PRAGA HOSTIVAR a.s.
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VIEW TO HISTORY

History of present company PRAGA Hostivar a.s. has been for a long time written by history of two independent companies, till 1990's known under company names Praga a.s., carrying business in the area of automotive industry and TECHNOMETRA Praha a.s., carrying business in the area of hydraulics and aircraft components.
In consequence of privatisation and large changes in all areas of industry in the Czech Republic, in 1998 came to joint venture of both companies, their production bases and production plans and thereby to common development of further history, the origins of which are dated at "Praga" from 1907 and at "TECHNOMETRA" from 1908.

Praga a.s. - history

1907

Signature of contract about establishing of "Prague Car Factory (Prazska tovarna na automobily)" between "(First Czech-Moravian Machinery Plant (Prvni ceskomoravska tovarna na stroje)" and firm "Frantisek Ringhoffer".

1908

Factory produced first 6 cars in licence of Italian "Izotta Fraschini".

1909

There are produced passenger cars according to licences of French auto factories; company received name Praga.

1911

There started development of new types of own design. Prototypes of trucks with trailer Praga "V" were constructed and produced. Production of passenger cars "Mignon" started.

1912

There were produced 3 prototypes of one of the most successful luxurious passenger cars Praga "Grand". There started production of motor plough Praga "K".

1913

Praga sells its own licences. Auto factory RABA buys licence for successful passenger car Praga "Grand". There started production of medium passenger car Praga "Alfa".

1914 - 1918

First World War stepwise almost fully stopped production of passenger cars. Factory concentrated to military production. There was developed hydrostatic gearbox (1916). There were developed and produced truck Praga "N" and motor plough "X" (1917).

1918 - 1919

Connections interrupted by the war were restored. Sales dull on high prices of petrol.
Praga makes up fuel "Pragolin" about one half cheaper than petrol.

1919 - 1940

Years of factory boom. In 1929 there are in operation 13 663 cars Praga, far behind stay other domestic producers. There happens to modernisation of workshops, machinery, there is built net of sales representatives and services. Praga respects quality and reliability. As one of the first, Praga introduces circulation lubrication of engine, balloon tyres, central lubrication of chassis, thermostat, seven- and eight-speed gearboxes for trucks etc. There is produced series of passenger cars, trucks and special vehicles, stepwise modified to different variants. Praga has success in international sports and competitive racings.

1940

World War II. limits car production. This is replaced with military production.

1943

Car production was fully stopped. Production plan was constricted to production of tank engines, gearboxes of type "Wilson" and wheel-tracked vehicles according foreign documentation. There are made repairs of tanks.

1945

aircraft bombardment from 25^th March destroyed 90 % of plant. In June, corporation comes under national administration. Production was transferred from Praha Liben to new objects in Praha Vysocany. In September, production of trucks "RN" was restored. According to Edict of President of the Republic No. 100/45 Sb. from 28^th October, the factory was nationalized.

1946

On 1^st January, the transport technique was detached and there was established company with name "Letecke zavody, narodni podnik (Aircraft Works, nationalized company)". Under mark Praga there are produced trucks "RN", "RND", "ND", "A150" and city buses "NDO". There was restored production of passenger cars, by that time in small series.

1948

On 2^nd September sphere of business changed only to automotive production. Company name changes to "Auto - Praga, narodni podnik". Production of passenger cars was stopped. Automotive production is intended on truck of type "RN" and "RND".

1952

There started production of off-road car Praga "V3S".

1953

Production of trucks "RN" and "RND" stopped. Production program was the only product: three-ton off-road vehicle "V3S" for military reasons.

1956

There was started production of truck "S5T" for civil needs.

1961

In 1^st January, in consequence to government decision, there happened joint venture of company Praga with company AZ Letnany. Praga became part of nationalized company "Automobilove zavody Letnany (Automotive Works Letnany)".
1961 Production of cars "V3S" and "S5T" was stepwise transferred to plants in Letnany.

1964

On 1^st march, came break in production program of company. In consequence to government decision Praga was detached from AZ Letnany and there was established a new company "Praga AZKG". Automotive program was cancelled; company became a specialized firm for development and production of gearboxes for trucks and buses. The last vehicle Praga "V3S" left assembly line on 16^th June at 9,00 a.m. There is only left to balance: from 1907 to 1964 there have been, under mark Praga, except of other products, producing on the whole 165 000 of vehicles of various types, the most of them more than 100 000 after the end of the World War II.

1964 - 1969

The first product of the specialized program was automatic gearbox 2M70 for city buses. There were produced following mechanical gearboxes of unified series 10P80 (1967) for trucks and 5P80S (1969) for buses. There goes on the production of gearboxes for vehicles V3S, S5T, planetary gearboxes Wilson and aggregates for wheeled transport vehicles.

1969

There started production of gearboxes for tractors Zetor and special gearboxes Vibro according to foreign documentation.

1972

There started production of gearboxes for trucks Avia. There are produced, in small series, converter groups M70 for rotating loaders, reversing planetary gearboxes 3340 and converter groups MI00 for loaders and cranes. Praga will develop series of power shift gearboxes: 2220, M20, M40, 6140, 2140, but serial production will not be realized. Production was passed over to Povazske strojirny in Slovakia.

1973

On 1^st January, there happened administrative joint venture of n.p. Praga and n.p. Statni vyrobny autodilu. Production program was extended about research, development and production of special purpose bodyworks of trucks.

1974 - 1984

There were developed and produced gearboxes 5P20 for medium trucks, gearboxes 9P140 for trucks and new power shift accessory drives. There are produced modernized engines T 912-5 a T 912-5S. On the chassis Tatra and Avia, Praga built special purpose bodyworks of container racks TK-T148 and NK-A30. Structural revaluation, developed by worldwide petrol crises. Computers reconstruct prototypes of automatic gearboxes AB. There are developed gearboxes with fine spacing of gears.

1985

There were produced first samples of universal vehicle UV 100 and UV 120.

1990

Praga became status of state-owned company.

1992

Praga became corporation.
There started production of new gearboxes 8PS120 and 14PS150.
There started production of universal vehicle UV80, later passed over to PRAGA Caslav a.s.

1996

Production of universal vehicle UV80 was passed over to PRAGA Caslav a.s.

1996

Praga starts to produce motorbikes in version cross and enduro.

1999

PRAGA Hostivar a.s. started to produce motorbikes in version cross and enduro. Production plan of motorbike production was cancelled in the end of 2003.

2004

PRAGA Hostivar a.s. participates on development and production of prototypes of vehicle for army.

TECHNOMETRA Praha a.s. - history

1908

Management of Elektrotechnicka akciova tovarna v Praze Vysocanech (Electro technical Inc. Factory in Prague Vysocany) has established service and calibration facility of electric meters for Czech lands, at that time.

1914

Shop with electro meters largely developed, extender buying of their components, which were in the factory in Vysocany assembled, regulated and calibrated.

1923

there was established "Tovarna na elektricka pocitadla, spolecnost s rucenim omezenym se sidlem v Praze (Factory for electric registers, Ltd, with residence in Prague)" with foundation of own production.
Before starting of own serial production, electro meters were assembled from parts delivered by the firm.

1924

There were finished preparations of serial production of single-phase meters of type PJ-2, three-phase meters PT-3 and four-wire ones PT-4.

1925

There started production of transformers and loudspeakers for radios.

1926

Taking over of production of synchronous clocks.

1927

Additional production of current limiters, safety alarms for safes and in 1929 - production program was extended about production of dry gas meters and switching clocks.
At the beginning of 1930's, there started production of neon advertisements.

1935

There started production of accuracy pendulum and tower clocks and parquet polishers.

1937

Production was extended about car devices, tachometers, manometers and air filters.
During the war, till 1945, consequently to Nazi occupation, traditional production was decreased and majority achieved military production.

1945

Factory for electrical meters was nationalized and became part of former nationalized company Kolbenka. There was restored production of electro meters, interrupted by the war. As well the production of dry gas meters, neon advertisements and car accessories went on. Stepwise, there came to production new types of electro meters K-1 and K-2 and gas meters PS-1 and PS-6, which had been prepared already in the end of the war.

1946

By reason of concentration of production, from 1st July, the factory was incorporated to nationalized company Krizik in Prague - Smichov and its main production target should be electric meters.

1950

On the 1^st January, company was detached from n. p. Krizik and established as independent nationalized company with company name Technometra. Branch plants were n. p. Krizik in Brno and in Prague XII - Vinohrady. In the same year, there was taken over production of oil gas meters "Sigma" and tachometers "Jawa" RJM-80.

1951

N. p. Aeropal Modrany, plant Mechanotechna were incorporated to the company and at the same time, there was taken over the production of fuel and aircraft hydraulic devices.
Gas meters production was given over to n. p. Presna mechanika Stara Tura, including former branch plant of gas meters in Brno. Production of tachometers was later given over to former branch plant Aeropal and mechanical machines started to be produced in n. p. Chronometra Jablonec nad Nisou.
In following years, there was installed production of series of hydraulic devices for aeroplanes.

1954

For aeroplane L-60, in 1955 for airliner IL-14. Further changes of main production and also new arrangement of work organisation required special production programs.

1957

There were acquired hydraulic devices for small air taxi L-200.

1958

Technometra became leading plant of company and from 1st April of the same year there were incorporated to it plants Radovan n. p. Radotin, Rudy kovak n. p. Semily, Jihlavan n. p. Jihlava, Jihoceske strojirny n. p. Velesin. There started production of civil hydraulics. First, there were hydraulic devices for autocranes and for tipper trucks. There started production of piston- , geared hydraulic pumps and distributors.
At the beginning of 1960's, there started production of aggregates for the first Czechoslovak training jet plane L-29 Delfin.

1960 - 1961

In the plant there started production of high-pressured hoses and devices for training pilot cockpits.

1961

There started building of new plant in Prague 10.

1962

Plant Kovohute Kamenice was incorporated to n. p. Technometra.

1964

There started training operation and consequently in the same year started, without termination, removal of plant from Vysocany.

1961 - 1965

There started production of overland training carts and devices for special agricultural aeroplane Z-37 Cmelak and was mastered production of hydraulic devices fro aeroplane Mig 21 and development and production of components for second generation jet plane L-39 Albatros. Parallel started also production of components for small airliner L-410.
In the end of 1960's, there went on extension of assortment of civil hydraulics. Beside hydraulic, pneumatic and fuel aggregates for aeroplanes and products of special technique, the plant delivered also hydraulic components for tractors, trucks, buses and building machines. Serial production included new line of geared and piston pumps and motors, what enabled to use these progressive components in all spheres of industry. Technical level of hydraulics from Technometra was able to world competition, especially in sphere of quality and prices.

1974

There was finished transfer of production of geared pumps to Jihoceske strojirny Velesin.
In production plan there stayed piston axial hydraulic converters and hand hydraulic pumps of special technique. There started large innovation of production towards to increasing of accuracy, working life, reliability and productivity.
Effort to more quality and more effective production lead to necking of assortment, specialization for aircraft production, production of piston pumps, filters and high-pressured hoses. To the products of the highest quality there belonged hydraulic pumps LUN 6101.01-8, LUN 6102.01-8 and airscrew governor LUN 7815-8. In the time of rise of VHJ, the plant was subjected to VHJ Aero - Ceskoslovenske letecke podniky (Czechoslovak Aircraft Plants).
While 1960's mean in Technometra development of axial piston converters (it is hydro-electric generators and hydraulic motors), 1970's mean innovative process, in which the working life of this series of hydraulic devices increased two-times. In that time, there was installed to production series of hydroelectric generators and hydraulic motors of II. generation, which achieved valuation of technical progressivism and for exam axial piston hydroelectric generator UC 25 was declared The Best Product of Department of Engineering in 1982.

1983

There was developed and installed to production III. generation of hydraulics.
There was achieved, in sphere of development of high-pressured hoses, increasing of pressure parameters with target to reach international standard level given by standards ISO.

1983 - 1985

There was developed new series of high-pressured filters.
There was increased working life, improvement of functional characteristics at hydraulic servo control intended for buses Karosa, trucks Liaz and Tatra.

1989

All branch plant will be independent of alliance of n.p. Technometra.

1990

Technometra will be independent of VHJ Aero and become independent state-owned company.

1994

During period of privatisation, Fond narodniho majetku CR (Fund of National Property) established TECHNOMETRA Praha a.s., which overdraws all engagements of former state-owned company.
Carrier program id production of axial piston pumps, filters and filtration components, high-pressured aggregates and aircraft components for aircraft industry, trucks, buses, tractors, farm machinery and pressure devices.