RESULTS OF THE INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION OF SPECIAL EQUIPMENT А8 MACHINES OF RUSSIA EXHIBITION

LARGEST EXHIBITION OF SPECIALIZED AND COMMERCIAL EQUIPMENT IN THE URAL FEDERAL DISTRICT, "A8 MACHINES OF RUSSIA", HELD IN YEKATERINBURG

YEKATERINBURG, RUSSIA – The A8 MACHINES OF RUSSIA exhibition was held for the first time at the IEC Yekaterinburg-Expo from September 9 to 11, featuring over 30 leading manufacturers of construction and commercial specialized equipment.

Participating companies included UMG Group of Companies, Smol Mash, Ryazhsky Auto Repair Plant, CHETRA, DST "DESNA," Kovrov Electromechanical Plant, Tekhstroykontrakt (SHANTUI brand), MZ TONAR (TONAR+FAW), SK Machinery (SANY brand), GC Tekhno (XCMG brand), Profesional Plant, Sibir Trailer-Engineering, FoxTank Plant, KDM Plant, RTA (Sunward brand), Construction Lifting Machines SPM (specialized equipment on KAMAZ chassis), Mashiny i Mekhanizmy (ELAZ brand), SKL (LiuGong brand), and others.

The exhibition showcased the latest models of bulldozers, excavators, loaders, truck cranes, specialized equipment for road construction, repair, and maintenance, semi-trailers, asphalt pavers, motor graders, rollers, and many other types of specialized equipment. In total, more than 100 units of equipment were presented.

Over the three days, more than 3,000 professionals from the road construction industry attended the exhibition.

The General Partner of the exhibition was the leading Russian manufacturer of construction, road, specialized, and agricultural equipment – UMG Group of Companies, which presented over 20 models of specialized equipment as part of the event’s activities.

On September 9, alongside the exhibition and with the support of the Russian Construction Complex, State Company Avtodor, and the Federal Road Agency, the third annual National Operators Competition was held.

The competition featured six disciplines: motor grader, truck crane, utility and road machine, front-end loader, excavator, and bulldozer. More than 180 contestants, including participants in the "Young specialists" category and the "Women’s track," representing 39 teams from four countries – Russia, Belarus, China, and Kazakhstan – competed for the title of best operator.

An educational youth track was also held within the framework of the National Operators Competition. The National Association of Infrastructure Companies (NAIC), together with the National Project Construction Group of Companies, conducted an educational program with lectures and master classes for students of secondary and higher educational institutions. The track was attended by more than 300 people and aimed to enhance the prestige of construction professions among future specialists.

A special highlight of the exhibition was the Infrastructure Testing Ground for Road Construction Equipment. The testing involved more than 20 experienced operators from companies operating specialized equipment across all regions of Russia. Operators tested machinery in conditions as close as possible to real-world applications. A general report and final results were compiled based on processed questionnaires from participants. Following the Testing Ground’s work, proposals were prepared to improve the technical characteristics of specialized equipment and align its parameters with the needs of infrastructure companies.

The first day of the events featured a VIP tour of the exhibition. Participants included: Denis Pasler, Governor of the Sverdlovsk Region; Vyacheslav Petushenko, Chairman of the Board of State Company Avtodor; Roman Novikov, Head of the Federal Road Agency; Maria Yarmalchuk, General Director of NAIC, as well as heads of major infrastructure companies.

The A8 MACHINES OF RUSSIA exhibition was complemented a large-scale business program. Speakers and moderators included heads of federal government bodies, major construction and infrastructure companies, and leading industry experts.

The business program opened with a plenary session "A New Impetus for Infrastructure Construction", moderated by Maria Yarmalchuk, General Director of NAIC. The session focused on key issues in the development of the road industry and government support measures for infrastructure construction in the coming years.

The plenary session was participated by Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Marat Khusnullin: "The Russian Government pays great attention to the development of road infrastructure. Increasing labor productivity in construction and optimizing processes is our common goal and a vital necessity for the transition to a new technological order. This year, the six-year road activity plan has been updated and extended until 2030, with the planning horizon expanded until 2036. Despite the challenging economic situation, the mechanism of advance funding has been preserved. This means that specialties in the road construction industry will be in increasing demand," emphasized the Deputy Prime Minister.

Other discussion participants included: Valentin Ivanov, First Deputy Minister of Transport of the Russian Federation; Dmitry Ionin, Deputy Governor – Minister of Investment and Development of the Sverdlovsk Region; Vyacheslav Petushenko, Chairman of the Board of State Company Avtodor; Nikolay Russu, Member of the NAIC Council, General Director of JSC Mostostroy-11; Konstantin Nikolaev, General Director of UMG Group of Companies; Alexey Andreev, Member of the NAIC Council, Chairman of the Board of Directors of JSC DSK Avtoban; Vladimir Kalinin, Member of the NAIC Council, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Head of the ABZ-1 Group of Companies, and others.

Following the session, a cooperation agreement was signed between JSC DSK Avtoban and UMG Group of Companies. The document establishes a strategic partnership and aims to achieve effective cooperation for pilot operation and repair of road construction equipment at construction sites, as well   as joint development of solutions to improve operational and technical characteristics, taking into account the specifics of the production process.

The forum continued with the session "Improving Labor Productivity: Best Practices. Based on the Experience of JSC 'DSK Avtoban'."

The first day of events concluded with the Strategic session: “Major Customers and Manufacturers”. Development of the work plan up to 2027. Representatives of major state and private customers and manufacturing companies discussed current infrastructure equipment needs and cooperation strategies.

The second day focused on the development of the specialized equipment market for utility and road maintenance. Participants discussed procurement issues, improving machinery for operating organizations, and specifics of equipment use in Russian regions. The session was moderated by Maxim Kadakov, Editor-in-Chief of the Za Rulem media holding.

Other sessions addressed the development of Chinese specialized equipment in the Russian market, financial instruments for procurement, and logistics for delivery.

The final third day opened with the track "Procurement of Specialized Equipment on Online Platforms",organized jointly with Avito Spetstekhnika. The program concluded with the panel session "Robots in Infrastructure Construction",co-organized by the National Association of Robotics Market Participants (NAURR).

The exhibition confirmed its role as an effective platform for dialogue between the state and business. The event demonstrated strong interest in developing constructive cooperation between market representatives and government authorities, as well as growing demand for products of domestic manufacturers.

We look forward to continuing the dialogue at the A8 MACHINES OF RUSSIA exhibition on September 8 – 10, 2026!