The union was established at a congress in Moscow on April 28, 2007, and registered as a national public organisation on July 27, 2007.
The central objective of the union is to adopt a development strategy for the industry, as well as to work out mechanisms of active state support of the national machine building complex at the level of leading industrial countries.
The organisation represents the interests of about three million workers engaged in different spheres of machine building.
The union has 64 regional branches. Almost all major enterprises and organisations specialising in machine building and related high-tech industries have joined the union. The union's members include over 35,000 individuals and about 700 enterprises and organisations such as the Russian Technologies State Corporation, Rosoboronexport, the United Aircraft Corporation, the United Shipbuilding Corporation, VSMPO-AVISMA, AvtoVAZ, the Tractor Plants Concern, the Izhmash Concern, the Uralvagonzavod Research and Production Corporation, the Radio Electronic Technologies Concern, the Tactical Missiles Corporation, the Sukhoi Company, the Technology Company, Russian Helicopters, the Stankoinstrument Association, the Association of Technical Universities of Russia, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, and others.
The Union of Russian Machine Builders is chaired by Sergei Chemezov.