Kalashnikov Concern
JSC Kalashnikov Concern, known until 2013 as the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant, is a Russian defense manufacturing concern and joint-stock company headquartered in the city of Izhevsk in the Republic of Udmurtia as well as the capital city of Moscow. The concern designs and produces a wide range of civilian and military weapons including assault rifles, sniper rifles, designated marksman rifles, machine guns, squad automatic weapons, hunting rifles, shotguns, guided artillery projectiles, and a wide range of other precision weapons including remote controlled weapon stations, unmanned vehicles, and military robots.
The Kalashnikov Concern produces about 95% of all small arms in Russia and supplies to more than 27 countries around the world, making it the largest firearm manufacturer in Russia. Notable products include the Kalashnikov assault rifle series, the RPK light machine gun series, the Dragunov SVD semi-automatic sniper rifle, the SKS semi-automatic carbine, the Makarov PM pistol, the Saiga-12 shotgun, and the submachine guns Vityaz-SN and PP-19 Bizon. These firearms, except for the SVD, SKS and the PM, were based on the famous AK series, due to its reliability to endure harsh conditions, low production costs, availability in nearly every geographical region, and ease of use.
As of 2018, 26% of the Concern's shares belong to Rostec, while 74% of the company belongs to private investors.
The Concern contains three firearm brands: "Kalashnikov", "Baikal", and "Izhmash". The concern is developing new business lines that include remote weapon stations, unmanned aerial and ground vehicles, and multi-functional special-purpose boats.
History
First years
On 10 June 1807 by the decree of the Emperor of All Russias Alexander I a firearms factory was established in the city of Izhevsk, the construction and operation of which was headed by the chief mining engineer of the city ironworks Andrey Deryabin. Architects, Semyon Yemelyanovich Dudin and Andrey Deryabin developed a long-term master plan for further comprehensive development of the arsenal. Due to the proximity of the ironworks, the armory was supposed to be built on the bank of the Izh River, which immediately solved the problem of raw material supply.Deryabin employed Russian and Udmurtian agricultural workers living in the city. At that time, agricultural workers had to settle in the arsenal and work there. Neighboring settlements were exempt from this rule, but they had to provide the arsenal with carts, horses and harnesses. Deryabin also hired foreign arsenal experts to train Russian craftsmen; in 1807 the arsenal produced seven long guns, five pistols and six backswords.
The first weapons developed by the armory were the No. 15 17.7mm muskets, produced in the autumn of 1807. In 1808, the musket was later mass-produced for infantry equipping. The plant supplied the Imperial Russian Army with over 6,000 of the No. 15 17.7mm muskets. In 1809, the arsenal produced rifles, muskets, carbines, and flint explosives for cavalry units. It also produced pistols and gun parts and remelted trophy weapons. During the Napoleonic Wars, especially during the French invasion of Russia, firearms were quickly produced for the Russian army, even though the arsenal had not been finished yet. In the first four years, the factory produced 2,000 long-barreled guns; in 1814, production increased to 10,000 guns and 2,500 swords; by 1830, desired annual output was 25,000 long-barreled guns and 5,000 backswords.
Between 1811 and 1816, ten stone factory buildings, several wooden buildings and the main tower-like building of the arsenal were constructed. In 1817, the construction of the main arsenal building was completed. This four-story building was one of the first multi-storey industrial buildings in Russia. The production process was multi-layered, starting with rough preparatory work and ending with the assembly of weapons.
Mid to Late 1800s
Starting in the 1830s, the armory started manufacturing "Gartung" short rifles, "Phalis" breech-loading rifles, and boarding guns for the Baltic Fleet of the Imperial Russian Navy. In 1835, the armory transferred cold steel production of swords and lances to Zlatoust, focusing mainly on firearm production. In 1844, the armory started upgrading current guns into more rapid firing percussion muskets. The armory also started using the caplock mechanism for its products in 1845. During the Crimean War, Izhevsk supplied the Russian Imperial Army with 130,000 rifles, with a third of them grooved. By 1857, 50 years after the creation of the armory, over 670,000 flintlock firearms, over 220,000 percussion firearms, over 58 thousand rifles, as well as a plentiful number of swords and lances were produced.In 1867, the armory was reorganized into a lease and a private commercial enterprise. At this time, the armory was retrofitted and equipped with steam-engines, new machines, and an open-hearth furnace. This allowed the armory to produce more breech-loading weapons for the Russian Imperial Army, notably the "Krnk" and "Berdan" type rifles. The Berdan rifle was the most widely produced firearm at the plant during the time as well, indirectly allowing Russia to approach the European industrial empires' level of armaments.
By 1870, production rate at the armory exceeded both the armories of Tula and Sestroretsk. Later, when the methods of high-quality steel production were well mastered, Izhevsk became the source of gun barrels and barrel receivers for Russian plants. For example, armory enterprises in Tula used annually up to 360,000 barrels from the armory at Izhevsk. In 1884, the plant was later returned to the state and became Izhevsk Gun and Steel Factories. In 1885, IGSF started manufacturing hunting weapons and tools. In 1891, IGSF started mass-producing the Mosin–Nagant rifle. The IGSF also started using DC generators to produce electricity to illuminate the plant as well as to power the machines. The IGSF was the only Russian enterprise that produced firearms for all branches of the Russian military. Thanks to the IGSF, Izhevsk became a large industrial center in Russia.
World War I and the Interwar Period
During the First World War, IGSF supplied the Imperial Russian Army with over 1.4 million new rifles and approximately 188,000 remelted shoulder weapons. Prior to the Russian Revolution, the IGSF took leading positions of the Russian defense industry in terms of manufacturing and manpower capacity. By 1917, about 34,000 people worked at IGSF. In 1918, a design bureau was established in the IGSF.After the formation of the Soviet Union in 1922, large changes came to the IGSF. The state's first hunting gun factory was opened on the enterprise's premises in the same year. The IGSF required more highly trained personnel in order to accommodate new production and to work on newer machines. Thus, by 1929, IGSF-bound personnel had to be trained at the Izhevsk Technical School. In 1930, a new open-hearth furnace was put into operation and in-house production of machines at the factory was launched.
More re-organization took place in the 1930s, including the conversion of the IGSF into a Chief Designer Bureau, as well as the adoption and production of several new models of firearms: a modified Mosin–Nagant rifle design of 1891/1930, the battle rifle AVS-36, made by Sergei Simonov, and the SVT-38 self-loading rifle and the TT pistol, made by Fedor Tokorev. This gave rise to a flow line method of production. In 1938, the conveyor belt was implemented into the assembly of gun barrels and other parts, greatly increasing the production rate of firearms for the Soviet Army. In 1933, a New Design Bureau, "BNK", was established at the factory to develop and modify firearms. Today, the bureau is named the "Armory Design Center". In the bureau's lifetime, about 300 models of small-arms, air ordnance, sport, hunting weapons, and other types of equipment were developed, most of which was in series production at the plant. In 1939, the main plant of the IGSF, Plant No. 180,was split into two independent enterprises: Metallurgical Plant No. 71 and Engineering Plant No. 74, which manufactured weapons. Engineering Plant No. 74 would later be renamed the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant, or simply, Izhmash.
World War II
During World War II, Engineering Plant No. 74 served as the main firearm manufacturer for the Soviet Armed Forces. Since Operation Barbarossa left the Soviet Union in a very desperate position, the plant produced as many firearms as it was physically capable of, more firearms than its lifespan for 92 years prior. From 1941 to 1942, the plant set up mass production of Vasily Degtyarev's PTRD anti-tank rifle, Sergei Simonov's PTRS-41 anti-tank rifle, the Berezin UB aircraft machine gun armament, the 37mm Shpitalny Sh-37 and Nudelman-Suranov NS-37 aircraft guns, and sniper rifles with optic sights, along with the TT pistol and the Nagant M1895 revolver. A total of 11,450,000 rifles and carbines were produced in the plant, exceeding all the combined German firearm manufacturers' outputs of 10.3 million. Besides firearms, the plant also produced over 15,000 aircraft guns and over 130,000 anti-tank weapons.On 20 July 1942, Plant No. 622 separated itself from Plant No. 74, using equipment transferred from the evacuated mechanical plants at Tula and Podolsk. During the war, the plant manufactured more than 1 million pistols and 200,000 anti-tank rifles. Plant No. 622 would later be renamed as the Izhevsk Mechanical Plant, or simply, Izhmekh.
Post-World War II
After World War II, the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant later recovered the production of its civilian arms and transportation. The plant also hired war veteran and ex-tank driver and mechanic, Mikhail T. Kalashnikov, after noticing his submachine gun design that gave him distinction as a gun designer. In 1947, Kalashnikov created his assault rifle, the 7.62×39mm AK-47. The AK-47 became the standard rifle of the Soviet Army in the same year, and later grew popular around the world. The AK-47 gave the plant fame and newer potential in the arms industry. The plant also created newer hunting weapons based out of the Mosin–Nagant rifle as well as sporting weapons. These sporting weapons helped the Soviet Union's team to win shooting competitions in European championships and the Summer Olympic Games numerous times.Kalashnikov later designed newer firearms: the AKM and the AK-74 assault rifle, the RPK light machine gun, and the PK belt-fed machine gun. These firearms helped contribute to greater firepower for the Soviet Army as well as numerous nations that had imported them. Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant gun designer Yevgeny Dragunov also help contribute to the plant's fame by creating his SVD sniper rifle. Designed in 1963 and based out of sporting rifles, the SVD became the squad support weapon for the Soviet Army in the same year as well as starting a new trend of semi-automatic sniper rifles.
In 1975, the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant changed its name to the Izhmash Industrial Association.