Nikolai Vasilievich is 83 years old. He still engages in his favorite activity – teaching, currently at the state institute for advanced training and retraining of personnel in the field of gas supply, the 'GAZ-Institute'.

His career includes service on a nuclear submarine, a doctoral dissertation on technical diagnostics of electrical equipment, heading the industry scientific-technical center for energy saving and diagnostics at OAO 'Belgorhimprom', and work at the Department of Power Supply at the GGTU named after P. O. Sukhoi.

Nikolai Gruntovich actively introduces advanced diagnostic technologies into the country's energy complex, while also conducting scientific research in this area. He shared his vision of problematic issues in industry and education with readers of 'Gomelskaya Pravda'.

«In the 1960s–70s our country was a huge construction site. Not only residential buildings but also large industrial enterprises that are still operating today were erected. What has happened to the equipment over these decades? After all, the primary task is to keep it in working condition: ensure reliability, fault-free operation of units and assemblies, and extend their service life. For this, modernization is needed, and a plan for it must exist at every plant. And to develop it, one must diagnose all equipment: engines, pumps, transformers, boiler equipment. And since it wears out differently, it should be ranked according to its technical condition.»

The second task is to find funds

I am sure we need to change the grading system in our country. Abandon the foreign 10‑point system and return to the 4‑point system: “excellent”, “good”, “mediocre”, and instead of the two, which traumatizes even students – “non‑certification” and sending for a paid retake. We should not calculate the average grade upon finishing school. A child may know physics excellently, but not be able to handle another subject, for example English. And precisely because of it the average grade will be significantly lower, which may hinder admission to university.

From preparing young, motivated, and professional personnel we are moving to the engines of a new generation. I propose to immediately start construction of a plant for ventilator‑inductor motors in Belarus; we need hundreds of thousands of them. They are economical, have high reliability and high efficiency. Of course, they can be purchased from Russian manufacturers, but it is cheaper to make them ourselves for our own enterprises. The equipment will work longer and reliably, consuming less electricity.

Old asynchronous electric motors cannot operate effectively for 100 years. The risk of reducing stable operation of the enterprise increases. One cannot delay technological modernization; equipment must be replaced in a timely manner and thought about in advance. As the head of state says, industry will live – the country will live. We cannot be sluggish.