanical stress and is characterized by the increased coefficient of adhesion of tires to the road surface. Under the contract, all the road construction work on the northern bypass of Rostov-on-Don must be completed by December 2022, said Sergey Zubanov the First Deputy Director General.

Bypass of Krasnodar

Another large-scale project on M-4 "Don" is being built by Donaerodorstroy. It is the far western bypass of in the Krasnodar Territory. The far western bypass of Krasnodar long-term construction, repair and operation investment agreement was signed with Avtodor State Company in August 2020. The project is being implemented as part of the instructions of the President of Russia on formation of the near and far automobile approaches to the transport crossing through the Kerch Strait. The length of the new toll road will be 51 km, it will connect M-4 "Don" with the highway A-289 (Krasnodar - Slavyansk-on-Kuban). It will be a four-lane road of the highest technical category with an estimated speed of 120 km per hour with separated oncoming traffic. The project provides for the construction of three interchanges, four bridges and nine overhead roads. The new road will be ready in 2023. The expected traffic intensity is 30,000 vehicles per day.

Currently, the roadbed construction of the road main course is ongoing at the object. Since the beginning of the object construction, more than 1.4 million tons of sandy soil have been brought to form the subgrade. The specialists hammer piles of bridges and overhead roads, equip access roads. Lighting will be installed throughout the new highway. Within the boundaries of the right of way on both sides, in the area of the villages of Novotitarovskaya and Novovelichkovskaya, multifunctional road service zones will be located.

In the immediate vicinity of the construction site, in the village of Novotitorovskaya, Amomatic asphalt concrete plant has already been erected. It is designed to produce 4,000 tons of asphalt mix per day. Convenient logistics will make it possible to reduce the finished products transportation time. Like all other asphalt plants, Amomatic has computer control system for all the technological processes with the presence of all the additional systems for dosing and supplying mineral powder to the mixer, various stabilizing additives that improve the adhesion of stone materials to bitumen. This installation allows producing almost the entire range of the modern asphalt mixtures. To ensure uninterrupted supplies to road construction facilities, the necessary stock of the building materials is maintained on the territory of asphalt concrete plants.

Bypass of Volgograd

The Company's presence geography is not limited to the Rostov Region and the Krasnodar Territory. Currently, the Company's forces are concentrated on another important object - bypassing the hero city of Volgograd. Construction of the bypass with the total length of about 70 km is divided into three stages. The first, 12-kilometer line of the road includes three modern transport interchanges with exits to P-22 "Caspian" Federal Highway, the regional highway Volgograd - Kotelnikovo - Salsk and the entrance to the regional center, as well as the new bridge across the canal. The new facility will relieve the existing bridge crossing in the Krasnoarmeisky District and redirect the transit flow to the bypass road section, which will relieve traffic stress and make it possible to start thorough repair of the old structure.

At the moment, in the territory of the Svetloyarsky District of the Volgograd Region, as part of the first stage, the highway and two interchanges construction works continue, the builders are erecting a sand embankment. About 40% of the earth embankment has been completed, for which 1.5 million cubic meters of soil have already been transported. At the beginning of March, 18 out of 24 bridge piers across the Volga-Don Canal were built at the facility, the bridge builders assembled about 20% of the metal structures of the future spans of the facility. And for the overhead road construction as part of the road junction, it was hammered 264 reinforced concrete piles - half of what was needed. Also, the work is underway to assemble the reinforcement cages of the supports. Almost a third of the engineering communications passing through the territory of the facility have been rebuilt. Currently, more than 80 units of trucks are involved in the work: excavators, loaders, bulldozers, all-terrain vehicles, dump trucks, cranes, motor graders and soil rollers.

Production capacity

One of the indispensable conditions for participation in the national projects and other programs of the federal level is the availability of own capacities. The Donaerodorstroy’s structure includes nine production sites, ten asphalt plants, five concrete plants, the same number of access railway lines, six certified road laboratories, and ten large-capacity bitumen storage facilities. There is also the own base for the inert materials production. The Group of Companies Don has its own quarries for the extraction of limestone and sand gravel, loam and building sand in the Rostov Region and the Krasnodar Territory. At the end of 2020, it was purchased a second electric sand dredger for the Dorozhny quarry, which is located in the Aksai District. In 2021, about 900 thousand cubic meters of sand were mined with two dredgers. Also, additional special equipment was purchased for the quarry - bulldozers, loaders, excavators, dump trucks.

In total, the Company's fleet includes more than a thousand pieces of equipment, of both national and world brands. And the fleet of vehicles is constantly replenished: last year's novelty is the Volvo FMX dump truck on the 8x4 Tridem chassis. It is a three-axle bogie with off-road air suspension, which has the same ground clearance as the spring analogue, but at the same time significantly exceeds it in a number of characteristics. In general, the technical and technological equipment and production base of the enterprise make it possible to carry out land work in the amount of 2 million cubic meters on its own, produce up to 400 thousand tons of asphalt concrete, build and reconstruct up to 100 km of highways of the highest technical category.

Innovations

Nowadays the use of the innovations is becoming a necessary condition for the fast and high-quality implementation of the road construction works. A good example of their implementation was the already mentioned bypass of Aksai. This will be the first Russian autobahn designed and built according to the German standards. The main difference is that the number of pavement layers decreases, but their thickness increases. Thanks to this technology, the strength characteristics of each structural layer of the road base are increased, starting with the subgrade. The design of the Russian autobahn includes: soil stabilized with a mineral binder, geogrid for reinforcing and strengthening soils, crushed stone-sand mixture, several layers of coarse-grained dense asphalt concrete, high-density asphalt concrete and final top layer of crushed stone-mastic asphalt concrete (ShMA-15) on a polymer-bitumen binder.

The German regulations dictate that there should be a working layer, a frost-resistant layer, asphalt concrete, dense asphalt concrete and crushed stone-mastic asphalt concrete. Such a `pie` of pavement clothing has a strength factor of 2.32, which is almost two times higher than according to the Russian standards. The innovations will also affect the transverse profile of the road. The lane standards with a width of 3.75 m will be replaced by 3.5 m, and only the extreme right will remain unchanged - with expectation of movement of the heavy trucks. The road borders will be strengthened and widened to 3.75 m on the four-lane section and to 3 m on the six-lane section. This measure is explained by the fact that this area can be used to bypass a road accident or during the repair of the canvas.

Also, the automated traffic control system will be introduced on the Aksai bypass, which will provide a centralized organization of traffic flows, selection of the optimal speed mode, switching on and off outdoor lighting, as well as collecting, processing and archiving information about traffic, weather conditions, state of coverage and other events on the road.

Staff

Along with the modern technology application and innovations introduction, there is another important condition that distinguishes the leaders from the ordinary participants in the road construction market: these are the competences and professionalism of the team. Today, Donaerodorstroy employs more than 1,500 people, and all of them are non-random people in the industry. The main backbone has been working here for decades. Without them, the current milestone of 65 years would not have been possible. There are no easy ways in the road industry, each specialty requires not only profile education, but also quite specific individual qualities of a person: responsibility, dedication, as well as constant professional development. After all, modern technology is becoming not only more efficient and productive, but also more complex.

Not surprisingly, the Company revived the tradition of holding an annual professional skills competition. Last year, it was organized for the third time: 53 mechanized column specialists competed for the title of the best in their field - drivers of trucks and cars, buses, tractors and loaders, drivers of truck cranes, excavators, bulldozers, motor graders and self-propelled rollers competed in several categories. Ten machinists and drivers were named the best in their profession, who not only showed their skills in driving heavy construction and road equipment, but also demonstrated excellent theoretical knowledge of traffic rules and machine design.

However, this is the many years of practice result. And the choice of the path of any true professional is determined at the time of study. This link is not lost in JSC Donaerodorstroy either: a few years ago, between the enterprise and the Shakhty Automobile and Road Institute (a branch of the Federal State Budgetary Institution of Higher Education `South-Russian State Polytechnic University named after M.I. Platov`) it was signed the agreement on development of strategic partnership for advanced personnel training for the road transport industry of the region and the country as a whole. During this time, more than fifty students have completed on-the-job and pre-degree practice at the enterprise. In turn, the Donaerodorstroy specialists improve their scientific qualifications within the walls of the University: last year, three specialists successfully defended master's theses at the Department of Design and Construction of Highways.