Knorr-Bremse opens new commercial vehicle systems plant in the Czech Republic
June 09, 2010
At a ceremony attended by Johannes Haindl, the German Ambassador to the Czech Republic, along with a variety of politicians and clients, the inauguration of the new commercial vehicle systems plant was today celebrated in Liberec, located in the Northern Bohemia region of the country. Knorr-Bremse production in Liberec covers commercial vehicle system components such as brake cylinders and clutch boosters, foot brake and hand brake valves and filter cartridges. The new location, catering for both production and marketing, replaces the previous plant at Hejnice, approximately 30 kilometres away. Based on the standardised global Knorr-Bremse production system and the key principle 'value stream excellence', development of the new 7,800 square-metre plant was particularly focussed on the concepts of production and logistics, allowing a marked increase in flexibility in these two areas.
During the opening ceremony, Dr. Lorenz Zwingmann, Knorr-Bremse AG Executive Board for Finance, IT and Controlling, stressed the significance of the new location, saying that “the decision to open a new plant in Liberec was taken as part of our drive to ensure the strategic development of our production network. The highly-qualified skilled personnel in the region and the excellent accessibility of its location were chief among the considerations in choosing the new site.” Liberec, in Northern Bohemia, is home to a large number of engineers and qualified skilled workers. Furthermore, the 100,000-strong town also boasts a university with a faculty for mechanical engineering and mechatronics. The proximity of the previous location in Hejnice eases the process of knowledge transfer during the move, as several workers operating in the teams already in place are also employed in the new Knorr-Bremse plant.
The new plant follows a Knorr-Bremse Group tradition of commitment within the Czech Republic. Following the 1992 commencement of a cooperation between the Knorr-Bremse plant in Aldersbach and the Czech company AUTOBRZDY a.s., the German-Czech joint venture Knorr-Autobrzdy s.r.o. was established in the commercial vehicles sector in 1993. The joint venture was partnered by Jablonec-based company Ateso, at the time the leading manufacturer of pneumatic brake systems in the former Czechoslovakia. Ateso had been producing pneumatic brake systems for commercial vehicles at its Hejnice plant since 1968 and, as a result of the joint venture (in which Knorr-Bremse held a 67% stake), the location was integrated in the Knorr-Bremse Group production network. In 1998, Knorr-Bremse assumed full ownership of Knorr-Autobrzdy s.r.o., incorporating it within its organisation under the name Knorr-Bremse Systémy pro užitková vozidla CR s.r.o.
