NLMK Group, an international steelmaking company with operations in Russia, the USA and European Union, announces changes to its IT and R&D management team, which are both key vectors of the Group’s forthcoming Strategy 2022.

Dr. Bruno Charles De Cooman has been appointed to the newly created role of Vice President for Research and Development. The position covers the coordination of activities of the Group’s research centres at its production facilities, the development of advanced steel products, and process optimization, including through the use of physical system technologies, advanced methods of materials characterization.

Elena Demyanova, Director of NLMK Information Technologies since 2014, has been appointed NLMK Group Vice President for Information System Development, with responsibility for the implementation, development and support of corporate information systems and technological process automation at NLMK’s production sites in seven countries worldwide.

Andzhey Arshavskiy has been appointed to the newly created role of Director for Data Analysis and Modelling. Andzhey will be responsible for implementing mathematical methods of data analysis and mathematical modelling to enhance operational and business process efficiency.

Oleg Bagrin, NLMK Group President and CEO, said: “The development of research centres for modelling production processes, the creation of innovative new products and implementation of unique new technologies will be an important area of the Group’s forthcoming Strategy 2022. In order to achieve our goals in these areas, NLMK Group has added Bruno De Cooman to its team. Bruno is an acclaimed professional with many years of research experience in leading institutes and industrial labs around the world. Andzhey Arshavskiy is a recognized expert in the field of Big Data. Elena Demyanova faces the critical challenge of ensuring uninterrupted operations and development of IT systems, while boosting operational efficiency through automatization of production processes.”

Dr. Bruno Charles De Cooman’s background

Dr. Ir. Bruno C. De Cooman obtained his doctorate at Cornell University. Prior to his position with NLMK, Dr De Cooman had an international career in materials R&D management at various industrial laboratories and academic institutions. His expertise includes scientific research and technology development related to advanced steel processing and products for automotive, electrical, engineering and constructional applications.

Elena Demyanova’s background

Elena Demyanova joined NLMK Group in 2014 as General Director of NLMK Information Technologies. Prior to this appointment, she was head of project office at a Russian metals and mining company. From 2009 to 2012, Elena Demyanova served as Deputy Director of the Information Technology Department at Rosatom State Corporation. Elena Demyanova graduated from Moscow Institute of Electronic Machine Building, majoring in Computing Machinery, Complexes, Systems and Networks

Andzhey Arshavskiy’s background

Andzhey Arshavskiy graduated from Moscow State Engineering Physics Institute, Faculty of Cybernetics, majoring in Computing Machinery, Complexes, Systems and Networks, in 2000. After graduating, he worked for CERN, developing software solutions for high energy physics. From 2001 to 2014, he was engaged in managing software development for driverless passenger and freight train systems, heading up development of data storage systems at IBM Russian Lab, managing the development of mathematical libraries for the distributed computing environment at Microsoft Russia, and heading Digital Society Laboratory that specialized in creating products for targeted online advertising. From 2014 and prior to joining NLMK Group, Andzhey Arshavskiy was Director of Big Data Competence Center at Sberbank Technologies.

About NLMK Group

NLMK Group is the largest steelmaker in Russia and one of the most efficient in the world.

NLMK Group’s high-quality steel products are used in various industries, from construction and machine building to the manufacturing of power-generation equipment and offshore windmills.

NLMK operates production facilities in Russia, Europe and the United States. The company’s steel production capacity exceeds 17 million tonnes per year.

NLMK has the most competitive cash cost among global manufacturers and one of the highest profitability levels in the industry. In FY2016, the Company generated $7.64 billion in revenue and $1.94 billion in EBITDA. As of 31 December 2016, Net debt/EBITDA stood at 0.36õ. The company has an investment grade credit rating from S&P and Fitch.

NLMK’s ordinary shares with a 16% free-float are traded on the Moscow Stock Exchange (ticker "NLMK") and its global depositary shares are traded on the London Stock Exchange (ticker "NLMK:LI"). For more details on NLMK shareholder capital, please follow the link.

NLMK Group received the Steel Industry Leadership Award at the prestigious 2016 Platts Global Metals Awards held by S&P Global Platts, a leading international industry analytical periodical.