The best youth engineering teams of 2019 have been identified

The final of the VII International Engineering Championship "CASE-IN", one of the projects of ANO "Russia − the land of opportunities", has ended in Moscow. It was attended by 540 future specialists and young engineers from 60 regions of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. They presented to the expert community their ideas on digitalization of fuel and energy and mineral resource complexes in seven areas: geological exploration, mining, metallurgy, petrochemistry, oil and gas, digital atom and electric power industry. The competitions of the League of Young Specialists "CASE-IN" and the Special League of PJSC "T Plus" were also held as part of the finals.

The International Engineering CASE-IN Championship is an international system of competitions for solving engineering cases among schoolchildren, students and young specialists of the Fuel and energy Complex and the Moscow Energy Complex. Every year, more than 50 leading Russian universities take part in the competition, 30 of which were included in the ranking of the "100 best universities in Russia" for 2018, as well as universities in Belarus and Kazakhstan.

The final of the "CASE-IN" was preceded by 110 qualifying stages held in 44 cities and 3 countries. They were attended by 5,076 people − students from 57 leading technical universities in Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, and youth teams from 40 companies in the fuel and energy and mineral resource complexes. The best got a ticket to the finals.

Traditionally, the Championship final has become a grand intellectual battle and the largest youth engineering competition of 2019.

- In seven years, the Championship has reached an international level, opened up new areas, attracted dozens of new universities and fuel and energy companies. The target audience of the Championship has expanded qualitatively: now engineering cases are solved not only by students, but also by young specialists and schoolchildren, this is one of the main advantages of the project: it unites all industry youth to solve real practical problems., - underlined Artem Korolev, Director of the Reliable Change Charitable Foundation during the opening ceremony.

Alexander Bugaev, Head of the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs (Rosmolodezh) I am convinced that the participants and finalists of "CASE-IN" and other similar projects are the most motivated and prepared young people who are ready to get involved in solving global problems. Active work with them will continue after the Championship.

- It seems to me that it is unnecessary to say how important young people who associate their lives with engineering specialties and professions are to us. Indeed, the development of our country and the tasks it faces are related to the support and development of working professions, young people who connect their lives with production and, of course, with engineering specialties. 
That is why we have been supporting this event for 5 years, and it is very important to us. The forms in which engineering professions are popularized, the relationship between students and young people already working at specific enterprises of the fuel and energy complex, make it possible to popularize engineering specialties., - noted Alexander Bugaev.

Anton Inyutsyn, Deputy Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation He added that the most active participants of the championship will be able to present their ideas at the Youth Day #Together with the International Forum "Russian Energy Week".

- We are ready to listen to the ideas of young people, and we want to invite new CASE-IN champions to participate in the main program of the REN, - said the representative of the department.

Vladislav Davankov, Deputy Director General of the Autonomous Non-Profit Organization Russia - Land of Opportunities He considers it important that the participants and winners of the Championship receive mentoring support.

- Motivating meetings of the Championship participants with the finalists and winners of the Leaders of Russia management competition were held in various universities and regions. This is a very effective format, and we plan to expand it across all CASE-IN leagues. I am sure that the winners of other projects included in the platform will be ready to join the leaders of Russia, they have something to share with future and young engineers. Our partnership with CASE-IN is just beginning, and we plan to support the Championship on an annual basis. In the fall, together with the organizing committee of the Championship, we will launch the next wave of competitions of the school and student league "CASE-IN", we will attract new schools, universities and regions to them. In addition, a further expansion of the League of Young Professionals is planned., − clarified Vladislav Davankov.

During the grand opening of the event, a ceremony was held to include 15 new members in the CASE-IN Hall of Fame, who made a significant contribution to the work of the Championship during the Digital Transformation season. The CASE-IN Hall of Fame includes participants, experts and organizers representing St. Petersburg Mining University, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Perm National Research Polytechnic University, Samara State Technical University, Ural Federal University named after the first President B.N. Yeltsin, Northeastern Federal University named after M. K. Ammosov, St. PetersburgSt. Petersburg State University of Economics, Novosibirsk State Technical University. Representatives of the partner companies of the championship JSC "SO UES" and LLC "IBM SI Montan" also became members of the Hall of Fame.

The first day of the "CASE-IN" finals continued with the defense of engineering cases: the teams presented solutions to real production problems formulated based on materials from leading Russian companies. They had only 10 days to solve the case.

In 2019, all the leagues of the Championship were united by the topic of "Digital Transformation" - one of the most urgent on the global agenda. In addition, the cases of the qualifying and final stages in each field now have one object of study, which allows teams to study the topic more deeply.

In parallel with the students, young specialists from industry companies presented their ideas on digitalization of the fuel and energy complex and the MSC.

The decisions of the teams were evaluated by an expert commission, which included representatives of the partner companies of the Championship. Among them: JSC SO UES, PJSC AK ALROSA, PJSC Tatneft, OOO Transneftenergo, PJSC SIBUR Holding, GC ROSATOM, PJSC FGC UES, JSC MHC EuroChem, JSC Rosgeologiya, LLC Mycromine Rus, NLMK PJSC, Siberian Anthracite JSC, United RUSAL Company, Russian Copper Company JSC, EvrazHolding LLC, Raspadskaya Coal Company LLC, Siberian Generating Company LLC, CREDO-DIALOG COMPANY LLC, RusHydro PJSC, Prosoft LLC-Systems, Vostochnaya Mining Company LLC, and others.

On the second day of the finals, future engineers took part in a closed Career Day, where they were able to meet with representatives of the largest fuel and energy companies and ask them questions, find out the conditions of employment.

The highlight of the day was the awarding ceremony of the champions and prize-winners of the VII International Engineering Championship "CASE-IN". Opening the ceremony, Artem Korolev, founder and co-chairman of the organizing Committee of the Championship He noted that "CASE-IN" plays an important role, being a social elevator for talented youth.

- The most talented, active, motivated guys come from the regions to the final stage, who have a unique opportunity to meet potential employers, prove themselves, receive an internship invitation or a job offer., - underlined Artem Korolev.

The award ceremony of the champions and prize-winners of the VII International Engineering Championship "CASE-IN" was attended by Anatoly Yanovsky, Deputy Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation and Anton Serikov, Head of the department for work with partners of ANO "Russia – the land of opportunities", finalist of the "Leaders of Russia" competition. The honored guests congratulated the finalists, noting that the level of participants in the Championship is growing every year, and this inspires optimism, because they will have to develop the fuel and energy complex, which is the basis of the country's economy, in the future.

Anatoly Yanovsky He emphasized that every year the CASE-IN championship sets new records: the number of participants, universities and even countries is increasing. This means that the interest of the younger generation in the energy industry is growing. The Ministry of Energy, in turn, intends to continue to support the "CASE-IN" Championship. The representative of the department wished the guys success and new victories, and also presented well-deserved awards to the champions of 2019.

Anatoly Yanovsky presented the winners of the "CASE-IN" with champions cups and gold medals.

Silver and bronze medalists were awarded Anton Serikov.

- The organization that I represent is called "Russia — the land of opportunities", and "CASE-IN" can be called the Championship of Opportunities. Over the course of several days, you not only solved practical cases and communicated with specialists who work on the same issues every day as part of their professional activities, but also participated in master classes, communicated with each other and exchanged experiences.- he addressed the participants of the Championship. - There are no losers in the "CASE-IN". Those whose names and surnames will not be mentioned should not be upset – they can work on mistakes, draw conclusions, eliminate existing gaps and test their strength next year.

The champion of the direction "Geological exploration" The winner was the Zhilka team of Ural State Mining University (Yekaterinburg): Artem Trutnev (team captain), Ekaterina Khruleva, Eric Firyan and Ilya Shinkov.

"It's not the first time I've competed in the finals, and it's not even the first time I've won. Last year, we won the exploration league together with the MOORE team. The previous experience of participation allowed us to adjust the answers to the tasks, to build our defensive word more professionally. Well-coordinated work, curiosity, responsibility, the desire to solve the issues raised and the ability to manage our time helped us to win., – tells Artem Trutnev. – The main prize for me was the opportunity to complete an internship at Alrosa. My dream of being a competent engineer at a large enterprise is becoming a reality."

In the direction "Mining" The Granite team of Magnitogorsk State Technical University named after G.I. Nosov won: Ruslan Ermakov (team captain), Maxim Dyusmekeev, Dmitry Kostin and Aizirak Kunakasov.

Champion of the direction "Metallurgy" - the Digerati team of Lipetsk State Technical University: Anastasia Ryzhenkova (team captain), Alexander Zakharov, Ekaterina Zvereva and Ekaterina Pleshkova.

 "Gold" in the nomination "Oil and gas business" The team "29/16" was won by the Gubkin Russian State University of Oil and Gas (Moscow): Andrey Smirnov (team captain), Vyacheslav Tarakanov, Aigul Zaripova, Eduard Shamionov.

In the nomination Petrochemistry The victory was awarded to the KHTTUM Brotherhood team of Perm National Research Polytechnic University: Vasily Strelkov (team captain), Marina Nadymova, Anton Syuraev and Yuri Chebotkov.

The winners tell us: "We have been participating in the championship since 2018, last season we were bronze medalists, this year we became champions. We have proposed measures that have been implemented at other SIBUR enterprises, as well as two new projects on logistics and production efficiency.".

The champion of the direction The Digital Atom The "Crazy atom" team of the Nizhny Novgorod State Technical University named after R. E. Alekseev became: Ilya Bukhalov (team captain), Ekaterina Grishanina, Artemy Matyukov and Alexey Ignatiev.

The winner of the nomination "Electric power Industry" - the Systems and Networks team at Samara State Technical University: Artyom Pronichev (team captain), Elena Soldusova, Artyom Saveliev and Kirill Chubarov.

"The task of the case was interesting and versatile, it covered various fields of energy, experts were happy to answer all our questions and comment on our decision. Career Day is a great opportunity to show yourself to potential employers. Thanks to the organizers for the fact that every year there is such a knowledge exchange platform among students from all over the country, it is always nice to see familiar faces from all over Russia among the participants. I wish my colleagues to take advantage of the moment and participate in Reliable Shift events as often as possible, because it pumps you up 100% as a specialist."- say the champions.

In League of Young Professionals The champion was the UMMC team of UMMC-Holding LLC: Anatoly Papchenkov (team captain), Anton Yemelyanov, Maxim Molchanov, Vyacheslav Yevsyukov.

In The Special League of PJSC "T Plus" The first place was awarded to the URALHEAT+ team (Sverdlovsk branch of PJSC T PLUS): Olga Bretzer-Portnova (team captain), Semyon Belozertsev, Valeria Danilova, Artyom Zahozhai and Pavel Pyrlik.

"We really enjoyed participating in such an intellectual event, so much energy and positivity! The task of the case was very relevant and interesting, here you could not only apply your knowledge, but also dream a little. The very idea of digitalization of our company aroused interest. There was a serious fight at the finals, all the colleagues were at a decent level, it was interesting to listen to their ideas. There was no doubt in the experts, these are some of the best employees of PJSC T Plus.

For the second year in a row, the award was given within the framework of the championship special award for "The Best Energy saving solution". A question on this topic was included in the case of each direction on the initiative of the titular partner of the "CASE-IN", LLC Transneftenergo. A special award was awarded to the 2X2 team (Oil and Gas Engineering, Far Eastern Federal University) for a solution that ensures maximum energy efficiency and energy conservation, and all its participants received flagship smartphones as a gift.

- Energy conservation and energy efficiency are important areas of the world's economy, as people are beginning to realize that in fact, the resources of our planet are not unlimited, and we need to learn how to use them effectively., - the members of the "2X2" team note Alexey Balabukha (captain), Ekaterina Kozmina, Roman Inshakov and Victoria Sukhovilova. - The essence of our solution is to apply modern methods at all stages of field development, as well as during oil refining and transportation.

Sergey Yemelyanov, CEO of Transneftenergo LLC He stressed that the issue of energy conservation and energy efficiency remains one of the key issues on the agenda for the state and is reflected in the Doctrine of Energy Security of the Russian Federation approved by the President of Russia. Consequently, the enterprises of the fuel and energy complex and the mineral resource complex pay and will continue to pay great attention to measures to stimulate energy conservation and increase their economic efficiency. Graduates of CASE-IN, future technical specialists in absolutely all fields, whether Mining, Metallurgy, Petrochemistry or Geological Exploration, will have to carefully manage energy resources and offer competent solutions to optimize energy consumption.

- To motivate you guys to understand this issue better, Transneftenergo has established a special nomination – "The best solution aimed at energy conservation", - I addressed the finalists Sergey Yemelyanov. – Our experts worked on the commissions in all areas and noted that the teams showed good knowledge of the topic and proposed worthy measures to reduce energy consumption with a reasonable economic effect. All the participants have done great, but a competition is a competition, and there must be a winner in any championship. Congratulations to everyone on the successful completion of the trials. I think you are very lucky, because "CASE-IN" is a unique project: in terms of scale, geography, stated objectives and trends. I am sure that participating in this Championship will be the highlight of your student life and a stepping stone in your career.

The Championship's partner companies presented their own awards and prizes: PJSC AK ALROSA, JSC MHC EuroChem, LLC Mycromine Rus, LLC Vostochnaya Mining Company, LLC IBM Montan, JSC Russian Copper Company, LLC Sibantratsit Management Company,Credo-Dialog, Rosatom State Corporation, Rosgeologiya JSC, SO UES JSC, FGC UES PJSC, EvrazHolding LLC, NLMK PJSC, Tatneft PJSC, Sibur Holding PJSC.

The honored guests of the "CASE-IN" welcomed the finalists.

Natalia Petukhova, Head of the Personnel Selection and Development Department at ALROSA She clarified that ALROSA had become a partner of the Championship for the first time: its specialists participated in the preparation and evaluation of cases in two areas – Mining and Exploration.

- We have never regretted this decision, because we saw so many bright eyes, heard so many new ideas – the guys who worked on our cases reacted with trepidation to the tasks and felt like a part of our big company. I want to invite them to practice, after that they will be able to refine their talent directly in our company.- Natalia Petukhova said.

Alexander Tolstov, Director of the Scientific Research Geological Enterprise of ALROSA He admitted that before coming to the Championship, he perceived the term "case" ambiguously.:

- For me, as a person of the Soviet school, it was not entirely clear what this method was. However, after taking part in this event, I realized that the case method is quite progressive and allows the guys to immerse themselves in the problem. I would especially like to mention the participating teams in the "Geology" field. There is a geologist named Oleg Mikhailovich Kuvaev, who says that you and I are doomed to one thing – to work, and the work of geologists is the best doom in the world. We will definitely meet with you and cooperate outside the Championship.

Permanent partner of the Championship - JSC "MHC "EuroChem" notes the growth in the number of "CASE-IN" participants.

- We would like to invite the winning team to the Eurochem meeting of young specialists, which will be held in Sochi in September, − says Mikhail Lebedev, Head of Human Resources at the Mining Division of JSC MHC EuroChem. –As part of it, the guys will be able to get acquainted with our young employees, find out how they live, how they compete, and also participate in a team-building event.

Boris Kurtsev, CEO of Mycromine Rus LLC I am sure that the organizers of the CASE-IN have succeeded in the impossible: they have actually created a platform from scratch that unites the younger generation, many of whom are likely to work in the industry later.

- Make friends with each other, remember each other, because it is up to you to set the course for the development of the domestic industry in the very near future., - he addressed the finalists.

Olesya Zelenova, Director of Personnel Management at Vostochno-Mining Company LLC She congratulated the guys on a wonderful holiday – the final of the competition, noting that the excellent results they demonstrated should be the starting point in their career, and the knowledge gained during the solution of cases will definitely be useful in future work.

Sergey Nikishichev, Director of IBM Montan LLC He stressed that the level of performance of the teams has increased significantly this year.:

- It can be assumed that this is due to the release of the rock formation from the peak and its rise. There is a chance that in five to seven years we will not experience such a large shortage of mining specialists. Moreover, in my opinion, the mining industry is leading our country forward. There were actually a lot of strong teams. Therefore, I urge losers not to get upset – defeats make us stronger.

Vladimir Belov, Deputy Director for Underground Mining at Russian Copper Company JSC He believes that the CASE-IN Championship is a significant event not only for the participants who solved the cases, but also for many guests and experts.

- RThe work done by the guys in solving the cases is their investment in the future. Many fifth-year winners will soon find themselves in production and will be able to put their knowledge into practice. Their younger comrades, who may not have won prizes, also gained tremendous experience. If they don't give up, then in a year they will be able to go on stage for well-deserved awards. Moreover, I would like to note that many teams, after defending their decision, approached us to consult, to understand what mistakes they made, what they need to pay attention to in the future. We are glad that a worthy shift is growing, which will be able to enter production, show decent performance and bring our country to the top in all key areas.- said Vladimir Belov.

I congratulated the finalists and Mikhail Garasimchuk, Head of the Production Service of Sibantratsit Management Company LLC:

- This is the fourth year that we have supported the Championship, during this period our company has expanded, we produce three times more coal, and we are grateful to the organizers of the Championship for preparing and holding such an important event for the industry, it really is a forge of personnel. I'm sure,"CASE-IN" it will develop and conquer new heights. All participants would like to say: although game is over In fact, this is just the beginning, you will face many difficulties in life, but you have proved that you can consolidate your strength, use information correctly, correct mistakes and continue to move towards the goal.

Leonid Lomako, Mining Engineer at Kredo-Dialog He thanked everyone involved in the celebration called "CASE-IN" and, since the theme of the Championship was designated as "Digital Transformation", awarded the distinguished teams with access to the IT solutions of the "Credo Dialogue" in the field of mining.

Evgeny Abakumov, Director of the Information Technology Department of Rosatom State Corporation He believes that the theme of the 2019 Championship was chosen absolutely correctly, because the Russian Government has taken a confident course towards digitalization of key industries.

"We hope that industrial companies will be able to take a huge step forward by applying and developing solutions that help our manufacturing companies from the energy sector and the mining industry, including Rosatom, to make business faster, better, and stronger."- he emphasized.

It is not the first year that Rosgeologiya JSC has been supporting the engineering championship:

- The project is getting brighter and more interesting every year, and, of course, it gives participants opportunities for further development. We saw a lot of interesting performances in the final. I would like to thank the teachers of the universities where our future colleagues study, and the organizers of the Championship. The implementation of such projects contributes to solving important tasks related not only to the popularization of the profession, but also to the development of students' competencies that will help them enter adulthood., - noticed Sergey Surenkov, Director of the Department of Geology of Solid Minerals, Rosgeologiya JSC.

At the award ceremony for the winners and prize-winners of the Championship, on behalf of JSC SO UES, the finalists were welcomed Svetlana Mikhailova, Director of Personnel Management at JSC SO UES. She presented awards to the most proven teams and noted the qualitative growth of the Electric Power Industry, which in 2019 was initiated by JSC SO UES for the fifth year in a row.

- We are pleased that our students are actively participating in all the leagues of the Championship: schoolchildren of the energy groups of the School – University – Enterprise system; undergraduates studying in specialized training programs commissioned by JSC SO UES, and youth teams of our branches. We are closely following the success of all participants in the championship, and the best of you continue to study under our programs or have already started working in branches of JSC SO UES throughout Russia., − noted Svetlana Mikhailova.

Representatives of FGC UES PJSC are Andrey Hoffman, Deputy Head of the Personnel Training Center, and Anna Tusheva, a leading expert at the Personnel Training Center. They stressed that the federal grid company is making great efforts to develop the electric power industry, actively introducing digital technologies.:

- Our substations are becoming remotely controlled, and, given this fact, new personnel are required who are well versed in new technologies and are able to think differently, as required by reality. In this regard, the Championship "CASE-IN"it is very important, so we are always actively involved in it.

Roman Velikansky, Director of NLMK's Personnel Training and Development Directorate and  Denis Kovalev, Head of NLMK's Technology Development Department The finalists were welcomed on behalf of the company's many thousands of employees, noting that the knowledge and competencies that the students receive on the student bench are certainly important, but for employers it is also a big plus that they successfully cope with the tasks of production cases.

- We wish the participants "CASE-IN" to be leaders in your chosen profession, gain new knowledge and develop competencies. The cases that you solved were not easy, nevertheless, you coped by showing us interesting, sometimes extraordinary solutions. NLMK's specialists said.

Permanent partner of "CASE-IN" - PJSC Tatneft, according to Rifdar Khamadyarov, Deputy Head of the HR Department for the Development of Corporate Culture of the company He supports the Championship because he believes in the Reliable Shift Charitable Foundation, which is engaged in an important task - the selection of specialists for the fuel and energy and mineral resource complexes.

Valery Cherepanov, Head of Industry 4.0 at PJSC Sibur Holding He believes that the finalists of the Championship are able to help industry companies in implementing digital transformation.:

- Over the past year, we have hired over 100 people who are currently engaged in digitalization. The average age of these specialists is less than 25 years. Therefore, we will be glad to see all the young, active and driving participants in our ranks."CASE-IN"who are ready to help the company change for the better.

The CASE-IN winners received the Champions Cup and the title of the best engineering team of 2019. The winners of the electric power industry direction will be able to improve their professional qualifications at the All-Russian Summer Educational Forum "Energy of Youth".

During the final, a special award "Energy of Education" was also awarded for organizing the best CASE-IN qualifying stage in universities. In 2019, the Energy of Education award was awarded to Tyumen Industrial University, Ural Federal University named after the First President B.N. Yeltsin, North Caucasus Mining and Metallurgical Institute (State Technological University), National Research Tomsk Polytechnic University, Kazan State Power Engineering University, Novosibirsk State Technical University, Irkutsk National Research Technical University.

After the final of the Championship, the work within the framework of the VII "CASE-IN" season does not end: in the fall, its organizers plan to launch the next wave of competitions of the school and student leagues "CASE-IN", which will involve new schools, universities and regions. The Digital Transformation season will finally end with the competitions of young specialists of the Fuel and energy Complex and the Moscow Energy Complex at the Youth Day #Together with the International Forum "Russian Energy Week". By the way, the most active CASE-IN finalists will be able to participate not only in the REN Youth Day, but also attend the events of the main program of the forum.