Automobile engineering identified as priority of Belarusian science

MINSK, 11 April (BelTA) – The development of the Belarusian automobile manufacturing industry is one of the priorities for science. Deputy Prime Minister of Belarus Piotr Parkhomchik mentioned it as he visited the Joint Institute of Mechanical Engineering of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus (NASB), BelTA has learned.

The NASB press service quoted Piotr Parkhomchik as saying: “The head of state thinks highly of science and has always stressed the importance of introducing R&D products into the country's economy as soon as possible. The development of Belarusian automobile manufacturing is a priority task. The government encourages scientists towards a strategic vision of machine building, including automobile manufacturing.”

In his words, in the last 5-6 years scientists did considerable amount of work in this area. Significant results were achieved, primarily in the creation of proprietary Belarusian competences, which have to be distributed across manufacturing enterprises so that every organization of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus could provide R&D to specific branches of the manufacturing sector. Piotr Parkhomchik instructed the academy and the Industry Ministry to work out programs on work between enterprises and academic organizations starting with organizations of the physical and technical sciences division. The enterprises are supposed to provide funding. “You need a customer from the manufacturing sector as early as the R&D stage,” Piotr Parkhomchik noted.

Representatives of the management and design offices of Belarusian mechanical engineering enterprises took part in the event. They spoke highly of results of the work with the Joint Institute of Mechanical Engineering of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus. Their interaction took care of various things starting with the calculation of designs of machines, vehicles and their components, designing and modeling, optimization and ending with virtual vehicle trials and field vehicle trials. Prospects of cooperation with the institute were discussed in creating high-speed reducing gears, modern electric motors, including hybrid ones, electronic control systems, highly automated (unmanned) vehicles. Close attention was paid to electric vehicle manufacturing, including creation and production of electric cars.

The Joint Institute of Mechanical Engineering has mastered technologies and has worked out competences for designing modern electric powertrains for electric vehicles of different classes and applications. A number of major projects have been implemented. The most interesting ones were presented at the Intellectual Belarus expo. The National Academy of Sciences of Belarus noted that the institute is ready to undertake the creation of a Belarusian electric car based on the batch-produced chassis (platform) that the Industry Ministry will choose. The institute already has experience of creating such vehicles.

The deputy prime minister said: “In addition to dealing with matters concerning the design and components of the car it is necessary to have a proprietary Belarusian system for controlling the vehicle as a whole and vehicle parts and systems in particular. It is necessary to gather competences of scientists and manufacturers. Such a center of competences should exist in the Joint Institute of Mechanical Engineering. The Industry Ministry has to determine what private and state-owned enterprises should be involved in this work. We will meet every quarter of the year in various locations, discuss progress and make decisions.”