How industrial companies should operate during war – including the speed of adaptation, shorter production cycles, the role of people as the key resource and cooperation with the military – was discussed by Metinvest Group CEO Yuriy Ryzhenkov at the GLOBSEC Forum in Prague.
GLOBSEC Forum is one of Europe’s leading platforms on security, defence and foreign policy, organised by the GLOBSEC think tank since 2005.
The forum brought together more than 2,000 participants from 86 countries, including senior officials, representatives of NATO and the EU, governments, the defence industry, business, the technology sector and the expert community. Participants discussed European security, defence readiness, industrial resilience, innovation and Europe’s ability to adapt more quickly to the new reality of war.
Yuriy Ryzhenkov took part in the panel “Learning at War Speed: Ukraine and the Future of European Warfare”. The discussion also included representatives of NATO’s senior military command, the Polish Armed Forces and a senior executive from a Ukrainian defence technology company.
According to Metinvest’s CEO, the Group has been operating in wartime conditions and under constant risk for more than ten years.
“We are closest to the front line – we operate around 20 kilometres from the fighting line in Zaporizhzhia region. As a Group, we have been on the front line since the war began in 2014,” he said.
Metinvest began with a traditional model of cooperation with the military: development, certification, testing and then introducing finished products. However, after February 2022, it became clear that normal business processes were no longer applicable to wartime challenges. The speed of change, adaptability and effective communication between the military and civilian industry became crucial.
“In the regions where we operate, we are closely involved with the military. Since the full-scale war began, the speed of communication has increased dramatically, and we had to learn how to produce new products from idea to actual testing on the front line within a few weeks rather than a few years, as we did previously. Once war starts to hit you, you realise how peaceful applications can be turned into wartime applications,” Ryzhenkov added.
Since then, Metinvest has introduced more than a few hundred products with military application, including underground steel shelters, NATO Role 2 hospitals, and protection for equipment, including Patriot systems, Leopard tanks and other assets.
“The speed is only increasing. That is the only way to overcome the enemy in any war,” Metinvest’s CEO said.
According to Ryzhenkov, to withstand wartime conditions, Ukrainian industrial companies need to act across several main areas.
First, they need to ensure that their people are safe and able to operate under such conditions.
Second, they need to build resilient logistics: moving products in and out, securing raw materials, and quickly organising turnaround with the outpost.
Third, they need to accelerate the product cycle: reducing the time from development to deployment and constantly improving solutions.
Fourth, the people who make all this possible remain a critical resource. Ukraine, like Europe, has long been moving along the path of deindustrialisation and losing skilled industrial and engineering personnel, including welders, electricians and engineers.
“War has shown that the most valuable resource is people. Yes, we understand the role of IT specialists, but without welders, electricians and engineers there would be no fortified positions and no stable defence line. Ukraine has gained significant experience at the intersection of the military and industrial sectors: what can and should be done before a war, how to act during one, and how to prepare in advance. This is exactly the experience Ukraine can share with Europe,” Yuriy Ryzhenkov stressed.
