After the pogrom of military representatives
The sharp drop in the quality of products of the defense industry of Russia forced the Ministry of Defense to revive military acceptance
In the course of Serdukov reforms, the institute of military missions of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, as is known, suffered serious losses. He was not only significantly reduced, but was also effectively excluded from determining the quality and price of military products, many experienced specialists were transferred to the reserve. What this led to, and how the situation is changing today, was discussed at a research and practice conference at the 46 Central Research Institute of the Russian Ministry of Defense.
The Office of Military Representations (VP) of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation is entrusted with the functions of monitoring the implementation of the state defense order (GOZ) and the quality of military products, as well as space systems and complexes of scientific, socio-economic, commercial and military purposes, aviation technicians. More than 60 percent of the work of military missions is associated with monitoring the implementation of state defense orders. Including 56 percent - through the Ministry of Defense.
Depressing performance
Unfortunately, since 2012, the military offices of the Defense Ministry of the Russian Federation have been virtually excluded from the pricing process for military products. In particular, in 2012 (under Serdyukov) a document was approved on the distribution of the range of military products according to the volume of control. In accordance with it, the military missions were exempted from participation in the preparation of factory contracts for the supply of components, pricing, coordination and control over the implementation of research, in the preparation of private technical tasks issued to the principal executors (co-performers), from much more. At about the same time, hundreds of trained military representatives were fired or taken out of state, who had to look for work "in the civilian world." All this has turned into an uncontrolled increase in prices for weapons and military equipment.
Nevertheless, the main issue is the quality control of the supplied products, which is extremely difficult to accomplish with the annual growth of the state defense order, increasing the supply of weapons and military equipment. For example, before 2016, the number of models of new weapons should be provided at the level of 30 percent, by 2020, up to 70 percent. The development stages for the main types of weapons and military equipment (IWT), which will determine the appearance of the modern Armed Forces, are now ending.
“Unfortunately, the quality of the supplied weapons and military equipment currently leaves much to be desired,” complained Colonel Oleg Stepanov, the head of the Directorate of military missions of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. “Compared to 2011 – 2012 over the years, performance is not improving here, they are simply depressing.”
This is evidenced by the dynamics of return by the military missions of products that did not withstand the established test category. According to the Ministry of Defense, about nine products from the 10 are returned to the VP when conducting certain tests. But this is after the inspection of products by the technical control departments of the enterprises themselves.
Last year, the 515 military offices once stopped the acceptance and shipment of products due to quality problems that were identified during the operation of defects. Another depressing indicator is the percentage of complaints. In 2012, in relation to 2011, their number immediately increased by 60 percent. If 2011 claims were filed in 1918, in 2012, 3154 was filed.
The sharp increase in quality claims on the part of exploitation could be explained by the increased number of equipment that is under warranty, the intensity of the exercise, the “childhood diseases” of new weapons and military equipment in the army. However, such a substantial increase in complaints makes us think about a lot.
In the opinion of the military representatives, this is still explained by the insufficient equipment of most industrial enterprises with modern production technologies and equipment, instrumentation and control equipment. At times, raw weapons and military equipment samples are put into operation, which undergo very many design changes in the first two years.
The level of effectiveness of quality management systems directly in a number of enterprises is not high enough. It is not a secret to anyone that in the 2000-ies the civil services of their quality were reduced to almost zero. It was believed that these were unnecessary, economically inexpedient structures that military acceptance could supposedly replace. As a result, the qualifications of the QC personnel working there have dropped significantly. And the military acceptance itself was later reformed, in recent years the normal working relationship with the troops has been lost, where the quality and reliability of equipment is checked.
It is not always that defense plants seek clarification of the true causes of equipment failure. Sometimes it is easier and cheaper to simply replace a failed chip, rather than look for the reasons for the refusal in it or the structural device of a unit, product.
“Among the enterprises to which the Ministry of Defense has the most significant quality claims are OJSC GOKB Projector, Moscow (Moscow), OOO Reduktor (Perm), OJSC Yaroslavl Radio Plant, and OJSC Elektroagregat, military missions of the Russian Defense Ministry.
In this regard, great attention is now being paid to forecasting problematic issues at the planning stage of the SDO. But conflict situations are not always avoided. For example, from contracts that were broken back during the 2008 – 2012 period, 76 has not yet been fulfilled, although four years have passed. In 2012, more than 20 percent of weapons and military equipment was left unused to the operating organizations. And fines amounted to 4,8 billion rubles.
There are enterprises that simply disrupt the implementation of state defense orders. According to Oleg Stepanov, this is JSC “Military Industrial Company” - for deliveries of BTR-82A, Aviakor aircraft factory (Samara) - by An-140 aircraft, Mayak plant (Kirov) - by anti-tank guided missiles, air defense concern “ Almaz-Antey "- according to C-400.
There are problems with the service technology. For six months, 2013 was actually served in the troops by no more than 15 – 20 percent of what was planned. I wonder what, then, was done and done by the troops of the Oboronservis structure?
How to curb prices
Let's return to the issue of pricing policy at the stages of the formation and placement of the state defense order. Last year, by a government decree No. 766, the function of controlling pricing and the actual costs incurred by enterprises in executing state defense orders was removed from the EP. 2012 showed a rapid increase in prices for components, which the head enterprises tried to restrain with difficulty, especially in cooperation products.
At the stage of placing the state defense order, the military acceptance examines the calculation and calculation materials and issues its conclusion on this basis. The EP is an intermediate link, since the same materials are then worked out by the Office of Military-Economic Analysis, which implies a two-level system for determining prices. But this does not always work.
“Only a representative of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, who is directly at the enterprise and knows its economic condition, as well as the real state of affairs, can objectively check the actual costs, name the planned price for military products,” said Viktor Medvedev, head of the military economic analysis department. “But the leadership of defense enterprises and military representatives do not always find mutual understanding in terms of providing the necessary documents when justifying the price.”
And the main problem here is the lack of a regulatory framework that is binding on both parties. According to experts, the most rational decision here would be the restoration of the full resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 804, where many issues were taken into account. But even this, like the return of military representatives to enterprises, today, unfortunately, will no longer give an instant effect. In the military acceptance over the past two or three years, there has been a huge shortage of specialists, especially those who are capable of doing economic work. So that after the actual defeat of the military acceptance they are recruited and prepared again, it will take more than one year.
There are also problems associated, for example, with regard to the costs of enterprises for delivering the product to the consumer, by concealing the pricing procedure by the intermediary firms. They all require consistent solutions. And the Ministry of Defense, returning to the position of common sense, is making considerable efforts in this regard.
In January 2013, the instructions of the Deputy Minister of Defense that the military missions should participate in the formation of the initial prices of government contracts, both hosted by a single performer and other positions, were prepared and passed legal and legal assessment by the military authorities. These decisions do not contradict the provisions of the legislation of the Russian Federation, in accordance with which the Ministry of Defense as the state customer is charged with the functions of pricing the state defense order and exercising control over the targeted use of allocated budget allocations. Although lately some directors of defense enterprises have lost the habit of such a role of the Interim Government and are bombarded with questions by the Ministry of Defense, the Office of Military Representations of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, and the Minister of Defense, saying that these instructions contradict Russian legislation and government decrees. As a result, conflict situations are sometimes created, the GOZ suffers.
There are two problems that prevent the formation of a draft price and submit it to the customer and the Office of Military-Economic Analysis of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
Firstly, the payment of the work of the principal contractor with the cooperation. Not all enterprises maintain separate cost accounting, as provided for by government decree No. 47. Often, materials are submitted on one or two pages without decoding and confirmation of the stated prices. Such materials are returned by military missions for revision. At the same time, there is a government decree No. 441, an order of the Ministry of Industry and Energy No. 200, an order of the Federal Tariff Service No. 118, which allow to organize work and ensure the preparation of the necessary calculation materials for the state defense order.
Secondly, the lack of a pricing methodology that would be understandable and accepted for execution by all parties. For example, the current order of the Ministry of Industry and Energy No. 200 of 2006, “On Approval of the Order of Costs for Military Products”, requires clarifications and additions, since it does not define the full range of costs and the possibility of including them in the cost of production, does not disclose the pricing procedure. In particular, for work with an uncertain volume, service, repair on the technical condition. This situation leads to disagreements in determining the price of products, delaying the time for concluding contracts, and in some cases to the contractor’s refusal to deliver products.
The FZ No. 275 of 2012 of the Year “On State Defense Order” defines the following types of prices: approximate, fixed, reimbursing costs. It would seem that it allows you to take into account all the nuances. However, n. 2 Art. 11 of this law states that the conditions and procedure for the application of price types is established by the government of the Russian Federation. But this procedure and conditions for determining types of prices have not yet been developed and make it difficult to use them, as well as the conclusion of a number of contracts.
“The Protocol of the Military-Industrial Commission under the Government of the Russian Federation dated 28 in January 2011 approved the procedure for determining the composition of costs for the creation of military scientific and technical products supplied by the GOZ,” explains Viktor Medvedev. “But he also failed to register with the Ministry of Justice and cannot be an official document binding on the part of the determination of prices for R & D.”
All of this suggests that the Ministry of Industry and Trade should, as soon as possible, develop guidelines that would fully disclose the package of costs attributable to the cost of weapons and military equipment, determine the pricing procedure.
Return to common sense
24 March 2013 of the Year Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu approved a plan to revive and improve the activities of military missions, practically reviving what was destroyed. It provides three areas of work.
1. Improving the regulatory framework of the Interim Government and, in particular, developing a draft order of the Minister of Defense “On the procedure for determining the nomenclature of military products subject to military acceptance control”. The Defense Ministry is moving away from the territorial principle of building military missions and returns to the species one (by types of weapons and military equipment). The departments (groups) that used to be part of territorial IDPs have been reduced, and the concept of “territorial military mission” has been abolished. In connection with this, the role of head military missions according to models of weapons and military equipment is growing. Such a system has shown its effectiveness in previous years.
2. The number of all military missions of the Ministry of Defense in 2013 will be increased (the documents have already been signed) almost doubled. Accordingly, a sufficient number of posts are introduced, which should be staffed by new people. For this purpose, the order of the Minister of Defense No. 194 is being processed.
3. Training and retraining of military personnel began in nine military universities, as well as at military departments of four civil universities. First of all, these are officers who have served in the army, especially in the engineering and technical staff, have operational experience, knowledge of the “narrow” places of specific weapons and military equipment and their potential.
From now on, the military missions will consider the quality control and acceptance of all weapons of the GOZ as their main duty. With the exception of civilian products that are not subject to the requirements of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, products of a foreign manufacturer, as well as clothing and equipment. In addition, the VP is assigned the functions of timely informing the ordering authorities with the possibility of adopting corrective positions in the fulfillment of the state defense order. From 2013, this data has been submitted to the Central Command Post of the General Staff.
All this should correct the damage caused to the military acceptance and military missions of the Defense Ministry of the Russian Federation by ill-considered actions of the former leadership of the Russian Defense Ministry.
In the course of Serdukov reforms, the institute of military missions of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, as is known, suffered serious losses. He was not only significantly reduced, but was also effectively excluded from determining the quality and price of military products, many experienced specialists were transferred to the reserve. What this led to, and how the situation is changing today, was discussed at a research and practice conference at the 46 Central Research Institute of the Russian Ministry of Defense.
The Office of Military Representations (VP) of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation is entrusted with the functions of monitoring the implementation of the state defense order (GOZ) and the quality of military products, as well as space systems and complexes of scientific, socio-economic, commercial and military purposes, aviation technicians. More than 60 percent of the work of military missions is associated with monitoring the implementation of state defense orders. Including 56 percent - through the Ministry of Defense.
Depressing performance
Unfortunately, since 2012, the military offices of the Defense Ministry of the Russian Federation have been virtually excluded from the pricing process for military products. In particular, in 2012 (under Serdyukov) a document was approved on the distribution of the range of military products according to the volume of control. In accordance with it, the military missions were exempted from participation in the preparation of factory contracts for the supply of components, pricing, coordination and control over the implementation of research, in the preparation of private technical tasks issued to the principal executors (co-performers), from much more. At about the same time, hundreds of trained military representatives were fired or taken out of state, who had to look for work "in the civilian world." All this has turned into an uncontrolled increase in prices for weapons and military equipment.
Nevertheless, the main issue is the quality control of the supplied products, which is extremely difficult to accomplish with the annual growth of the state defense order, increasing the supply of weapons and military equipment. For example, before 2016, the number of models of new weapons should be provided at the level of 30 percent, by 2020, up to 70 percent. The development stages for the main types of weapons and military equipment (IWT), which will determine the appearance of the modern Armed Forces, are now ending.“Unfortunately, the quality of the supplied weapons and military equipment currently leaves much to be desired,” complained Colonel Oleg Stepanov, the head of the Directorate of military missions of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. “Compared to 2011 – 2012 over the years, performance is not improving here, they are simply depressing.”
This is evidenced by the dynamics of return by the military missions of products that did not withstand the established test category. According to the Ministry of Defense, about nine products from the 10 are returned to the VP when conducting certain tests. But this is after the inspection of products by the technical control departments of the enterprises themselves.
Last year, the 515 military offices once stopped the acceptance and shipment of products due to quality problems that were identified during the operation of defects. Another depressing indicator is the percentage of complaints. In 2012, in relation to 2011, their number immediately increased by 60 percent. If 2011 claims were filed in 1918, in 2012, 3154 was filed.
The sharp increase in quality claims on the part of exploitation could be explained by the increased number of equipment that is under warranty, the intensity of the exercise, the “childhood diseases” of new weapons and military equipment in the army. However, such a substantial increase in complaints makes us think about a lot.
In the opinion of the military representatives, this is still explained by the insufficient equipment of most industrial enterprises with modern production technologies and equipment, instrumentation and control equipment. At times, raw weapons and military equipment samples are put into operation, which undergo very many design changes in the first two years.
The level of effectiveness of quality management systems directly in a number of enterprises is not high enough. It is not a secret to anyone that in the 2000-ies the civil services of their quality were reduced to almost zero. It was believed that these were unnecessary, economically inexpedient structures that military acceptance could supposedly replace. As a result, the qualifications of the QC personnel working there have dropped significantly. And the military acceptance itself was later reformed, in recent years the normal working relationship with the troops has been lost, where the quality and reliability of equipment is checked.
It is not always that defense plants seek clarification of the true causes of equipment failure. Sometimes it is easier and cheaper to simply replace a failed chip, rather than look for the reasons for the refusal in it or the structural device of a unit, product.
“Among the enterprises to which the Ministry of Defense has the most significant quality claims are OJSC GOKB Projector, Moscow (Moscow), OOO Reduktor (Perm), OJSC Yaroslavl Radio Plant, and OJSC Elektroagregat, military missions of the Russian Defense Ministry.
In this regard, great attention is now being paid to forecasting problematic issues at the planning stage of the SDO. But conflict situations are not always avoided. For example, from contracts that were broken back during the 2008 – 2012 period, 76 has not yet been fulfilled, although four years have passed. In 2012, more than 20 percent of weapons and military equipment was left unused to the operating organizations. And fines amounted to 4,8 billion rubles.
There are enterprises that simply disrupt the implementation of state defense orders. According to Oleg Stepanov, this is JSC “Military Industrial Company” - for deliveries of BTR-82A, Aviakor aircraft factory (Samara) - by An-140 aircraft, Mayak plant (Kirov) - by anti-tank guided missiles, air defense concern “ Almaz-Antey "- according to C-400.
There are problems with the service technology. For six months, 2013 was actually served in the troops by no more than 15 – 20 percent of what was planned. I wonder what, then, was done and done by the troops of the Oboronservis structure?
How to curb prices
Let's return to the issue of pricing policy at the stages of the formation and placement of the state defense order. Last year, by a government decree No. 766, the function of controlling pricing and the actual costs incurred by enterprises in executing state defense orders was removed from the EP. 2012 showed a rapid increase in prices for components, which the head enterprises tried to restrain with difficulty, especially in cooperation products.
At the stage of placing the state defense order, the military acceptance examines the calculation and calculation materials and issues its conclusion on this basis. The EP is an intermediate link, since the same materials are then worked out by the Office of Military-Economic Analysis, which implies a two-level system for determining prices. But this does not always work.
“Only a representative of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, who is directly at the enterprise and knows its economic condition, as well as the real state of affairs, can objectively check the actual costs, name the planned price for military products,” said Viktor Medvedev, head of the military economic analysis department. “But the leadership of defense enterprises and military representatives do not always find mutual understanding in terms of providing the necessary documents when justifying the price.”
And the main problem here is the lack of a regulatory framework that is binding on both parties. According to experts, the most rational decision here would be the restoration of the full resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 804, where many issues were taken into account. But even this, like the return of military representatives to enterprises, today, unfortunately, will no longer give an instant effect. In the military acceptance over the past two or three years, there has been a huge shortage of specialists, especially those who are capable of doing economic work. So that after the actual defeat of the military acceptance they are recruited and prepared again, it will take more than one year.
There are also problems associated, for example, with regard to the costs of enterprises for delivering the product to the consumer, by concealing the pricing procedure by the intermediary firms. They all require consistent solutions. And the Ministry of Defense, returning to the position of common sense, is making considerable efforts in this regard.
In January 2013, the instructions of the Deputy Minister of Defense that the military missions should participate in the formation of the initial prices of government contracts, both hosted by a single performer and other positions, were prepared and passed legal and legal assessment by the military authorities. These decisions do not contradict the provisions of the legislation of the Russian Federation, in accordance with which the Ministry of Defense as the state customer is charged with the functions of pricing the state defense order and exercising control over the targeted use of allocated budget allocations. Although lately some directors of defense enterprises have lost the habit of such a role of the Interim Government and are bombarded with questions by the Ministry of Defense, the Office of Military Representations of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, and the Minister of Defense, saying that these instructions contradict Russian legislation and government decrees. As a result, conflict situations are sometimes created, the GOZ suffers.
There are two problems that prevent the formation of a draft price and submit it to the customer and the Office of Military-Economic Analysis of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
Firstly, the payment of the work of the principal contractor with the cooperation. Not all enterprises maintain separate cost accounting, as provided for by government decree No. 47. Often, materials are submitted on one or two pages without decoding and confirmation of the stated prices. Such materials are returned by military missions for revision. At the same time, there is a government decree No. 441, an order of the Ministry of Industry and Energy No. 200, an order of the Federal Tariff Service No. 118, which allow to organize work and ensure the preparation of the necessary calculation materials for the state defense order.
Secondly, the lack of a pricing methodology that would be understandable and accepted for execution by all parties. For example, the current order of the Ministry of Industry and Energy No. 200 of 2006, “On Approval of the Order of Costs for Military Products”, requires clarifications and additions, since it does not define the full range of costs and the possibility of including them in the cost of production, does not disclose the pricing procedure. In particular, for work with an uncertain volume, service, repair on the technical condition. This situation leads to disagreements in determining the price of products, delaying the time for concluding contracts, and in some cases to the contractor’s refusal to deliver products.
The FZ No. 275 of 2012 of the Year “On State Defense Order” defines the following types of prices: approximate, fixed, reimbursing costs. It would seem that it allows you to take into account all the nuances. However, n. 2 Art. 11 of this law states that the conditions and procedure for the application of price types is established by the government of the Russian Federation. But this procedure and conditions for determining types of prices have not yet been developed and make it difficult to use them, as well as the conclusion of a number of contracts.
“The Protocol of the Military-Industrial Commission under the Government of the Russian Federation dated 28 in January 2011 approved the procedure for determining the composition of costs for the creation of military scientific and technical products supplied by the GOZ,” explains Viktor Medvedev. “But he also failed to register with the Ministry of Justice and cannot be an official document binding on the part of the determination of prices for R & D.”
All of this suggests that the Ministry of Industry and Trade should, as soon as possible, develop guidelines that would fully disclose the package of costs attributable to the cost of weapons and military equipment, determine the pricing procedure.
Return to common sense
24 March 2013 of the Year Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu approved a plan to revive and improve the activities of military missions, practically reviving what was destroyed. It provides three areas of work.
1. Improving the regulatory framework of the Interim Government and, in particular, developing a draft order of the Minister of Defense “On the procedure for determining the nomenclature of military products subject to military acceptance control”. The Defense Ministry is moving away from the territorial principle of building military missions and returns to the species one (by types of weapons and military equipment). The departments (groups) that used to be part of territorial IDPs have been reduced, and the concept of “territorial military mission” has been abolished. In connection with this, the role of head military missions according to models of weapons and military equipment is growing. Such a system has shown its effectiveness in previous years.
2. The number of all military missions of the Ministry of Defense in 2013 will be increased (the documents have already been signed) almost doubled. Accordingly, a sufficient number of posts are introduced, which should be staffed by new people. For this purpose, the order of the Minister of Defense No. 194 is being processed.
3. Training and retraining of military personnel began in nine military universities, as well as at military departments of four civil universities. First of all, these are officers who have served in the army, especially in the engineering and technical staff, have operational experience, knowledge of the “narrow” places of specific weapons and military equipment and their potential.
From now on, the military missions will consider the quality control and acceptance of all weapons of the GOZ as their main duty. With the exception of civilian products that are not subject to the requirements of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, products of a foreign manufacturer, as well as clothing and equipment. In addition, the VP is assigned the functions of timely informing the ordering authorities with the possibility of adopting corrective positions in the fulfillment of the state defense order. From 2013, this data has been submitted to the Central Command Post of the General Staff.
All this should correct the damage caused to the military acceptance and military missions of the Defense Ministry of the Russian Federation by ill-considered actions of the former leadership of the Russian Defense Ministry.
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