Denis Safin: Ural Steel is creating a “new aesthetic” in Novotroitsk

General Director of Ural Steel Management Company Denis Safin explained why the metallurgical plant invests in the development of human capital and the creation of a comfortable urban environment.

Ural Steel is the city-forming enterprise of Novotroitsk and the largest employer in the Orenburg region. Therefore, it is important for the plant not only to maintain safe and comfortable working conditions in production, but also to create conditions in the city for self-realization and leisure of the population. The strategic goal of the enterprise’s social investments is to reduce the outflow of young people from Novotroitsk, which has been going on for the last few decades and has a negative impact on all spheres of life in the city.

Among the projects already implemented by the company to create modern infrastructure in Novotroitsk are the construction of an ice palace, renovation of children’s educational institutions and the Palace of Culture, healthcare, cultural and sports facilities. At the initiative of Managing Director General Denis Safin, the plant, together with the city administration, began creating a master plan for Novotroitsk. When creating a master plan, an approach involving “participatory design” will be applied, that is, all aspects of the plan will be discussed and agreed upon by the authors with city residents.

Comments Denis Safin, General Director of Management Company Ural Steel:

“We are doing everything to ensure that work at the plant is safe and decently paid, and we are investing heavily in the development of production. We will soon open two new workshops, which means almost two thousand vacancies. We are developing a corporate culture and improving business processes at the level of the country’s leading metallurgical companies, and in a number of areas – even faster than our colleagues. However, to implement all our plans we need people. Therefore, one of the most important tasks is to stop the outflow of population from Novotroitsk. To achieve this, we are creating a “new aesthetic” both at the plant and in the city. Ural Steel contributes record taxes to the budget – ten billion rubles; this has never happened in Novotroitsk. These funds will allow the city to renew its tram fleet and continue improving public spaces. In addition, we plan to build modern and comfortable housing for employees.”

In 2023, the company, by decision of Denis Safin, twice increased the wages of the plant’s employees. In August, metallurgists’ salaries were indexed according to the new system. Its essence is that the greatest increase was received by those employees whose wage level was lower than others. As a result, income levels for representatives of certain professions increased by 22%. The average salary at a ten thousand metallurgical enterprise was thus about 80 thousand rubles, which is more than 30% higher than the regional average.

In addition, the plant has been working closely with the Novotroitsk branch of NUST MISIS for many years. For example, students, together with experienced metallurgists, implement joint projects in production, and for those who already work at the plant, a convenient schedule is formed to combine with their studies. This approach to personnel policy is part of the strategy of the metallurgical holding headed by Denis Safin. In addition to the Novotroitsk plant, the holding also includes the Zagorsk Pipe Plant (ZTZ) in the city of Peresvet, Moscow Region. The company actively cooperates with the Sergiev Posad College, on the basis of which the ZTZ Resource Center was created. This allows not only to train in-demand specialists, but also to ensure their employment immediately after graduation through the mechanism of targeted contracts. As part of this training, future specialists undergo in-depth practice at the plant, gaining experience under the guidance of experienced mentors at the most modern enterprise in Russia for the production of large-diameter pipes. Today, more than 550 people are studying at the college under targeted agreements.