The Factory Z111 under the General Department of Defence Industry is assigned to research, design, and manufacture weapons and technical equipment for national defence and socio-economic development. To meet the requirements set by the country’s industrialisation and modernisation and the Military build-up, particularly since the issue of the 11^th Politburo’s Resolution 06-NQ/TW, dated July 16^th 2011, on “building and developing defence industry towards 2020 and beyond,” the Factory’s Party Committee and Board of Directors have formulated plans and strategies for production development and released the Resolution 69-NQ/ĐU, dated June 14^th 2013, on “leadership over production development towards 2015 and beyond” and the Resolution 243-NQ/ĐU, dated July 10^th 2019, on “leadership over economic production and defence product export towards 2020 and beyond” as the basis and direction for the execution of its tasks.

Leaders of the Ministry of National Defence and the General Staff inspecting the Factory’s production process during the PC19 exercise

In spite of the fact that its target of defence products is low and its commercial products face tougher competition, the Factory has adhered to higher echelons’ guidelines and directions as well as its function and task, while fostering economic cooperation and diversifying types of products so as to maintain and develop its production. More specifically, the Factory has actively manufactured and repaired defence products according to its assigned targets, with emphasis placed on further exploiting sources of defence products from the 2^nd group and projects. Moreover, the Factory has promoted cooperation with the Weaponry Institute, the Technology Institute, the Military Technical Academy and military offices and units in researching, designing, and manufacturing weapons, spare parts of weapons and technical equipment, and training models and aids. To execute its strategy for developing mechanical products as its mainstay and diversifying its products, the Factory has encouraged cooperation with its traditional partners in sugar industry, cement industry, and machinery installation in manufacturing and supplying high-quality specialised mechanical products. At the same time, it has made investments in assembly lines for quarrying, household and industrial plastics, garments, and other consumer products. The Factory has also proactively made the most of the mechanical packages from the Ba Son Project, the Factory Z129’s project for artillery fuse assembly line, the Technology Institute’s housing project, and the Factory Z176’s project for garment assembly line. To win big contracts and orders, the Factory has proactively kept in touch with partners both at home and abroad to introduce itself, make offers, conduct negotiations, and seek opportunities for cooperation and export. Since 2013, the Factory has been a reliable partner of many giant enterprises and won a great deal of huge contracts, such as equipment production for the Siemens VAI Metals Technologies, supply of mechanical products for the Nghi Son refinery and petrochemical project, and production of spare parts of weapons, thereby contributing to diversifying its products, expanding its market, stabilising its turnover, and ensuring employments for its staff members. Yearly, commercial products account for 30-50% of the Factory’s turnover; stone, mechanical, and construction products make up nearly 80% of the value of commercial products; its household and industrial products are present across Northern provinces and several Central provinces.

Against the backdrop of intense competition caused by the market mechanism, diversifying product variants, improving product quality, and lowering product price will be a determinant to the production and business efficiency. Thus, the Factory has always paid due regard to applying technical initiatives and innovations, stepping up researches, and mastering technologies. The Factory has enhanced the movement entitled “promote technical initiatives and innovations” in order to improve the quality of scientific researches, effectively exploit modern equipment and assembly lines, and sustainably preserve and use old equipment. At the same time, it has maintained, repaired, restored, and innovated old-technology assembly lines in accordance with new technical requirements and input materials so as to ensure its current production and reserve in the event. In addition, the Factory has focused on developing a strategy for researching and applying new technological solutions, while further exploiting technological features of modern assembly lines, particularly the one transferred by Israel. It should be noted that based on technologies developed by its foreign partners, such as the technology for manufacturing Galil ACE assault rifles by the IWI and the technology for manufacturing 12.7mm gun belt loaders by the Eurolinks, over the years, the Factory has mastered technologies for manufacturing types of popular infantry weapons, thereby allowing the Military to be self-sufficient in its infantry weapons. It has actively researched and formulated the technological procedure for manufacturing high-quality mechanical products and spare parts of weapons to provide for its partners both at home and abroad. It has also improved the quality and lifespan of its products to both bring in revenues and maintain economic cooperation.

Following the motto that “the technical work must be one step ahead,” the Factory has made preparations, namely design documents, technological procedure, and technical inspection level for its new and complex products. At the same time, it has maintained its machinery under the regulations on qualitative management, acquired new equipment, accelerated the execution of investment projects, especially the project on assembly line for manufacturing infantry guns, and completely rectified weaknesses and shortcomings in technological equipment and tools for production. Up to now, the Factory has mastered many complex technologies and effectively exploited modern assembly lines. Between 2013 and 2018, the Factory successfully carried out 32 scientific researches and tasks at various levels, such as 12.7mm gun carriage on ships, 12.7mm-VN sniper gun, and 9mm pistol. At the same time, it applied 255 technical initiatives and innovations to production, thereby making contributions to improving its productivity and product quality.

As a unit tasked with manufacturing defence and commercial products in the precision mechanics, to enhance its production, the Factory has attached importance to recruiting, training, and building high-quality human resources. To do so, the Factory has closely managed the work of recruiting and appointing technical cadres and employees, given priority to their political qualities, qualifications, and professional competence, and maintained harmony between production development and life stability to encourage its cadres and workers to keep their mind on their work. Over the years, in addition to dispatching its technical cadres and employees to study at technical schools and centres both inside and outside the Military, the Factory has attached great value to organising refresher courses on new technologies, production procedures, and labour protection and safety, thereby enabling its workers to effectively exploit modern assembly lines. As for high technologies and precision mechanics, the Factory has dispatched its young cadres to visit huge technology centres and particularly foreign partners to acquire knowledge and experience. Then, it has established groups of top researchers for transforming received technologies into specific ones and quickly applying them to production. Between 2012 and 2018, the Factory organised on-the-spot training courses for over 800 technical workers and refresher courses on accounting, construction investment management, basic bidding, and construction supervision for 780 staff members, while sending 10 cadres to study managerial training courses. Doing so has enabled the Factory to have sufficient, qualitative human resources under the road map for its production and business development.

The Factory’s workers assemble the PKMS heavy machine guns

In addition to the above-mentioned solutions, the Factory has enhanced corporate governance and built a standard, safe, and effective work environment. Under the road map for business restructuring, the Factory has made adjustments in its departments and committees for research, production developments, marketing, and new products. At the same time, it has actively consolidated and re-organised a number of its sub-factories so as to make its production more appropriate, while reviewing, amending, and supplementing its regulations on finance, labour, wage, and materials. It is worth noting that the Factory has managed the quality of its products according to the ISO 9001:2015 system, encouraged coordination between offices and units in production, applied information technology to managing and regulating production, and strictly maintained labour discipline. In order to create an ebullient emulation atmosphere in production, the Factory has launched the movement entitled “good and creative production,” encouraged its staff members to improve productivity, ensured their life and fitness, facilitated their study and promotion, and built a safe, dynamic work environment, thereby fostering its production, raising its productivity, and improving the quality of its products.

Thanks to its sound guidelines, resolve, and proper measures, the Factory’s production capacity and efficiency have been considerably boosted. Between 2013 and 2018, its production and business value increased by 13-16% on a yearly basis. In 2018, the Factory’s revenue was over 670 billion VND, its profit reached over 23 billion VND, it contributed more than 20 billion VND to the State’s budget, and its per capita income was nearly 10 million VND on a monthly basis. Those achievements provide an important precondition for the Factory to continue promoting its production and improving the quality of its products to meet the task requirements.

Lt. Col. Hoang Quoc Vinh, Director of the Factory Z111