Doronin Andrey Alexandrovich Belaz. Belaz General Director Petr Parkhomchik about the second place in the world ranking, management style and service in the landing

This man is humble and educated. Under a strict classic suit, there is a strong man and a moderately demanding leader, who was deservedly recognized in 2011 as the “Man of Action”. He speaks openly, never using papers, and knows his business thoroughly. Only a firm handshake betrays a former paratrooper and boxer who once dreamed of becoming a pilot and flying a plane. Although his dream has partially come true - for 10 years he has been managing one of the largest enterprises not only in Belarus, but also in the world.

Photo by Vitaliy PIVOVARCHIK

General Director of JSC "BELAZ" - the management company of the holding "BELAZ-HOLDING" Petr Parkhomchik told us about why our dump trucks are valued in the world, how to deal with crises, what a high position requires and why come to work by 6 in the morning.

Size matters

- Petr Alexandrovich, last year BELAZ for the first time became the second in the world in the production of mining dump trucks. How difficult was it to beat the competition?

It doesn't matter what place we take - second or third. It's not just about our efforts. We already see for sure that all manufacturers are reducing their production. The drop in the mining dump truck market in 2016 was 22%. Sales of Caterpillar, Hitachi and Komatsu declined. We were the only one who managed to increase sales - by 8%. The trend is likely to continue this year as the President of Caterpillar Inc. Doug Oberhelman is already calling 2017 a difficult year.

We are always glad to see young workers at the checkpoint of BELAZ

Judge for yourself: if in 2011-2012 all manufacturers together steadily sold within 4,700 units of heavy dump trucks, that is, with a carrying capacity of over 100 tons, mining dump trucks per year, then in 2017 we expect only 1,160. That is, the world market sank during this time four times. Therefore, it is even more difficult to “squeeze” market share in such a situation, but we succeed. This is the common work of both designers and marketers.

The crisis turned out to be long - more than 4 years, before that there were almost no such protracted recessions. But it worked for us. After all, many buyers of equipment began to seriously work on reducing costs. When commodity prices were very high, companies did not want to see any new player. Although they always knew about BELAZ. But life itself forced them to analyze the cost of ownership (those funds that will have to be invested in equipment throughout its life cycle). When they began to count, they saw that we can cost them much cheaper. Foreign manufacturing companies at this point are often cunning, they try to make money in the secondary market - the sale of spare parts and services. So they sometimes received a profitability of 100-200%. We do not set ourselves such a goal. We say that spare parts are needed not to make money on them, but to keep our dump trucks in working condition.

- So, markets that were previously occupied by competitors have opened up for you?

Undoubtedly. Here is a good example. In Indonesia, there is an assembly plant of Komatsu. The plant has been in a fever for 4 years, it practically does not work. And we were able to win a tender there for the supply of 40 heavy dump trucks. I am sure that the visit of our President to this country influenced the favorable outcome.

Belarusian dump trucks giants are known all over the world.

By the way, 25 dump trucks are already there and show good results. And it all works for us on the principle of word of mouth. Other companies are also starting to look at us. Indonesia produces more coal than Russia. This is a very promising market.

- Was this success expected or did you somehow manage to get into the stream by itself?

In fact, the goal of diversification was outlined to us by the President long ago. Russia should take a third of supplies, the CIS - the second third, and the rest of the countries - the same. That's what we've been building up. Yes, we already understood that it is impossible to live only in traditional markets. Although we do not lose our previous positions. About 90% of the Russian market belongs to us, although there are assembly plants there: both Komatsu in Yaroslavl and Caterpillar in St. Petersburg.

The same applies to the Ukrainian market, which sank in 2014-2015 due to the conflict in Donbas. But in 2016, we restored the volume of deliveries. And this year we will surpass the pre-crisis level. All Ukrainian companies again opt for the Belarusian BELAZ.

"We are always on the customer's side, including service and spare parts."

- It is surprising that private companies are reducing production, while our state-owned BELAZ, on the contrary, is growing. What's the secret?

Our partners understand that BELAZ is not just a joint stock company. 100% of the shares belong to the state, and all private traders know that Belarus has a very effective vertical of power. Therefore, when concluding a contract, they are absolutely calm and confident that everything will be completed on time. This is an inconspicuous, but very serious plus. He often helps with negotiations.

giant plus

- Is it difficult to make a final decision when concluding unusual contracts? Is there a fear that you may not complete the order?

We have the widest range of machines in terms of carrying capacity. We cover the lines of all competitors with our models. In addition, 8-10 more types of machines have been developed in one load capacity for different markets. For example, Caterpillar has only two models in the 136-ton class: one with a hydromechanical transmission, the second with an electromechanical one. We have 9 models with completely different engines. We can supply a German, American motor. Today we are even considering the installation of a Russian engine. We can install different components for different customers. For example, for Russia - a Russian-made transmission. Or, for example, to supply General Electric systems for Chile. And when the buyer sees that we are able to make cars for a specific market, he understands that we are on his side on other issues, including service and spare parts.

- Have you thought about making your own engine?

It would be nice. And now we are thinking about getting our own engine. But even in Russia today there are no industries that would produce motors with a capacity of more than 2 thousand horsepower. And in order to conquer the Western markets, of course, it is necessary to use components from the world's leading manufacturers.

- That is, you are looking for some kind of partner, but you will not make engines yourself?

Certainly. It's pointless to chase. As long as we develop the engine ourselves, traditional manufacturers will go far ahead. The way out is to find a partner with best practices in this area. Such negotiations are underway, but we will not rush.

Piotr PARKHOMCHIK (left) with the chairman of the Zhodino City Executive Committee Mikhail OMELIANYUK
and former director of BELAZ, Hero of Belarus Pavel MARIEV

- BELAZ is an enterprise with a long history and its own traditions. How did the company react to your appearance as a director? You've never worked here before.

My appointment happened very quickly. On Saturday they called, called, and on Monday they already appointed. The plant then met me with wariness: the "tractor driver" came to command such a giant. And even more so, they treated their predecessor, Pavel Lukyanovich Mariev, with great respect. But we got along quickly. Consider there was no time for emotions - the crisis of 2008-2009 immediately came. At that time, we were the first in the country to say that we need to think about how we will live in the coming years, and proclaimed a modernization program. In 2012, we were the first to feel that a new round of the global crisis was approaching. Although everyone continued to work by inertia. Many in the Government did not like our statements. When the President decided to visit the plant, I managed to convey my position to him.

You touched on the topic of modernization. With this word, most people associate only with the allocation of money and the purchase of machine tools. But everything is much wider ...

You're right. We are now fighting very strong competitors, which are the most powerful multinational companies with the highest level of technology. And in order not to concede, you need to be a little ahead. Catching up is already bad. In technical terms, we have everything provided for the next 10 years. But the technologies were not perfect enough, they did not allow us to create a product cheaper than our competitors. And we began to gradually put in order all the technological redistributions. We will complete the work in 2019.

Laying a capsule in the foundation for the construction of new workshops. year 2013

Now the machine park of BELAZ is one of the most modern. The modernization of painting complexes is in full swing. There are several in the factory. Such complexes imply the use of new-level paints and varnishes, and a special surface preparation technology that will allow you to confidently declare the reliability of the coating for 5-6 years.

- Such changes could not but lead to the optimization of the number of employees. Is it difficult to solve this problem?

This issue is not without difficulty. For example, we used conventional machines in the production of large gears. Almost a whole shift was spent on processing one gear. And there were a lot of marriages. The commissioning of newly purchased machine tools made it possible to increase labor productivity three times without defects. And the parts are very expensive. The blank weighs 600-700 kilograms. If marriage, then all this metal must be written off as scrap metal. There was a very serious resistance from those who were used to working in the old way. We had to motivate them financially so that people could learn how to work with new equipment. But now many factory workers have several specialties, and this makes it possible to avoid strong layoffs.

- So you don't recruit new people?

Why? Every year we accept young people - 250-300 people. First, we invite students to practice. This is good, because it is impossible to provide all educational institutions with good equipment. And here they can learn how to work on the most modern machines. And they already have a completely different level of understanding. Almost all of them then return to work here.

Move on

- And how much time does it take to develop a new model of a mining dump truck?

Now we can develop and put into production new equipment in 3-4 years. And if we take those products that we make on the basis of previously developed ones (30-40% of the base, the rest is new), then in 2-3 years.

In 1975-1977 Pyotr PARKHOMCHIK (left) served in the landing troops of the Soviet Army.

We have a powerful scientific and practical center. There are about 600 designers in total. Very close connection with the National Academy of Sciences. It even has its own department of mining dump trucks. Therefore, we can work very quickly.

- In your opinion, you have a difficult position?

To be honest, any business can be difficult. In general, I am a person of the command method of management. Each of my deputies has been delegated certain powers. Each of them has freedom, each must do his job.

And in general, I went through a very strong school: I worked for 33 years at a tractor factory. And 26 of them - at a closed enterprise, which was located on the territory of MTZ. It produced products for the military-industrial complex. There I went from an ordinary worker to the director of this special production. All the standards preached by great foreign theoreticians today were already introduced there, in the 1970s and 1980s. There was a very tight control. If you take samples of military equipment of those years, then it was an ultra-modern weapon.

Then I had to deal with the marketing of the tractor plant, to learn the basics of sales. This was helpful too. Moreover, I came at the stage of crisis. We built a sales system, distribution networks from scratch and achieved significant success in sales.

- Do you manage to combine family care with such work?

“The army taught independence. We were in the unit only 7-8 months out of two years, the rest of the time - in the forests.

- It has become a habit. My son and daughter have grown up. Of course, it’s hard for a wife, because women need attention. But she tries to get me to some theater or concert. Not always, however, it turns out to escape. On the other hand, a woman is pleased that her husband holds a high position, that he is a responsible person. And this high position always obliges. So there is not always enough time for the family. Especially since I live in Minsk. The working day starts at 6 o'clock.

- Why so early?

The holding system is very complex, and decisions sometimes need to be made before work has begun, otherwise it will be too late. It is best to come, calmly deal with the affairs of the past day. We have people on duty, the so-called "night directors". They collect complete information from all factories. Production after all does not stop even at night. All this is necessary in order to promptly make the necessary decisions at the meeting at 8 am. And the hours end at 7-8 pm.

- Do you have any hobbies outside of work?

I got carried away with dacha questions. I got sucked in and it's hard for me to stop. You try to do something there every Saturday. And this is also a serious work, if you want to achieve results. The garden needs to be inspected and repaired. Even to plant blueberries, you need to work hard. I love baths, to be honest. I try every week to escape, take a steam bath. Regularly on January 19 with friends we plunge into the hole. It tempers both the body and the spirit, gives strength.

- Are there any achievements already in country affairs?

Yes, last year we collected two buckets of blueberries. I planted cherries, but there was no harvest for three years. And the year before they changed the care technology, and the result was immediately obtained - they fed all the birds in the area, and they themselves ate.

- Vacation for you - is it to go to the same cottage or still somewhere far away to escape?

My wife and I have been together for 38 years. We try to go somewhere regularly with the family. Previously with children, now alone. We drop everything and leave. We never had a separate vacation. She's waiting for me to finally get that vacation. All this always happens suddenly, and she is sitting on her suitcases.

I read on vacation mainly books related to management techniques. I am currently reading the third volume of the directors of Caterpillar. They talk about their experience there. I studied the Japanese system of work at Toyota in great detail. Today it is considered one of the most progressive. I even asked our media to do short essays, talk about what it is. Now let's release a special brochure. We want to introduce the best, but for this we still need to prepare the ground so that every employee understands why we need it. I believe that this will give another impetus to the development of our enterprise.

- Have you ever dreamed of becoming the head of one of the world's largest enterprises?

In my childhood, everyone wanted to be astronauts. And I hoped that I would be a pilot. It was a completely conscious thought. But I was still into boxing. And, of course, what boxer doesn't have a broken nose? So I didn't pass the test. But on the other hand, they took me to the landing troops. He served in the 5th brigade in Maryina Gorka. Over the years of his work, the number of hours spent on the road in airplanes is commensurate with the flight time of a professional pilot. Of course, on the road I try to spend time usefully. But if you remember the childhood dream, we can say that it came true.

- Does your combat background help you in leadership?

Yes, because there are collective sports, football for example, where you can hide, run, pretend to play. And you can't hide in boxing. What you have is what you enter the ring with. And your decisions should be at least a fraction of a second faster than your opponent. There is no time to think - otherwise you will get it in the forehead. And, of course, the army also gave a lot. This is a wonderful school. She teaches independence. Of the two years of military service in the military unit, we were probably 7 or 8 months, and the rest of the time - in the forests. This is very tempering, and teaches to work in a team.

The enterprise is visited by President of Tajikistan Emomali RAHMON (right).

- So, the leader must be tough?

Everyone has their own approach. I, for example, know how to listen and know how to make decisions. I am ready to listen, analyze, consult. There are some very difficult questions. Sometimes you need to consult with former colleagues who were managers at enterprises. But sometimes you have to make decisions with lightning speed - like in the ring.

- Perhaps there is no room for dreams?

There is only one dream, and it will soon come true. Now I live in anticipation of becoming a grandfather. That's about it until all thoughts. But not to the detriment of the company. Very big plans for export growth, market diversification. Just the other day, a Latin American company called and offered to sell our record-breaking 450-ton truck, which so far only works in Russia. We have not yet gained enough operating experience, but we cannot refuse. Then they may no longer offer. I have already made my decision for myself. But I'm waiting for answers from all services. And most importantly, to say "yes" to the chief designer.

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The money in the amount of $ 1,200 was given to him by a representative of the capital's commercial structure. The bribe was relied on for a favorable solution to the issue of a priority batch of metal delivered to the plant, the Ministry of Internal Affairs said in a statement.

The next day, in the course of further operational-search activities, the head of the bureau and the economist of the Zhodino auto giant were detained, who from June 8 to July 4 also received bribes from representatives of the mentioned company as a “thank you” for a positive decision on the conclusion of contracts for the supply of metal.

Investigators found that the illegal scheme had been operating since the autumn of last year - from the moment the commercial structure was formed. Metal for the needs of BelAZ was purchased at prices exceeding the market value, for which representatives of the enterprise systematically received bribes. Their size was a certain percentage of the transaction amount.

At present, according to the materials of the GUBOPiK, the investigation has detained six members of the criminal group: three officials of the Zhodino plant, as well as three representatives of a commercial structure.

“The Investigative Committee is currently working with the detainees. On July 7, the investigation petitioned the prosecutor to apply a preventive measure in the form of detention in respect of the six detainees. The petition was granted, the suspects were taken into custody,” said the official representative of the Investigative Committee, Yulia Goncharova.

Criminal cases were initiated against the detainees under Art. 430 of the Criminal Code (Receiving a bribe - the maximum punishment is up to 15 years in prison with confiscation of property) and Art. 431 of the Criminal Code (Giving a bribe - the maximum punishment is up to 7 years in prison). The investigation seized the property belonging to the defendants: six premium cars, cash and valuables, 7 real estate objects.

The court of the city of Zhodino considered a high-profile criminal case on charges of systematic corruption crimes against former employees of the Belarusian Automobile Plant, as well as 4 metropolitan entrepreneurs. Recall that the defendants in this investigation were, among them was Andrey Doronin, Deputy General Director for Finance and Economic Policy of the Automobile Plant.

The ex top manager was found guilty under Part 3 of Art. 430 of the Criminal Code (taking a bribe) and received a punishment in the form 7.5 years in a penal colony with confiscation of all property as well as deprivation of the right to hold certain positions related to the performance of organizational, administrative and administrative duties for a period of 5 years.

Former BelAZ employees received long sentences for bribes

The former head of the sheet metal bureau of the logistics and equipment supply service of the plant was sentenced to 6 years in a penal colony with confiscation and deprivation of the right to hold certain positions on the basis of the same Part 3 of Art. 430 of the Criminal Code. The leading economist for the supply of the sheet metal bureau of BelAZ received the same term. In addition, the court ruled to recover from them 770 and more than 9.3 thousand rubles of illegally obtained income, respectively, to the state revenue.

Capital entrepreneurs in the BelAZ case received suspended sentences

The technical director of the joint company "ZIKO - Zorka Group" received 5 years of restriction of freedom ("chemistry") for giving bribes without being sent to an open correctional facility, and the director of LLC "Novostil" was sentenced to 3 years of restriction of freedom without being sent to the IUOT. Both were found guilty of giving a bribe on a large scale (part 2 of article 431 of the Criminal Code of Belarus). Two individual entrepreneurs, who were also involved in this criminal case, were also punished in the form of large fines.

As it became known from the materials of the criminal case, Andrei Doronin, the former deputy general director for finance of OAO BelAZ, was caught red-handed while receiving another bribe in the amount of 1,200 US dollars. Investigators have established that since the autumn of 2016, an illegal scheme for the purchase of metal for production needs has been operating at the Belarusian Automobile Plant. Materials at prices exceeding market value were purchased from capital firms for this, the ex-management of the Zhodino Automobile Plant received systematic rewards, incl. and for a favorable solution to the issues of priority payment for the batches of metal delivered to the plant. The amount of bribes was a certain percentage of the amount of contracts.