Students and teachers of the SPbGASU Faculty of Automobile and Road Building took part in the international exhibition and forum of special equipment, commercial transport and equipment "Eurasian Construction Technology", organized in the St Petersburg Congress and Exhibition Center "Expoforum" on 4-6 September.

Andrey Zazykin and students get acquainted with the presented equipment

The exhibition was held with the support of the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia, the State Duma Committee on Industry and Trade, the Association of Importers and Manufacturers of Specialized Equipment, and became an effective platform for interaction between university representatives and students with the professional community. As Andrey Zazykin, Dean of the SPbGASU Faculty of Automobile and Road Building, said, during the conferences and business meetings, it was possible to establish contacts to expand cooperation with the industry, discuss key issues of training specialists and employment of students and graduates, propose solutions, and generally talk about how to popularize transport specialties among applicants through joint efforts of the state, university, and industry. Having seen modern special equipment and talked to experts and entrepreneurs, the students assessed the prospects of their future professional activities.

Developed at SPbGASU: chassis for the "Electrowasher" and a racing car

Among the display items of the exhibition, which took place on an area of ​​over 20,000 square meters, was equipment designed and assembled at SPbGASU. PhD student Vitaly Vasiliev spoke about the design of an electric vehicle with special equipment for washing tanks, "Electrowasher", the chassis of which he designed and assembled together with former PhD student Oleg Nikiforov.

"The vehicle uses a synchronous traction electric motor and a Chinese traction converter. We developed and assembled an electric battery, a switching and protection unit. We kept the gearbox so that the engine would work in its ideal range and could distribute power to heat water to 80 degrees, wash tanks, and operate special equipment. The developed design of the electric car allows you to travel from 50 to 150 kilometers without recharging. The driving range primarily depends on the season, or more precisely, on the ambient temperature and the power consumed when washing, which, in turn, depends on the degree of contamination of the tanks. Why an electric car and not equipment on common fuel? Because I wanted to combine two interesting solutions: washing tanks in a car on an electric chassis. In addition, now a course has been outlined for the use of environmentally friendly transport. Moscow has already introduced the ban on the entry of diesel trucks into the city center. So our car is aimed at the future. "Such equipment does not pollute the air in the city, and makes the city itself cleaner, because it has been calculated that after unloading the garbage, up to 30% of dirt and garbage remains on the walls of the tanks. I am sure that companies that handle solid household waste will be interested in our car," said Vitaly Vasiliev.

Fourth-year student, member of the SPbGASU Auto Club, pilot and mechanic Ivan Afanasyev presented his sports car – a buggy, developed jointly with his mentor Aleksandr Zolotarev on the material and technical basis of the interdepartmental laboratory of the Krasnoe Selo training site.

"We made the frame, suspension, attached the engine and gearbox ourselves, thus preparing the sports car for participation in the Russian Autocross Championship next year. The car runs on gasoline, reaches speeds of up to 150 km/h and during testing at the training site in Krasnoe Selo, it successfully covered 100 kilometers in active mode. All requirements for power and safety are met. We have two more such cars, but this model is the newest and most advanced. It has a simple transmission, easy to repair and a unique suspension that no other production car has. Thanks to all this, in case of damage during the cross, the car can be repaired in an hour," explained Ivan Afanasyev.

According to him, the designer sports car attracted unprecedented interest from visitors to the exhibition and clearly demonstrated the opportunities that SPbGASU students have for learning and technical creativity.

To the Arctic for high salaries, career and romance

Professor at the SPbGASU Department of Land Transport and Technological Machines Aleksandr Pushkarev acted as a moderator of the conference "Future zones: how preferential regimes form new technologies and help businesses stay ahead of time". Among the topics of discussion were ways to achieve synergy between science and production, production and career opportunities in the special climatic conditions of the Arctic and the Far East.

"Practical and scientific experience reveals both the drivers of development of these territories and the problems that hinder the implementation of advanced ideas aimed at increasing the accessibility of these regions, forming a serious base for production and living conditions for people. In the Arctic, a set of problems is caused by climatic conditions. Accordingly, the equipment for work here must meet social requirements, first of all, for safety. An important aspect is the production technology of both the design of machines and the materials for their manufacture. Machines must have operational qualities that allow them to be easily maintained, and have the proper level of reliability, service life, and be cost-effective. In addition, in the Arctic regions, facilities are located at a very long distance from each other, which complicates the logistics of spare parts, consumables, and the elimination of emerging difficulties. As representatives of higher education, we believe that one of the most important points is the training of specialists working with equipment at construction sites and road construction facilitie, is the formation of so-called Arctic competencies in students," emphasized Aleksandr Evgenievich.

He recalled that the key regulator in resolving all these issues is the state, but the generators of new ideas will be young specialists who will strive for success in their professional field and who will see a certain romance in working in areas with special climatic conditions.

However, these two factors open up great opportunities for specialists in professional growth and income growth. Head of the Development and Construction Materials Department of JSC Far East and Arctic Development Corporation Stepan Tsitovich noted that the President declared the development of the Far East and Arctic a priority for Russia in the 21st century. For the effective development of these territories, a ministry was created within the government that operates on a territorial principle.

"Our corporation operates within the structure of this ministry. We create favorable conditions for attracting investors and help them from formulating a project idea to its launch. This approach yields results. Since 2015, 9 trillion rubles of investments have been attracted under binding agreements, of which 3.8 trillion have already been invested in the economy. About a thousand companies have implemented projects in the Far East. Support measures are in demand both among large businesses and among small companies involved in construction and production of construction equipment and building materials, and execution of contract work. The main thing is that the project must be new, implemented in the specified territories and not related to trade. New projects mean new jobs. Due to tax preferences, resident companies have the opportunity to increase the salaries of specialists by more than 50%," Stepan Tsitovich specified.

According to him, the development of the Arctic and the Far East creates demand for construction special equipment and materials, services of contractors for many years. Consequently, personnel will also be in demand, for the attraction of which cooperation with universities is being established. In addition, the "Muravyov-Amursky 2030" program has been launched to train management personnel for the Far East. Citizens of Russia from 21 to 35 years old, with higher education (master's or specialist's degree) and willing to work in the civil service can participate. In addition, all specialists working in these regions can apply for a preferential mortgage.

Become a developer of solutions for an unmanned all-terrain vehicle

Svetlana Tortseva, member of the Commission on Innovative and Technological Development of the Council of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Russia for Financial, Industrial and Investment Policy, founder of Criteria Consult LLC, shared the story of her own project in the Arctic zone. She emphasized that in the new technological order, industry is becoming more technologically advanced, and products are becoming more science-driven. Following the government, manufacturers are undergoing digital transformation processes, becoming digital companies aimed at producing modern innovative products.

"In 2020, the famous racer Oleg Vylegzhanin began developing an all-terrain vehicle that combines lightness, strength and technology. In 2021, we developed a concept, in 2022 we created a prototype, conducted the first tests and received a certificate of conformity, in 2023 we organized production, created a team and received the first order for the production of three all-terrain vehicles and snow and swamp vehicles "Twilight" of different configurations. After testing, we chose a larger model that meets all market demands. In 2024, we conducted tests in the harsh conditions of the Arkhangelsk Region and the Nenets Autonomous Okrug and decided to build a plant here," the expert said.

SPbGASU students were interested in the engine models of this equipment, as well as the nuances of the construction and launch of the plant. Among the goals named by the speaker is attracting specialists who want to work on interesting projects in the conditions of the Far North.

The head of the Arctic Institute of Science and Technology Aleksandr Tortsev invited students to take part in a competition to develop solutions for unmanned all-terrain vehicles. The best projects will be supported.

He spoke about the team currently working on developing an unmanned aerial vehicle for the Arctic, and about what software, digital solutions and mechanisms are most suitable for developing equipment for these climatic conditions.

"The present of this area is new algorithms. Their development based on neural networks for more accurate forecasting of energy consumption and modeling of multiple mission scenarios will increase the safety and efficiency of drone operation in the Arctic. The future is quantum computers. It is expected that their integration with neural networks will significantly speed up the process of training autopilots and improve the accuracy of forecasting events along the route," concluded Aleksandr Tortsev.

FARBF students have heard a lot about the advantages of light demarcation at production facilities. They were able to see its practical effectiveness from the presentation by Valery Edemsky, the project manager of Security Technologies LLC.

Andrey Zazykin said that SPbGASU has a Smart Labor training site, which deals with light demarcation, among other things, and suggested considering options for cooperation with SPbGASU in this area.

University – Industry: how to achieve effective interaction

Andrey Zazykin speaking

Andrey Zazykin spoke at the conference "Labor Efficiency as a Strategic Resource for Sustainable Development of Enterprises", where the topic was labor efficiency in production, automation of work processes, tools and management solutions for attracting personnel. It was noted that today in Russia the deficit of operational personnel is 5 million people, but at the same time the prestige of specialists in the eyes of applicants, for example, designers and operators of special equipment, is falling. And in general, in the transport industry there is a desynchronization of the need for personnel and those wishing to become specialists in it. According to Andrey Zazykin, all Russian and foreign companies present at the exhibition stated that they need well-trained personnel.

"The shortage of highly qualified personnel in various fields, including mechanical engineering, the automobile and road industry, has been observed for quite a long time, and the situation is only getting worse. Our university has created the necessary conditions for their training: highly professional teaching staff, good material and technical support, scientific schools. We train high-quality specialists in the field of design and operation of construction and road equipment. But the admission campaign is not as active as we would like, despite the demand for specialists. Why is this happening? Schoolchildren who come to our university as part of career guidance events doubt that you can earn good money in this industry. We put a lot of effort, we do a lot of work to attract future applicants, telling them about successful graduates, good prospects, in order to dispel this misconception.

But it is difficult for a university to raise the prestige of a profession on its own. To do this, we need to work together with the industry and the state, especially since practice shows the high efficiency of such an approach. When the educational process interacts with production, students can participate in the creation of new models of equipment while still students, and the result of such interaction is presented at the exhibition. The state has created and supports a program of targeted training, when a student receives a specialty in demand by the market with a guarantee of subsequent employment, and the employer successfully meets its personnel needs. In addition, industry representatives are part of the state examination committee, which allows them to take a closer look at graduates, evaluate the professional knowledge they have acquired, and the university to receive feedback on the quality of the educational program," said Andrey Zazykin.

He added that students need motivation, and it can be increased not only by industrial practice, open lectures from the employer, but also by part-time work in the future specialty. It is important to understand that student part-time work is a mass phenomenon these days, often a necessity. At the same time, the specialized employer is not always ready to accept them: they need qualified personnel. However, due to the higher education system, students acquire the necessary qualifications only in the third or fourth year, so they go to work in other areas, which is fraught with the risk of losing contact with the university, losing interest in the profession they are receiving. According to Andrey Zazykin, the solution may be early career guidance at the university, organizing communication between employers and students in the early years, involving them in production. Here, the employer needs to reconsider their approaches to working with students. Organizing such exhibitions also serves as a motivator for students. Another center of convergence is scientific conferences, where students present their research, and if manufacturers also participate in them, talk about their needs, share industry trends, then it will be possible to establish close cooperation in the training of valuable personnel. Moreover, the university has organized a Qualification Assessment Center, which conducts an independent assessment of the graduate's qualifications.

All the efforts of the faculty and the university's capabilities yield results. Among the students there are representatives of dynasties, among the graduates there are specialists who have achieved success in their profession. It turned out that they were also present at the exhibition as representatives of large companies. Thus, a graduate of SPbGASU Anna Chibisova is a logistician for a Chinese engineering company. She says that she has worked in various Russian and foreign companies, but always in her specialty and is happy with her professional choice.

The exhibition inspires

Third-year student Anastasia Sulyagina considers it a great success that she was able to visit a specialized exhibition of such a high level. "I was amazed by the abundance of exhibits: I was able see live the products of famous manufacturers and importers of road, agricultural, construction equipment that correspond to our training profile. The event was very interesting, educational and well organized, so it left a positive impression, gave a powerful charge and motivation for a deeper study of machines and mechanisms," she said.

Her classmate Daria Surazakova admits that she was surprised by the scale, good organization of the exhibition and the opportunity to "feel the equipment from the inside" by sitting in it and personally talking with company representatives about possible cooperation in the future. "The number of exhibits is impressive: from small loaders and self-propelled electric trucks to large-sized equipment - asphalt pavers, truck cranes, motor graders. We, students, studied with great interest the mini-loaders, excavators, quarry dump trucks, front loaders, asphalt paver, various tractors, the i-VAN ATV, the lifting capacity of which, despite its modest dimensions, is 4.7 tons. Of course, the exhibits presented by the students of our university aroused pride. Participation in such exhibitions inspires!" - noted Daria.