SOVIET UKRAINIAN MACHINE TOOL PLANTS/COMMENTS ON ENGINEERS/CRITICISM OF SOVIET MACHINE TOOL PRODUCTION FIGURES AND ESTIMATES OF SOVIET MACHINE TOOL PRODUCTION

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00047R000300020006-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 23, 2016
• Document Release Date: April 19, 2013
• Sequence Number: 6
• Publication Date: May 28, 1953
• Content Type: REPORT

Declassified in Part-
COUNTRY
SUBJECT
PLACE
ACQUIRED
DATE
ACQU I RED
DATE OF
If�-�-()1.---.10" � -Imigmr--
Sanitized Copy Approved f�dour,ielea2LiezlIza2014/11/04 :
tENT7AL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
-INFORMATION REPORT
USSR
Soviet Ukrainian Machine Tool Plants/Comments
on Engineers/Critiaism of Soviet Machine Tool
Production Figures and Estimates of Soviet
Machine Tool Production
THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS INFORMATION AFFECTING THE NATIONAL DEFENSE
OF THE UNITED STATES, WITHIN THE MEANING OF TITLE IS, SECTIONS 793
AND 796, OF THE U.S. CODE, AS AMENDED. ITS TRANSMISSION OR RENE,
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CIA-RDP82-00047R000300020006-9
REPORT
DATE DISTR.
NO. OF PAGES 4
NO. OF ENCLS.
(LISTED BELOW)
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO,
May. 1953
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THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
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1.
Details of Soviet Ukraine Machine Tool Factories
GidroptiVod - Kharkov, a smAll plant, began production about 1939 and is
located bilide_the Kharkov railroad station. The plant consisted of one
building 'which was formerly a warehouse or =11131 factory.Cbnstructed to
insure Production of hydraulic machine parts and hydraulic pumps of uni-
form quality, the plant supplied its production to the Molotov Boring
and Orind74;:it_tlachitie Factory in Kharkov, and later to other machine tool
faCtOries after production increased. For a time, the date which I do
not recall, the Plant produCed mining tools. About 300-500 workers were
employed in the. Plant.. I would estimate the plant's production to be
50-60 small pumps and 50..60 sets of hydraulic parts for machine tools per
month.
The director of this plant from its conception -was ZEn27,* Kostanko forner
chief of the instruments shop at Molotov. He was an -.,xcelIent instruments
engineer. A Communist, I suspect he may have been a Party member solely
to advance his nrofessional career. The chief engineer was ffnu Lionow,
He was not a Communist.gee para 13(a
I think the Small Aggregates Machine Tool Plant - Kharkov,mas located in
the northern section of the city. Its proper name was the Schewcmenko
Machine Repair Factory and was an old factory, very small,
*Ale datr�i1. ..nt into operation or the number of workers it employed0
it :could repair or recondition 10-12 machines per
month. Lionow was employed in this factory before he came to Molotov,
possibly in the Technical Bureau.
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the proper name of Kaments Podolsky machine tool factory
Or what types of machine tools it prol7gE-7 that it was a small 50X1
plant:and:,WOnt into operation about 1939 or 1940. The Soviet government
was hOt anxious to build this plant because of its proYimity to the Polish
border.
5. The Voroshilovgrad Grinding Machine Factory - Voroshilovgrad, was not part
of -the Votoehilovgrad Munitions Plant, although it may have been part of the
Voroshilovgrad Locomotive Factory. It began operations about 1936 and manu-
factured small grinding machines.
built in this factory
Model #312 grinding machine,
hydraulic machine tool parts and employed 1000-1200 workers. Monthly pro-
duction was about 50 machines. The chief engineer at Molotov (1940-1942),
Chariton Rabko was a former chief of the construction bureau in this fac- 50X1
tory. He is now 59537 about 53 and was not a Communist him.
one or two grinding machines 50X1
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The factory also produced 50X1
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6. The Kommunar Machine Tool Factory - Lany, was completed about 1938. I think
it was a small factory, and unfortunately I do not remember any details of it.
7. The Kramatorsk Heavy Machine Factory - Kramatorsk� produced only heavy ma-
XIEFTO7Ols an& started production about 1940. This was possibly the biggest
machine tool factory in the Ukraine and probably, one of the biggest in the
USSR.'
8. in 1937-38, the Gorki Revolving Machine Tool Factor7 - Kirov, went into
operation, producing multiple lathes. The plant employed 2-3 thousand
workaroland produced 50-70 machines per month.
9. I cannot recall when the Lenin Doping Machine Factory - Odessa, was built.
, I re ember that it consisted of two or three buildings and employed about
2 thousand Workers.- The plant produced 70-100 boring machines per month
.and also manufactured., heavy castings used in the radial boring machines
produced at Molotov.
10. All of the above factories, with the possible exception of Voroshilovgrad,
Were =Apr authority of the Minikta of Machine Tools. The eight plants
are allgthe machine tool'factorieVtam able to recall in the Soviet Ukraine.
I can recall a fatorY named Kirov in Odessa, but I do not believe that it
produced macIdne tools.
Details pf other Soviet Machine Tool Factories
11. I know there vas a machine tool facto*, in Kirovgrad, but I am unable
to recall anything about it. There was a factory named Kirov in Leningrad
which produced machine tools, possibly part of the Locomotive Factory.
A large machine tool factory in Moscow produced lathes, possibly 150 ma-
chines per month.
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(c) Cfn3gMachcqdn, age 56 or 57 in 19532 chief engineer of the Kharkov
Locomotive Woks - IKomintern" after 1938. He was possibly a graduate of
a Soviet military academy since he was a military engineer. He was a Communist
and a very good engineer. He succeeded Professor Cwetkowl a former professor
at Kharkov Diesel Institute) and an outstanding Diesel engineer who was not
a Communist.
Determination of Production at Molotov Boria and Grinding Machine Factory
14. Annual production at Molotov was determined by sizes of machines rather than
number of machines Since the larger machines required more handwork in con-
struction than the smaller machines. Bases and tables of large grinding ma-
chines had to be finished by hand. 50% more work
could be done by machines on a Model 3Al2 than on a larger machine, like
Model 3A15.
Production Figures Published by Soviet Press
15. When statements appeared in the Soviet press relative to increased production
of a particular plant over the previous year, the percentage always referred
to money values rather than unit increase. However, quotas assigned to a
factory by the controlling ministry were always specified in units rather
than Money value. The ministry is solely interested in unit production. Con-
sequently in lily opinion, published statistics are practically always incorrect.
The Soviets constantly exaggerate production figures. For example, Molotov
would be assigned a monthly production quota of 100 machines. The director
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would j ask how many machines
were cOmpletea. mnen only 90 machines had been completed, 50X1
due to tipa failure of the machine shop to supply components, it was the
director'i practice to add the number of machines being assembled to fill
out the monthly quota. Actually, these machines should have been included
in the ProdUCtion"figures for the following Month. The same situation
!OccAr tie following month and official statistics would show that
200 machines were completed when actually the correct figure was 180 units.
I helieVe'that this intentional audit adjustment could probably have occurred
again" at theministerial level and perhaps again at another level before the
etat4stits were finally published. Thus, the published statistics could
be 21%3C% higher than the actual production. Consequently, exaggerated
Soviet production figures result from attempts of justification by manu-
facturers and inspeators0ae well as an attempt to show the effectiveness
of the Soviet system for propaganda purposes.
16. In 1937, one possible, although perhaps flimsy, explanation of the discrepancy
pt Soviet machine tool produotion figures (36,000 in one official Soviet
publication and 48-,400 in another) could have been caused by a person in the
Staiittical-Bureaup not entirely familiar with machine tools, who included
produCtion 4gures of other machine categories which were not legitimate
machine tools. .11oveVeri-deliberate falsification of figures cannot be ig-
nored'. The figUre'Of 36,000 units, baeed on production of 60�-70 machines
per tchWit Molotov, is at least 20% too high) in my opinion, and might
possibly run as high as:30% of error.
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17. Offidial statistics Of-Soviet-machineAbol production in 1939 (according
to Official statistics, 55,000 units) probably included. the production
of tools, including those produced by other ministries or by
Industrial coOterativesi. :even if this supposition fill'correct0 I believe
that the figure is at least 20% too high.
18. I do not think'there waS a decline in Soviet machine tool production in 1940
g! eatitates'Of Soviet tool production for 1940 are 45-49 thousand unitej
Ly Of the Soviet machine tool factories were built in the middle and late
l930te.: There is A one Or twO year period after the completion of a Soviet
faCtdry'14hen Production is extremely low. Five or sik years are revired
fOi-a-SOtiiet-fiCtorY to reaCh'normal production levels. We did not have a
foundry at liblOto* Until 1938. In 19400 most of these factories were be-
4inning to CoMe-intO'fuii production and there would be no reasonable ex-
planation, therefore, for a drop in production. The figures are more reason-
64e than:the'earlier official Sovietfigures, but are still too high. Ir
estimate ofprOduCtion for 19110 would be: 36-40 thousand units.
this "drop in production" is proof Of Soviet use of tilted statistics..
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