There are a large number of characteristics and parameters for assessing objects and events. One of them is knowledge intensity. This is a parameter that is used in production in the development of products and equipment. This article will tell you more about this.

Science intensity is an important component of modern production

This indicator is used to display the proportion that exists between production and scientific and technical activities in the form of the amount of costs that go to scientific developments expressed per unit of goods or services. This parameter is given a quantitative assessment. Also, knowledge intensity can be presented as the ratio of the number of employees engaged in research activities to the total number of production personnel in an enterprise or even in an entire industry.

Thus, science intensity can be determined by the amount of costs allocated for research and their ratio to the volume of product sales. There is a tendency to increase the share of production costs. Therefore, we can say that knowledge intensity is one of the important indicators of the competitiveness of manufactured goods or services provided.

What technologies are called knowledge-intensive?

Such designations are used for segments of various fields that implement developed innovations and that are difficult or impossible to recreate in unsuitable conditions. High technology implies investment in research to obtain results. These include:

• electronics;
• robotics;
• wireless technologies;
• software;
• nanotechnology;
• security systems;
• environmentally friendly technologies that have a positive effect on energy saving;
• alternative energy;
• navigation technologies;
• biotechnology;
• developments in the field of medicine;
• technologies with dual and defense purposes.

As you can see, science and technology move together. Let's take a closer look at why these areas are important for us.

The importance of high technology

As you may have noticed, the areas presented above can make life a lot easier. All of them are the results of scientific research. It should be noted that their use is not mandatory, but think about how difficult it will be to go to the nearest well to fetch water? Or what will be the efficiency of agriculture if you have to dig everything up with shovels instead of tractors? Science intensity is an important parameter that allows an increasing number of people to simplify physical labor with the help of progressive developments. Theoretically, in the future it will be possible to achieve the fact that the majority of human resources will be directed to scientific or cultural delights. Accordingly, science and technology will significantly improve the lives of the planet's inhabitants.

How to calculate science intensity?

This issue was briefly covered a little earlier. But let's take a closer look at determining the knowledge intensity of industries.

So, to do this, calculate a set of parameters such as:

1. Research and development costs in relation to volumes or Also produced and volume of shipped products can be used as a comparative parameter.
2. The number of specialists who carry out research and those who help them in relation to the total number of people involved in the industry.
3. The cost of scientific development to the amount that is used for production and industrial personnel and the volume of fixed assets of the industry that are involved in the manufacture of products.

According to the results of research in our country, methods are most often used where the amount of money that is allocated for the search is at the forefront. This indicator is paired either with the price basis or with the number and qualifications of personnel. Ultimately, combination methods are often used to obtain the best possible result.

Nuances of science intensity

Quantity does not always lead to quality. The knowledge intensity factor is, of course, important in order to assess the state of affairs in production, but it is not decisive. It is necessary to remember that people differ in their character, pace of work, knowledge, talents and other parameters and characteristics. Also, luck can also play a certain role: it is worth remembering the discovery of X-ray radiation. Therefore, you cannot be sure of obtaining the same result with identical characteristics.

More details about the knowledge intensity factor

People usually remember him when talking about new industries. They, in turn, gravitate towards large scientific centers, which are big cities. The result was something new. These are specialized technology parks and technopolises.

They carry out the entire technological chain, starting from the sale of invented products. Let's take a closer look at the main subjects:

1. Technopark. This is the name given to an agglomeration of knowledge-intensive firms that are grouped around a university, institute or laboratory. The main task of these forms of organization is to reduce the time it takes for scientific ideas to be introduced into practice.
2. Technopolis. This is the name given to an integrated research and production town, which was specially built to engage in advanced technologies, training of specialized personnel and high-tech industries.

Conclusion

So, knowledge intensity is an important factor in determining the efficiency of an economy. Of course, this option does not solve all problems on its own. It should be noted that research in some areas of science is not carried out because it is too expensive and does not lead to quick profits. Therefore, developments in such areas lie mainly on the shoulders of the state.

To understand the features of promotion high-tech products it is necessary to define the terms high-tech, knowledge-intensive, innovative products. It is important to distinguish between these concepts. It is also of great importance to understand the essence of innovative activity and the need for it. The classification of high-tech products is of fundamental importance. There are several main trends transforming the modern international economic space, among which we can highlight the process of integration, the trend of deregulation, and privatization.

The above factors inevitably lead to the liberalization of markets, a reduction in the number of monopolies due to their inefficiency, which in turn entails increased competition, the struggle for markets and consumers. In these conditions, one of the most important strategic advantages, which has the last word in determining the winner in this struggle, is the implementation of innovative activities.

“Innovation activity is a process aimed at translating the results of scientific research and development or other scientific and technical achievements into a new or improved product sold on the market, into a new or improved technological process used in practical activities.”

Modern practice “shows an exceptional degree of risk precisely in innovations - on average, out of five new goods and services, four bring nothing but losses to their creators.” Of course, an innovative product is the result of a long process of scientific and technical research, development work, work, associated with the creation of prototypes and serial samples of new products and technologies, as well as with the preparation of production and carrying out industrial tests, which require significant not only intellectual, but also financial costs. Because of this, the necessity of conducting a carefully planned and deliberate marketing campaign research, as well as influencing the intended market for the product, that is, the target market, is undeniable. A high-tech product, as a rule, is either completely new to the market (its target segment), or a qualitatively new, modified version of an existing position. In both the first and second cases, for the successful existence of a high-tech product on the market, a preliminary thorough study of the market is necessary. In addition, it is necessary to constantly explain the advantages of a high-tech product, its advantages over analogues, and the reasons why a potential buyer should prefer it.

Enterprises that actively use scientific and technological advances in their production, as a rule, show better profitability indicators compared to the world average. The rankings of leaders in profitability have long not included raw materials companies, in whose cost structure the share of scientific, technical and experimental developments is usually extremely low. The Forbes 2000 list includes 25 Russian companies: 8 of them operate in the oil and gas sector, 5 in the metallurgy sector, 3 in the electricity sector, 3 in banking, 2 in food retail, 1 in the chemical industry and only 2 companies operate in the field of high technology, namely telecommunications.

In modern literature one can find two concepts that are similar in meaning: high-tech products and knowledge-intensive products. They are often used as synonyms, however, this is erroneous. Both high-tech and knowledge-intensive products are a form of manifestation of innovation, when considered as a result. Consequently, the features of the innovation market as a whole can be transferred to them, which include the following:

Often the manufacturer is faced with a new, not yet explored market segment due to the introduction of a new product, in this regard, it becomes an extremely important task to timely explain to the buyer what kind of product it is, what needs it satisfies, its key advantages in comparison with substitute products, otherwise the product will fail in the market;

as a rule, this market is not elastic due to the unique qualitative characteristics of the innovation, and therefore its price has little effect on demand, in other words, it is possible to influence sales volumes using a tool such as pricing policy in an extremely limited range;

Most often, the capacity of the innovation market is much narrower than others, so in the market for innovations for industrial purposes there is a situation of oligopsony. Oligopsony in economics is a market situation characterized by a limited number of consumers and a large number of sellers (producers). Almost the entire military-industrial complex operates in an oligopsony regime, the products of which are purchased by a very limited circle of state law enforcement agencies or the governments of other countries.

Most often, the capacity of the innovation market is much narrower than others, so in the market for innovations for industrial purposes there is a situation of oligopsony. Oligopsony in economics is a market situation characterized by a limited number of consumers and a large number of sellers (producers). Almost the entire military-industrial complex operates in an oligopsony regime, the products of which are purchased by a very limited circle of state law enforcement agencies or the governments of other countries.

Science-intensive products

Traditionally, the concept of “knowledge-intensive products” includes goods in the production of which the ratio of research and development costs to the average annual production volume is increased (from 5% to 10%). The author considers it necessary to note that in modern practice there is no single “threshold” of knowledge intensity, because this indicator varies depending on the industry and its specific features. When highlighting high-tech products as a special type of goods, it is necessary to highlight a number of features characteristic of them.

Firstly, due to the use of scientific and design research, high-tech products are technically complex and require particularly qualified labor to create. Secondly, as a rule, as a result of the transfer of R&D results to products, the output appears “unique products, the properties of which must be explained to consumers.”

And thirdly, again due to the high share of R&D costs in production volume, in most cases, high-tech products have a higher cost, and, therefore, a nominal value compared to similar ones. It should be noted here that, despite this, the products in question, as a rule, turn out to be cheaper per unit of beneficial effect when compared with analogues.

High-tech products are technically complex products, the production of which uses complex technological processes. A sign of complexity is that in high-tech industries, products or technological processes are based on the results of not only applied, but also fundamental scientific research. Speaking about the concept of high-tech products, let us dwell on its distinctive characteristics: from the definition given above, it is obvious that high-tech products embody contains the most complex scientific and technical research;

due to the active involvement of R&D in the development of these products, manufactured models are often replaced by more advanced modifications;

As a rule, high-tech products carry an extremely high innovative component, which literally revolutionizes the target market;

high investment in research and development.

The definition of high-tech products can be approached from two positions: industry and product. In 2010, the OECD provided the following division of economic sectors based on high technology. Note that high-tech industries include industries with a share of research and development costs of 8% or more. The classification is based on the sign of scientific and technical intensity.

Pharmaceuticals

Precision Optics

Medical equipment

Scientific instrumentation

Electronic communications

Aerospace

Computer industry

Medium-high technology

Ground transportation technologies

Automotive industry

Electrical equipment

Non-electrical equipment

Medium-low technology

Chemical technologies, excluding pharmaceuticals

Rubber and plastic products

ShipbuildingOther production, processing

Non-ferrous metals

Non-metallic mineral products

Ferrous metallurgy

Paper industry and printing

Low tech

Textiles and clothing

Food, drinks and tobacco

Oil refining

Metallurgy

Woodworking and furniture production

In addition, in 1997 the OECD proposed the following groups of high-tech products, within the framework of the so-called product approach:

Aerospace products

Computers

Electronic telecommunications

Pharmacology

Scientific instruments

Electrical equipment

Chemical products

Non-electrical equipment

Armament

The concepts of science-intensive and high-tech products are in many ways similar, however, they are not interchangeable. Based on the above definitions, it can be established that high-tech products will not always be high-tech, because a high share of costs for scientific and technical research can theoretically be present in any industry, not only in the high-tech segment. The converse is also not always true. “If an industry produces and sells technically complex products on a massive scale, then the ratio of its annual R&D volume to production volume will be lower than the standard” for the industry.

In modern conditions, it is generally accepted that knowledge-intensive and high-tech sectors of the national economy largely determine the level of economic development of the country. Moreover, the production of competitive high-tech products with high added value is not only an indicator of economic growth, but also a catalyst for qualitative structural changes in the economy.

The concept and essence of high-tech products

Most authors identify the concept of “high-tech” using the indicator knowledge-intensive™; as a result, the terms “high-tech” and “knowledge-intensive” are currently used mainly as synonyms. However, this is not entirely correct, since recognition of the fact that a product is knowledge-intensive does not automatically mean that it is high-tech.

Science-intensive products- goods in the production of which the ratio of costs for research and development to the average annual production volume is increased, ranging from 3.5 to 10%.

It is obvious that knowledge-intensive products will not always be high-tech, since a high share of costs for scientific and technical research can theoretically be observed in any industry, and not just in the high-tech segment.

Taking into account the insufficient differentiation in the scientific and methodological literature of such definitions as “knowledge-intensive”, “high-tech”, as well as “innovative” products, we will eliminate this problem using the concept of “overlapping sets”, a graphic illustration of which is presented in Fig. 8.1.

Rice. 8.1.

Both knowledge-intensive and high-tech products are a form of manifestation of innovation when considering the manifestation of its result; therefore, the features of the innovation market as a whole can be transposed onto them.

Taking into account the above, high-tech products are products manufactured by companies in knowledge-intensive industries, produced using the latest equipment and technologies, with the participation of highly qualified, specially trained personnel, embodying modern scientific achievements, best practices and having high socio-economic efficiency.

There are two possible approaches to the problem of classifying a specific product as a high-tech product: product and industry.

As part of the product approach, the OECD in 1997 proposed the following groups of high-tech products:

• aerospace products;
• computers;
• pharmaceutical products;
• scientific instruments;
• electrical equipment;
• chemical products;
• weapons.

In 2010, the OECD carried out a sectoral classification of the national economy, presented in table. 8.2.

The main features of the production of high-tech products are:

• relatively high and stable R&D costs;
• a large number of highly qualified workers, steadily engaged in research and development, whose share in the total number of employees exceeds the industry average;
• relatively frequent changes not only in the range of products, but also in the methods and technologies of their production;
• high rate of depreciation of the active part of fixed capital.

Industry classification

The fundamental features of these products that must be taken into account in the process of managing their production and sales include the following:

• 1. Uniqueness, high degree of differentiation. The increasingly accelerating pace of development of science and technology, as well as the steady increase in demand for their achievements, lead to a rapid change of products and the emergence of new, often unparalleled products on the high-tech market. The development of indicators for the production program of such products requires the construction of an appropriate management system and opens up opportunities for the search and application of new, non-traditional approaches and methods for determining production volumes, setting prices and controlling costs.
• 2. Ability to generate income. It is the magnitude of the economic effect from use that largely determines the value of such products for the consumer and, accordingly, should be taken into account when determining the demand for a product and its price as one of the key indicators of the production program.
• 3. Mainly long period of product use. Its operation may require timely delivery of specific consumables, systematic preventive maintenance, repair work, and replacement of failed parts and assemblies.

Science-intensive products- these are products in which the share of R&D costs in the total cost of sales is at least 2.5%.

Promotion, as an element of the marketing mix, includes all means of communication that can convey information to the general public. These funds are conventionally divided into five large classes: advertising, sales promotion, public relations, sales agents (personal selling) and direct marketing.

Practice shows that traditional approaches that work successfully for other types of goods cannot always be applied when promoting a new scientific and technological progress to the market. The main feature lies in the very specificity of the product, since usually the implementation of scientific and technical developments requires significant costs, the introduction of new technology into the production process, and is also characterized by a high risk of “non-acceptance” of the new product by the market.

The existence of various stages of development of scientific and technological progress gives rise to the presence of several ways to promote them to the market:

“introductory” marketing, which is used in the early stages of development, when first of all it is necessary to familiarize users with the main features, technologies, and possibilities of using a scientific and technical product;

“applied” marketing, which is used in the presence of scientific and technological progress analogues and is aimed at familiarizing the user with a specific scientific and technical product;

“comparative” marketing, which is a continuation of applied marketing and is used when the user needs not only to be able to use a scientific and technical product, but also to find the one that best suits his needs, as well as financial capabilities

The basis for promoting scientific and technological progress to foreign markets is the positioning of these products in their market segment. Positioning involves determining the individual characteristics of the offered products and their difference from existing analogues. Therefore, it is important to compare in detail all the essential parameters of the proposed scientific and technological progress with the parameters of existing ones.

The main feature of promoting scientific and technical progress is explaining to potential users the advantages, main characteristics and new consumer properties offered for use. The sources of information about scientific and technical progress are: publications of national and international official organizations; publications by government agencies; publications of chambers of commerce and industry and associations; analytical reports of scientific organizations; data on registration of patents, licenses and other exclusive rights of competitors; books, messages in special magazines and newspapers; price lists, catalogues, prospectuses and other company publications.

Essence, evaluation indicators, product quality measures.

The objective need to ensure proper quality in the process of designing, manufacturing and using new products initiates the use of a special system of indicators in the production and economic activities of enterprises that make it possible to determine and control the quality level of all types of products:

Differentiated

2. Generalizing– characterize the overall quality level of the entire range of products produced

3. General– reflect the quality of all or many product visuals.

The following groups of indicators are used: appointments; economical use of raw materials, materials, fuel and energy; reliability (reliability, durability, maintainability, storability); ergonomic; aesthetic; manufacturability; transportability; standardization and unification; patent law; environmental; security.

Product quality management in an organization.

Modern business conditions force each enterprise to implement an effective control mechanism for product quality management and strictly adhere to its requirements. The defining elements of this specific management, which have the most significant impact on the process of constantly ensuring production and supplying the market with competitive products, are standardization and certification of products.

Product standardization

Under standardization understand the establishment of uniform rules in order to streamline activities in a particular industry. In relation to products, standardization covers several structural elements:

1. Establishing requirements for the quality of finished products, as well as raw materials, semi-finished products and components.

2. Development of unification and aggregation of products as the most important condition for specialization and automation of production

3. Determination of standards, requirements and methods in the field of design and manufacture of quality products

4. Creation of unified systems for classification and coding of products, information carriers, forms and methods of organizing production

5. Formation of a unified system of product quality indicators, methods of testing and control, ensuring the unification of measurement terms and designations.

Certification of products and quality systems

Certification

Product certification.

Certification is a procedure by which authorized bodies provide written assurance that a product, process or service meets specified requirements.

Certification is based on standards, compliance with which is a prerequisite for the successful operation of any enterprise, organization, or institution.

Certification is a manufacturer’s guarantee of compliance with the standard: quality control (state, departments, technical).

Product certification carried out in two forms: 1 Mandatory. product certification is a mandatory form of confirmation of product quality in accordance with the requirements of technical regulatory legal acts in force in the territory of the Republic of Belarus. Mandatory certification on the territory of the Republic of Belarus is carried out in relation to products included in the list of products, works, services and other objects of conformity assessment subject to mandatory confirmation of conformity, approved by the Regulation. State Committee for Standardization of the Republic of Belarus dated December 16, 2008 No. 60. Products included in the corresponding lists of technical regulations of the Republic of Belarus or technical regulations of the Customs Union approved in the territory of the Republic of Belarus are also subject to mandatory certification. Voluntary product certification is a voluntary confirmation of product compliance with the requirements of technical regulatory legal acts in force in the territory of the Republic of Belarus, that is, a conformity confirmation procedure that is carried out at the initiative of the applicant. During voluntary certification, the applicant independently selects technical regulatory legal acts in the field of technical regulation and standardization, for compliance with which voluntary certification is carried out, and determines the range of indicators verified during voluntary certification. The presence of a voluntary certificate is not only a good advertisement for a product, but is also often a decisive factor in tenders. Product certification is carried out in accordance with the requirements of TCP 5.1.02-2012 "National system for confirming conformity of the Republic of Belarus. Product certification. Basic provisions." The sale of products subject to mandatory certification on the territory of the Republic of Belarus without a certificate of conformity is prohibited.

General Director of JSC “Research Institute “Elpa” Sergey Feoktistov, appointed to this position on January 1, 2018, spoke about new projects and tasks of the enterprise and about his approach to the development of high-tech production.

“We do not promote products, but their beneficial properties”

Sergey Anatolyevich, when in December you were offered to head JSC Scientific Research Institute Elpa, how did you react to this offer? Was it a challenge for you?

I’ll say right away that until December last year there was no career growth in JSC "Research Institute "Elpa" I didn't plan. And the proposal of the General Director of JSC "SOCIUM-A" Ruslan Igorevich Ashurbeyli was quite unexpected for me.

During the discussion of my appointment, management voiced a request for further development of the company. This task seemed feasible and interesting to me, because for many years I have been involved in the development of management systems for enterprises producing science-intensive and high-tech products. Therefore, I took responsibility for the further development of JSC “Research Institute “Elpa” and, as a result, for the increase in its assets and income.

JSC "Research Institute "Elpa" has a serious scientific and technical potential for development and, at the same time, serious competitors and a number of other factors that impede the effective implementation and beneficial use of current and promising scientific and technical groundwork and developments of our enterprise in modern technical control systems as special, as well as for civilian purposes.

First of all, it is necessary to change the ratio of the volumes of military and civilian products produced. Currently, the share of military products is up to 80%. To ensure sustainable development, it is necessary to increase the share of civilian products as soon as possible and ensure an equal ratio of the shares of military and civilian products in the total output.

In the medium term, it is necessary, without losing positions in the military products market, to ensure a sustainable increase in the share of civilian products. From these tasks arise requirements for changes in the management system, work with scientific and technical personnel, and the scientific and production base. The system for converting the scientific and technical potential of an enterprise into the market also requires changes. I am confident that with the support of our company’s team, we will jointly overcome obstacles and form new directions for development.

- How many years have you been at the company? What position did you hold before being appointed CEO?

I came to JSC Scientific Research Institute Elpa at the end of 2011 and since then I have held one position: I was an adviser to the general director on investments.

- What were your responsibilities?

My main task was to promote and bring to the market scientific and technical advances and high-tech products of JSC Research Institute Elpa, search for customers and sources of financing for promising developments. Actually, this is what I am doing now. With the difference that I want to turn the work, which was previously confined to the general director, into a systemic one - based on the introduction of project management. With this approach, each employee has his own task, integrated into achieving the overall result.

What is the difference between conventional marketing, that is, the promotion of finished products, so to speak, for mass consumption, and the promotion of high-tech products?

The problem of converting scientific and technical potential to the market is relevant for every knowledge-intensive production. It is not always solved by simply attracting investments. In this case, this option is considered last. But finding an idea or coming to some kind of technical solution that could satisfy demand and increase needs is the main thing.

Typically, sales departments promote finished products. It is necessary to change the traditional approach - what we produce is what we promote. You need to produce what is required.

We, first of all, promote the beneficial properties of products that we could create or have already created. We are looking for customers for useful properties that they could apply in their technologies. We offer technical solutions to problems and difficulties that we identify with a potential customer. With this approach, the competitive advantages of devices based on piezoceramics are more easily recognized by the consumer.

We must offer the beneficial properties of our products, including those that are being created or may be created. After all, a designer designing new products is primarily interested in information about operating temperatures, speed, forces and displacements, frequency range, the possibility of digital signal processing and other characteristics that he can apply. In this regard, the role of professional communication with the external scientific and technical community and designers of enterprises creating final products is increasing.

High-tech products go through many stages of birth, starting from conception and laboratory research. Already at this stage she needs promotion. We promote scientific ideas that we can potentially implement, or ideas that have already been developed into a demo version, or the results of R&D (scientific and technical products) when a working model has already been obtained.

For example, a piezo actuator is a piezotechnical device that can be structurally simple or complex, consisting of multilayer film structures. The actuator serves for fixed movement or generation of an electrical impulse, this is its main useful property. Our actuators are durable and their action cannot be stopped by factors such as radiation, electromagnetic pulses, and so on. These are also useful properties.

We implemented all of them in our development work, received an order for it from the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation, and are now at the third stage of execution: based on actuators, we are already making a second piezo platform for special applications. Also, the useful properties of actuators are used to control a laser beam, adjust telescope mirrors and many other technologies.

- As usual, the promotion system is built high-tech products?

Since the promotion of high-tech products has a number of features, we have to solve several problems:

1. Search for the place of useful properties of piezotechnical devices or piezoelements in customer technology.

2. Research of needs, identification of problems that are currently being solved in a particular industry. This also provides new opportunities for the scientific and technical potential of the enterprise. We can try to respond to these problems with a scientific and technological solution. Having learned about the new useful properties developed by us, the potential customer will understand that they can use them to improve the useful properties, and at the same time, the competitive advantages of their final products.

3. Overcoming “dead zones”. Everyone has a good idea of ​​what the final product is, for example, an airplane, a submarine or a rocket. The fact is that scientific and technical products produced at JSC Research Institute Elpa are at the very primary stages of forming the filling of this final product. We are the primary technological link in a large chain of designers and component manufacturers, and the end customer - the one who designs and assembles this very ship from many parts - may simply not see us due to technological distance.

Thus, we are faced with the task of overcoming the “dead zone” between us and the main creator of the final product. It is necessary to convey to him the useful properties of our developments through a whole chain of other participants in this cooperation - in the form of some kind of product in which our products occupy a very small (in area) but important place. As an example, I can cite our angular velocity sensors, gyroscopes, temperature sensors, seismic sensors, piezotransformers, and so on. All these scientific and technical products can be used in a wide variety of products.

Our problem is that we sometimes don't see the wealth of possibilities for our products. We need to look for these opportunities, form cooperation with those who are at different stages of production of the final product.

For example, we followed this path with our seismic sensors, establishing cooperation with designers of systems for monitoring the technical condition of buildings and structures.

The designers had a problem: they could not find seismic sensors on the market that fully met their technical requirements. We proposed unique useful properties of our product, then redesigned the seismic sensor to meet their criteria. Thus, a new final product was introduced to the Russian market: a system for monitoring the technical condition of buildings and structures.

Seismic sensors are certified under two brands: under the brand of our partner - SMIS Expert LLC and under the brand of JSC Scientific Research Institute Elpa. At the same time, the established cooperation does not prevent us from selling sensors to other manufacturers or looking for other partners.

The joint project has already become widespread in Russia. Domodedovo Airport is equipped with a monitoring system from SMIS Expert LLC; now a system is being designed for Vnukovo and for Krasnoyarsk facilities that are being built for the student Olympiad.

The results of our work were also presented in Kazakhstan, where the construction industry is now actively developing. They became very interested in monitoring systems. Our partner has organized cooperation with multidisciplinary construction companies that have a strong position in this country. We will enter the Kazakhstan market with a digital seismic sensor - a modified version of the existing one.

Thus, we use the capabilities and connections of our partner to enter new markets. And this is the fourth feature of promoting scientific and technical products.

Internal cooperation

Sergey Anatolyevich, you said that you want to turn promotion into a system at the enterprise. Does this mean that your designers and department heads will have more work?

This is truly everyone's business. In order to create successful products on the market and promote existing ones, it is necessary, in addition to external ones, to create and strengthen internal cooperation.

There are three research and production complexes at Elp. NPK-1 deals with special products. 90% of the work here is state defense order. The crisis in this area has clearly emerged and is intensifying every year. How to get the potential of NPK-1 out of the hands of a single customer is now a headache for me. We are working on this, and there are no clear solutions yet.

In NPK-3, the element base is being formed and new materials are being created. But it is useless to look for significant added value here due to great competition. China, Japan, Germany, and the Netherlands supply millions of piezoelectric elements to the Russian market, and their cost is tens of times cheaper than ours. Another thing is that mass production often prevails over quality, but that’s a separate conversation.

We are not talking about curtailing the production and sale of piezoelements at JSC Scientific Research Institute Elpa. On the contrary, we strive to produce and sell as much as possible. But now we will try to create added value in NPK-2, where products based on piezoelectric elements produced in NPK-3 are developed and produced.

After all, the areas of application of the beneficial properties of piezoceramics are not limited. It can be used in a variety of industries. In particular, we have prepared a project for Russian Railways and for road workers - it is possible to create an alternative to solar panels that are used in traffic lights.

Now we have received an order for a working prototype of a mobile charger for use in the Armed Forces - in the equipment of a soldier. I hope that in May we will transfer the prototype to the Ministry of Defense and, if the results are satisfactory, we will receive an order for development work.

We have another new product that we made using internal funding within the enterprise and holding company: a piezotransformer. It is not subject to negative influences and is superior in durability to all existing similar technical solutions. We are now looking for areas of application for it. One of them is still in the field of fiction, since the order has not yet been received. Tomsk University, at the instigation of Rosatom, is developing a nuclear battery comparable in size to the Krona. They did not have the necessary components. We proposed our solution based on a piezotransformer. Now, in cooperation with Tomsk, we can offer Rosatom, which is simultaneously carrying out the same work, a working model.

The same piezotransformer can be used in another area - in night vision devices, which have wide application not only in the military sphere.

Night vision devices usually operate on electronic power sources, and electronics sometimes fail, they are susceptible to flare, electromagnetic influence, and so on. We made our own power source based on our piezotransformer, tested prototypes and got a result that was surprising for device manufacturers and users. Based on our power source, the devices do not “blind” and “see” equally well in both night and daylight. These useful properties are now being tested on devices intended for helicopter pilots.

The second series of field tests is being prepared. A cooperation has been created with a manufacturer that forms the “filling” of helmets, and this cooperation already has an end customer who is waiting for serial results. If everything goes well, in the fall we will record the results of field tests and will be able to apply for an industrial order.

Our designers and R&D managers now have one of the main tasks - the formation of the sought-after useful properties of products at the stage of creating the material and piezoelectric element and further - at the stage of obtaining the design. Designers must also participate in the work to overcome “dead zones.” I calculated the idea and an image appeared: what this idea might look like in useful application. This image is precisely what the constructor “puts together”. He must understand better than others how and where this or that useful property can be applied with maximum efficiency.

Management diagnostics

- JSC “Research Institute “Elpa” is facing restructuring?

Now I am checking the functionality and organizational structure of JSC “Research Institute “Elpa” for compliance with the tasks that are assigned to us, assessing the system for adequacy, trying to find out whether we have enough resources and whether they are structured correctly. In another language this is called “management diagnostics of the control system.” Only based on the results of this diagnostic can a decision be made about what changes need to be implemented in order to complete the task.

I have no goal to reduce staff or wages, or carry out a deep restructuring of the enterprise. I want to understand the base: what is there, what is not, what needs to be done so that specialists are provided with everything necessary to obtain results now and in the future.

The next stage is the distribution of functionality, assigning responsibility, clarifying that we are all working towards the end result. It often happens that scientific and technical development has been completed, but has not been put into mass production. Therefore, the first requirement: the results of scientific work must be mastered by production and supplies to consumers organized. This is the end result.

Each R&D is considered as a business area. Two terms are introduced: project (and it always has a commercial result) and project management. The head of the research and production complex is responsible not only for all stages of the project, but is also responsible for the formation and implementation of a portfolio of projects.

Our team is truly wonderful, with history. You can imagine - people have been working here for 50 years or more! And they are distinguished by their devotion. Not by veneration of rank, which, in my opinion, is very harmful, not by attachment to some people or place, but by devotion to one’s work. No matter how they tried to eradicate this during the years of “wild capitalism,” it did not work. People still want to be proud of the results of their work.

I am very glad that JSC Scientific Research Institute Elpa has this, and it can be passed on to young people in the form of our corporate values. By the way, it seems to me that this is one of the urgent tasks: to form among our young specialists a deeper understanding of life values, rather than purely material, mercantile ones.

- Here someone might think that JSC “Research Institute “Elpa” is trying to force people to work “for the idea”...

Not for the idea, but for the result. In this case, the people of the old school set an example. We have had this system in place for a long time. I want to support her. I want the young people who come to us now to also understand that we are all working for the same result. The material and moral benefits that we want to receive are all based on the result of the work of a large team.

The logic of an experienced commander

Sergey Anatolyevich, please tell us a little about yourself. You mentioned that you were involved in the development of various enterprises. What is your education? In what industries have you worked, besides microelectronics?

My education is military. I graduated from the Donetsk Higher Military-Political School of Signal Corps and Engineering Troops, then the Military Academy. He served in many places, including in the Far East. At the time of his discharge from the army in 1995, he worked in the Central Office of the Ministry of Defense.

Then I was invited to a consulting organization as deputy director. We were engaged in business management consulting. At that time, the business seemed to be torn apart from the inside, people fled, the friendship between the partners who founded the business together was broken.

The dynamics of enrichment and accumulation of funds significantly outpaced the development of the activity management system. The business developed, became larger, companies were created that acquired branches and subsidiaries, but the business owners did not know how to manage them. Management systems did not change adequately to changes in business goals and structure. Hence the request for our services.

It turns out that you immediately moved from military service to the business sphere. Quite a sharp transition. Was it easy to adapt, did you feel the need to get another education?

I graduated from the command department of the Military Academy, where they taught, first of all, management skills. There are many analogies between the management system in the army and the management system in business. Nevertheless, I have been studying all this time and continue to study as a general director. This is an objective need, a natural reaction to the dynamics and scale of changes in the economic sphere, science, technological capabilities and people.

As for the use of army experience, I think that any activity, both in the army and in civilian life, presupposes personal responsibility for the decision made, for the assigned task, for the people and is aimed at achieving a specific result. The commander makes a decision on how, with what forces and means to complete the assigned task, based on the goals of the senior commander. The commander is the same as a top manager, only the cost of his decision is greater, and since we are talking about human lives, he must not only make a decision, but also implement it in such a way as to avoid losses. The Army's management system meticulously teaches how to make a decision and monitor its implementation. At the same time, it very precisely defines what personal responsibility is.

Making decisions and taking responsibility for them, the ability to build a strategy, and achieving results are a requirement for any top manager.

What is strategy? As they say in the army, plans are plans, but the war will show. No matter how you calculate everything, no matter how you plan, in real life there are always many surprises and nuances that need to be responded to immediately. Not a single captain brought his ship from point “a” to point “b” in a straight line. What about underwater currents, winds, and reefs, and the level of knowledge and health of the crew, external and internal factors in the organization, and the circumstances of the partners?.. So, the essence of the strategy is managing changes while maintaining the direction of movement towards a given goal. And in the army they learn this better than anywhere else.

In addition, my path in management is not only empirical. I also taught at the Academy of National Economy of Public Administration - I taught regional ministers and deputy ministers according to the presidential program. That is, I am well acquainted with the theoretical basis of management activities and have a perfect understanding of what it means to introduce changes in an enterprise. I led projects related to the creation and revival of companies, and there were also projects to develop technologies that had not yet existed in the world.

Implementing changes in an organization is always associated with resistance. Stressful job. How do you cope with stress? What advice do you have for people who work in similar conditions?

Stress is an absolutely normal condition. This is a mobilizing reaction of the body. A dozen stressful situations can arise in half an hour. Touching something hot is already stressful. In fact, it is not stress that has a destructive effect, but distress, that is, unrealized tension that has not received a positive, effective outlet.

How do you deal with stress? The most common methods are shouting, slamming your fist on the table, for example...

I can. But why? It's destructive. Usually, having received some negative information, I push the stress into myself. It works automatically: you absolutely must not give in to panic, because in a panic you won’t be able to manage either yourself or the team. In addition, a state of panic is very quickly transmitted to others. As a leader, I cannot show the slightest excitement. I have learned to work with my stress, so I don’t bring it to the point of distress. For example, if we are talking about the professional and not the domestic sphere, then finding a way out is the best way to deal with stress.

If any unexpected difficulties or obstacles arise, I gather everyone responsible for the result and arrange a brainstorming session: guys, show your emotions, swear, smoke, but assess the situation and suggest a path, exit direction, determine a plan of specific actions! When people re-adjust, begin to look for a solution, look to the future, instead of endlessly “digesting” the problem, they easily recover from stress. This is the method I usually use.

It should be noted that stress that arises in professional activity is often the result of unprofessionalism, negligence and mistakes of specialists. Any research and production activity involves risks of defects, failure of technological equipment, negative test results of new product samples, failure by customers to meet payment deadlines, sharp reductions in planned orders, and so on. So-called emergency situations arise. Professionals, especially department heads, must be prepared for such situations.

With proper planning, a significant part of the risks includes options for preventive and follow-up actions. It is known that all specialists who are trained to perform work in areas of particular risk are trained to act during emergency situations. Therefore, work to improve the professional level of employees of JSC Research Institute Elpa, especially young specialists, can also be considered as a prevention of the occurrence of panic and distress among personnel.