It’s hard to say which part is worse, that a Russian-owned company supplied the U.S. Army with armor plating used for combat vehicles or that the company allegedly faked quality control tests.
The Oregon-based Evraz North America produced 12,800 steel armored plates for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV). Between 2017 and 2019, the company “skipped over some obligatory tests and registered fake results,” Bloomberg first reported this week.
Employees at the facility regularly marked the plates as having been tested and approved, only to show signs of cracking later. According to the aforementioned report, Evraz found that employees “failed to consistently” use a machine designed to test the hardness of the plates and circumvented the requirement.
Instead, false results were manually entered, a practice that was “widespread” as internal investigations found.
At least four employees acknowledged falsifying the hardness ratings, claiming they did so because they lacked time to test each plate to meet the demand.
“That’s how I was trained,” an employee told investigators. While supervisors at the facility denied having any knowledge, the report found that it was “highly likely” it was a known practice.
One manager admitted he knew false data had been recorded.
“When you’re thrown in the fire, you gotta do what you gotta do to keep the line rolling,” the manager stated in the internal report.
Russian Company Pulls a Fast One on America
At least two company officials expressed concern that completed vehicles had been outfitted with the “potentially compromised armor plating.” However, the report doesn’t indicate if any questionable plates had been installed on the JTLV.
“Company officials have cooperated with all requests made by the Department of Justice (DoJ) about the matter referenced in the article and will continue to cooperate going forward,” an Evraz North America spokesperson told media outlets, per Newsweek.
“We are confident the DoJ’s investigation will end in a full exoneration.”
Evraz also criticized Bloomberg’s reporting, suggesting it “inaccurately” characterized an internal report.
“In reality, the internal report examines quality control protocols and underscores Evraz North America’s commitment to producing high-quality, reliable plates,” the spokesperson added. “By misrepresenting EVRAZ North America and its internal processes, Bloomberg unfairly undermines the company’s well-earned reputation and the integrity of its workforce.”
Traces of the Russian Company
Though this issue doesn’t appear to be because the firm has ties to the Kremlin, questions should still be raised about how a Russian-owned company had secured a military contract. Evarz Group is still headquartered in Moscow and part-owned by Roman Abramovich, a known Russian oligarch/plutocrat according to the Coalition to Oppose the Arms Trade (COAT).
The company’s U.S. operation was formed following the merger of Oregon Steel Mills, Rocky Mountain Steel, and IPSCO.
According to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) 2007, the Evraz Group bought OSM for a reported $2.3 billion in January filings.
Evraz Group has maintained its U.S. operations despite the sanctions imposed on Russia three years following Moscow’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. According to Bloomberg, plans are in place to sell the North American operations that are still pending.
The Bloomberg report acknowledged that while the falsification of testing was likely due to “poor compliance with factory procedures,” it likely didn’t compromise U.S. national security. Evraz had temporarily suspended deliveries to rectify matters but failed to inform Oshkosh Defense, maker of the JLTV, of the quality-control issues.
Protecting the JLTV from Defective Russian Parts
The potentially compromised plates were produced for the JLTV and manufactured by Oshkosh Defense.
In 2015, Oshkosh Defense received a $6.75 billion contract to build 17,000 vehicles, part of a more significant $30 billion contract to replace the U.S. military’s aging Humvee. Over 20,000 light utility/combat multi-role vehicles have been produced for the U.S. military and its partners.
In addition to the United States Armed Forces, the JLTV is operated by Belgium, Brazil, Israel, Lithuania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania, and Slovenia. Mongolia, Uruguay, and Slovakia have outstanding orders.
Greece, Poland, Portugal, and the UK have been named potential future operators.
About the Author: Peter Suciu
Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].
Image: Wikimedia Commons/ Jason Johnston.
