OREANDA-NEWS. April 11, 2011. United Metallurgical Company President Vladimir Markin has been awarded the Order of Merit for the Development of Russian Railways, 2nd Class, for his substantial personal contribution to the development of modern rolling stock designed for railroad transportation. The Order was awarded at the 3d International Research and Practice Conference of the Union of Industries of Railway Equipment (OPZhT) that was held in Moscow last week, reported the press-centre of OMK.

"I appreciate the high award from Russian Railways and attribute it not only to my personal contribution, but also, and primarily, to the role played by United Metallurgical Company and Vyksa Steel Works in the development of the Russian railroad system," said Vladimir Markin at the Conference. "I would like to emphasize that it is only owing to the reliable, time-tested, and trust-based relations between OMK and Russian Railways that our company could achieve such an impressive success in the development and production of new promising types of wheels. This is evidenced by the seven-year long-term agreement between OMK and Russian Railways, which was recently extended for five years."

Commenting on the importance of the Conference's main subject—the implementation of the IRIS standard by domestic companies—Vladimir Markin said, "At present, the IRIS standard is among the most advanced ones worldwide. Therefore, OMK developed a program to introduce the IRIS requirements at Vyksa Steel Works as early as 2012."

The report titled "About the Prospects of the Transfer of Railroad Wheels Manufacturers to the Product Pricing System Based on the IRIS Requirements" was made at the Conference by Andrey Shishov, Vyksa Steel Works (VSW, part of OMK) Director for Technology and Quality.
According to Mr. Shishov, at the time of reformation of the Russian railroad industry, the IRIS Requirements will serve as the key factor for enhancing manufacturers' responsibility for product quality and increasing their motivation to develop and produce innovative products. At present, customers are concerned not only about wheel prices, but also, and to a greater extent, about the wheel costs related to every life-cycle stage. Customers need to know wheel cost per kilometer and service life. That is why OMK started implementing its program aimed at reducing operational costs of wrought wheels and their life-cycle unit cost, and transferring to a new pricing system.