Krastsvetmet and ALROSA choose the best start-ups in metallurgy and mining areas.

The total of 251 applications were submitted for the track Mining & Metals. The multi — stage selection resulted in 12 strong teams who passed into the corporate accelerator in the field of metallurgy and mining. 11 start — ups were selected by experts from the industrial partner OJSC Krastsvetmet and 6 projects were selected by the partner PJSC ALROSA. The events of the Mining & Metals track were divided into three stages.

The first stage took place in Yekaterinburg at the Ural Federal University and had all 17 track participants pass the educational program "Introduction of innovative technologies in large corporations". The technological entrepreneurs were working on a strategy to introduce their ideas into the real production process within the partner companies of the track.

Furthermore, the first stage summed up the results of the StartGenS competition, held as part of the "Start" program of the Fund for Promoting Innovation. 

Grants with the total worth of 10 million RUB were received by five participants of the track:

• Svetlana Kuzmitskaya from Novosibirsk with the technologies of applying the rhodium PVD coatings to jewellery and technical products.
• Alexander Dubrovsky from Yekaterinburg with his isotest online.
• Albert Gallyamov from Samara with the galvanic pencil for local application of functional coatings.
• Rostislav Bilik from St. Petersburg with the information system for automated geological exploration.
• Dmitry Maslenikov from Kaliningrad with his express analysis of precious metal products.

"Each selected project is valuable not only in terms of science, at the same time it is in demand by the industry. Focusing on the solution of specific practical tasks of large corporations gives young entrepreneurs confidence in the future of the project — the technology being developed will surely find the consumer. In this situation, the Fund's grants help the team to make a successful start and turn the idea into a finished product in demand, " — said Pavel Gudkov, deputy general director of the Innovation Promotion Fund.

The second stage had the leaders of 11 start — ups, selected by the industrial partner, present their projects to Krasttsvetmet experts at the corporate site in Krasnoyarsk. The technological entrepreneurs elaborated their projects with Krastsvetmet specialists and prepared their development plans jointly with the corporation.

At the end of the second stage, the owner of the grand prix of the Mining&Metals track and three start — up winners were identified. The Grand Prix and the right to participate in the GenerationS finals came to the project by Vitaliy Kim "Production of nanoink (silver, gold and platinum) for the electronics industry" . The use of ink and modern printing platforms will increase the manufacturing efficiency of electronic products and reduce its cost to the end user. With the help of nanoink the manufacturers will be able to create environmentally friendly, flexible, transparent instruments of increased reliability. At present, the project team has established a small — scale production of nanoink.

Three winners of the track Mining&Metals share the prize fund of 1 million rubles:

• The first place and 500 000 rubles came to Svetlana Kuzmitskaya from Novosibirsk for the technologies of applying a rhodium PVD coating method to jewellery and technical products. The development provides for the precious metal coating with rhodium plastics, glass or other metal by vacuum deposition.
• The project by Andrei Gorbunov from Magnitogorsk was awarded the second place and 350,000 rubles. The project is about making powders of precious metals and devices for 3D printing of jewelery and technical products of complex volumetric execution .
• The third place came to the project by Tatyana Grigorieva from Novosibirsk . It is about mechanochemical preparation of ultradispersed metals and precious metals.The prize was 150,000 rubles.

"I wish to thank all the participants of the track Mining&Metals: We saw really interesting projects with a high degree of technical and economic elaboration. Although this year the company "Krastsvetmet" acts as an industrial partner of the federal accelerator GenerationS for the first time, we hope for mutually beneficial cooperation with the winning companies in the future. We will continue to work with them in Krasnoyarsk. Of course, we wish the winners luck at the final selection, " — said Maxim Irishkin , the head of innovative projects at Krastsvetmet.

The third stage had the leaders of six mining projects, selected by ALROSA experts, finalizing their solutions at the company's site in the town of Mirny. The participants studied the general principles of business activity, the economics structure and the needs of the enterprise. At the end of the program in Mirny Alrosa's scientific Council selected the best start — up of the industry. It was Isotest online, the development by Alexander Dubrovsky for online monitoring of the waterproofing seal . The solution can prevent tank leaks during the use of buildings and structures and associated environmental pollution. All six start — ups, presented in Mirny, will be included in the ALROSA's reserve of innovative projects.

"I wish to thank RVC JSC for organizing the competition and the track operator Innovation infrastructure of the Ural Federal University for having found the opportunity to provide a venue for acquaintance," — emphasized Alexander Chaadayev, the vice president of innovation at PJSC ALROSA, director of the Yakutniproalmaz Institute . "The company’s mutual cooperation with the creators of inventions and developments gives a synergistic effect and results in the fact that there are quite interesting projects which, with due experimental studies, will be implemented in the company."

"Today a great deal of large metallurgic and mining enterprises do not have experience of interaction with small innovative companies, whose projects are at an early development stage. In the track Mining & Metals, with the active role of Krastsvetmet and ALROSA, a platform has been formed where corporations and technology entrepreneurs build cooperation in real production conditions, — commented Gulnara Bikkulova, Deputy General Director of the RVC and the ideologist GenerationS. — The projects that have been finalized together with experts from large enterprises are more likely to be introduced and implemented. We wish the teams to successfully pass all the tests and the track partners to continue cooperation with prospective start — ups. "

The super — finals of GenerationS accelerator, which will meet the best start — ups from each of the eight tracks, will be held in April 2017 in Moscow. The prize fund will be 15 million rub, the total value of prizes from partners will exceed 100 million rubles.