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[SOVIET FOOD INDUSTRY] Oborudovanie makaronnykh fabrik [i.e. Pasta Factory Equipment]

Item #2244

Moscow, 1934. Photographic edition. 16 leaves with 72 photo illustrations. 25x32,5 cm. In original textured cloth binding with lettering and stamped design on front cover. Binding rubbed, leaves bumped, soiling of margins, pale water stains.

An interesting evidence of how Soviet industries were rationalized and mechanized in the early 1930s.
Before 1917, the Russian Empire located about 40 pasta processing enterprises. The production equipment was manufactured at only one plant in St. Petersburg. In addition, craftsmen from Odessa, Nikolaev, etc. supplied individual types of machines on a small scale. Most of the pre-revolutionary factories were closed, damaged or brought to ruin during the Civil War. Some large enterprises were reconstructed in the 1920s (in Leningrad, Moscow, Kharkiv, etc.).
In the mid–1930s, the country began to publish propaganda photobooks promoting well-equipped and prosperous food industry supplying socialist canteens and groceries: “Public Catering in Frunzensky District” (1934), “Food Industry” (1936), “Giant of Meat Industry” (1936) “The Book of Tasty and Healthy Food” (1939), etc. All of them showcased advanced machines used in food production. Standards and rationalization in pasta and noodle processing have been topics of various Soviet books since 1931. Enterprises of this sector were also forced to participate in socialist competition. The most essential campaign was in total mechanization of factories. New enterprises with conveyor mechanized production had been created to provide proper machines to pasta factories. By 1934, Soviet factories located equipment of a great diversity, including foreign and Soviet machines. Most photographs show those machines which domestic enterprises had been producing for a few years and those designs which were under development. These machines became typical for state pasta factories throughout the country.
The photo album contains 29 photographs of machines and 36 photographs of drawings. Some pictures feature employees standing next to machines. Among them are a dryer, flour carrier, machine for beating out bags, automatic scales, flour mixer, tank for warm water, dough kneader, dough roller, noodle cutter, hydraulic press, noodle spreading machine and others.
Captions for technical drawings consist of name, purpose, capacity, power consumption, dimensions, weight and supplier. Machines were produced at Kalinin Factory in Kursk, Soiuzprodmashina [Union Factory of Food Processing Equipment], Kyiv Factory of VOVIP [producing scales], Voronezh Factory named after Lenin, Red Hydropress in Taganrog, Molot Factory in Vinnytsa and Mosgormet [Moscow City Trust of Metal Works]. One drawing reads “The press was produced and installed in Baku”. Another press is captioned “The machine is not produced in the USSR”. All the drawings were signed by engineers “Tomashev and F. Orlov” or just “T-O”.

Price: $650.00