When precision is everything: restoring critical production at ATOMENERGOMASH with laser technologies

With the beginning of the full-scale war, Ukraine faced a number of serious challenges. One of them was the temporary occupation of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. The country lost not only the largest nuclear power plant in Europe but also one of the most important industrial sites. On the territory of the plant were located the workshops of ATOMENERGOMASH (AEM) – the main manufacturer of equipment and consumables for nuclear power plants (NPPs).

AEM’s management faced a strategic task: to quickly restore the production of critically important products at alternative production facilities. Relying on many years of experience and a high engineering culture, the company’s team began to rethink the production process – focusing on rapid implementation, automation, precision, and modern technologies.

The challenge: cooling cassettes

Among the many tasks faced by the AEM team, the most critical was the restoration of cooling cassette production – components directly responsible for the safe and stable operation of reactor equipment. These cassettes remove heat from the reactor core and ensure uninterrupted operation of the plant.

A cooling cassette is a technologically complex product in which every element affects the overall efficiency and reliability of the system. The main component of the design is tubes with welded ribs. Their production requires not only high precision but also maximum repeatability – conditions that are almost impossible to achieve manually. At the same time, the tube diameter is only 16 mm, which imposes special requirements on welding quality and positioning accuracy.

To implement this project, a tender and a series of negotiations were conducted. As a result, the task was entrusted to the experts of STARTEC INDUSTRIES, which offered the best pricing conditions and had proven experience in implementing complex and non-standard technical solutions.

The solution: laser welding

Specialists from ATOMENERGOMASH together with engineers from STARTEC INDUSTRIES decided to use laser welding with robotic manipulators. This approach made it possible to:

• achieve the highest precision;
• eliminate deformation of thin-walled tubes;
• completely avoid the use of welding wire;
• ensure a clean, neat, and stable weld seam.

Compact integrated line

Another challenge was the limited space: the workshop had restrictions, and all equipment had to be placed as compactly as possible without losing functionality. This required an individual approach and precise engineering work from the professionals of STARTEC INDUSTRIES.

The line design includes the following key modules:

• automatic tube feeding magazine;
• rib feeding units;
• laser welding heads integrated with robotic manipulators;
• laser radiation sources;
• control cabinet.

The central element of the line is the welding robot-manipulator, which is responsible for feeding the ribs, their precise positioning, fixation, and subsequent laser welding. Thanks to full automation, the human factor was completely eliminated, ensuring consistent weld quality in serial production.

Safety and automation

In automated lines, it is important not only to ensure the execution of the technological process but also to guarantee complete operator safety. Therefore, the system was designed with all potential risks in mind: the line is equipped with numerous sensors that monitor the correct operation of the equipment and prevent people from entering hazardous zones. If the operator crosses the conditional “red lines” – for example, if a hand is accidentally brought to the working area – the system instantly stops the process.

All safety logic is integrated into the software, ensuring reliable and coordinated operation of all components.