About the company

The group of companies LLC “Shipyard Soaring Machines” TIN 4711014287 and LLC “Hovercraft” TIN 4711006590, operating under the registered trademark “PARMA” is an innovative shipbuilding company operating in the field of design and production of hovercraft (Hovercraft). Our company has a long and successful history and can be proud of being the oldest private company in Russia producing hovercraft. The company’s founder and CEO has been involved in amphibious vessels since 1972. The PARMA shipyard is one of the few that has a full production cycle: aluminum riveting, fiberglass molding, flexible fencing sewing, and turning and milling work. That is, we produce all parts of the future hovercraft: aluminum body, fiberglass superstructure, flexible fencing (skirt), composite propeller blades and supercharger blades, electrical installation and assembly work. The company constantly improves the quality of its products, the quality of components and materials. We are continuously working on creating new hovercraft models and upgrading previously developed ones. In 1972, at the state Central Design Bureau “Neptune” under the leadership of chief engineer Andreev G.E. a youth design bureau was created. The group included four young designers. All research work on the topic of hovercraft was carried out in the evenings during free time from work. After an extensive study of various types and study of the available theory of hovercraft, it was decided to build a scale model for testing and development of experience based on the English hovercraft company Cushion Craft CC-7. In 1973, the accumulated experience and knowledge allowed the members of the ICB to contact the head of the Neptune Central Clinical Hospital, I.A. Martynov with a request for the allocation of material funds for the construction of the first independent project. This task at that time was practically unsolvable, because the allocation of all the necessary resources had to be literally “knocked out” from the USSR Ministry of Shipbuilding. But the confidence of the young designers and the active position of the head of the Central Design Bureau made it possible to begin the construction of an experienced hovercraft. During construction we had to face many interdepartmental problems. The necessary engine and aluminum were not used in shipbuilding, and therefore they had to be begged from the Ministry of Aviation Industry. In 1974, the first hovercraft designed by the Central Design Bureau “Neptune” – AhovercraftR-001 – was launched. The boat was launched, and did not descend on its own, as they do now. The fact is that in the Central Design Bureau there was not a single person who knew how to operate a hovercraft. Experienced hovercraft captains were in the Navy, but it was impossible to attract them due to the high degree of secrecy of this topic. The descent took place in late autumn, and since no one knew how to drive the boat, the tests took place at low speeds. At the same time, a lot of spray rose into the air, interfering with control. During the first tests, the navigator controlled the ship with long levers, leaning out of the hatch in the roof. altLater, the testers became bolder, began to walk at over-the-hill speeds, and the splashing went away. Multilateral tests allowed us to gain our own experience in both the design, management and maintenance of hovercraft. This experience and the positive reaction of the Ministry of Shipbuilding made it possible to begin designing the serial hovercraft “Bars”. In 1976, Project 14660 “Bars” rolled off the experimental base of the Central Design Bureau “Neptune” on the Klyazma Reservoir. The boat, not having had time to go through all the modifications and tests, was forced to enter into a fight for mass production with the then powerful Tupolev Design Bureau. The Tupolev team promoted their brainchild – the AS snowmobile. It was decided to race these two cars over difficult rough terrain. During a very difficult competition, the hovercraft “Bars” won, which made it possible to place its serial production at the Rybinsk shipyard. The ministry and the Neptune Central Design Bureau decided to create a new direction of design work. The designers, who until that moment had been working on the topic of amphibians on their own initiative, were appointed chief designers of the direction and each began working on their own topic. For their work on the creation of the Bars hovercraft, they were awarded the Lenin Komsomol Prize, which was very prestigious at that time. “Bars” accommodated seven people. In 1980, the Neptune Central Design Bureau released a new five-seat project 18800 – the Gepard hovercraft. The Gepard boat marked a new era in the serial production of hovercraft. The fact is that the main obstacle to the serial production of hovercraft was the lack of light automobile engines of the required power, so all developments were based on inaccessible and expensive aircraft engines. “Cheetah” broke this circle. For the first time in the Soviet Union, it became possible to produce affordable and easily repaired GAZ-53 automobile engines. altAlthough the engine was heavy and had a low resource, it was very simple, and spare parts could be easily found on any collective farm. The boat was produced for a long time at the Svir shipyard, which built more than 200 units. In addition, the Gepard was produced in-house by the Central Design Bureau at the base in Dolgoprudny. In 1984, the first boat of Project 18801, the Puma, was born. The first “Puma” was made in a medical version. The hovercraft was equipped with two GAZ-53 engines. Subsequently, two more options were developed: project 18802 – passenger capacity of 16 people and project 18803 – 10 marines with weapons. Serial production of the Puma was launched at the Svir Shipyard. In 1985, the Bison hovercraft complex entered testing. The complex consists of one self-propelled platform on the airspace and two non-self-propelled ones. The hovercraft was developed on the instructions of the Ministry of the Navy to equip supply vessels. The task of the hovercraft complex was to unload supply vessels located in the roadstead onto the unequipped shore. A self-propelled platform in conjunction with a non-self-propelled one went to the shore for unloading. Having unhooked the non-self-propelled platform and without wasting time unloading it, the hovercraft returned for the second loaded platform. In this shuttle method, the necessary cargo was transferred to the shore. In 1987, design work on the 32-seater project 15060 – hovercraft “Irbis” – was completed. The vessel was equipped with two diesel engines manufactured in Germany, had an advanced superstructure design, double-layer glazing, a spacious interior, and a chassis raised above the interior. altFor the first time, the layout of engines and superchargers was adopted, which we use on modern projects. In 1988, the Central Design Bureau “Neptune” began to create a geophysical vessel on the VP with a lifting capacity of 40 tons called “Tapir”. Unfortunately, the construction of the lead model was never completed due to a stop in funding. In 1990, a project was developed for a two-seater small sports boat of Project VP193 – “Sobol”. For the sake of compactness, the designers were forced to abandon highly effective developments in the theory of flexible fencing, propeller and supercharger. The vessel was able to be transported on a car trailer, but the price for this was high fuel consumption and noise. The first boats were equipped with modified IZH motorcycle engines. Subsequently, due to low reliability, they had to be abandoned in favor of the Austrian ROTAX. To produce these boats, the Neptune Central Design Bureau is creating a subsidiary, Neptune-Alpha LLP. In the 90s, demand fell not only for amphibians, but also for other vessels of all types. Nevertheless, the Neptunians are creating the Lynx hovercraft for an independent pilot service and supplying ships to Mexico and Canada. The subsidiary exists through contract work and the production of the Sobol hovercraft. Currently, the state Moscow Central Design Bureau “Neptune” TIN 7710071062 and its subsidiary Neptune-Alpha LLP have ceased to exist. In 1995 in Salekhard LLC “Hovering Machines” TIN 8901007197 is registered to promote amphibious equipment in the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. Currently liquidated. In 2002, Hovercraft independently developed a new 9-seater Project 100 – “Alligator”. It should be noted that for the first time a project is being created using computer-aided design systems, which eliminates the need for a huge number of engineers and thereby reduces the cost of the hovercraft. For example, in Soviet times, the number of Central Clinical Hospitals reached 400 people. Structurally, the boat was a smaller copy of the Irbis. During this period, the company, lacking sufficient production capacity, turned to the Svir Shipyard. Both ordinary employees of the shipyard and its then director, G.A. Kruk, provided enormous assistance in the construction. In 2004, by order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, a 7-seater project 110 – “Argo” – was developed and built. The boat is structurally based on Project 100. The length and width of the hull and the cabin were changed. altLater, the passenger capacity of the hovercraft was increased to 10 people. The Argo hovercraft is loved for its reliability and is regularly purchased by the Ministry of Emergency Situations to equip rescue bases. Thanks to its twin-engine design and two-tiered skirt, the boat has the highest survivability and seaworthiness. For example, some specimens came for repairs under their own power with the lower tier completely worn out. Currently, the hovercraft “Argo” is produced not only by our enterprise, but also under our license by the Svir Shipyard. In 2006, serial production of the 15-seat diesel hovercraft “Leopard” began. Structurally, the boat was an Argo hovercraft extended in the cabin and engine compartment. The Hovercraft was equipped with two IVECO diesel engines with a power of 110 hp. every. The peculiarity was that these engines were installed on Fiat Ducato cars, which until 2011 were produced by Sollers at the plant in Elabuga. This solution allowed us to avoid the main problem of imported engines – the lack of technical support and a stable supply of spare parts. Fiat Ducato was loved by domestic car enthusiasts, so spare parts and consumables at reasonable prices quickly appeared in stores. The boat’s interior now has a large cargo hatch and folding seats. The height of the air cushion is 60 cm. In 2010, our company is streamlining the names of the boats it produces. All hovercrafts are starting to be produced under the Neptune brand with a number corresponding to the maximum possible passenger capacity. Thus, the Sobol stabilization station becomes “Neptune 3”, the Argo stabilization station becomes “Neptune 10”, the Leopard stabilization station becomes “Neptune 15”, and the Irbis stabilization station becomes “Neptune 34”. The boats “Gepard” and “Puma” are being discontinued. They will be replaced by new models “Neptune 5” and “Neptune 23”, respectively. In 2011, we are coordinating with the Russian River Register to increase the passenger capacity of the Argo stole to 11 people. The boat receives a new hull of 6 compartments, an air cushion of 50 cm, side folding sofas, electric amplifiers VIS. The new project is labeled “Neptune 11”. At the very beginning of 2013, we completed the construction and testing of the lead boat “Neptune 23”. The heart of the boat was two Cummins diesel engines with a power of 150 hp. every. The first boat is equipped with a toilet room and a kitchen with a gas stove and washbasin, soft bus seats, luggage racks, curtains, LED and xenon high-beam headlights Hella Xenon, Separ DT separators, Hydronic pre-heaters, Multitrinics on-board diagnostic computers, double glazing of the cabin with argon filling, height VP (clearance) – 750 mm, three interior and chassis heaters, 12-220V current inverters, radio, Furuno radar, 8 additional fuel tanks with a capacity of 125 liters each, etc. During testing, the boat demonstrated excellent maneuverability, acceleration and extremely low fuel consumption of about 30 liters/hour. The pilothouse of the boat is separated from the salon by a bulkhead and raised above it. This allows the navigator to control the situation around the vessel at 360 degrees, which is important for such dimensions. At the same time, we have retained the signature feature of our ships, which is the ability to painlessly transport them in containers. To transport Neptune 23, one 40-foot container and one 20-foot container or a truck from 13 meters are required.