International Scientific Journals
of Scientific Technical Union of Mechanical Engineering "Industry 4.0"

Since 1960, an economic policy of specialization in machine-building production began in Bulgaria, thanks to which a number of new types of production were developed in our country, which subsequently acquired a key importance for the further development of the industry. As a result of the implementation of this policy for twenty years, qualitative changes have occurred in the Bulgarian economy: intensification of production, orientation towards productions providing higher added value, inclusion in the international division of labor, constant growth of social productivity, raising the general technological level of industry, multiple increase in the class of technical intelligence, etc. Thanks to the implemented policy of specialization in machine-building production, Bulgaria overcomes the general economic backwardness of other countries.

Regardless of the fact that all the prerequisites exist for the development of maritime business and shipbuilding in Bulgaria, a purposeful state maritime policy has not been implemented for a long time. Although there are registered beginnings of our shipbuilding already at the end of the 19th century, and the first serious orders were made during the Second World War, one can speak of a Bulgarian state policy of shipbuilding only in the 2 ½ of the 20th century. Until 1962, the development of the shipbuilding industry was at an average level for the capabilities of our country. In the following decades until the end of the socialist period, shipbuilding emerged as a sub-branch of machine-building of strategic importance for the entire industry, and the scale of its development was comparable to the scale of countries with developed shipbuilding. It is characteristic of the entire period that the majority of shipbuilding production is not created for internal needs, but is dictated by external orders, structural changes are constantly made in the management, there is a lack of continuity, and the construction of capacities for the construction of large-tonnage ships takes a very long time time is a debatable issue. Nevertheless, the development of the shipbuilding industry brings enormous positives to the country. During this period, Bulgaria was recognized as a maritime country; builds a production and technical base that is not small for the scale of our country; puts the work on a scientific basis and gives an opportunity for the appearance of a whole constellation of engineers, according to whose projects dozens and hundreds of ships that sail under the Bulgarian and foreign flags have been built.

Еlectronics is the most progressive branch of mechanical engineering since the 1960s. Specific for the development of this industry in our country is that each technological development or the creation of material conditions for its implementation in the period from 1960 by the end of the socialist period, it had received support at the highest state level, in the form of continuous promotion, smooth financing, the provision of embargoed high-deficit technologies by special services and the wide opening of the economy to integration into production. Significant for the development of the industry in our country is the specialization in the production of electronic computers, which was won in a competitive competition between all member countries of the COMECON on the basis of previously achieved in Bulgaria high scientific results in the field.

The development of energy in our country is one of the good examples, thanks to which it can be claimed that Bulgaria is growing into an industrial country. The study of the stages in this development shows a different attitude towards this industry during the first half of the previous century and then, until the end of the socialist period. Until the middle of the century, energy was extremely underestimated as an area on which the general industrial growth depended, it was neglected financially as a secondary area, for which the differences remained from investments in other directions. A quite natural consequence of this was the weak technical training of the intelligentsia and the inability to develop its own energy production, which led to technological dependence on more developed countries. After the middle of the century, a reversal is noticeable, thanks to which the negative trends are abandoned. There are results that speak for the prioritization of
energy policy.
In addition to being singled out as a separate industry, the energy industry also robs the largest capital funds. The leading understanding is that without the development of energy, there would be no development at all. Undoubtedly, Bulgaria’s great achievements in engineering, metallurgy, transport and other industrial sectors would not have been possible without the successful development of the Bulgarian energy industry.

In the 8th decade of the 20th century, a state program was implemented to automate the entire production in the spirit of scientific and technical progress. More than 160 types of systems for the automation of technological processes have been developed, including individual high-performance machines, industrial robots and manipulators, managed with the most advanced microprocessor technology for its time, subsequently implemented in pilot complex automated workshops and production areas in various economic sites of the country. Prioritizing the production of means of automation of technological processes intensifies machine-building, intellectualizes labor and increases its productivity. Gradually, with our forces and means, experience and a base for further design and implementation of flexible automated production systems in all branches of industry are created. The achieved technical and organizational experience guarantees the membership of Bulgaria in the Permanent Commission on Mechanical Engineering at the SIV and its coordinating role in agreements for multilateral specialization and scientific and technical cooperation in the field of industrial manipulators and robots.

In the mid-1960s, the construction of production facilities for automobile manufacturing began in our country. After multi-million capital investments, a modern base for the production of cars and trucks, and buses, as well as assemblies and aggregates for them, is being created in our country. Licenses and technical documentation acquired by leading Western companies guarantee high quality of Bulgarian production and mark a huge growth in the export of production for the automotive industry. The cooperation opens up perspectives for the complete absorption of the samples produced in our country and cooperation in the industry with countries that are members of the COMECON. The possibility of using foreign experience and gradually preparing the necessary personnel leads to hitherto unknown concentration and specialization in the industry and to extremely high labor productivity.