KB Yuzhnoye/YuMZ

The modular part of the Energiya strap-on boosters was designed by KB Yuzhnoye in the Ukrainian city of Dnepropetrovsk. This originated in 1954 as OKB-586 and under the leadership of Mikhail K. Yangel pursued the development of ballistic missiles using storable propellants as well as derived launch vehicles such as the Kosmos and Tsiklon series of boosters. Renamed KB Yuzhnoye in 1966, it was also in charge of developing a wide array of military and scientific satellites. Yangel died in 1971 and was succeeded by Vladimir F. Utkin, who headed the organization until 1990.

Yuzhnoye’s production facility was the Yuzhnyy Machine Building Factory (YuMZ or “Yuzhmash”), originally founded in 1944 as the Dnepropetrovsk Automobile Factory. In 1951 it was renamed Factory nr. 586 and ordered to switch to the serial production of OKB-1 missiles (the R-1 and R-2). Several years later it began producing missiles and eventually launch vehicles and satellites for KB Yuzhnoye. During the Buran years Yuzhmash was headed by Aleksandr M. Makarov (1961-1986) and Leonid D. Kuchma (1986-1992), the later President of the Ukraine. Eventually, serial production of the modular part of the Energiya strap – ons was also to be transferred to PO Polyot in Omsk, but this apparently never happened.