In 1954, MZKT, the Minsk Wheeled Tractor Factory, was founded to develop artillery tractors; it then developed a series of heavy weapons transporters for the military of the USSR, including heavy offroad trucks such as the MAZ-537 and MAZ-7310. It was a division of Minsk Automobile Plant (known as MAZ). The name in Russian is "Минский завод колёсных тягачей"; this is abbreviated MZKT in English. In 1991, MZKT was spun off into a separate company; its former parent, MAZ, continues to make a broader range of heavy vehicles.