The full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine has been going on for over a year now. Esmil Group, the largest domestic manufacturer of wastewater treatment equipment established in Ukraine, has successfully coped with challenging conditions. We have not only ensured stable production in the Kharkiv region and maintained the high quality of our products, which are well known both in Ukraine and abroad, but also expanded our export activities.
After February 24, 2022, Esmil Group’s production facility in Chuhuiv, Kharkiv region, Ukraine, was very close to the active combat zone. During the first hardest weeks, the production processes were reorganized – equipment production continued even when the frontline was very close to the production facility, and the engineering department prepared documentation during the shelling of Kharkiv in the shelters. Some orders were transferred to our Polish factory, but it was thanks to the dedication and heroism of the Ukrainian employees. Moreover, Ukraine-based production managed to manufacture and ship equipment for both Ukrainian water utilities and customers abroad in the first half of 2022 on time.
We are proud of our Ukrainian employees who, during the fierce months of spring 2022, took an active part in production processes, helped to maintain production and machines, and sent equipment to our customers.
In the 3rd and 4th quarters of 2022, the company partially relocated its production processes to a new production facility in Chernivtsi, which is located in western Ukraine. There, we manufacture the aeration system based on Esmil fine-bubble tube air diffusers APKV. The new production facility also allows us to significantly increase the supply of equipment abroad.
Esmil Group is also actively implementing the Industry 4.0 concept at the new production facility. Among the equipment transported to Chernivtsi is the Hanwha HCR-12 collaborative robot, which is used to automate the assembly of aeration systems. This assistant was first put into operation at a production facility in Chuhuiv a few days before the war started.
A collaborative robot is an automated device that can work together with a human to create or produce various products. Like industrial robots, these cobots consist of a manipulator and a reprogrammable control device. The cobot generates control influences that set the necessary movements of the manipulator’s actuators. The Hanwha HCR-12 collaborative robot is the largest and most powerful in the line.
Main Hanwha HCR-12 cobot’s purposes:
- Replacing the operator of CNC machines when performing repetitive, monotonous operations.
- Palletizing finished products.
- Application of oils and/or other substances.
- Sorting of parts.
Currently, the Hanwha HCR-12 cobot plays a significant role in the manufacturing of tube air diffusers for frame drilling. Moreover, there are plans to enhance the cobot’s involvement in servicing extruders, as well as in the packaging and storage of finished products.
Even under martial law, Esmil Group plants located in Ukraine continue to operate at a high level and provide domestic water utilities and foreign customers around the world with reliable and efficient equipment. We continue our export activities – over the past year, Ukrainian production has fulfilled orders for water utilities not only in Ukraine but also in the EU, the US and China.
The collective efforts of our employees, coming from various regions of Ukraine and beyond, have been instrumental in achieving all of this. Their dedication to the equipment development has played a key role. Esmil Group’s capacity to adapt to challenging circumstances while upholding superior product quality makes us a dependable partner for both Ukrainian companies and international organizations, contributing significantly to the challenging task of rebuilding and advancing Ukraine’s development.
