INTERVIEW

induction couplings, electronic parts for

Škoda and Tatra vehicles, static frequency

converters, and a very popular “toy” in

the 1980s, the electrotechnical building

kit “MEZ elektronik”.

The brand name MEZ represented

the plant till 1994, then the company

was privatized and became part of the

technological concern Siemens.

In 2019 it is our 25th anniversary of

working with the Siemens brand, who

has invested a several billion Czech

Crowns in the development and

production of electric motors in the

Beskids. The plant in Frenštát is currently

the greatest European producer of

low-voltage

asynchronous

electric

motors of axial height 225–355 mm.

Some may say that with over 70 years

of history, the plant is in the “retirement

age”. Quite the contrary: the company

is a world leader in automation and

digitization, with innovations in both

products and production processes.

The company is a world

“ leader in automation

and digitization, with

innovations

in both products

and production processes.

”

You come from this region and graduated

from VSB – Technical University of

Ostrava. Siemens is a company with

a great history. What innovative visions

do you have for the plant management?

Yes, I come from this region and

I have actually daily commuted to

Frenštát since I was fourteen. First to

the Secondary School of Electrical

Engineering, where my focus was

electrical machinery. After a year of

military service, I started commuting to

Siemens company, my first employer.

I started at a blue-collar position, as

a workman in the motor testing lab,

and step by step I have actually gone

through all the plant. I have been the

CEO since 2016 when my team and

I designed a new vision and strategy to

develop the plant, which is now coming

true. In a very short time we introduced

four new products on the market which

have increased production by 60 %.

We have increased the portfolio of

electric motors with motors of bigger

axial height, and we strive to further

automate and digitize our production

as well as our products. The first digital

motor by Siemens distributed worldwide

was developed and made in Frenštát.

You operate the Global IT Delivery

Centre. What is its aim, and why did you

locate the centre to Ostrava?

It is not only the IT Delivery Centre but also

the Research and Development Centre

which serves development in electrical

rotating machinery (electric motors and

electric generators) and solutions for

Industry 4.0. By the way, opening the

Research and Development Centre earned

us a prestigious international award,

Emerging Europe Awards 2018. Now, our

facilities in Ostrava employ about 200 IT

specialists, electrical and machinery design

engineers, experts on special simulations

and

analyses,

including

specialists

developing applications for Industry 4.0.

This year we intend to contract more

employees in our team in Ostrava.

And why Ostrava? Not only because

of our close cooperation with VSB –

Technical University of Ostrava, but also

because this large city is geographically

close to Frenštát and the other Siemens

production plant in Mohelnice.

Siemens ranks among leaders in

the fields of smart cities and digital

production plants. That is the vision for

the future which the Moravian-Silesian

Region is actively engaged in bringing

about. How do you participate in these

projects?

Digitization will soon affect each

enterprise, and it is obvious that

companies prepared for this future

will prosper in the harshly competitive

atmosphere.

We

consider

the

digitization of production (which we

have been working on for a few years

already) one of the crucial elements in

our strategy. We are one of the leaders

in this field, and our plant is annually

visited by hundreds of customers who

want to see the digitization of industry in

action. Within the region, we collaborate

with VSB – Technical University of

Ostrava as one of the main partners in

the Platform for Research in Industry

4.0 and Robotization project in the

agglomeration of Ostrava.

You employ significant numbers of

people not only from our region. How

do you attract and keep young new

employees? How does the company

contribute to social responsibility in the

region?

I believe that the success of each enterprise

is based on its positive corporate culture.

It cannot be measured and expressed in

numbers, yet it is considerably reflected

in a job satisfaction of the staff and

their performance. With increasing

innovations and growing volume of

production, we needed more employees.

I am not the kind of manager who would

sacrifice what the previous generations

achieved for an instant profit. In the past

two years we have employed over 400

new employees not only from our region.

We do not employ any staff through job

agencies and we do not import people

from abroad. I personally seek long-term

effects, satisfied employees who bring

innovation and good performance based

on their positive attitude towards the

company and our products. That is the

only way to keep the present staff and

win new employees.

The same applies to social responsibility:

we want to be a good neighbour in our

area, therefore we support charities and

education as well as the environment

and culture. We donate hundreds of

thousands of Czech crowns on projects

to non-profit organizations, and closely

cooperate with secondary schools and

universities. We focus on the culture

in Frenštát as our priority. We support

events held by the town, including the

renowned music festival Horečky Fest.

I personally seek long-term

“effects, satisfied employees

who bring innovation and good

performance based on their

positive attitude towards

the company

and our products.

”

Will you let our readers know what your

favourite place is and share culinary tips

of the region?

I have many favourite places in the region.

I love mountains in general and the

Beskids in particular. I cannot pinpoint

one location only. Štramberská Trúba is

beautiful; I love Pustevny; and my most

beloved mountain is Velký Javorník. Even

though I enjoy good meals, gastronomy

is not my priority in the region. I feel

happy to feed my eyes with the views

of mountains from the valleys in our

picturesque region. I may have a simple

snack of a hot dog with a beer from

a local brewery.

Thank you very much for the interview.

Editorial of Magazine.

POSITIV 2/2019 ǀ 13