Our History

The history of PLINFA begins in 1870, when the Swedish industrialist Pilström began to rebuild the soap factory of merchant Nikita Akimovich Pavlov into a cast iron foundry.

And within the next few years the plant was turned into a multi-purpose machine-building plant for manufacturing steam machines for sugar factories, kerosene engines, lathes, pasta mills, oil press and various tools for railway needs.

Since the beginning of the 20th century, the plant began producing equipment for brick factories - tape presses and processing equipment.

And already in the 30s for the needs of refractory enterprises, the production of the first in the Soviet Union knee-lever presses of semi-dry pressing to replace imported presses was developed and started.

From this time the plant (at that time «Red October») became the flagship of the engineering industry for the construction industry: ceramic, silicate and fireproof plants.

Other important dates and events in the history of the company:

  • 1870 - The Swedish industrialist Pilström started converting the soap factory into a cast iron foundry.
  • 1902 - The first screw press is available.
  • 1930s - The first Soviet-era semi-dry compression presses were developed and launched to replace imported presses.
  • In the 1940 – 1950, the plant produced technological lines of equipment for the manufacture of ceramic mass, ceramic pipes for sewage network, silicate brick.

  • Fifteen types of new machines were developed in the 1960s and 1970s.
  • In 1975, on the basis of the plant, as the head enterprise, a production association was created, which included a number of enterprises of different regions of the USSR. The association produced complex technological equipment for the production of ceramic and silicate bricks with a capacity of 15 – 75 mln. pieces per annum.
  • 1978 – 1988 marked the growth of technical re-equipment of the enterprise, the release of advanced equipment.
  • 1987 – 1991.  The capacity of the plant is only 270 screw presses per year, excluding the rest of the equipment (70 revolver presses for silicate brick, 20 presses for semidry pressing of firebrick, roller mills, feeders, mixers, crushers, clay shredders, etc.).

  • Starting in 2004, the plant started producing new equipment developed by its own design office in the PTC Creo program.

  • In 2005, there is a significant increase in the engineering staff (designer, ACSTP engineers, ceramic production technologists, etc.), which allowed to create an engineering and industrial group and come to the solution of complex tasks on the supply of technological lines. This year begins the development of the company as a supplier of brick factories «turnkey».

  • In 2008, a research laboratory was established and accredited and from that moment on the company was able to perform complex engineering projects, including the development of dryers and kilns.

Today the company’s central office «Plinfa» is located in Kharkov, one of the most developed scientific and industrial centers of modern Ukraine, having rich historical traditions in the field of development and production of building materials. In 1926, on the basis of the Kharkiv Institute of Technology (now UST «KPI»), the scientist with the world name Peter Budnikov founded the chair of silicate technology, which became the forge of specialists for the entire ceramic industry, and in 1927 in the city opens a research institute of refractory materials. Already in the post-war period, the ceramic direction continues to develop, and in 1951 the Central design office «Strommashina» was created, which begins to design equipment for brick factories.

PLINFA is a follower of centuries established in the region traditions of ceramic science and technology, the only in the territory of the post-Soviet space, which carries out the whole complex of works on the creation of ready-made business for customers. It includes raw material analysis, pre-design research, design, manufacture and installation of equipment, commissioning works, training of personnel and technical support in operation.