Czech Republic – Mladá Boleslav, Kvasiny and Vrchlabí are again running at full capacity after a two- to three-week break for optimisation and expansion. Amid a range of adaptations, the main focus was the planned production conversion at Kvasiny.
In order to accommodate a production increase at Kvasiny to 280,000 units per annum over the next few years, Skoda has rebuilt and expanded the car-body production lines, installed new equipment in the paintshop, and modernised and extended the assembly areas. Work also began on the construction of a new logistics hall. The vehicle-maker says these projects will continue after the production restart, and that the new Superb and Superb Estate will soon join the Yeti compact SUV in rolling off the production lines.
At the main factory of Mladá Boleslav, Skoda serviced and maintained equipment on its two production lines. MB I and MB II, for the Octavia and Fabia Rapid respectively, were run completely empty at the start of the shutdown. Maintenance was also performed in the press shop and bodyshop, a new cooling zone was created in the paintshop and the engine-block assembly line in the drivetrain production area was modernised. Furthermore, Skoda renovated the classrooms at its Vocational School for Mechanical Engineering.
Vrchlabí continued with the expansion of production facilities for the DQ 200 gearbox, which is used not only by Skoda but other Volkswagen Group brands. The plant has been producing the modern, direct-shift gearbox since 2012, but capacity is set to increase from 1,500 to 2,000 units per day by spring 2016.
