The Crimean War came to the end. Russian sailing vessels could not resist the enemy's steamships.

Russia had no production facilities for creation of a steam war fleet, metallurgic industry had not yet existed.

Modern self-propelled ships equipped with rifling guns and firm armour were called for urgently.

 Since its foundation BZ has been oriented for construction of naval ships as well as manufacture of machines and machinery for ships of in-house construction as well as under construction at the other shipyards of Russia.

10 steam engines of 1800 h.p. each and the same number of centrifugal pumps had been manufactured at BZ in the period 1859 to 1862.

In 1862 the Russia's first metal ship, armoured gunboat "Opyt" was built there, and in 1863 there was launched the lead monitor "Latnik" the first ship of a series of that class vessels.

Early in 1866 coast defence armoured vessel, frigate "Admiral Lazarev" was laid down. Two cylinder horizontal steam engine of 2,000 h.p. in capacity made from drawings of BZ's designers allowed to the frigate to run at up to 11 knots. "Admiral Lazarev" was so effective that remained on service for a full four decades.

It gave a berth to armoured ship building in Russia, progress of which was crowned in 1877 by creation of heavy for those days armour clad "Petr Veliky". For a long time that armour clad was considered as the world's best vessel. All world naval achievements were embodied in her.

In 1925 BZ began implementation of a vast program of commercial and military shipbuilding. Timber carriers of 5,500 t in displacement, merchant, passenger-cargo ships and catcher boats. Only during the first decade of commercial shipbuilding BZ constructed 32 ships.

In 30-es there were built a series of destroyers "Storozhevoy", "Gnevny" (7 units) which participated in defense of polar regions, Baltic Sea and in offensive operations during the War ending.

In 1938 BZ built light cruisers "Kirov" and "M.Gorky" of 10,000 t in displacement, 36 knots in speed which actively participated in defense and break of Leningrad's siege and other military operations of the World War II.

During 100 year period (1856-1956) BZ built 115 submarines.

In the meantime marine engineering - manufacturing of steam engines, propellers, shafts, different auxiliary machinery - has been developing too.

In the same period BZ had been upgrading. Succeed the old equipment came new technique and technology.

During the World War II in conditions of a ferocious siege despite starvation, shelling and bombardments BZ's shipbuilders selflessly worked for the needs of the front - arranged a mass production of ammunition, repaired vessels, built minesweepers, and with other Leningrad shipbuilders arranged barges and tenders construction for the Ladoga Lifeline. Milestone in the development of BZ in 60-ies was construction of a series of tankers type "Pekin" (displacement 40,000 t) and "Sophia" (62,000 t).

In 70-ies BZ started to construct heavy nuclear-powered cruisers type "Kirov": 1980 - "Admiral Ushakov"; 1984 - "Admiral Lazarev"; 1988 - "Admiral Nakhimov"; 1998 "Petr Veliky".

The vessel of this class is a unique nuclear missile tender, second to non in the world in this type of cruisers. For commercial fleet BZ built and are building cargo and passenger-cargo ships: tankers, reefers, dry-cargo ships, ro-ro ships, chemical carriers, icebreakers for polar regions, research ships, icebreakers type "Arktika" for navigation all the year round along the Northern Sea Route. At the present the fifth icebreaker of this series, nuclear-powered icebreaker "50 Let Pobedy", is under completion.

Many ships were constructed under the orders of some companies from Great Britain, Germany, Norway, Sweden and so on.

In total for 143 years BZ built 312 warships and submarines and 215 commercial ships, i.e. 500 commercial and military ships.