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Chelyabinsk-based Quantorium students to develop a robot tour guide for TMK

TMK’s R&D facility has signed a cooperation agreement with the Chelyabinsk-based Quantorium technology park for children to implement joint projects, including the development of a robotic system for running guided tours of metallurgical production facilities located at TMK’s Chelyabinsk Pipe Plant (CHTPZ).

The initiative is part of TMK’s Corporate Accelerator program to promote technological entrepreneurship among young people. For eight months, CHTPZ employees’ children who are students at Quantorium, will study coding, electrical engineering, operation of CNC machines, development of technical documentation, as well as project presentation and defense. The project team comprising 14 people is expected to create a robot tour guide for the Vysota 239 large-diameter pipe production shop and present the project at the Startup Village 2023 international tech conference in Moscow.

Igor Pyshmintsev, TMK’s Director for Research Development and CEO of TMK’s R&D facility, said: “One of TMK’s strategic priorities is to provide consistent career guidance that promotes blue-collar jobs and engineering careers among young people while supporting talented school and university students. TMK’s collaboration with Quantorium will enable school students to get a closer look at CHTPZ, learn more about pipe manufacturing and maybe choose a career in metallurgy in the future. The success of this project will, in turn, support further promotion of industrial tourism within the Company.”

Anna Tikhonenko, Head of the Quantorium Technology Park for Children in Chelyabinsk, commented: “Cooperation with major companies such as TMK enables us to engage more school students in engineering and R&D activities, introduce children to the operations of real-life metallurgical enterprises, and give them an insight into blue collar jobs. Projects like this contribute to building a pipeline of future, highly skilled talent for the Russian industry.”

The Quantorium Technology Park for Children was set up in December 2018 as part of a federal project with support from a regional operator, Technical Skills Center for Youth. This unique additional education platform for children boasts high-tech equipment and aims to foster interest in relevant career paths and engineering jobs.

TMK’s R&D facility was launched in 2019 to help the Company concentrate its research capabilities and carry out a full range of R&D activities within a single site. The facility features state-of-the-art, integrated set of testing and laboratory equipment and is designed primarily for the development, digital modeling and complex testing of new materials, structures and technologies. TMK’s R&D facility is staffed with about 400 employees comprising scientists and researchers.