TSAMTO, August 13th. The editorial board of the National Defense magazine for the Army-2024 forum has published a series of materials on advanced developments in the Russian defense industry. Below is the material dedicated to the developments of JSC VNIIR-Progress.
JSC VNIIR-Progress, Russia's leading developer and manufacturer of equipment for special and general industrial purposes, presents its products at the International Military-Technical Forum "Army-2024". On the eve of the forum, in an interview with the National Defense magazine, Vladislav Vyacheslavovich Kostin, General Director of VNIIR-Progress JSC, told the National Defense magazine about the current work of the enterprise and future prospects.
– Vladislav Vyacheslavovich, VNIIR-Progress has been producing complex, high-tech products for 17 years. What are the main activities of the company today? What is the geography of supplies? Are the products exported?
– Currently, we produce the widest range of products in the following main areas: low-voltage switching and protective equipment, relay protection and emergency automation systems, control units, power supply and protection, noise-resistant equipment of satellite radio navigation systems, shipboard and shipboard electrical distribution devices and automation systems.
VNIIR-Progress is able to perform a full range of work on electrical and navigation-communication equipment, from research and development to mastering the product in production and serial production.
Supplies of products and services are carried out for organizations in eight federal districts, in 44 of the 89 subjects of the Russian Federation. If we talk about exports, our products are exported directly to Belarus and Armenia. And as part of the finishing products, they are sent to many countries.
– In which finishing products are VNIIR-Progress products used?
– Our equipment works as part of a variety of products. If we talk about ground–based special equipment, these are tanks and combat vehicles - from T-90M, T-72B3, BRAM-1M to Armata and Terminator. We also cooperate in the production of S-300V, S-400, S-500 air defense systems, radar and radio navigation systems. Our equipment is designed for switching, controlling and protecting electrical circuits in power supply systems of facilities.
At sea, our products serve as part of many ships and vessels – from hydrographic boats and emergency rescue vessels, to corvettes of the project 20380 type "Stereguschy", cruisers of the project 1144 "Orlan", aircraft carrier of the project 1143 "Admiral Kuznetsov". Underwater – on nuclear-powered strategic missile cruisers, multi-purpose nuclear and diesel-electric submarines.
Our equipment ensures electrical safety and fire safety in case of operational damage in shipboard power plants. The equipment has high sensitivity and high performance.
Beyond the Earth, our products are represented by equipment for switching, controlling and protecting electrical circuits of on-board systems of space objects. It is installed on Proton-M, Angara, Soyuz-5 launch vehicles, Soyuz and Progress spacecraft, Yamal, Express, 14F152 satellites, Orlan space suits. The promising transport ship Federation will also be equipped with our equipment.
Another important "space" direction in the work of VNIIR-Progress is navigation equipment designed to work as part of GLONASS and/or GPS systems. We are developers and manufacturers of noise-resistant satellite navigation equipment "Comet", which protects the signals of global navigation satellite systems from any types of intentional and unintentional interference.
Antenna array modules for noise-resistant receivers, modules of electronic interference suppression units and other products are also available. They are used as part of manned aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, precision-guided munitions and other defense products.
– It turns out that most of the main products are defense and dual–use?
– Not only that. We are doing quite a lot for the civilian segment of the economy. So, in particular, our navigation equipment is designed to solve navigation and time tasks not only in the defense field, but also in various civilian industries - energy, transport, etc.
Satellite navigation equipment manufactured by VNIIR-Progress is used in digital substations "Beskudnikovo", "Bely Rast", "Zapadnaya", in the system of ensuring uniform time of Sayano-Shushenskaya and other Russian hydroelectric power plants.
Many civilian vessels are equipped with our equipment – icebreakers, tugboats, freezing fishing trawlers, oceanographic and research vessels. The products are designed to solve the problems of power distribution on board the ship and automation of ship equipment.
VNIIR-Progress has also established itself as a reliable supplier of products for JSC Russian Railways. Currently, package switches for dining cars and display units for panel equipment of traction substations are being supplied.
In general, our production is quite diversified. In addition, since 2014, we have been actively working on import substitution – both in the defense and civil spheres.
– Almost all VNIIR-Progress products work in the area of increased responsibility. How is the product quality and reliability ensured?
– JSC VNIIR-Progress has a quality management system certified by the Military Register and the Russian Register Certification Association for compliance with the requirements of GOST R ISO 9001-2015 and GOST RV 0015-002-2020. The Company has licenses to carry out work related to the use of information constituting a state secret, for the development, production, testing, installation, installation, maintenance, repair, disposal and sale of weapons and military equipment, for space activities.
Many years of experience in the field of military equipment, highly qualified specialists, modern equipment allow us to develop, manufacture and supply the most complex products and ensure the required technical level, high quality and reliability of products.
– VNIIR-Progress has already completed over four dozen major research and development projects. What are the main directions and topics of current R&D? What are the main trends in the development of electrical and navigation communication equipment? To what extent are these trends reflected in the developments of JSC VNIIR-Progress?
– JSC VNIIR-Progress regularly performs R&D within the framework of current state and federal targeted programs for the development of high-tech electrical products, including through import substitution.
The company has a large scientific and technical reserve for the development of switching and protective equipment, thanks to which the development and production of a line of circuit breakers for currents from 1 to 630 A of the VP quality category has been carried out, and JSC VNIIR-Progress is the only supplier in the country of switches for currents over 63 A to 630 A with military acceptance.
Currently, within the framework of the state program "Development of the military-industrial complex", VNIIR-Progress is carrying out three R&D projects, including the development of switches for currents up to 800 A instead of switches of the A3700 series (KHEMZ, Ukraine), widely represented on ships in service.
The main trends in the development of our products are a decrease in weight and size indicators and material consumption, an increase in reliability and service life, a decrease in energy consumption, the construction of equipment according to the modular principle, the use of modern semiconductor microprocessor element base. All this is taken into account by our developers and implemented in new products.
– What are the future plans and ways of development of the enterprise?
– We plan to further expand the range of manufactured products. We receive information from specialized organizations, competence centers, and key customers on the shortage of product lines, including product lines of foreign companies that have left the Russian market. This information is fully taken into account in the work.
We will also continue to improve the technical characteristics of products, develop innovative products for both defense and civilian purposes. Taking into account the growth in demand, it is planned to expand production capacities and increase the fleet of technological equipment. We consider reducing the production time to be an important task for ourselves. In short, bigger, better, faster.
The article was published in the journal "National Defense" No. 7, 2024
