History

Main historical milestones of the LEGIOS Company

1873	Workshops founded in Louny, initially with six halls for steam locomotives and wagons repairs
1950	Freight cars repair works prevail, repairs of passenger cars were stopped
1971	Production of heavyweight and atypical steel structures and equipment; steam locomotive repairs were terminated
1992	LOSTR s.r.o. was founded; new technology was introduced, and the works complex was expanded
1993	LOSTR expansion of deliveries to FRG
1998	Production program expansion – new wagons production
2001	First serial wagon production – Rens wagons
2003	The contract to produce 300 container wagons
2007	The first type Y25 bogies were manufactured
2008	135th anniversary of the founding of the railway repair works in Louny 10th anniversary of brand new wagons production Our workforce expanded to over 1,000 employees. Since 2006 our turnover tripled, to 70 million Eur
2009	Complex range of services Production of new types of wagons Repairs, modernization and reckonstruction of railway cars Modern technologies Our development department continues to expand We now have clients from all over Europe, and especially from the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, Switzerland, France and other European countries

LEGIOS a.s. history

The LEGIOS a.s. Company contiues the rich tradition that dates back to the year 1872 when the Pražsko-duchcovské dráhy (The Prague-Duchcov Reilway) Company started to establish workshops for railway cars repair in Louny. Operation in the workshops started in the year 1873 on an area of 3390 m2 with 6 workstations for locomotives repair and 10 workstations for railway cars repair.

The workshops have been extended by the year 1896. The built-op area was 10 971 m2. The locomotive works had 18 repair workstations and 45 workstations for wagons repair. At the turn of the 19th century the workshops reconstruction continued. Gradually, by the year 1907, an administration building, a medical office, a fire fighting station, a dining room, a boiler shop, a wheel station, a boiler room, a paint shop and a turning shop have been completed. The locomotive works and the wagon works have been extended as well. The workshops had 16 165 m2 of built-up area. There were 38 repair workstations in the locomotive works and 130 in the wagon works.

The workshops extension continued during the World War I. The 73 207 locomotive left the locomotive works on October 29th, 1918; it was the first vehicle with Czech signs.

The Company development after World War II was influenced by a substantial change of the railway rail vehicles repairs assortment. Passenger cars repairs were terminated in the year 1959 and the capacity was transferred to the area of freight cars repair. The year 1971 was another milestone in the development. At this year, the steam locomotives repair era in ČSD was ended and heavy and atypical steel structures and equipment production has started there. The last repaired locomotive (the Kralupy railway yard “four-wheeler” 434.2225) left the works on December 28th, 1971.

A reorganization followed; the Louny ČSD Works have been renamed to ŽOS – Railway Repair and Engineering Plant and they have been incorporated into the Railway Industrial Machinery Maintenance enterprise. At that time 95 % of the production program consisted of freight cars repair for ČSD and the remaining 5 % consisted of private vehicles repair and of atypical equipment production. The Plant reconstruction begun in the year 1985.

Of course, the major breaking point occurred in the year 1989. At that time it was decided to privatize the Railway Repair and Engineering Plant. Therefore, on 6.6.1992, eight natural persons have founded the LOSTR s.r.o., Company the aim of which was to privatize the ŽOS Louny Plant. On 1.9.1992 the ŽOS Louny is separated from ČSD, it goes over to the LOSTR s.r.o. Company and it changes its name to LOUNSKÉ STROJÍRNY spol. s r.o. After the firm privatization, selected investment projects initiated in the eighties were being completed gradually. A storage hall and a material preparation hall were put into operation. Next, there was a mobile blast machine, spray and varnish boxes and, for example, also an acceptance hall for newly produced vehicles.

Gradually, the Company management has extended the original production program, i.e. cars repair and atypical structures production, by railway cars components production and in thr year 1998 LOSTR a.s. started to produce complete vehicles, at first according to Design Documentation delivered by customers and later on also vehicles developed by own design department.

On February 11th, 2002 the Company has been transformed and the former limited liability Company became a joint-stock company.

At the present time, the LEGIOS a.s. Company can boast not only its wide assortment of railway cars repairs, modernization and reconstruction, but also the ever increasing number of newly produced cars for customers from the CR, SR, Germany, Switzerland, France and from other European countries. With its more than 130-year history and its 700 employees, the firm belongs among the biggest firms within the region.