Continuation of the article: «Irkutsk Aviation Plant – investments in the future»
The next-generation MS-21 passenger jet is the main advanced project not only for Irkutsk enterprise but also for the whole Russian aircraft industry in the segment of civil aviation. According to the president’s order from June 6th 2010, Irkut Corporation is the only performer of the government order on development and certification of MS-21 family aircraft.
The development of MS-21 is carried out in accordance with Federal Target Program “Development of civil aircraft of Russian Federation for 2002-2010 and for period until 2015”. The total amount of investments for this program is 137 billion rubles, including research and development - 97 billion rubles, and technical re-equipping – 40 billion rubles.
In accordance with the signed state contract on performance of research and development work, Irkut Corporation is developing the family of short- and medium-haul MS-21 aircraft, intended for passenger transportation on domestic and international routes. The family includes aircraft with 150 (МS-21-200), 181 (МS-21-300) and 212 (МS-21-400) seats in one-class configuration. Every modification of MS-21 has version with normal (3500 kmм) and extended range (5000 km). The long-haul versions may appear in future with a range of 7000 km.
The maiden flight of MS-21 is scheduled on 2014 and the deliveries should start in 2016. As compared to the existing liners in this class the MS-21 will have 12‑15% lower operational costs. The jets of this family will have and extended operational capabilities, meet the advanced requirements in the area of emission and provide a high level of comfort.
MS-21 also materializes new technical solutions. For example, a side stick with load-sensing will be used for the first time in the world. The jet will have a carbon-fiber high-aspect wing. The jet may be equipped with two types of engines: Pratt-Whitney PW-1400G (with a high bypass ratio, m = 12) and PD-14 developed in Perm with a thrust of 14 tons.
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MS-21 will not become the project of a single enterprise. Besides Engineering Center named after A.S.Yakovlev (Irkut’s main design division), the following enterprises are taking part in cooperation within the framework of this project: IAP design bureau, Tupolev design bureau, Sukhoi Civil Aircraft, Beriev Aircraft Company, Aerokompozit and other companies. Many enterprises will also be taking part in the production chain: Aviastar-SP, VASO, Technologiya and other native and foreign companies.
At present the implementation of MS-21 is running according to schedule. The cooperation is formed, the design of the aircraft has been fixed and the development of design documentation is in progress. The serial production of MS-21 will be organized at Irkutsk Aviation Plant, which is successfully implementing the program of technical re-equipping. The first deliveries of MS-21 are scheduled on 2016. Eight test aircraft will be built during this period of time; six of them will take part in the flight test program.
According to business plan, it is intended to manufacture 1200 jets (30% of them are for Russian market) and МS-21 should occupy at least 10% of market in its segment. As reported by the president of Irkut Corporation, Alexey Innokentievich Fedorov, «the market is tired of duopoly of Boeing and Airbus». The contracts and agreements with Russian and foreign companies on delivery of 190 MS-21 family aircraft have been signed. The largest low cost European carrier, Ryanair, has taken interest in MS-21 recently; it has requested jet’s characteristics and expressed its wishes on future aircraft’s cabin.
MS-21 is being implemented in a new project-technological environment, based on digital technologies. The idea of fully-automated line providing production of 60 MS-21s per year will be implemented for the first time in Russian aircraft industry’s history.
According to an agreement signed during Le Bourget airshow, DURR Systems GmbH Aircraft and Technology Systems will construct an assembly line for MS-21 on the territory of IAP. The contract includes development, production and delivery of equipment, provision of services on project of delivery of component assembly, aggregate assembling, coupling of aggregates and final assembly line. The reconfiguration and complete reconstruction of workshops, will be carried out for the purposes of line installation.
Even at present the production of MS-21 at IAP has a high level of readiness. 10.8 billion rubles have been invested in plant’s modernization. The digital methods of design and preproduction are embedded. The renewal of machinery, laboratories and testing facilities is carried out at full speed. In fact all the enterprise’s workshops have been reconstructed, the new equipment has been installed and the state-of-the-art technologies have been implemented. The technological re-equipping is carried out taking into account the planned output of 84 MS-21 aircraft per year.
But the technical re-equipping should be carried out in parallel with implementation of new technologies of management and personnel training. The output per employee is already 4,2 million rubles a year. It is the industry’s best indicator and it is ten times higher than the average indicator for Siberian federal district. The high level of profitability has been achieved due to increase of management flexibility, implementation of innovative technologies, decrease of process cost and a wide usage of lean production methods. The transition to the modern normative base has been completed (more than 220 standards have been introduced). State-of-the-art quality management system has been implemented. The assimilation of modern logistic schemes is in progress.
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The program of personnel renewal has been started. The continuous chain:«school – educational institution – advanced training – additional training». Every year 5000 specialists undergo training and retraining in educational-production center of IAP. As a result, the enterprise is completed with personnel by 100% at the moment. The employees’ average age during last 5 years has decreased from 45 to 39 years (it is the industry’s record). The investments in social services have been doubled during this period of time. IAP is the only large enterprise of Irkutsk, which is implementing its own housing program: 652 flats have been built since 2008. The new building of medical unit has been opened in 2011, the IAP’s plan of infant medicine development has been prepared. The enterprise has its own sanatorium-preventorium, board out, recreation facility near Baikal lake, children’s holiday camp, health and fitness center Zenit, teenage physical culture school and recreation center named after Y.A. Gagarin.
A large camp of First International Youth Industrial Forum “Engineers of the future 2011” has been opened on the shores of Baikal during our stay. About 1500 of young engineers, students, employees from all over Russia and other countries have come here to share their experience.
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And of course, the theater begins from the hanger, while the aircraft industry – from the engineer school. A lot of attention is paid to preservation of Russian aircraft industry’s traditions, in particular – preservation of the great aviation nation’s legacy. The plant has its own museum with interesting exhibits. IAP is taking part in creation of interactive museum of aviation in the center of Irkutsk. An Il-28 bomber (manufactured by IAP in 1950s) has been reconstructed recently using enterprise’s own funds.
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It is a pleasure to know that there are still people in Russia who care about their business and their country. People who denied the looting of the factories and denied hucksters from getting instant excess profits from sale of enterprises’ equipment and land. People who increased the achievements of their country and their people by creating unequaled capacity for Russia’s future that will become the basis of civil aircraft industry in the 21st century.
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