Metallurgists from a small town in the Urals invented a new game - petanque in Russian. Workers Sukholozhsky foundry and mechanical plant (part of UMMC) gather in teams of 2-3 people and compete in accurate throws of steel balls. Battles with the permission of the enterprise management are deployed on the site before the plant management at the lunch break.

"We play for 10-15 minutes, and then the losers are treated to dinner winners. Prices in the factory canteen are democratic, so ruin does not threaten anyone, "jokes Roller Roller Hot Rolling Ruslan Balagetdinov.

Petank in Russian differs significantly from the classical French. The game is not on a sandy area, but on a clearing of a clearing, and instead of the usual throwing balls, factory workers use their own production - balls for grinding ore in mills with a diameter of 80 mm. In size, they fully meet the classical requirements of petanque, but by mass exceed the usual ball nearly three times. Their weight is 2.3 kg.

The idea to use products not for the purpose of workers was born last year, when the company launched the first ball rolling line. But it allowed to produce balls with a maximum diameter of 60 mm. Acquired ball rolling mill gave projectiles of the right size and the team was able to translate the idea into reality. The ideal form of the balls received at the camp was appreciated not only by their customers - mining and processing plants, but also by fans of the new Ural game.

The new line, which is now undergoing commissioning, produces balls by the method of cross-wedge rolling with a diameter of not only 80, but also 100 and 120 mm. Projected production capacity - 20 thousand tons per year. With the launch of the second line, which is scheduled for the first quarter of 2018, the enterprise will completely close the needs of UMMC enterprises in grinding balls. In order to increase the economic attractiveness of the project in the future, it is planned to use a mill for the production of an additional range of products, in particular lining bolts. Investments in the project will amount to about 150 million rubles.