The Kharkiv Institute of Power Machines and Systems held the title of the city’s tallest building (measured to the roof) from 1983 to 2006. Only the Derzhprom building was taller—thanks to its antenna (108 m).

Measured by the roof, the institute stood 70 meters tall—half a meter taller than the 24-story building in Microdistrict 602.

According to researcher O. Leibfreid, the complex was designed by S. G. Bodilevskaya, and its construction was completed in 1983.

The IpMach institute’s complex is housed in a 16-story laboratory and production building connected to a two- or three-story structure that houses the pilot production facility.

The institute’s primary focus is its collaboration with the Turboatom plant (turbine design). During the Soviet era, the institute worked on rocket and space projects (Mir space station), built a hydrogen-powered car “Volga” in 1984, and performed calculations for nuclear power, turbojet engines, gas production equipment, etc.

However, the institute did not “die out” during Ukraine’s years of independence—between 2015 and 2021, its researchers published more than 1,300 scientific papers in domestic and international journals, including 18 monographs, and obtained 37 patents for cutting-edge technical solutions.

The institute looks very photogenic from certain angles, but the beautiful lobby with its “space-age” chandelier deserves special mention—it’s a fine example of Soviet modernism.

The institute’s current full name is the A. Podgorny Institute of Power Machines and Systems of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. Its address is Komunalnykiv Street, 2/10.