The first century of Kirov tractors

BACKGROUND: 2024 marks one hundred years since the start of serial production of the Fordson-Putilovets tractor at the Krasny Putilovets plant in Leningrad. This is the milestone of the formation of the tractor industry in the domestic mechanical engineering industry. Reflection of historical facts of the appearance of new serial models of tractors are important events in the history of science and technology. AIM: Review and analysis of the historical development of the tractor design at the St. Petersburg Tractor Plant from the date of production of the first serial tractor in the USSR in 1924 to the present day. METHODS: The research was carried out in accordance with the principles of historicism, scientific objectivity and credibility. The statistical data were processed and presented in the form of graphs and diagrams using the Microsoft Excel software. RESULTS: On October 1, 1924, in the workshops of the Krasny Putilovets plant (until 1922 — the Putilov plant), the serial production of the Fordson-Putilovets wheeled tractors began. In 1934, serial production of the Universal row-crop tractors was established. In the late 1930s, the K-8, K-9, K-10 tracked row-crop tractors were created. In 1945, the Kirov plant, located in Chelyabinsk on the premises of the ChTZ during the war, created and mastered the serial production of the first industrial tracked tractor in our country, the Stalinets-80. In 1947, the Kirov plant began to produce the KT-12 skidding tractors, which had no analogues in the world tractor industry. In 1964, the plant began production of the Kirovets tractor with all drive wheels, an articulated frame, and the power of 200 HP. Over the past sixty years (1964–2024), 52 models of Kirovets agricultural tractors have been developed and put into production. Analysis of the power-to-weight ratio of these tractors shows a 1.5-factor increase from 12.3 to 18.6 W/kg. Starting from 2000, the Kirovets tractors have been developed within the framework of the “traction-energy” concept, where ballast weights, double wheels, wide-profile tires, rubber-cord tracks, etc. are used to realize their potential traction capabilities. From 1964 to 2024, specific fuel consumption decreased by 1.2 times (from 258 to 214 g/kWh), which indicates the improvement of diesel engines. The new Kirovets K 525T (250 HP) and K-530T (300 HP) produced in 2024 absorbed all the achievements of the domestic tractor industry. The K-525T is equipped with a new gearbox that provides speeds of up to 50 km/h. The modern tractor of the Kirovets brand manufactured by the PTZ is a reflection of modern scientific and technological progress, effectively performs technological operations in agricultural production and provides the tractor driver with comfortable working conditions. CONCLUSION: A review of the output of tractor products for a hundred years at the St. Petersburg Tractor Plant (PTZ JSC) revealed its lineup and made it possible to find some regularities in the historical development of individual parameters of the machinery. The studies carried out show that the improvement of the design of the Kirovets tractors corresponds to scientific and technological progress, their functionality improves, power-to-weight ratio increases, specific fuel consumption decreases, and speeds gradually increase. The number of models of tractor products is also increasing and is striving to meet the needs of consumers as much as possible.