Oooh crystal. Moscow plant "Crystal"

The biography of the Moscow Kristall plant dates back to 1966, when the decision was made to build it. In May 1966, the USSR Council of Ministers authorized the USSR Ministry of Finance to build a diamond production factory in Moscow. The development of the architectural and construction part was entrusted to Workshop No. 14 of Mosproekt-1. By order of the Executive Committee of the Moscow City Council, a land plot of 2.5 hectares was allocated for the construction of a factory on the territory of the Novonikolsky village in Khimki-Khovrino. In July 1968, a directorate for the construction of a diamond production factory was created under the Goznak Administration, headed by Boris Vasilyevich Andrianov.

Cutting shop of the Moscow plant "Crystal", 1980

By order of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, the construction of a diamond factory was included in the list of especially important construction projects in the country. By Order of the Minister of Instrument Engineering No. 259, the Moscow diamond factory was renamed the Moscow Crystal Factory.

Construction of the plant lasted 27 months, and on December 25, 1970, the State Acceptance Commission signed the Certificate of Acceptance for Operation of the Moscow Kristall Plant with a “good” rating. The developer of the architectural part of the project, Karo Sergeevich Shekhoyan, was awarded the State Prize of the RSFSR.

The Smolensk Kristall plant provided great assistance, sending a group of various specialists to train the necessary personnel and set up diamond production.

December 18, 1970 graduate of GPTU-150 Drykin Vladimir Nikolaevich made the first diamond - this date became the founding day of the Moscow Crystal plant. Two years later, on December 21, 1972, cutter Viktor Ivanovich Chulkov produced the millionth diamond.

Diamond cutter at the Moscow Kristall plant

The enterprise developed at a rapid pace and in October 1974 the Moscow Kristall plant reached its design capacity. By this time, the plant employed more than 2,500 people and trained 198 students. During 1974, 1,603,209 diamonds were produced with a total weight of 127,128 carats.

In August 1975, the first industry competition of the skills of diamond cutters into brilliants was held at the Smolensk Kristall plant. The winner of the competition was the cutter of the Moscow Kristall plant, Grigory Ivanovich Kravchenko, who also became the winner of the second craftsmanship competition held later in Moscow.

The quality of diamonds produced at Kristall factories was highly valued in the West. A special term “Russian cut” has emerged in the global diamond market. The work of the best production workers was highly appreciated, more than 30 plant employees were awarded government awards.

In 1978, changes occurred in the management of the industry. Two production associations were created: Moscow and Smolensk. On the basis of the Moscow Kristall plant, as the head enterprise, the Moscow Production Association (MPO) Kristall was created, which includes the Kiev, Vinnitsa and Barnaul factories. In 1982, the Association included its branches in the cities of Yangier and Shakhrisabz of the Uzbek SSR.

In 1980, for the success achieved in fulfilling and exceeding state plans, the Moscow Kristall plant was awarded the title “Exemplary Enterprise”.

Recreation area of the Moscow Diamond Factory "Crystal"

In 1982, the total number of employees of the enterprise included in MPO Kristall was 10,047 people and 427 students. 8,524,738 diamonds were produced, weighing a total of 410,958 carats.

Much credit for the establishment of the enterprise and its achievements belongs to the plant managers. Over the years, the company was headed by:
1. from May 1970 to October 1978 Potekhin Nikolay Vasilievich;
2. from October 1978 to August 1980 Pershin Nikolai Ivanovich;
3. from August 1980 to March 1985 Podlegaev Mikhail Vasilievich;
4. from March 1985 to January 1994 Sorokin Yuri Filippovich;
5. from January 1994 to February 1998 Dmitriev Yuri Petrovich;
6. from February 1998 to 2000 Blagoder Sergey Petrovich.

In 1999, the Moscow Kristall plant was transformed into a State Unitary Enterprise, on the basis of the property complex of which the Almazny Mir Open Joint Stock Company was created in the same year. The General Director of Almazny Mir OJSC from March 2000 to August 2003 was Vyacheslav Anatolyevich Bychkov. From September 2003 to the present day, the General Director is Sergey Aramovich Ulin.

The Moscow plant "Kristall" has been transforming rough diamonds into polished diamonds for more than a quarter of a century and was rightfully considered the flagship of the domestic cutting industry. As the legal successor of Kristall, Almazny Mir OJSC not only supports the heritage and good traditions of the plant, continuing the great history of Russian Cutting, but also confidently looks to the future, transforming into the Diamond Center of Russia.

The Moscow plant "Crystal" was the largest domestic plant. It survived the Great Patriotic War, a series of prohibition laws, but today the production of alcohol here has ceased. The main facilities were moved outside the city limits, to the Korystovo branch near Moscow.

Creation

By the end of the 19th century, alcohol consumption in Russia had reached alarming proportions. In order to streamline the alcohol market and accumulate income from its sale, the talented Minister of Finance S.Yu. Witte in 1896 approved a state monopoly on fortified drinks.

In 1901, in the capital on the banks of the river. Yauza, a large wine warehouse was organized, which later became the Moscow Crystal Factory. Every year, up to 2.6 million deciliters (2.1 million 12-liter buckets) of alcoholic beverages of various strengths were produced here. The number of workers reached one and a half thousand. V. A. Velichkin and N. G. Faleev were involved. Their creation still pleases Muscovites and is a protected architectural monument.

The official opening took place on June 24, 1901. Initially, the products of the Kristall plant (Moscow) consisted of only three types of vodka: “Boyarskaya”, “Improved” and “Simple”. After only a week of work, it became clear that the enterprise’s capacity was insufficient due to increased demand for high-quality vodka. We had to increase the number of filters and radically re-equip the premises.

In 1914, the plant already produced 5 types of strong drinks. The most popular was “Moscow Special” vodka. According to legend, its original recipe was developed by D.I. Mendeleev himself. With the outbreak of the First World War, a temporary prohibition was declared. The premises housed a hospital.

In 1923, production of alcohol-containing drinks at Kristall resumed. Prohibition was lifted in stages, so the basis of the product was 20-degree liqueurs. After 1925, the production of vodka was resumed, and the first brand was Rykovka. Over time, the recipes and technologies developed by the plant were transferred to other state enterprises. In 1937, the assortment expanded to include “female” liqueurs (“Vanilla,” “Rose,” “Chocolate”) and “male” fortified liqueurs (“Curaço,” “Benedictine,” “Chartreuse”). During the war, the company combined the production of alcohols (liquid and dry) with the production of Molotov cocktails.

Post-war development

In 1945, production was resumed at the Kristall plant in Moscow. In the new workshop No. 1, they mastered the production of especially high-quality varieties of vodka for the Soviet elite. In 1953, the most famous brand, Stolichnaya vodka, was launched into series.

After the collapse of the USSR, the enterprise was transformed into LLC "Plant "Crystal"" (Moscow). In 1998, a branch was opened in the village of Korystovo, where production was subsequently moved. Back in 2011, Kristall was the largest Russian manufacturer of alcoholic beverages. However, according to corporate policy and the master plan for the development of the capital, in 2015 the equipment was stopped, gradually dismantled and transferred to another site. The famous brand continues to operate, but in a new location.

From production to art

The area of the enterprise exceeds 9 hectares. Buildings built during the reign of the Tsar have architectural value. In the near future, the territory is expected to undergo a large-scale reorganization. According to the urban planning plan, the external appearance of the production premises will be preserved, but the inside will be remodeled.

The flagship of the new project is the so-called art cluster, in which creative life is in full swing around the clock, seven days a week. Already now, in the spaces previously occupied by vodka equipment, exhibitions are being held, flash mobs and installations are being organized. They seem to breathe life into empty workshops.

The future of the plant

According to the project, part of the territory is allocated for residential development. The main building will be used for apartments. Additionally, a school, lecture hall, kindergarten, restaurants and sports grounds will be located on the territory of the Kristall plant (Moscow). The premises of the former factory club will be restored, preserving the ambiance of the Soviet era. It will include performances by theater troupes.

A feature of the reconstruction is the phased implementation of various projects. They will not completely close the area for a total refurbishment. Visitors will be able to watch how a large industrial production site is being transformed into a fashionable holiday destination.

In order to attract professionals in the field of architecture and design to the project, it was decided to hold a competition to create love apartments and public spaces. The capital's chief architect, Sergei Kuznetsov, was involved in the implementation of the ideas.

The Crystal quarter is a pilot project of a “city within a city”. In the future, many industries will be moved to the suburban area, and the vacated industrial zones will be transformed into similar cultural, residential, and social clusters. The fate of other sites depends on how successful the transformation of the Moscow Kristall Plant turns out.

Cutting shop of the Moscow plant "Crystal", 1980

The Smolensk Kristall plant provided great assistance, sending a group of various specialists to train the necessary personnel and set up diamond production.

Diamond cutter at the Moscow Kristall plant

In 1980, for the success achieved in fulfilling and exceeding state plans, the Moscow Kristall plant was awarded the title “Exemplary Enterprise”.

Recreation area of the Moscow Diamond Factory "Crystal"

In 1982, the total number of employees of the enterprise included in MPO Kristall was 10,047 people and 427 students. 8,524,738 diamonds were produced, weighing a total of 410,958 carats.

For the first time people started talking about the Kristall distillery as another space from which machines have been removed and they are going to import culture and small businesses when it hosted the last summer food market Stay Hungry Backyard, which had already made its mark in iconic industrial zones - at the Danilovskaya Manufactory, where Afisha is located, and in Krasnaya Roza, where Yandex is based. For everyone, excursions around the Krystalovsky territory were then held with the story that soon a self-sufficient ecosystem with lofts, offices of creative companies, workshops, showrooms and all other attributes of an ideal commune, including kindergartens and laundries, would be built here.

Moscow has already gotten its hands on projects to return industrial spaces to the people; the closest example is Artplay across the river from Kristall. The most significant difference between the Moscow rethinking of factories and factories from Western gentrification is that our self-government is completely undeveloped, small companies do not know how to negotiate in order to act together, and new life in industrial zones arises exclusively at the behest of development companies. And they are driven by the only motivation - to earn money. Now, while the currency is rising, small businesses are collapsing and the rental market is in a fever, the rules for reconstructing factories have once again changed. So people who take up the task of re-equipping Kristall will have to be patient and show ingenuity.

Here is a video from Stay Hungry demonstrating the capabilities of the Kristall plant. Video: Mitya Langleben

Team

The opportunity for rebirth of the most famous vodka factory in Russia appeared thanks to the fact that the Krays company, which has so far been seen in the construction of conventional housing and shopping centers in the regions, took on it. It is believed that the initiators were the structures of Arkady Rotenberg, whose people manage Crystal. Krays began to conquer the capital by recruiting a strong marketing and production team into their project.

Its leader is Alex Stolyarik, whose background includes Harvard and MIT, director of the educational program “New Leaders of Territorial Development”, who was involved in the development of Nikola-Lenivets, and even earlier was the general director of the company that built Afimall. Anna Manyuk is responsible for marketing - the right hand of Oleg Goncharov, the former head of the Flacon design factory, who now works in Maxim Nogotkov's Archpolis and also works with Nikola-Lenivets. “Flacon” is a key landmark here: unlike “Winzavod”, where the galleries were mired in communal squabbles, “Flacon” embodied the idea of a cluster, as in Berlin, where the development concept was spelled out from the very beginning, and tenants participated in its implementation, and not just bore rent to the owners. Timur Bolotov, director of administrative and operational affairs, was lured from Flakon to Kristall.

Now, however, the team faces a task on a completely different level than filling the neighborhood with cozy falafel stalls and festivals where they sell Chinese glasses and felt beads. The territory of “Crystal” is 9 hectares, that’s almost four “Flacons” three minutes by car from the Garden Ring, and new development is planned on 2.5 hectares.

Photo: Varvara Gevorgizova

Architectural design and development

While the development of “Crystal” is subject to long-term approval from the authorities, the architectural bureau Map Architects, headed by Alexander Poroshkin, is working on its core - the historical part. Among the projects he has implemented are the area in front of the Roomer shopping center on Avtozavodskaya and the improvement of Port Plaza, a new business complex with a port on ZIL. The essence of the architectural concept of “Crystal” is the combination of historical buildings with modern construction. Here, as an example, the “Stanislavsky Factory” is set on the site of the “Electroprovod” plant, where the business center and the theater “Studio of Theatrical Art” by Sergei Zhenovach are adjacent. During the construction it is planned to use brick, metal, wood - all those materials that are associated with the industrial aesthetics of the 19th century.

“It’s also worth remembering that this is a vodka factory,” says Poroshkin, “its semantic component is quite strong, plus artifacts in the form of barrels or a “vodka pipeline” have been preserved - along it you can go through all the buildings and return to the same place you came from. We want to preserve this history and add to it.” “Our task, as people who understand the importance of creative infrastructure,” adds the architect, “is to show that a balance is necessary between commercial efficiency and cultural fullness.” By the way, about vodka: there is a Museum of the History of Vodka on the territory and will not go anywhere, where, in addition to collectible bottles and the inevitable stuffed bear with a tray, you can also look at pre-revolutionary production.

The main building, where exhibitions are planned to be held until spring, will later be divided into residential lofts, and workshops will operate in adjacent rooms. The project for the development of public spaces - the entrance area, terraces near the lofts, courtyards, gardens and vegetable gardens - has not yet been formed. The most energetically powerful place on the territory of the factory, where Stay Hungry Backyard was held, is an abandoned railway station and overgrown rails. It shares historic buildings with hangars that will be replaced by new housing, and feels like a cross between a Western landscape and the High Line. “There are ideas to connect this line with the adjacent territories,” says Alex Stolyarik, “to build a bridge across the Yauza, run a tram to Artplay and to Kurskaya.” So far this is all just at the level of ideas, but this piece of the southeastern district definitely requires rethinking. Opposite here Andrey Grinev is going to develop "Art Quarter", there is both the 1st May Park and the Lefortovo Park. In the “New Leaders of Territorial Development” program this year, “Crystal” is considered as a key case; Britannia students lined up to Stolyarik with their ideas - the plant will clearly provide the architectural and urban community with tasks for the years ahead.

Cultural cluster concept

“While working on “Flacon,” we understood what a creative territory is, which is something more than just a real estate object,” Anna Manyuk shares her impressions, “we built several semantic levels of the project, making “Flacon” an experimental laboratory for the city, for young creative businesses that are able to independently create their own spaces for work and leisure. For example, Seasons magazine, which has an office at Flakon, landscaped the area at its Design Cleanup Days, and in the spring they will hold the same cleanup at Kristall. Here we want to create a full-fledged prototype of a self-sustaining economy. Of course, we will not raise cows or plant cereals, but it is assumed that all the vital needs of the townspeople - beautiful things, good leisure time, education of children, sports and culture - will be fulfilled at Kristall.

“We say “Crystal City,” says Stolyarik, “because we will create here a real city forum with an internal decision-making system and the exchange of products between people. We will reinvest part of the rental funds into the territory; we are thinking about establishing import-export relations with Flacon, Artplay and Elektrozavod. About creating a special economic zone for residents. There is even a great idea to achieve tax breaks if we manage to create the Made in Kristall brand.

You won’t surprise anyone with lofts in industrial zones as such - they are at the same Danilovskaya manufactory. But around them, besides parking, offices and a couple of chain cafes, there is only concrete and a couple of lawns. Employees have the same emotional connection with these spaces as with office centers in the most sophisticated new buildings - it’s just a place to work. “Crystal” assumes that the residents of future lofts, new, more budget-friendly houses and residents of workshops, creative offices and cafes are the same people who themselves invest in the development of their territory. “If we compare it with similar real estate projects, that is, there is such a micro-city “In the Forest,” says Manyuk, “where apartment residents can buy commercial space on the ground floors at a discount and open their own bakeries, yoga studios and veterinary clinics. We profess a similar approach, only “In the Forest” is located on the 7th kilometer of Pyatnitskoye Highway, and we are inside the Third Ring.”

What and when

Production was removed from Kristall only in April 2013 - by order of the city authorities, the entire industry had to move beyond the Moscow Ring Road, but in some workshops there were still old tanks and other props. In the summer, on the territory of the plant, if you listen closely, you could catch the ghostly smell of vodka. Some of the distillery workers moved to the region, others did not want to, but, importantly, all the personnel servicing the plant retained their jobs. For now, the access system is maintained at Kristall; during public events everyone is allowed in freely, and soon the security will switch to video surveillance mode.

The second big project after Stay Hungry at Kristall was the exhibition “MediaNovation”, opened on November 1. Young artists - Elena Rykova, Alexey Dyakov, Vladlena Gromova, Greta Demaris (most of the names will not tell you anything) - present art objects using new technologies: manual tsunami, microscopic photography and more abstract works like “Smiles of a Superbeing”. The exhibits of the exhibition were located right in one of the production workshops - with white tiles on the supporting columns and many communications on the ceiling. On the eve of the opening of the exhibition, the initiative

One of the last bastions of industry within the Third Transport Ring fell. The production of the famous “Putinka” and “Kazyonka” was moved from the center of Moscow to the far Moscow region several years ago. Newfangled lofts will appear between the red brick buildings of the early 20th century, exhibition halls will appear instead of bottling lines, and relaxed hipsters will replace strict and non-drinking workers. Let's take a walk through the empty territory of the plant and see what is interesting there.

1. I entered the territory with a group of tourists and journalists. A large crowd had gathered in front of the gate.

2. It was very reminiscent of the MPEI student agricultural team that gathered for a cleanup day to unload boxes. The bonus for work then was one “bubble” for three and a snack in the form of lard.

3. And we, with a sober head, will look through the pages of the plant’s history. In 1896, a state monopoly on the production and sale of alcohol was introduced in Russia. 5 years later, on the banks of the Yauza, in Lefortovo Sloboda, the “Moscow State Wine Warehouse No. 1” was founded, which became the largest wine and vodka enterprise in Moscow. Its capacity made it possible to produce up to 2 million 100 thousand buckets of wine per year (a government vodka bucket - 12 liters), twice as much as the other two “warehouses”. The plant was equipped with the most modern equipment at that time and a multi-stage quality control system was introduced. Immediately after the opening, about one and a half thousand people worked here.

4. The products produced by the plant were initially divided into three categories: “simple”, “improved” and “boyar” vodka. By 1914, the assortment had expanded to five names: “Moscow Special” vodka (developed by D.I. Mendeleev himself), “Bread Wine”, “Table Wine”, “Gorilka” and “Zapekanka” liqueur. However, in the same year, the war began, Prohibition was introduced in the country, the plant was closed, and an army hospital was located in its workshops. However, despite the ban, the production of alcohol continued here for the needs of the army and hospitals, for sale to foreigners and diplomats, as well as for supplies to allied France. Part of the production capacity was reoriented to the production of alcohol-containing drugs.

5. The production and trade of alcohol resumed only in 1923, but only liqueurs with a strength limit of up to 20°. The first vodka produced at the plant after the abolition of Prohibition was popularly called “Rykovka” (after the surname of the chairman of the Council of People's Commissars, A.I. Rykov). In 1937, general recipes for the production of vodka were introduced throughout the country, based on the experience of the former “warehouse No. 1” in the production of table vodkas using double rectified alcohol. At the same time, the plant began producing strong (chartreuse, benedictine, curacao) and dessert liqueurs (pink, chocolate, vanilla). During the Great Patriotic War, in addition to vodka, the plant produced dry alcohol and prepared “Molotov cocktails” for the front. During the first air raid on the capital on July 22, 1941, the main building of the plant was almost completely burned out by a bomb.

6. In 1945, the restored workshops began preparing drinks of the highest quality for the inhabitants of the Kremlin. Each bottle was accompanied by a certificate signed by the specialists involved in its release. In 1953, distiller V.G. Svirida created the famous Stolichnaya vodka at the plant. In January 1987, the plant received its current name "Crystal".

7. In 1993, the enterprise became private, and in 1998, a branch was added to the main production - a distillery in the village of Korystovo, Kashira district, Moscow region. The Korystovo plant is even older than Kristall: it was founded in 1883 by the landowners Litvinov as Distillery Warehouse No. 19. In 2009, bottling lines for 6 and 12 thousand decalitres were purchased for Korystovo. On May 13, 2013, the last “Moscow” bottle of vodka came off the assembly line.

8. Interestingly, the current owners of the territory are not known for certain. OJSC Kristall privatized the land in the summer of 2012, when the transfer of production to Korystovo had just begun. At the same time, according to media reports, the owner of the enterprise changed: instead of Vasily Anisimov (owner of the Coalco construction holding), it became Alexander Sabadash. Who owns the plant now is a big question. Sabadash is in prison on charges of fraud, and the largest shareholders of the enterprise, Dialog LLC and Komed LLC, are managed through offshore companies. The “ears” of Arkady Rotenberg are clearly looming on the horizon: six of the nine members of the board of directors of OJSC Kristall report to him, and SMP Bank, which he controls, acts as the main creditor of the enterprise.

9. At the moment, the territory of 9 hectares is managed by the company “Krays Development”, almost unknown on the market. She plans to attract $200 million in investments and loans to build 130 thousand m² of comfort-class housing with accompanying infrastructure here. If the crisis does not interfere, construction is planned to begin in a year and finish in 2021.

10. All old buildings of “Warehouse No. 1” will be preserved, and the Soviet ones will be demolished or rebuilt. The appearance of the new buildings is going to be in an industrial red-brick style. However, judging by the preliminary design, the new buildings will tightly surround the century-old buildings, and there will be almost no place where they will not be visible.

11. In addition to housing and offices, they plan to place everything necessary for an autonomous existence, “like on an island”: restaurants and cafes, travel agencies, food and hardware stores, a bank, an apart-hotel, beauty salons, a fitness center, sports grounds, and even clinic, kindergarten and laundry.

12. “Kreis” didn’t even think about what “cherry” to decorate his project with. Within walking distance, on the other side of the river, are the most famous art venues in Moscow - Winzavod, Arma and Artplay. Therefore, the block of expensive apartments and loft apartments will be “decorated” with a cultural cluster with space for exhibitions. Workshops for the creation of small architectural forms, furniture and contemporary art will open here. “Crystal” will have one significant difference from other art venues: art will be focused mainly on consumption by local residents.

13. The team developing the concept of the future quarter wants to get away from the “alcoholic” glory of this place. They plan to associate the name of the plant with the crystal lattice and are even thinking about local application of Prohibition. However, it is unlikely that they will be a 100% success: the Museum of Russian Vodka is not planning to move here yet.

14. Unloading area of the enterprise. Here they dream of doing something like the New York High Line.

15. Houses will grow in place of these hangars.

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18. The courtyard of the main building and boiler room is the most beautiful place of the plant.

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21. A square with a fountain is another iconic place. There will be lofts here.

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23. The lobby of the main building of the plant in the 1990s was decorated with beautiful mosaics on Moscow themes.

24. All this, of course, will be preserved.

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40. Administrative part of the enterprise.

41. There is now an art exhibition here.

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43. After the exhibition, the excursion ended, and we, in a rather small company with journalists and the authors of the reconstruction project, went to the workshops.

44. This is the entrance to a special workshop where the highest quality products were bottled.

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46. At the time of our visit, there was still a lot of equipment left in the workshop.

47. And this is what this place looked like in 1915. The wounded on the German front and the sisters of mercy caring for them are everywhere.

48. Now this place is practically abandoned.

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50. Various devices for “pushing” bottles.

51. And this reminded me of the movie “Terminator 2”. Why?..

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64. There are marks on the machine for different bottles.

65. And on this safe there is a small collection of labels.

66. Someone's workplace.

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68. Bottles were capped in these machines.

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71. Traffic jams were placed here.

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74. But the most interesting thing was hidden on the mezzanine floor of the workshop.

75. Filtration of the water-alcohol mixture (sorting) took place here.

76. To remove mechanical impurities, the mixture was passed through quartz sand.

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79. In vats with activated carbon, the amount of aldehydes and higher alcohols was reduced.

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81. At the end, the vodka was adjusted for strength in finishing vats and at the same time the additives specified in the recipe were added to it.

82. From above you can see how many bar stools there were in the bottling shop.

83. The “highlight” of the territory is hidden in this inconspicuous building, where the windows are boarded up.

84. This is a magnificent hall of the factory cultural center, designed in the style of early Soviet classics.

85. Above the stage is the slogan “Art belongs to the people”

86. On the ceiling are images of exemplary representatives of the Soviet people,

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89. In the center is an incredibly beautiful chandelier.

90. The hall requires the most careful restoration: all the floors in it are wooden, over many years they have fallen into disrepair.

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93. What “Crystal” will actually turn into will not become clear soon.

94. But in the very near future, Muscovites will be able to monitor the metamorphoses taking place with it: they promise to make free entry to the territory for everyone.