(Penza, Russia, May, 2001)
Yevgeny A. Mokrov, Alexander V. Blinov
Research Institute of Physical
Measurements (ÍÈÈÔÈ)
440026, Volodarsky str.,
8/10, Penza, Russia
Last decade of May every
year representatives of the most authoritative scientific circles and
enterprises, the specialists of Ministries and the leading workers of different
research institutes from all nooks of Russia and the CIS meet in one of the
most picturesque places of Penza region. "Reliability and quality" the international Symposium has been
already held many years in the "Birch grove" sanatoriums on shore of
the Sursky storage lake. The tradition of holding the Symposium is 16 years old
so many quality control specialists in Russia and abroad know Penza as the
place of holding this forum. The organizers of the Symposium are international
and Russian organizations, educational institutions, Penza region government
and the management of Penza town. This year the Symposium has been devoted to
fortieth anniversary of Yury Gagarin’s space flight and to 200-th anniversary
of Penza province.
Penza State University has
been arranging the Symposium for many years. This university is the most big
and prestige educational institution in Penza and the source of highly skilled
specialists for different branches of industry and economy of Russia, countries
of the CIS and abroad. This year for the first time the Research Institute of
Physical Measurements (NIIFI) has become the key organizer of the Symposium. At
present it is one of the most perspective and stable enterprises in Penza. The
Institute could maintain not only its specialization (development and
manufacturing of the sensors and signal conditioners for rocket-space
engineering), but also its scientific and engineering personnel in super severe economic situation.
The time has already come
for the Institute to find new spheres of application of the Institute
facilities and capabilities.
For 41 years of the NIIFI
existence its scientific potential has become so high that it is getting
impermissible to use the NIIFI’s engineering developments and high professional
qualification of personnel only for applied purposes, but the number of
research works is come to naught practically. The Institute leaders decide to benefit by
NIIFI developments and to enter the intellectual market of Russia to sell
training opportunities for engineering and technical personnel. The first steps
were taken in February, 2001 when NIIFI, as the organizer, has arranged very
impressive conference called “On the quality problems of defensive products of
Russian Federation enterprises when executing the defense state order”. The
conference participants were the workers of the higher educational
institutions, major research institutions and Russian instrument-making
enterprises and also the representatives of municipal administration and the
consumable goods manufacturers.. There were two most important points in he conference resolution. The former is in
the foundation of the Volga regional Council of authorized representatives on
NIIFI basis called "Voyeny registr" for certifying of quality systems
and defensive products. The latter is in the organization of the professional
training, retraining and qualification improvement courses in certifying
activities on the basis of NIIFI. The whole of aforesaid means the large-volume
work for the Institute in professional skill improvement of NIIFI specialists,
in establishment and expansion of new relations with the enterprises of light,
food and manufacturing industries.
NIIFI participation in the
arrangement of "Reliability and quality '2001" Symposium is second
step in familiarization with new field of activity. About 100 participants from
the whole of Russia got together in "Birch grove". In the opening
sitting all participants were greeted by V.V. Fomin, Federal Chief Inspector,
on behalf of the plenipotentiary of Russian Federation President. V.V. Fomin
made honorable mention of the valuable contribution of Penza region and NIIFI
in particular to domestic cosmonautics. The report of I.P. Kuptsov, Deputy
Governor, was dedicated to the anniversary date of Penza region, as well as the
histories of the Symposium organizers, namely Penza state University and NIIFI
. P.N. Kovylin, the representative of the Russian Aviation and Space Agency,
told about NIIFI measuring instruments as the assurance of reliability and
quality of rocket-space engineering. Yevgeny A. Mokrov, Chairman of the
Symposium Organizing Committee, General Director and Chief Designer of NIIFI,
and V.A. Svotin, Deputy Chief of Administration at the Ministry of Defense,
wished the participants much success.
G.S. Sadykhov, Academician
of the Quality Problems of Academy, emphasized the role of domestic scientific
school. At the plenary session academician G.S. Sadykhov said: "The whole
world is instructed in reliability and quality from the key specialist, who
come from the former USSR".
All reports, which were
submitted for consideration in the second day of the Symposium, were devoted to
the product quality and certifying problems, to the structure and authority of
the Voluntary Certifying System called "Voyeny registr", to the
defensive product quality requirements and mathematical support for quality
assurance, as well as the measuring instrument quality and reliability
problems.
The range of the Symposium
themes was broad and covered various trends: the introduction of ISO and GOST
standards, study of processes and failures physics and dynamics of residual
life of commercial products, the modelling and reliability and quality
forecasting for actual operating conditions, training and retraining of quality
and reliability assurance personnel. V.V. Pisarev, Academician of the Quality
Problem Academy (Moscow), and N.N. Novikov, Academician of the Tsiolkovsky
Cosmonautics Academy (Serpukhov), have contributed heavily to the Symposium
work. At the plenary and sectional sessions all reports were of great interest
to scientific audience.
There was no room for a
great number of specialists who wished to make a report during the Symposium.
The Symposium paper book comprised over 250 works. The edition turned out
impressive and voluminous one.
The scientific aspect of
this Symposium was the key one, but not the only one. There were the briefing
meeting with the governor and the visit to the NIIFI exhibition, the excursion
party to see the sights of Penza and the evenings called round the bonfire.
NIKA was not only the meeting of scientists, but also the hearty welcome the
friends and kindred spirits, you see. Academician B.M. Petrov said about NIKA:
"It is like a habit now. Here we do not only submit for consideration some
novelties in science, but also define scientific trends, solve the terminology
problems, exchange the opinions both at
the meetings and at rest-time". The reliability and quality
questions at issue are solved , perhaps, at just like that informal meetings,
mutual enrichment with the ideas takes place and the most daring assumptions
are reviewed. It was not without reason that many regular participants of the
Symposium have defended the theses for the doctor's degree and have acquired
the academic ranks lately. NIKA succeeded in establishing its own scientific
school, having entrusted the solution of difficult problems to the young side
by side and together with the noted scientists.
Next year NIKA will again
gather both the old-timers and the beginners of the Symposium. Ranks of the
like-minded persons increase. This time it is planned to organize
videoconferencing for the Symposium participants so that online community
including foreign scientists will be able to associate with each other. Then
there will be hot discussions and new ideas will come into the world. NIKA'2002
invites everybody, who expresses interest in reliability and quality problems,
to cooperation.