Looking for Capital Ideas : Soviets See County as Land of Opportunities to Improve Their Economy

As Soviet officials surveyed a 725-acre state-of-the-art landfill site at Bee Canyon one recent morning, Alexandre A. Nesterov took a deep breath and smiled. The landfill, bordered by lush hillsides and orange groves, offered a stark contrast to the disarray and stench of most Soviet dump sites.

The air is clean, Nesterov noted, and “the ambience is beautiful.”

The Moscow mechanical engineer is one of a growing number of Soviet technicians and business people who are flocking to this country to look for better ways of doing things--battling air pollution, manufacturing more reliable computers or improving the quality of medical care.

This flood of Soviet visitors is reflected in the record number of non-immigrant visas that have been issued to Soviet citizens this year. The federal government issued 103,000 non-immigrant visas in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, up from 59,673 last year, according to State Department figures.

These Soviet delegations usually visit Los Angeles, New York and other major metropolitan centers, but Orange County has also seen a big increase in Soviet visitors in 1990.

A group of Soviet hoteliers toured the county last week, and two trade delegations representing Soviet environmental and medical technology interests were making the rounds early this week. On Saturday, another Soviet delegation of medical and health care officials is arriving with the objective of forming a joint venture with local companies.

Susan Lentz, executive director of the World Trade Center Assn. of Orange County, has never seen so many Soviet trade groups before. She said only one or two Soviet groups have visited the county during the five years that she has been active with the association.

The Soviet government’s move toward a free-market economy has forced Soviet companies to compete with less government help. It has also fostered entrepreneurship and encouraged Soviet enterprises to strike their own overseas deals. And an easing of U.S. visa requirements has made it easier for Soviet citizens to travel abroad.

“Two years ago, it was impossible for me to come to the United States because I could not get a visa,” said Vladimir Fishelev, president of Systempribor Inc., a Moscow electronics company.

The Soviets “are trying to turn their economy around, and they realize they can’t do it themselves,” said Michael Liikala, director of the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Export Administration’s office in Newport Beach. “I’m sure they have delegations all over Europe, but I’m sure also that the Soviets have respect for American technology and management expertise. That’s why they’re here.”

In addition to Disneyland, Soviet officials say, the county is an attractive destination because of its concentration of computer, medical technology, pharmaceutical and environmental products companies.

Soviet officials say they are coming to the United States to learn about Western management and marketing practices and to acquire manufacturing know-how. They are seeking U.S. partners for manufacturing ventures in the Soviet Union and American firms interested in distributing Soviet products in this country.

Some U.S. companies, such as medical equipment maker Beckman Instruments in Fullerton, have gone out of their way to forge ties with Soviet companies.

Last year, Beckman hosted a Soviet medical delegation, which resulted in a $2-million sale of clinical systems to 11 diagnostic centers in the Soviet Union. The company is hoping for future orders as the Soviets modernize their health-care system.

This year, Beckman has hosted three Soviet delegations, including one from Siberia that has indicated it will purchase clinical analyzers worth at least $1 million, said Robert Crittendon, a Beckman spokesman.

“There has been a transition from the importance of the central government to the various republics in the U.S.S.R.,” he said. “We’re developing relations with various regions and republics.” In 1988, the Fullerton firm opened a trade office in Moscow.

Some companies have found that it’s not always necessary to invite a large delegation of Soviet visitors to foster business ties. Sometimes it’s more important whom you invite.

Last year, an Anaheim division of Minneapolis-based Medtronic Inc. hosted the head of the Bakulev Institute of Cardiovascular Surgery in Moscow. That visit resulted in a $6-million order for Medtronic’s Maxima blood oxygenators in May.

Liikala, the Commerce Department official, cautions that U.S. companies be selective about the Soviet officials with whom they negotiate.

“It’s not clear what authority these various Soviet representatives carry because now you have the republics and city officials suggesting they’d run their own economies,” he said. “And then you’ve got the central government officials saying that they run the economy and can provide the commitment to make the deals work.”

Soviet officials hope that gaining business expertise from abroad will help the nation rebuild its badly struggling economy, said James F. Bauer, vice president of Science Solutions Inc., a San Diego company that helped organize the Soviet group’s visit to the Irvine landfill and other local sites.

“I expect more delegations to come in the years ahead as U.S. and Soviet relations warm up,” he said, adding that he expects Soviet delegations to someday be as “common as those from China.”