Department : Electric drive and automation of industrial installations and technological complexes

The Department of Electric Drive and Automation of Industrial Installations and Technological Complexes (EAPUiTK) takes its origin from the Department of Electrical Machines, which was created at the Energy Faculty of the Belarusian Polytechnic Institute (BPI) revived in 1933. The head of this department was Associate Professor Shchedrin N.V. In 1946, after a military break, the Department of Electrical Machines resumed its work at the BPI. The department was headed by a senior lecturer Mekhedko F.V. In 1955, a well-known specialist in electric drive arrived in Minsk, who had previously worked in Moscow at the All-Russian Research Institute Elektroprivod, doctor of technical sciences Leonid Benediktovich Geiler, and became the head of the department of "Electric Machines and Electric Drive". In 1957 he received the academic title of professor. The department headed by him becomes a major department for the production of electrical engineers with a degree in “Electrification of industrial enterprises”.

At the same time, scientific work is activated and the training of graduate students at the department begins, which is intensified with the arrival of Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor Anhimyuk V.L. in 1960. and in 1961, Ph.D., associate professor Ilyin O.P. Young teachers of the department prepare dissertations and receive academic degrees. It was a time of selfless creative searches and selfless faith in the power of science and technology. In 1963, in accordance with the needs of the industry, the profile of the specialty "Electrification of industrial enterprises" was changed, which began to have the code 0628 and was called "Electric drive and automation of industrial installations." In 1970, the department "Electrical Machines and Electric Drive" was divided into two "Electrical Equipment and Automation of Industrial Installations" and "Power Supply of Industrial Enterprises". The head of the department "Electrical Equipment and Automation of Industrial Installations" becomes Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor Sheina G.P., who held this position until 1977. Since that time, there has been a movement of the department among the faculties. From the Faculty of Energy, the Department moves to the Faculty of Industrial Energy, then in 1978 to the Faculty of Physics and Energy and in 1983 to the newly formed Faculty of Robots and Robotic Systems, which was later renamed the Faculty of Information Technology and Robotics (FITR), where the department is located at present time. With all these transitions, the department retains and develops a specialty in electric drive, conducting scientific research and improving the methodological basis for training specialists.

In 1987, a new list of specialties was introduced in the USSR, and the former specialty 0628 acquired a new code and name: 21.05 "Electric drive and automation of industrial installations and technological complexes" (EAPUiTK). The department begins to train specialists in two specializations: 21.05.01 - Electric drive and automation of general industrial installations and technological complexes. 05/21/02 - Electric drive and automation of robotic and flexible production complexes (the former name of the specialization "Program control systems for industrial installations and robotic complexes", which was introduced at the department in 1983).

Since 1988 the department is renamed into the electric drive and automation of industrial installations and technological complexes. The beginning of the 1990s puts an end to the perestroika hype and makes adjustments to the system of training specialists. The department maintains and expands its positions at this time, when in 1994 a new list of specialties was introduced in the Republic of Belarus and the specialty received the code and name T11.02 "Automated Electric Drive" (AED). In November 1994, the department managed to organize and hold the first republican scientific and technical conference "Automated electric drive of industrial installations", which was attended by scientists from foreign countries: Russia, Poland, Lebanon and Syria. The results of the conference had a positive impact on the development of the educational process and scientific research. In particular, a rationale and training programs for the introduction of the third specialization T11.02.03 "Electric drive and automation of municipal and household appliances" were prepared. The BSPA Council of 02.12.1994 approved this specialization and submitted it for consideration to the Ministry of Education. However, the third specialization did not receive its development and until 2001 the department trained specialists in two specializations: T11.02.01 "Automated electric drive of industrial and transport installations", T11.02.02 "Automated electric drive of technological complexes". In 2001, education standards and a new classification of specialties were introduced. The specialty began to be called 53.01.05 "Automated electric drives". It should be noted that from 1977 to 1997 the head of the department was B.I. Firago. (until 1985 - candidate of technical sciences, associate professor, and after 1985 - doctor of technical sciences, professor). From 1997 to 2018, the head of the department was Ph.D., associate professor Gulkov G.I. From 2019 to the present, the head of the department of EAPU&TC is Ph.D., associate professor Pavlyukovets S.A. A feature of the department at all times was the desire to maintain stability under various external influences in all the most important indicators that determine the performance of the creative team: enrollment of full-time students 45-50, teaching staff 14-20, the number of full-time graduate students 4-5. The scientific direction of the department, laid down by its founder, Professor L.B. Geiler, is associated with the research and development of AC and DC electric drives based on semiconductor converters. The development of the theory of electric drive, the emergence of new semiconductor devices and means of information processing puts forward new problems that are relevant for this scientific direction. During the existence of the department, its teachers defended 2 doctoral (Anhimyuk V.L. - 1974 and Firago B.I. - 1984) and 15 candidate dissertations: Borovoy B.V., Pisarik L.S., Firago B. I., Sheina G.P., Petrenko Yu.N., Babuk A.M., Mikheev N.N., Opeyko O.F., Pavlovich S.N., Belyaev V.P., Primshits P.P. , Kozlovsky K.I., Kucheryavenko V.F., Gulkov G.I., Gulkov A.G. Three teachers of the department received the academic title of professor: Anhimyuk V.L. - 1975, Firago B.I. - 1986, Pavlovich S.N. – 2001.

At different stages of its history, the department had scientific and technical cooperation with the technical universities of Slovakia (Bratislava, Kosice), Czech Republic (Ostrava), Poland (Wroclaw), Latvia (Riga), Germany (Il:menau), Cuba (Camaguey), Syria (Latakia), Lebanon (Beirut), as a result of which trips of teachers to international scientific and technical conferences were carried out in order to exchange the results of scientific research, joint scientific articles and books were published. Lecturer of the department Kozlovsky K.I. studied at the graduate school of the Technical University of Ilmenau, where he defended his thesis. In addition to training electrical engineers in automated electric drive and automation of technological processes, the department conducts classes for some specialties of other faculties of BNTU.