CZECHOSLOVAKIAN BALL BEARING PRODUCTION

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00457R011500110008-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 11
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 15, 2006
• Sequence Number: 8
• Publication Date: March 25, 1952
• Content Type: REPORT

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2,LPSSIFICATION-6-iqii-Zy?CcIELKL4/1.16?..g.:71.1,1C LLLS j.) 71 LY
zochosfp,RTrAylq For Release 2006/08/08 : CIA-RDF'R8258M5TM1500110008-8
Czechoslovakian Ball Bearinv Production
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REFERENCES__
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REMARKS
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ZEPAR ED .
2 5 Narch 1952
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1. The ball bearing plant, located in Perstejn (Puerstein) (N 51/K 81),
was south of Cern ys (Tschirnitz) and west of Klasterec (Kloesterle)
on the Laer River, about 1 km southeast of the Perstejn railroad
station. The southern side, and part of the western side, of the
plant was bordered by the Eger River. A. branch of the Eger River,
which was partially covered, ran through the plant. The other sides
of the plant, not bordered by the river, were surrounded by a
barbed-rire fence about 2.5 meters high. A small branch enterprise
in Kadan (Kaaden) (H 51/K 91) also belonged to the plant. Before
the war, the Perstejn ball bearing plant was a branch of the
Swedish SKF ball bearing plant end during the war the plant was
taken over bj the Germans. After the war, it was nationalized, The
present status of the plant is not 'mown. However, it is not an
independent national corporation, but is probably assigned to one
of the already existing national corporations. The plant covered
an area of about 200 x 150 meters and consisted of six buildings.
Little information is available concerning the equipment of the
plant. In early 1949, the plant equirwent included 3 shaping
machines (Faconmaschinen), 5 automatic machines, and various grinding
machines, 'which were installed before the war. It was rupored that
during 1949 eight new machines were to be sueelied by Sweden to
replace the old automatic machines and the shaping machines. The
plant had no spur tracks. In early 1949, about 300 workers and 20
office workers were employed in the plant and about 100 vorkers
were employed in the Kaden branch. Only one 8-hour shift was
worked because of the lack of skilled workers. Female workers were
assigned to sorting and cleaning the balls and the raceways. Ball
bearings up to 130 mm in diameter, but mostly in sizes ranging from
50 to 70 mm, were produced until 1949. "aartiee steel supplies in
the plant depot were sufficient for another year, i.e. 1950.
CLASSIFICATION SLCRLT ?C ON TR L /US 0 ?PIC 011:Li
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.2e The plant was located en the northeastern outskirts of Tyniste
nad Orlici .(Tinischt on the Adler River) (0.51/G 90) at a -
junction of the road running from Tyatste.nad Orlict to Opoeno.
The plant was built in 1930 end a workshop. building was added in
1944 to 1945. The plant did not suffer any war damage. Po new
workshop beildings were constructed between 1945 and late 1949.
Until 1945, the plant. was owned by K,J, Stasek. After the war,
the expropriated Plant was assigned to the. Bruenner Waffenwerke.
It was a small plant, covering an area .of about ?70 x 150 meters.
In late 19491 the plant consisted of two workshop buildings -
equipped with 15 lathes installed before the war, 12 new lathes set
up in 1944 and 1945, 3 hardening furaaces, and 4 metal saws. Five
new lathes-were scheduled to be addel in 1950. The plant had no.
spur tracks. In late 1949 and also durine the war- the plant employed ?
120 workers, about 15 percent of who were women. Work wes done
in one 6-hour shift. Weekly incoming supplies consisted of one .
carload of steel barsand steel. balls. The steel bars camefrom
Kladno OT 51/L 59). and the steel balls dame from .England .and Sweden,
3. The -Liben (Loeseh) (P 50/N 50) Plant was about. 2.5 km east of_Bruenn,
and about 2 km north-northeast?of the Bruenn airfield, The plant was
built by the Junkers Trust in 1941. It :as known as the Flugmotoren-
werk Ostmark (Ostmark Aircraft Engine Plant) and was built to produce
tools and fittings for Junkers engines. It had modern facilities for. ?
the construction Of tools; jigs and fixtures and had its own test
stands, a hardening shop with 16 to 13 furnaces, and facilities .for
electroplating, During air raids in 19441 the hardening shop was
completely destroyed and other worksAops were damaged about 40
percent. After the wet, the plant was nationalized and-was assigned
to the Brnenner Waffenterke national corporation. When the Czecho-
slovakian ? industry was reorganized, this plant became an independent
national cornoration on 1 January 1950 andwas called navody
presneho strojirenstvi Lisens Brno, Zavod Antonina Zapotockcho."
After the war, the plant was converted to the producton of tractors
and textile machines and ball bearings wene produced in the eastern
Fart. of theplent. The war damages were repaired by.1947. The _
destroyed- hardening .shop was rebuilt and resumed operation in the
suomer of 1949. According to a former employee, the ball bearing
Workshop had. the Pollovinc equipment in early 1949: 20 forming
lathes. (Kopiermaschinen) of British oake 30 fully automatic machines
of British make; 25 automatic machines for processing raceways, 40
grinding machines, 30 lathes, .various milling machines and hardening
furnaces. According to unconfirmed reports of April 1950, workshops
for the production of component parts of textile machines and
workshops for the assembly of textile machine's were scheduled to be
converted soon te ball bearing production and preparatons were Under ?
way to equip -these workshops with machines for ball bearing production.
The OstMark Plant emeloyed about 3,000 workers during the war. In
mid-19491 the number of workers was allegedly about 2,500,? including
1,200 employed in ball bearing production. According to an unconfirmed
report, 4100u workers were employed. tn August 1950. Work was done in
three shifts. in mld-1949, the ball teearing production reeched a
monthly average of 150,000 units. The qnota for the firet quarter
of 1949_ was 350,000 units and the quota for the second quarter was.
500,000 units. In February 1949, special schines for the eroduetion
of various sizes of ball beerings came from England. In April 1949,
three British workers arrived to assemble these machines and to train
workers in servicing these machines. At that time, 200 young Slovake
were assigned to the ball bearing department for training purposes. ?
They were- to be employed in the newSall beating plant in Slovakia. .
The plant had spur tracks to the Bruene main railroad station. There -
were two .highways connecting the plant with Ilruenn, one entering the
plant from the north and the other .rese rrom the south,
S-Ge_.I.-.CONTRUL/U iIAiE 0:.LY
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4. The Kysucke rove Mesto Ball Bearing Plant was on the northwestern
outskirts of *nlysucke Nove llesto (Q 50/X 52), opposite the railroad
station and west of the Zilina (c: 50/0 92) Cadca (Q 50/X 64)
railroad line. The plant was still a branch of the Zbrojovka Brno
national corporotion (Bruenner Taffonwerke), and was called
Zbrojovka Brno n.p. Zavod Viliama airokeho. The construction of the
plant started in 1947 and 1943. On 23 October 1950 production was
started in one completed ' orkshop building. The plants which was
uneer construction in nil-June 19511 will be the chief ball
bearing plant in Czechoslovakia. Full scale production is scheduled
to start in the winter of 1951/1952. The plant is scheduled to be
expanded in the valley along the railroad line. In June 1951, the
plant had 400 to 450 employees who worked in three shifts. The
eaarning shift consisted of about 250 workers and there were about
100 workers in each of the other two shifts. Most of the staff
uembers came from the Lisen (Loceseh)ball bearing plant which also
trained the new workers for tis plant. The plant manager was
A. ?usikars his deputy was O. Homula, and the operational manager
was Volt (fnu). All three came from the Lisen plant. The number of
employees is scheduled to be increased to 5s000 after the construction
of the plant has been completed. Only one type of ball bearings was
produced until June 1951. From October 1950 to June 1951 the ball
bearing production allegedly totaled 140,000 units. Ten types of
ball bearings will be produced by late 1951 and the nunber of types
will allegedly be increased to 40 by late 1952. In Jure 19511 power
was supplied from Zilina through a high tension transmission line.
At that time, the boiler installation or the plant was not yet in
operation. The plant had spur tracts to the hysuche Neve Yes-to
railroad station. Llectric cars were used for transportation within
the plant. *
For location and, layout sketches of the fnur plants
discused in this reports see hnnexes 1 throuah 4. Until recently,
Czechoslovakia has had to import ball bearings. Czechoslovakian
postwar production of ball bearings was so insignificant that only
a fraction of the requirements could be met. .;hen production started
? in 1947, only 329,000 units were produced. The output was increased
to 1,446,000 units in 1943. At that tines the available productive
capacity was. fully utilized and the production corresponded
approximately to the scheduled quota. ro definite production figures
have been published since 1943. A goverement decree of 10 April 1951,
? which revised the original Five Year Plans increased the entire
? 1953 anti-friction bearing quota including the ball bearing quota,
? by 23 percent over the original ,lan. Thus the 1953 production for
ball bearings is scheduled to be 607 percent above the 1943 production.
This would noan thnt about 10 million units would be produced in 19532
cenpared with about 8 million units original?. scheduled. The postwar
production of ball hearings was mainly centered in the Lisen (eoesch)
(P 50/N 50) plant ef the Bruennen -affenwerite (Thruenn Veapon Plants).
? According to previous informatons the Bruenner 'daffennerke started to
build a ball bearin,, plant in Ivsuche Nove Eesto (Q 50/X 52) in 1947.
The total Czechoslovakian ball beering. production is to be produced
by the Lisen and Kysucke Nove Nesto Plants. No tall bea-rin-epiant
is known to exist in Spisska Nova Ves (R 49/D 87) Judging from
locca conditions, it is iriprobable that there is such a plant in
Spisska Nova Ves,.
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