First Airbus Engineering Centre Opens in Russia

The new engineering centre of Airbus in Russia ECAR, which has been created jointly with the Kaskol Group and is Airbus' first engineering facility in Europe outside its home countries, is to open tomorrow, May 3 in Moscow in the presence of Russian Deputy Prime Minister Boris Aleshin.

"We are delighted that hardly a year after Airbus selected Kaskol as its leading industrial partner in Russia in May 2002, we are today celebrating  the opening of ECAR. This is a further major milestone in the long-standing relationship Airbus and its major shareholder EADS have with the Russian aviation sector, which was given a great impetus by the strategic partnership signed in July 2002 between Rosaviakosmos and EADS," says Airbus Chief Operating Officer Gustav Humbert. "Despite the existing downturn in the world airline industry, Airbus has decided to remain fully committed to the ECAR project which, we are convinced, will set the standards for any future close partnership between our respective sides of Europe. ECAR will coordinate and facilitate Airbus work packages amongst Russian aircraft design centers, and will also pass on its design works for the production of Airbus' aircraft components in Russia. An amazing amount of work has been accomplished in a record time by our respective teams in a mutual spirit of professionalism, genuine  trust and  a remarkable will to progress, which heralds a bright future for ECAR."

The primary function of ECAR is to promote cross-transfer of expertise, as  well as to co-ordinate and enlarge the scope of  activities which Airbus is developing with Russian aerospace companies. ECAR is set to work to the most modern Airbus technologies and standards, participating in both existing and future programmes.  It will specialise to start with in disciplines such  as fuselage structure, stress and  installation system .

"The Russian engineering school, its professional traditions and more then half a century of experience in civil aircraft design and building, together with Airbus' "know-how", and leading scientific and industrial base, will become a foundation for further effective development of European aerospace industry. For us the creation of "ECAR" means a real positioning and integration in the global high technologies market," says Kaskol Group President Sergei Nedoroslev. 

Located in downtown Moscow, ECAR’s brand-new facility currently covers 1,000 square meters, and will nearly double by end-2004 to accommodate 100 engineers. ECAR offers an  open and collaborative environment, equipped with the most modern communication equipment that is linked, in real time, with Airbus engineering in France and Germany. Currently, some 30 Russian design engineers are employed at the facility, in addition to administrative staff. All of them have already been trained in Airbus engineering standards and processes in Toulouse and Hamburg, where their technical and social competences were very much appreciated. 

ECAR will be registered  as  a company jointly owned  by Airbus and  Kaskol.  Vladimir Raschupkin has been appointed General Director of ECAR.

A  leading  aircraft  manufacturer  with  the most modern and comprehensive product  line on  the  market, and the world's largest backlog in the above 100-seater category, Airbus is a global company with design and manufacturing facilities in France, Germany, the UK, and Spain, as well as subsidiaries in the U.S., China and Japan. In Moscow, it has  also a regional office as  well as technical representation providing  on-the-spot  airline  support. Headquartered in Toulouse (France), Airbus is an EADS joint  Company with BAE SYSTEMS.

Based in Moscow, Kaskol is one of the largest privately owned group that focuses on aircraft and aircraft components design and manufacturing, high-tech engineering  and information technology. Founded in 1988 Kaskol has gradually grown into a company with culture that embraces new technology, fast-paced growth, constant change and devotion to customers and partners.