September 4 will be 35 years from the day the government decree on the establishment of a branch scientific and technical center at AVTOVAZ was issued. The complex of design services and laboratories, many of which are unique on a national scale, is successfully operating today – and is the basis of the AVTOVAZ engineering service.The AVTOVAZ Engineering service is not only a complex of laboratories, but also an established highly professional team capable of solving complex tasks. The potential and competencies of the AVTOVAZ R&D are highly valued within the Renault Group. That’s exactly why it was decided that AVTOVAZ and its engineers will make a significant contribution to the Renaulution plan – the new development strategy of the Renault Group. LADA plans to strengthen its product plan with five new models until 2025, including a new B-segment family cars and a completely new generation of Niva. And to do this, the highly competitive and flexible CMF-B Alliance platform, which is planned to be largely localized, will be used. Simultaneously with the design of new cars, the models currently manufactured are being modernized: new safety and comfort systems are being introduced, in particular, these are connected car services.The implementation of new projects will require strengthening the engineering potential of AVTOVAZ. To develop the competencies of the engineering service and implement the mid-term plan for updating the LADA model range, the Company strengthens cooperation with universities both in the Samara region and abroad, popularizes the automotive industry among young students. To date, general cooperation agreements have been signed with the universities of Togliatti, Samara, Tomsk, St. Petersburg and Moscow. AVTOVAZ is going on recruiting both university graduates and highly qualified specialists: since 2017, more than a thousand young employees from different regions of Russia have been employed at the plant.R&D: historyThe design service of AVTOVAZ began to form back in the late 1960s when the automobile plant was launched and the first model VAZ-2101 was developed – the modernization of the licensed car was made with the participation of VAZ engineers. Other projects significant for the country were implemented from then on, including the development of the “classic” rear-wheel drive family, the development of the Niva car, the Samara front-wheel drive family. Work on conceptual projects, in particular, on cars powered by alternative energy sources was carried out as well – these and many other projects are currently being exhibited in the AVTOVAZ Corporate Museum in Togliatti.In 1986, the service of the chief designer of AVTOVAZ began to transform into an industry R&D – having retained key competencies, the division received new opportunities, as well as a material and technical base. The R&D project was created by specialists who later expected to work here. Many objects (wind tunnel, aeroclimatic complex, electromagnetic compatibility complex, noise research chamber) were created using the best international experience.The R&D concept included a powerful potential for new models development and the organization of technological preparation of their production processes. Like the entire production of AVTOVAZ, the engineering center is currently being transformed in accordance with the standards of the Renault Group.R&D: main laboratoriesFor the design of cars, the AVTOVAZ engineering service has a complex of structural units engaged in the creation of main components and assemblies: body, engine, transmission, suspension, interior, electrical equipment, etc. All concepts created are tested on the roads and in testing laboratories.The complex of test roads: one of its main objects is a high-speed ring profiled highway with a length of 10 kilometers, having an oval shape and a roadway width of 12 meters. The maximum speed at which the tests can be carried out is 325 km/h. Inside the oval there is a complex of special roads for checking and adjusting the drivability, comfort level, noise, vibrations. The behavior of the car in summer and winter conditions is analyzed here and the fuel-speed and resource tests are carried out. Some of these routes are isolated from the external environment, which increases the accuracy of test results.The wind tunnel, the only laboratory of this class in Russia, and one of the few in the world, allows testing cars of different classes, as well as other objects, for example, dummy buildings. A fan with a diameter of 7.4 meters creates an air flow with a speed of up to 216 km/h. The down or lifting force is measured by scales – so sensitive that if you put a coin on the car, the system will show changes in indicators. As a result, in the wind tunnel, it is possible not only to make the necessary measurements of the forces and moments influencing the object, but to develop recommendations for optimizing the surfaces as well.The aeroclimatic camera allows to test the car in various climatic conditions, regardless of the time of year. Inside the camera, you can simulate frost, heat, tropical rain, snowfall. This allows to quickly test various car systems, for example, to evaluate the efficiency of the climate control system or the mirror heating system.Electromagnetic Compatibility Testing chamber: the electrical equipment of cars is checked and improved here. The AVTOVAZ electromagnetic compatibility laboratory has a shielded anechoic chamber – one of the largest in the world, which allows conducting research in a wide range of waves. The walls of the chamber are covered with pyramids-absorbers that extinguish both sounds and electromagnetic waves. In the laboratory, it is possible to simulate electromagnetic fields from almost any existing sources, from cell phones to high-voltage power lines.The vibroacoustic testing laboratory is an autonomous structure: a special foundation of the complex isolates it from possible noise and vibrations from the outside. In the test chambers, you can test the car in different driving modes, while the walls of the laboratory are covered with a special sound-absorbing material that eliminates the possibility of echo. All this allows to calculate the noise level produced by the car, as well as the noise inside it, with maximum accuracy.The crash test laboratory is the best of the 2 impact test complexes available in Russia. Here you can simulate most of the collision scenarios occuring in real life, as well as conduct homologation and certification tests. In particular, this is a frontal impact on a rigid or deformable barrier, a blow to the car from the side and from behind, a blow on a pole. High-precision equipment, as well as interactive mannequins of the latest generation, allow to get comprehensive information about the damage to the car itself and its passengers – this makes it possible to design cars in accordance with high safety standards. In addition to LADA tests, the AVTOVAZ engineering service conducts tests of other cars on the orders of partners, as well as tests of automotive components – to select components of the required quality._______Additional informationFor 35 years, the R&D has created the following production car projects: LADA 110 family (1995-2007), VAZ-2123 (Niva, second generation, production since 2000), LADA Kalina family (2004-2011), LADA Priora (2007-2018), LADA Granta family (production since 2011), LADA Vesta (production since 2015), LADA XRAY (production since 2015)._______
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