UNITED DYE AND LACQUER WORKS, PRAGUE-VYSOCANY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00810A003600100006-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 8
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 12, 2005
• Sequence Number: 6
• Publication Date: February 25, 1954
• Content Type: REPORT

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CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
INFORMATION REPORT
SECRET
25X1 DATE OF INFO.
Czechoslovakia
United Dye and Lacquer Works,
Prague-Vysocany
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.
REPORT NO.
DATE DISTR.
NO. OF PAGES
REQUIREMENT NO.
REFERENCES
25 February 1954
1. The United Dye and Lacquer:Works (Spojene tovarny na betrvy a laky), National
Enterprise,,Prague-Vysocany, is located near the Harfa stop on trolley lines
5, 8 and 10 on the left side of Podebradska Street approximately 300 meters
from the Harfa stop in the direction of Hloubetin. The plant is situated be-
tween the SPOFA pharmaceutical plant and the Spalovna plant, which is a branch
of CKD-Sokolovo.
2. Two other United Dye and Lacquer Works plants, the HerfaPlant and the Prefa
Plant, are located in Prague-Vysocany. All three plants~are subject to the
central administration in Prague.
3. The plant was in exipt'ence before 1945. During World War II it was nearly to-
tally destroyed by a direct bomb hit,. but after the war it was partly recont-'
sttucted and was used for the, production of dyes. The main building was rebuilt
in 1951 and the reconstruction of the lye section was started in 1952. By NoVein-
ber 1952 half of the latter section was finished. 25X1
25X1 the plait was once known as "Tebas",
4. The pant consists.of the following sections; the numbers here used correspond-
to those on the enclosed sketch of the plant.
'"1)
(b) A room used for washing vats and cans. The walls of this room are
formed by reinforced concrete pillars eight meters high and 50 cm.
on each side.; they are spaced three or four meters apart. When .the
building,is finished, the spaces between the pillars are to-be filled
with glass. At their upper ends the pillars are connected to. rein.-
forced concrete crossbeams 50 cm. wide, which are topped by a'brick
wall about 70 cme high and 50 cm.r wide, which supports the reinforced
Lye section (Louharna), a two-story building 60 by 8 by 10 meters in size.
,Its walls and ceiling are, of reinforced concrete. It has four sloping roofs
made of concrete. The larger part of Building A had been finished, while
Building B. which is smaller, was still under construction. Building B
consists of the following:
(a) Carpenter shop.
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ARMY X [NAVY X IAIR X FBI AEC
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(2)
(3)
(4)
concrete ceiling. The upper side of the ceiling is smooth and
the lower side is ribbed. The ceiling is covered with Heraklit
insulation five cm. thick. The space between the Heraklit insulation
and the sloping roof is filled in with slag concrete. The pillars
and ceiling are made out of concrete in the proportion of one part
of cement to seven parts of sand; for the other parts of the building
a lower grade of concrete was used.
A hall of unknown purpose.
Warehouse, a two-story building 60 by 12 by 4 meters in size, built
of wood, with a saddle roof covered with tar paper. The walls are
ash gray in color. This building has a great number of windows.
This building has two sections.
(a) It is a two-story
building four by three by two meters in size, built of brick,
with a saddle roof covered with tile. Its walls are gray yellow
in color.
(b) Boiler 150 cm. high and 80 cm, in diameter, made of metal. The
water which is heated in this boiler is pumped through a pipe
to buil.d.-Lig a,
25X1 (5) It has two stories, is
by . by 4 meters In size, built of brick and has a saddle.roof
covered with tar paper. Its walls are gray yellow.
(a) Probably storage rooms.
(b) Office of the director,
(6) The main building, a two-story building 70 by 35 by 20 meters in size,
of reinforced concrete, with a saddle roof which is probably of con-
crete. The walls are of a dirty white color. This building is con-
structed in the same way as building No. 1 and was built by the same
firm. The top floor has the laboratories, washrooms and cloakrooms.
The following are located on the ground floor:
(a) Storeroom for goods ready to be shipped.
(b) Room in which containers are filled with the finished products
of the plant.
(c) Unknown.
(d) Unknown..
(e) Section where finished dyes are rolled - they are worked with
rollers till completely smooth.
(f) Concrete loading ramp approximately eight meters wide and 150 cm.
high. Part I is newly built, Part II is in bad condition.
(g) Sheltered portion of the ramp, 10 by 8 meters in size. Here the
containers are marked with different letters and signs.
(7) Brick building which was being torn down,
(8) Two-story building 40 by 10 by 5 meters in, size, built of wood, with
a saddle roof covered with tar paper. Its walls are dark brown.
(a) Cleaning of containers.
(b) Storeroom for finished products.
(c) Storeroom used by the construction firm which was rebuilding the
plant.
(d) Unknown,
(9) Maintenance workshop. A two-story building 50 by 10 by 4 meters in
size, built of brick, with a sloping roof covered with tile. Its walls
are yellow gray.
(a) Electricians', locksmiths' and mechanics' workshop.
(b) Offices.
(c) Room through which the plant is entered. It contains the timeclock
and a card file of all workers.
(10) Doorman's shack. A twostory building 7 by 5 by 4 meters in size, with
brick walls and a saddle roof covered with tile. Its walls are gray.
(11) Offices. A two-sstory building 60 by 8 by 4.5 meters, built of wood,
with a saddle roof covered with tar paper. Its walls are dark brown.
(a) Kitchen. .
(b) Messhall, also used for meetings.
(c) Offices.
(12) Barbed wire fence approximately two meters high, fastened to iron posts
spaced approximately four meters apart. The horizontal strands of wire
are spaced 30 cm. apart. There are also diagonal strands of barbed
wire to strengthen the fence.
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?3
(13) Entrance gate, of Iron, three or four meters wide, 2.5 meters high,
green in color. The two sections of the gate open inward.
(14) Wall of the adjoining pharmaceutical plant, SPOFA.
(15) Clean vats and cans standing in an unsheltered area.
(16) (a) (b) (c). Three underground concrete containers two meters deep,
in which a number of taps and pipes are installed. The wooden covers
of these containers are 1.5 meters square and 1.5 meters apart.
(17) Shelf for various types of pipe. It has four or five boards and is
protected from rain by a roof covered with tar paper.
(18) Ditch about one meter wide and one meter deep. A large pipeline
was being installed here which probably was to connect Sections 1 and 9.
5. Sections 1,4 and 7 were being rebuilt in November 1952. Section 3 was being
prepared for rebuilding. Sections 6 and 11 had been rebuilt and Sections 5
and 8 were not to be rebuilt for some time,
6. The United Dye and Lacquer Works produces dyes, lacquers, acetone and a
pitch type of material of unknown purpose.
7. Section 6e had 6 to 10 machines for grinding dyes. Sections lb and Sa had
machines for washing and cleaning containers.
8. Water is supplied to the plant by the municipal waterworks. Gas is probably
supplied by the Na Palmovice gasworks. Electricity is supplied by the power
plant in Holesovice,
9. Raw materials and finished products were transported by truck. Some of the
trucks belonged to the plant, but the majority were the property of the
supplying and receiving factories. Sometimes military trucks accompanied by
officers came to the plant. The raw materials were packed in large vats, the
finished products in smaller vats and cans containing from 5 to 50 kg. The
cans containing dyes bore labels describing the contents exactly and bearing
the address of the recipient. Cans containing other products were marked
with large Latin letters and Arabic figures, e.g. A 4. If a vat:or can
weighed more than it was supposed to, it was marked with one or more yellow
dos to indicate how much the container was over the specified weight.
10. Approximately 15 office employees, including two women, were working in the
plant. One of the women was the secretary of the director and the other one
worked in the personnel section, .issuling food ration tickets. At least 60%
of the approximately 100 employees of the plant were women, mostly under age.
Neither prisoners nor 'brigade workers were employed in this plant.
11. A skilled worker earned 3,000 Kcs. per month and an unskilled worker 2,800
Kos. However, some unskilled workers earned more than the skilled ones.
12. Working hours were normally from 6:45 a.m. to 3:1.5 p.m. Only the day shift
was worked. Toward the end of the month, the employees were sometimes re-
quired to work until 10 or 1.1 p.m. in order to fulfill the monthly production
quota. Fulfilment was ordinarily 100 %. The morale of the workers was not
high.
13. The plant had a volunteer fire brigade; its members were trained by the mu-
nicipal fire department. There was at least one fire extinguisher in each
building.
.14. The plant was guarded by about five uniformed guards. During the day two,
and during the night at least three, were on duty. One of them was posted
in the doorman's shack, while the others patrolled around the premises.
During the day they made the rounds every two hours, during the night every,
hour, accompanied by dogs. All guards were armed with pistols,
15. Since there were only 100 employees, the guards knew the workers and did not
check their identification. In case of a special check, the workers showed
if an outsider wished to-enter the plant, he
nau To snow his Ubcansky prukaz and give a reason for his visit. If he wished
16. There was a works militia at the plant; its members were +trained ~in a militia
training center in Kobylisy. Weapons of the members of the works militia
were left. in the.doorman's shack.
17. Because of the inflammable material stored at the plant, it would be diffi-
cult to defend against attack. Smoking is prohibited in all buildings ex-
cept No. 11.
18; North of the plant and 50 meters away from it stands a concrete tower 40
meters high which belongs to the SPOFA plant. Also to the north, and about
one kilometer away, is the Krocinka Hill, which is at least 100 meters higher
than the plant. In the east, and 60 meters from the plant, is the chimney
of the Spalovna plant; it is 60 meters high. Farther to the east there is
a high-voltage line which runs 30 metes above the ground.
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