Metalworker (factory, Uralsk)

Corporatization

The plant was corporatized and renamed OJSC Metallist.

Enterprise Crisis

After the collapse of the USSR, the plant lost sales markets. The Russian Federation refused to purchase the company's products and launched the production of a more modern machine gun “ Kord ” (at the factory in Kovrov ). In addition, the ineffective management of Director S. Kanashevich led to the fact that since 1997 the workers stopped receiving wages (in 2002, the total debt was about 200 million tenge , and about 5,000 small arms were accumulated in warehouses. At that time, the plant developed a universal machine for the NSV-12.7 machine gun, which were adopted by the army of Kazakhstan and even purchased a batch of one hundred pieces, which, however, did not affect the general condition of the enterprise. From 1997 to 2002 there was no not a single contract for the supply of machine guns, at an international arms exhibition in Abu Dhabi (2001), the Saudi Ministry of Defense expressed interest in purchasing an NSV-12.7 batch, but the contract was canceled due to unknown reasons. demanded machine guns for the machines that were manufactured and they were understaffed NSV-12.7, but again, for unknown reasons, money for the delivered products did not go to the bank account of the plant. One of the reasons for the low competitive ability of the company's products is its high cost and lack of modernization. The management of the enterprise several times took loans from banks, but they were spent mainly on paying off debts for utilities. Communications factory dilapidated and deteriorated. One of the last attempts to rectify the crisis was the release of smoothbore hunting rifles at the end of 2001, but since the plant did not have a license to produce products, the prosecutor's office intervened and the production of rifles was discontinued.

Enterprise Conversion

In February 2002, a new management team headed by Alibi Akhmedzhanov came to the plant. In 2003, the plant reduced its debt by 200 million tenge. It was decided to abandon the production of small arms and begin production of oil and gas products, and began the repair of gas turbine stations. In April 2003, the Metallist plant was renamed the West Kazakhstan Engineering Company JSC. In 2005, during his visit to the plant, the President of Kazakhstan N. Nazarbayev set the task for the enterprise - to master the comprehensive overhaul of gas turbines, which was completed. Now the company produces:

• oil refining complexes;
• furnaces for heating oil, track heaters;
• air heaters and air cleaners, air cooling systems for oil and gas for gas pumping units;
• high pressure pumps for supplying drilling fluid and acid treatment of wells;
• connecting elements for tubing, casing and drill strings;
• spare parts for downhole screw motors.

In addition, the plant produces agricultural machinery (assembly of agricultural machinery LLC KZ Rostselmash ), household goods and guns. In 2008, N. Nazarbayev was given another task: to release a Kazakhstani gas pumping unit and, within the framework of this task, the company is developing the production of turbo blocks for gas pumping units. The production of heavy machine guns "Cliff" is completely discontinued; the fate of over 4,000 units of these weapons remaining in warehouses is unknown. The company employs 730 people (as of September 2005), the production is certified according to the international standard ISO 9000 .

As of September 2017: Production of the Utes Cliff has been resumed.

Literature

• Kenzhegalieva G. The proletarians of Uralsk are arming themselves. // "Caravan".
• In Uralsk, the Metalist arms factory has lowered its overall credit debt. 03/23/2003 "Kazakhstan Today".
• Site "ZKMK".