AvtoVAZ known as VAZ, is a Russian automobile manufacturer. It is best known for its flagship series of Lada vehicles. In the Soviet Union, its products used various names, including Zhiguli and Sputnik which were phased out in the 1990s and replaced by Lada for the Russian market. Starting in December 2019, AvtoVAZ has been selling Niva cars with Chevrolet branding; that is set to end in August 2020. The company is a subsidiary of the Alliance Rostec Auto company, in which French Groupe Renault holds a controlling 67.61% stake. AvtoVAZ is a consolidated subsidiary of Groupe Renault. AvtoVAZ produces over 400,000 cars a year, under its Lada brand as well as cars of Renault–Nissan–Mitsubishi Alliance brands Renault and Datsun; the AvtoVAZ factory is the largest car manufacturer in Eastern Europe. The company was established in 1966 in cooperation with Fiat, with Viktor Polyakov as director, Vladimir Solovyov as chief designer, intended to produce popular economy cars that would meet the growing demand for personal transport.
It was set up as a collaboration between Italy and the Soviet Union and built on the banks of the Volga River in 1966. A new town, named after the Italian Communist Party leader Palmiro Togliatti, was built around the factory; the cost of the VAZ plant was estimated at $800 million in 1970. The plant contained many of the automation systems being developed by Fiat's various subsidiaries, so the Togliatti factory acted as a trial before Fiat implemented them in its plants in Italy; the car brand to be produced was envisaged as a "people's car" like the Citroën 2CV or the VW Type 1. Production was intended to be 220,000 cars a year, beginning in 1971; the VAZ trademark, at first, was a silver Volga boat on a red pentagonal background, with "Togliatti" superposed in Cyrillic. Although the company was not as vertically integrated as other Soviet enterprises, for example it purchased components from a variety of suppliers over which it exerted little control. Unlike Western automakers, a large proportion of the components for the cars were made in-house - for example the Togliatti works contained its own foundry for manufacturing steel from raw iron ore, made its own tyres and glass from raw materials.
The first VAZ-2101 was produced on 22 April 1970, the 100th anniversary of Lenin's birth. About 22,000 VAZ-2101s were built with capacity at the end of 1973 reaching 660,000 a year. A third production line was added in October 1974; the same year, total VAZ production reached 1.5 million. The VAZ plant was described as'ultra-modern' by the Chicago Tribune in a 1973 article. Production reached 750,000 cars a year in 1975, making the Tolyatti plant the third most productive in the world. Between 1977 and 1981, AvtoVAZ acquired 30 welding robots from Japanese firms; the original, Fiat-based models included the VAZ-2102 estate. 1972 saw the introduction of a deluxe version of the sedan, VAZ-2103, based on the Fiat 124 Special and featured a new 1.5 L engine and twin headlights. In 1974, the original VAZ-2101 was updated with new engines and interiors, whereas the VAZ-2102 underwent the same improvements in 1976; the body style with two round headlights was manufactured until 1988. The VAZ-2106, introduced in December 1975 as an updated version of the VAZ-2103, was based on the 1972 Fiat 124 Special T, featuring different interiors and new 1.6 L engine.
The 2106 was one of the most popular rear-wheel drive AvtoVAZ models in the past. In 1974, VAZ was given permission to begin producing Wankel engines under licence from NSU. Work began in 1976, with a single-rotor Lada appearing in 1978. After having built a number of prototypes and experimental vehicles, AvtoVAZ designers launched the first car of their own design, the VAZ-2121 Niva, in 1977; this popular and innovative SUV was made with off-road use in mind, featuring a gearbox with a central differential lock lever as well as a low- and high-range selector lever. The VAZ-2105, based on the Fiat 124 mechanicals but modernised and restyled, was introduced in 1979 and marketed outside the Soviet Union under the Riva or Laika trade names, depending on the country. Square headlights and new body panels distinguish this car from the earlier models; the 2105 was third best selling automobile platform after the Volkswagen Beetle and the Ford Model T, one of the longest production run platforms alongside the Volkswagen Beetle, the Hindustan Ambassador and the Volkswagen Type 2.
In May 1980, a series of mass strikes at the Togliatti plant involving hundreds of thousands of workers were reported by the western press. In 1982 the VAZ-2107, a deluxe version of the 2105, was introduced. In 1984, the VAZ-2104 station wagon completed the line-up. Based on the success of the Niva, the design department prepared a new family of front-wheel drive models by 1984, of a domestic design. Production started with the VAZ-2108 Sputnik three-door hatchback, the series was commerciall
Charles A. Williams III, or "Dr. Chuck" is an American writer and lecturer, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he is the former co-host of The Grimaldi and Williams Show on CBS Radio's Big Talker, in Philadelphia. The call-in show pitted the left leaning Democrat Williams against Republican lawyer Rick Grimaldi; the two co-hosted a special live radio series on CBS Radio about race in America entitled Moving Forward: Obama, Race & Politics, hosted by Drexel University. Williams has written editorials for the Philadelphia Daily News and the Philadelphia Inquirer. In his early college years Williams worked as a community activist and as a campaign worker for various political candidates. Williams has a PhD in educational psychology from Temple University, a dual master's degree in group counseling and organizational dynamics from MCP Hahnemann University, a bachelor's degree in psychology from Temple University. For several years, as a mental health professional, Williams treated children, diagnosed with emotional and learning disorders.
He has lectured at several academic institutions, including Penn State University and Temple University. Williams is an assistant clinical professor in Drexel University's School of Education and director of their Center for the Prevention of School-Aged Violence. Williams has been involved in mentoring children at-risk and those placed in the child welfare system. Williams has spoken out about support to ensure better outcomes for youth in placement
Puig is a word of Catalan origin, meaning "hill" or "mountain". Hence, in Catalan-speaking areas, it appears in the names of numerous people and geographical features: Puig-l'agulla, a mountain of Catalonia Puig de l'Àliga, a mountain of Catalonia Puig d'Arques, a mountain of Catalonia Puig de Bassegoda, a mountain of Catalonia Puig Campana, a mountain of Alicante, Spain Puig Castellar, a mountain of Catalonia Puig Cerverís, a mountain of Catalonia Puig de la Collada Verda, a mountain of Catalonia Puig Cornador, a mountain of Catalonia Puig Cornador, a mountain of Catalonia Puig Cornador, a mountain of Catalonia Puig Cornador, a mountain of Catalonia Puig de Dòrria, a mountain of Catalonia Puig Drau, a mountain of Catalonia Puig Estela, a mountain of Catalonia Puig de Fontlletera, a mountain of Catalonia Puig de Fontnegra, a mountain of Catalonia Puig Major, the highest mountain peak on the Spanish island of Mallorca Puig de Massanella, the second highest peak on Mallorca Puig de la Mola, a mountain of Catalonia Puig de sa Morisca Archaeological Park, on Mallorca Puig Neulós, a mountain of Catalonia Puig de l'Obiol, a mountain of Catalonia Puig d'Ombriaga, a mountain of Catalonia Puig de Pastuira, a mountain of Catalonia Puig de Randa, a mountain peak on Mallorca Puig-reig, a municipality of Catalonia Puig Sesarques, a mountain of Catalonia Puig de la Talaia, a mountain of Catalonia Puig Tomir, a mountain on Mallorca El Puig de Santa Maria, a village near the city of Valencia, Spain Puig is a surname of the following persons: Alberto Puig, Spanish motorcycle road racer Anna Ballbona i Puig, Spanish journalist Arturo Puig, Argentine actor Carmen Montoriol Puig, Spanish writer Felip Puig, Spanish politician Fèlix Cardona i Puig, Venezuelan explorer Herman Puig, Cuban photographer Isidre Puig Boada, Spanish architect Jack Joseph Puig, music engineer and producer Jordi Puig, Spanish basketball player Jordi Puig-Suari and aerospace technology developer José María Cabo Puig, Spanish footballer José Puig Puig, Spanish footballer Josep Puig i Cadafalch, Spanish architect Juan Carlos Puig, Secretary of the Treasury of Puerto Rico Juan Falconí Puig, Ecuadorian jurist, businessman, university professor and writer Lucas Puig, French professional skateboarder Manny Puig, Manny "Sharkman" Puig, American wildlife educator and entertainer Manuel Puig, Argentine author Mathieu Puig, French footballer Max Puig, Dominican politician Monica Puig, Puerto Rican tennis player Pere Puig Subinyà, Spanish politician Ricardo Álvarez Puig, Spanish footballer Rich Puig, American baseball player Robert Aubert Puig, aka Puig Aubert, French rugby league footballer Salvador Bécquer Puig, Uruguayan poet and journalist Salvador Puig Antich, Spanish anarchist Valeria Puig, Uruguayan film-maker Victoria Puig de Lange, Ecuadorian author and diplomat Yasiel Puig, Cuban baseball player Ricard "Riqui" Puig Martí, Spanish footballer Battle of the Puig, which took place in Valencia in 1237, during the Reconquista CB Puig d'en Valls, a Spanish women's basketball club Luis Puig Palace, a sporting arena in Valencia Trofeo Luis Puig, a bicycle race held annually in Valencia Fabra i Puig, a Barcelona Metro station Puig, international company operating in fashion and perfume sectors Puig subgroup, a characteristic subgroup in mathematical finite group theory All pages with titles containing Puig