Seeing the Forest and the Trees: Western Forestry Systems and Soviet Engineers, 1955-1964

This article examines the transfer of technology from Finnish enterprises to Soviet industry during the USSR's period of technological modernization between 1955 and 1964. It centers on the forestry sector, which was a particular focus of modernization programs and a key area for the transfer of foreign techniques and expertise. The aim of the article is to investigate the role of trips made by Soviet specialists to foreign (primarily Finnish) enterprises in order to illustrate the nontechnological influences that occurred during the transfer of technologies across the cold war border. To do so, the article is divided into two parts: the first presents a general analysis of technology transfer from a micro-level perspective, while the second investigates the cultural influences behind technological transfer in the Soviet-Finnish case. This study contends that although the Soviet government expected its specialists to import advanced foreign technical experience, they brought not only the technologies and expertise needed for modernizing the industry, but also a changed view on Soviet workplace management and everyday practices.