The state-owned enterprise VOP CZ is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year. Its history dates back to 1946, when a military repair facility – intended primarily for the repair of heavy armored vehicles – was established on the site of a former distillery in Šenov near Nový Jičín. Over the course of eight decades, the postwar complex – once filled with captured equipment – has evolved into a company that today ranks among the key players in the Czech defense industry and serves as one of the state’s strategic tools for ensuring the availability of ground-based military equipment.

Video: VOP CZ Celebrates 80 Years: From a Repair Facility to a Strategic Pillar of National Defense | CZ DEFENCE

The significance of VOP CZ today lies not only in its history, but above all in its current and future role. The company has carried out thousands of repairs and upgrades of armored vehicles, and has experience with Pandur II vehicles, the production of armored cabins, the welding of military structures, and the development of its own systems. However, its largest current project is its involvement in the CV90 tracked infantry fighting vehicle program for the Czech Army.

According to Defense Minister Jaromír Zůna, it is precisely this project that represents a “generational leap” for the company in terms of technology, capabilities, and long-term prospects. The minister emphasized that the key step now will be to conclude a long-term contract for the life-cycle support of these vehicles, which is expected to provide VOP CZ with a clear roadmap “for at least the next 40 years.”

The anniversary celebrations took place at a time when the security environment in Europe is undergoing fundamental changes and when the importance of domestic industrial capacity is once again on the rise. In this context, Minister Zůna noted that the state-owned enterprises under the Ministry of Defense are not ordinary companies, but rather form part of the state’s mobilization readiness system. “State-owned enterprises are crucial for us because they are one of the main elements of the system in the event of a significant deterioration in the security situation,” the minister said. According to him, the ability to mobilize forces is one of the main means of deterrence for a state that possesses conventional military power.

VOP CZ Director Vlastimil Navrátil described the company’s transformation as a shift from traditional military repair services to a modern firm capable of collaborating with the most prominent players in the global defense industry. “Today, we are not just a military repair company that fulfills the state’s requirements, but a modern company that collaborates with defense industry players from around the world,” Navrátil said. He mentioned collaborations with partners from Australia, France, Germany, and the United States. According to him, the company has “gained new momentum,” and its credibility rests primarily on the expertise of its employees.

According to the company’s management, its people are its greatest source of added value. Entire generations of employees still work at VOP CZ today – families in which grandparents, parents, and their children have all worked at the company. In this context, Navrátil recalled the words of the defense minister, who described the company as a “company of people with heart.” According to him, this continuity is a value that cannot simply be quantified.

The CV90 project demonstrates that VOP CZ is no longer merely an assembly or service facility. In this context, Vlastimil Navrátil pointed out that, at first glance, vehicle production may seem like a “jigsaw puzzle,” but in reality, it is an exceptionally complex process. Each vehicle consists of thousands of parts, and according to him, two of the seven vehicle types were developed directly at VOP CZ with the involvement of the company’s own developers and designers. This is also crucial from the perspective of future maintenance, because if all parts pass through the company’s hands, a subsequent contract for maintenance and life-cycle support makes perfect sense.

Looking ahead, VOP CZ is therefore positioning itself not only as a manufacturing and repair company, but increasingly also as an engineering, logistics, and technology firm. According to Navrátil, it is no longer just about “sheet metal grinding,” but rather a combination of traditional craftsmanship with high-tech fields, IT, logistics, and comprehensive life-cycle management of modern military equipment.

VOP CZ’s eight decades of existence are thus not merely a historical milestone. They are a testament to the fact that this state-owned enterprise has managed to survive regime changes, a decline in military contracts, the post-1989 transformation, and a return to large-scale defense projects. Today, it faces one of the greatest opportunities in its history: to become the long-term guarantor of the life-cycle of the Czech Army’s key ground equipment – from CV90 vehicles and Leopard tanks to other modernization projects. As Defense Minister Jaromír Zůna said, VOP CZ faces new technologies, new weapons systems, and the need to recruit additional specialists. And as Director Navrátil added, addressing his employees: “I’ll make sure they have the work they need.”