Škoda Works Škoda Works ( ; today ŠKODA TRANSPORTATION a . s . plus a variety of other companies in the Czech Republic and Slovakia whose names still contain the name Škoda ) was the largest industrial enterprise in Austria - Hungary and later in Czechoslovakia , one of its successor states . It was also one of the largest industrial conglomerates in Europe in the 20th century . The current successor Škoda Holding is focused on transport vehicle manufacturing ; some companies no longer connected with it use the brand Škoda in other industries . History . 1859 to 1899 : establishment of Škoda . The noble Waldstein family founded the company in 1859 in Plzeň ; Emil Škoda bought it in 1869 . It soon established itself as Austria - Hungary ' s leading arms manufacturer producing heavy guns for the navy , mountain gun s or mortar s along with the Škoda M1909 machine gun as one of its noted products . Besides producing arms for the Austro - Hungarian military , Škoda also manufactured locomotives , aircraft , ships , machine tool s , steam turbines and equipment for power utilities and still does so . In 1859 , Count Wallenstein - Vartenberk set up a branch of his foundry and engineering works in Plzeň . The output of the plant , employing over a hundred workers , included machinery and equipment for sugar mills , breweries , mines , steam engines , boilers , iron bridge structures , and railway facilities . In 1869 , the plant was taken over by Emil Škoda , an industrious engineer and dynamic entrepreneur . Škoda soon expanded the firm , and in the 1880s founded what was then a very modern steelworks capable of delivering castings weighing dozens of tons . Steel castings and , later , forgings for larger passenger liners and warships went on to rank alongside the sugar mills as the top export branches of Škoda ' s factory . 1899 to 1945 : before and during World War II . In 1899 , the ever expanding business was transformed into a joint - stock company , and before the First World War Škoda Works became the largest arms manufacturer in Austria - Hungary . It was a navy and army contractor , mainly supplying heavy guns and ammunition . Exports included castings , such as part of the piping for the Niagara Falls power plant or for the Suez Canal sluices , as well as machinery for sugar mills in Turkey , breweries throughout Europe , and guns for the Far East and South America . The First World War brought a drop in the output of peacetime products . Huge sums were invested into expanding production capacities . By this time , Škoda Works already held majorities in a number of companies in the Czech lands and abroad that were not involved in arms manufacture . In 1917 , the company had 35 , 000 employees in Plzeň alone . Following the emergence of the Czecho - Slovak Republic in 1918 , in the complex economic conditions of post - war Europe the company was transformed from what was exclusively an arms manufacturer into a multi - sector concern . In addition to traditional branches , the production programme embraced a number of new concepts , such as steam ( and later electric ) locomotives , freight and passenger vehicles , aircraft , ships , machine tools , steam turbines , power - engineering equipment , etc . In 1923 , the company ' s world - famous registered trademark — the winged arrow in a circle — was entered in the Companies Register . The deteriorating political situation in Europe saw arms production rise again in the mid - thirties . Škoda manufactured the world ' s first triple - barrelled gun turrets for the s of the Austro - Hungarian navy . Prior to World War II Škoda produced " LT - 35 " tank s , which are better known under their German designation " Panzer 35 ( t ) " . These tanks were originally produced for the Czechoslovak army and were used extensively by the Wehrmacht in the Polish campaign , the Battle of France and also in German invasion of the Soviet Union . In July 1944 Skoda started production of Jagdpanzer 38 ( t ) . In 1924 , Škoda Works acquired the Laurin - Klement car manufacturer , later known as Škoda Auto . Both companies became separated after 1945 , when the entire Czechoslovak economy came under government control . 1945 to 1989 : after World War II . After WWII , in 1945 ( the year when nationalisation efforts began in Czechoslovakia and when the Communists started to come to power ) Škoda was nationalized and many sections were split from the company ( e . g . the car works in Mladá Boleslav ( Škoda Auto ) , the aircraft plant in Prague , some factories in Slovakia , and other plants producing food - industry equipment ) . The company was renamed " Závody Vladimíra Iljiče Lenina " ( " Vladimir Ilyich Lenin Plants " ) in 1951 , but since the new name caused losses of sales abroad , the name was changed back to Škoda in 1953 . The factory concentrated on markets in the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc . The company produced a wide range of heavy machinery such as nuclear reactors and locomotives . A lack of updates to its product designs and infrastructure considerably weakened the company ' s competitive position and its brand . After 1962 , Škoda became well known in the USSR and other countries as a trolley bus manufacturer , beginning to export Škoda 9 Tr , one of its most successful models . The successor , Škoda 14 Tr , manufactured between 1982 and 1997 , is still widely used , for example , in post - Soviet states . In 1978 the company was turned into the government - owned group of companies ( " koncern " ) Škoda . It was based in Plzeň and consisted of the companies : První brněnská strojírna [ First Machine Works of Brno ] , ČKD Blansko , ČKD Dukla Praha - Karlín in Prague , Slovenské energetické strojárne S . M . Kirova [ Slovak S . M . Kirov Energy Machine Works ] in Tlmače , and Výzkumný ústav energetických zařízení [ Energy Facilities Research Institute ] in Brno . 1989 to date : after the fall of communism . After the Communist Party lost power in late 1989 , the company was privatized into the hands of management . Mismanagement and asset stripping led to a collapse — the company was restructured and some factories closed . Except for some smaller companies named Škoda and Škoda Auto , after the chaotic 1990s period , the Czech Škoda companies were again regrouped within the holding company Škoda Holding a . s . in 2000 . In 2010 , the holding company changed its name to Škoda Investment , a . s . . Following the change in the political climate in 1989 , Škoda started along a path of privatization , and used this time to come up with an optimal production programme , making new business contacts , and looking for markets other than those that had so far been its priority markets , i . e . the Communist Bloc countries and the Soviet Union , which collapsed after 1989 . In 1991 , a foreign partner for the passenger car works Škoda Auto a . s . was sought by the Czech government . Volkswagen was chosen , and the German firm initially took a 30 % stake , rising to 100 % ownership by 1999 . Škoda Auto is now a completely independent entity from other companies bearing the Škoda name . In 1992 , the company was privatized by the so - called Czech method . It began expanding its production activities , acquiring the TATRA and LIAZ vehicle works and constructing a plant to produce aluminum soft drink cans . This expansion put the company ' s financial stability in jeopardy . In 1999 , it concluded an agreement with creditor banks , and restructuring of the entire capital structure of the Škoda group was undertaken . The result was legal and financial stability at the company . Currently a sectoral restructuring of production companies in the group is under way . In April 2000 , Škoda Holding , a . s . took over the helm , controlling nineteen primary subsidiaries and most product lines . In 2003 , the Czech government sold its 49 % stake to the Appian Group for 350 CZK million , later that year the Appian Group acquired the rest of its stake in a liquidation of the previous owner . The Appian Group is a holding company incorporated in the Netherlands and controlled through a screen of shell companies . The real owner or owners are unknown , despite investigations by the Czech police . In September 2010 , a group of four managers ( current or former Škoda or Appian managers ) announced that they would acquire Škoda from Appian for an undisclosed price . The Czech media speculated that the acquisition was only a formality , as the managers probably owned the parent company Appian . Škoda has recently focussed solely on the transport sector . Other divisions have been sold , a large part of them to the Russian company OMZ ( the price was not published , estimated at around 1 CZK billion ) . Simultaneously some smaller transport companies were acquired , for example a part of the Hungarian company Ganz , VÚKV ( owner of the Velim railway test circuit ) and some transport - related assets of the former ČKD , now called Škoda Vagonka . Finally , in 2009 , Škoda holding announced that the South Korean conglomerate Doosan will acquire its power section for 11 , 5 CZK billion ( US $ 656 million ) . Present production . The power division ( sold to Doosan ) produces as Doosan Škoda Power steam turbines , heat exchanger s and condensers . The metallurgy division ( held by United Group ) produces as Pilsen Steel crankshafts , turbine components or ingots . The nuclear division ( sold to OMZ ) produces as Škoda JS equipment for nuclear plant s or oil refining , petrochemical and gas industry . The transportation division produces trolleybus es , tramcar s , electric locomotive s , electric multiple unit s and rapid transit train systems .