ČKD

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ČKD Tatra-T3 tram car in Kiev. T3 was most successful ČKD tram manufactured from 1960 to 1989, 13991 units were sold worldwide

ČKD (Českomoravská Kolben-Daněk) was one of the largest engineering companies in the former Czechoslovakia and today's Czech Republic.

ČKD was formed in 1927 from the merger of two smaller companies, Českomoravská-Kolben and Breitfeld-Daněk. During the German occupation of Czechoslovakia in World War II, the company was renamed BMM (Böhmisch-Mährische Maschinenfabrik AG) and manufactured arms for the Wehrmacht. The company's most notable products in this era were a light tank of the company's own design – the Panzer 38(t) – and the Jagdpanzer 38(t) tank destroyer, which was built on the Panzer 38(t)'s chassis.

After the war, ČKD was nationalized and became one of the world's leading producers of trams. It was also known for the production of diesel locomotives, that were exported into other socialist countries. One such example from the T-series of Czech locomotives was exported into the USSR and given a Russian designation "ЧМЭ" there. In the socialist era ČKD employed up to 50 000 employees.

After 1989 with worldwide economic changes company lost many of its traditional trade outlets in Central and Eastern Europe, mainly in former countries of Soviet Union. In 1994 company was privatized by Czech management and transformed to holding. But new management was unsuccessful and in 1998 holding was close to bankrupt. Some companies went bankrupt, others went back to state ownership through its debts to state-owned bank IPB. State sold some companies separately to new owners (most notable was transport company sold to Siemens AG), rest of holding (also with a brand ČKD) was sold to Czech company 11 FITE in 2004.

[edit] See also

• Škoda Works