The representatives of iron and steel plants and Russian research centers attended KAMAZ with a working visit.
The delegation included managers of FSUE TsNIIchermet named by I. P. Bardin, FSUE NAMI, PJSC MMK, OJSC MMK-METIZ, PAO Severstal, JSC Severstal-metiz, OJSC BSW, the research and production company Evrodetal, the research and development enterprise IMZ, EkoTekh.
During the visit, the guests saw a welding and stamping production buildings, as well as a Piemme line for punching side-member profiles at the press and stamping plant, a cab assembly conveyor and the main assembly conveyor at the truck assembly plant, thermogalvanic production of the engine plant and Forge-and-Press Site No. 3 of the forge plant.
On the second day of the working visit, a meeting was held on implementation of features of the Cross-Sectoral Program for Development of New Types and Improvement of Metal Products for Automotive Industry for 2018-2023. Irek Gumerov, Deputy General Director of KAMAZ – Director of Development, Yevgeniy Makarov, Chief Designer of KAMAZ – Director of the R&D Center, Fyodor Nazarov, Chief Technologist of KAMAZ – Director of the Technological Center, took part in the meeting.
“The K5 cab is the company’s biggest problem now. There are problems with localization of components left unsolved yet. Today, you have taken decisions significant for our common further development,” addressed Irek Gumerov the representatives of the iron and steel enterprises and research and development centers at the meeting. “The quality issue is burning, especially in present-day reality. I would like to thank all partners and colleagues who have arrived and taken part in our work. We realize that there is very limited time to attain desired objectives. But we all will have to work under these conditions in order to solve all existing pain points. To receive and use high-quality construction materials for us is a reserve of opportunities to improve performance properties of our products.”
According to the participants of the meeting, the most important thing in new realities is to keep a production rate. The quicker the partners start performing the planned tasks, the quicker the parties obtain the necessary result.
“We have discussed opportunities of development and introduction of new kinds of steels and alloys today to ensure the level of functional requirements which users of KAMAZ trucks specify in the whole world nowadays. This issue is not long term, it regards vehicles of the new model range and the current production,” shared Gennadiy Yeryomin, Deputy General Director for Work with Enterprises of FSUE TsNIIchermet named after I. P. Bardin. “Today’s biggest problem is import substitution. Under present-day severe conditions, we should reveal the main critical positions of metal products which will hold down current production and development of new vehicle lines. It is important to find producers in Russia which can replace in the near term those foreign suppliers who have supplied these metal products until now.”
Decisions were taken for all areas of concern specified during the meeting, further activities were planned. In particular, as early as in the third quarter this year, KAMAZ is to conduct test-bench running of a prototype frame with side-members made of a trial batch of high-strength hot-rolled ferrite steel.
“As part of the existing Program, we have done a great amount of work jointly with KAMAZ and iron-and-steel complexes. There are still problems requiring detailed consideration and early solutions. It is important to note that 98% of the vehicle is metal, the rest is rubber, plastic. The higher requirements to the vehicle, the higher requirements to the metal used in this or that assembly or component. Therefore, we must perform additional tasks KAMAZ has set for us today. This is our top-priority goal,” shared Arkadiy Tikhonov, Adviser to General Director of FSUE TsNIIchermet named after I. P. Bardin.