PRAGUE REGIONAL WAREHOUSE MANAGEMENT, MINISTRY OF CHEMICAL INDUSTRY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00810A001100740002-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 6, 2001
• Sequence Number: 2
• Publication Date: May 19, 1953
• Content Type: REPORT

Approved For Release 2001/11/21 : CIA-RDP80-0081 OA001100740002-6
CENTRAL INTE_LL.I,GENCE AGENCY
INFORMATION REPORT
SECRET
SECURITY INFORMATION
This Document contains information affecting the Na-
tional Defense of the United States, within the mean-
ing of Title 18, Sections 793 and 794, of the U.S. Code, as
amended. Its transmission or revelation of its contents
to or receipt by an unauthorized person is prohibited
by law. The reproduction of this form is prohibited.
COUNTRY Czechoslovakia REPORT NO.
SUBJECT Prague Regional Warehouse Management', DATE DISTR. 19 May 1953
Ministry of Cheibi,cal Industry
NO. OF PAGES 4
DATE OF INFO. 25X1 A ' REQUIREMENT NO.
PLACE ACQUIRED REFERENCES
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THE SOURCE EVALUATIONS IN THIS REPORT ARE DEFINITIVE.
THE APPRAISAL OF CONTENT IS TENTATIVE.
(FOR KEY SEE REVERSE)
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25X1A,
1. Most of Czechoslovakia1s 19 regions had'regional storage warehouses for
chemicals. The administrations of these regional warehouses were responsible
for the distribution of chemicals in their respective regions (approximately
half the production of the plants and factories under the Ministry of Chemical
Industry was shipped directly to;consumers and the rest to the warehouses for
eventual distribution; the warehouses were responsible only for those chemicals
which passed through warehouses). In carrying out their distribution function,
these warehouses were, subordinate to the Commercial Division of the Eighth Main
Administration, Ministry of Chemical Industry,
20 Of all the regions in Czechoslovakia, the Prague Region stored the greatest
and most varied amount of chemical goods. According to law, the total value of
all chemical goods in storage warehouses under the Pommercial Division was not
to exceed 625,000,000 crowns at any given time; if the total value of chemical
goods in our warehouses exceeded this amount, as was usually the case, an
interest rate had to be paid as a penalty on the value of goods above the maximum
figure. Since the Prague Region normally stored goads valued at 230,000,000
crowns, its importance as a storage center is readily apparent.
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q
eachemical storage warehouses in the Prague
Theihead was headquarters atedfor in the
Re a VII, Holosovice, on Argentinaka- 28.
The staff, ht h comp+,ised about 50 people, was under the uper-
Vision of Jan DRECHSLER, The 25X1 X
administrative staff of t - a quay ers was subdivided-into three
departmentsg'.Commercial Department for Chemicals, Commercial
Department for Dyestuffs, and Financial-Administrative De
arrtme
t
p
n
.
With.:,the exception of the Commercial Department for Dyestuffs which
was found only in....the Prague Region, the organization 25X1X
''
25X1X is the pattern generally followed in other regional
I Fora=ge ware ouses. The fact that Prague is the only region which
stores and distributes dyestuffs explains the existence of 'a
commercial Department for Dyestuffs in its administrative organiza-
tion
.
The Commercial Department for Chemicals, under, Jan (?) KRAJIC; 25X1 X
cox t
i
ed
t
o
a
n.
see
i
ns wining, i- &.U_ -eotions
WV1Kprj.E30U one To ree 'peQp e. e f unctions of 25X1 A
these sections, and of--the Department, may be described as threefold:
a. Each section was responsible for receiving and distributing
the chemicals under its Jurisdiction. Fop example, the section
handling heavy-chemicals-carried out commercial transactions
with consumers of heavy chemicals.
b. Secondly, although the Ministry's
yearly distribution plan
.included over-all deliveries to warehouses and shipments from
these warehouses to consumers, the..Commercial Department for
Chemicals drew up plans' for -s:c1 details as quantities and dates
of delivery and shipment.
c. This D partaent also receiv
d
l
'
e
comp
aints on the quality
of goods
which!"it shipped to consumers. If these.complainis
.could not
be resolved by discussions with the consumer and the factory,.
25X1X In general, 25X1X
defects in the auaality of nh.mi l a A ma_,~- ...P 4-
Hidden defects (skryte vady)', which cannot be detected
until the goods are used. Complaints of this , nature had to b
e
made, according to law, within six months of receipt of-
-the goods. When a consumer's complaint was about hidden
defects,, the Commercial Department for Chemicals took the
matter up with-the factory'whete the chemical was produced".
It was very difficult to prove' and' affix the blame for '
hidden defects, `"If a factory was found responsible for a
hidden defect, it had to replace the goods which were
proved to be defective...
Open defects (otkryt'e vad"), which are detectable by
testing, were usually aonst4ered the fault, of the ware-
house-for accepting'goods'which could-be proved defective
before they were used. If a warehouse was found. 'responsible
for defective goods, it had to pay the consumer their cost
price.
The Commercial Department for Chemicals also had a section whichh
was responsible for the transportation of chemicals. The shipping..
of chemicals was particularly' difficult and complicated because'of,
the numerous strict, regulations covering sich items as how various
chemicals should be packed, which chemicale ''could not be shipped
together,,etc . Attention had also'' to be paid-to keeping transpor-
tation costs 'down; according to law, the warehouse payed for trans-
' portation costs from the railroad etat;ion.cif the 'factory to the
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warehouse, and the consumer payed shipping costs-from the warehouse
to its plant. The average warehouse had two or three five-ton
trucks for short-distance runs.
'The, Commercial Department for Dyestuffs consisted of about 20 people
under the supervision of Peter SIMEK. This Department was subdivided
into two sections, one which received shipments of dyestuffs and
another which sent out shipments of dyestuffs. The functions of
this Department were, generally speaking, threefold;
a. Storage and distributi a of dyestuffs, particularly of foreign-
made dyestuffs, which *ere stored in Prague (most of the dye-
stuffs produced in Czechoslovakia were stored at the two plants
producinng..them, one at,Usti nad Labem and the other at Rybitvi
~0o3N-1542) . All cccppmmercial transactions conducted by this
Department were supervised by the Ministry's Commercial Division
in the Eighth Main Administration.
b. . Determination every three months- of which colors and 'how much
.of each of them were to be produced. The plan for over-all
yearly production was set by the Ministry?'s.yearly plan, but,
because it, ,was impossible too determine the needs for different
dyestuffs on a yearly basis, every three months this Department
prepared a detailed list of the various colors and amounts of
each of them needed, for the followin three-month period This
was accomplished at a joint meeting 25X1X
25X1X referred to as misiei porn .e. ..ne
m x urea ; these meetings were attended by members of this
Department.and , technicians from the dyestuffs factories at Usti
had Labem and Rybitvi. Before a meeting took place, this
Department would have consulted all users of dyestuffs in
Czechoslovakia to determine their needs for the next three
months. The meeting usually ended with the technicians' point
of View prevailing, inasmuch as they knew the capacities of
their reepgotive factories.
0. The third- notion of the Commercial Department for Dyestuffs
was to dispose gradually ,of a stockpile -of foreign-made dye-'.
stuffs which had been accumulated by various Czech industries
prior to the Communist seizure of power. In 1950, these
dyestuffs were purchased by the Ministry's Eighth Main Adminia-
tratiomn and stared in Roohlice, a suburb of Liberec. The
Ministry's policy was to use these dyestuffs, insofar as
possible, before relying on the production o zech dyestuffs
factories. As a rough estimate, the value of 25X1X
these dyestuffs, in July 1952, at , , 0 crowns and the' amount at about 2,000,-tn.; this stockpile of dyestuffs was
being used at the rate of 200-300 tn. a year.
The Financial-Administrative ,Department consisted of about 15
people under the supervision of (fnu) ERATOCEVILOVA.,. The functions
various sections into which it was subdivided. 9 X1X
25X1X this Department had the following five sec ones
a. Finance Section (Finanoni Oddeleni). The financial plan.f"or
the warehouses in Prague Region was prepared by this seot$on;
it also kept periodic checks on financial plan fulfillment.
b. Bookkeeping Section (Hlavni Uctarna Oddeleni) Records of the
business transactions conducted by the warehouses in Prague
Region were kept by this section.
e. Wages Section (Mzdova Uctirna Oddeleni). This section computed
wages for warehouse employees in the Prague Region. The wages
were based on established norms.
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d. Supply Section (Zasobovaci Oddeleni). Warehouse supplies and
squip*en4:t for the Prague Region were procured and dXstributed
bar " this sec tiox..
e. Section for the Control of Containers (Obalova-Uctarna). This
section was responsible for keeping track of all containers
which were re-usable,: a+g carboys, barrels, etc. Because of
the great demand for containers, this section had to maintain
.extremely accurate records..
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