The fact that Amphenol will be the first tenant of the new park has several advantages for Ostrov citizens. The company is moving to the new location from the centre of Ostrov, which will allow the removal of freight traffic to the outskirts of the town. Since 70% of the workforce is made up of people from Ostrov, the relocation will not increase their commuting distances. And with the planned expansion of production, the number of employees will also increase from the current 300 to 350. The new hall will produce a very wide range of products - components for medical technology, agricultural and construction machinery, photovoltaic systems, battery storage and heat pumps. A highlight is that Amphenol Industrial's connectors are part of the lighting of the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
Amphenol Tuchel Industrial operates in the industrial, automation, railway, medical technology, electromobility and mobile communication segments. It is one of the most stable employers in the Karlovy Vary region and part of its philosophy is to support the professional growth of its own employees. "In the period of the Covid, our sales grew by double digits and now we expect to continue our growth, which corresponds to twice the market average. Next year we will reach sales of €100 million for the first time in the company's history. We are well on our way to becoming the leader in the production of charging connectors for electric vehicles," said Joachim Schmidt, Managing Director of Amphenol Tuchel Industrial GmbH in Germany.
"The new facility will help us increase efficiency in logistics by more than 10% and expand production capacity to accommodate the growing market demand. We have been in Ostrov for almost 30 years and we are happy to remain here, as the region is perfectly strategically located for us. Firstly, it is close to our regional headquarters in Heilbronn, Germany, and secondly, it allows us to supply customers across Europe in a single day. Thanks to the Panattoni project, we can optimise our operations while preparing for further growth, including the expansion of our cable harness development centre. This allows us to offer new positions also for highly qualified professionals and in line with our philosophy of increasing employee satisfaction, we believe that the new hall will be a step in the right direction for us to improve the working environment," says Jiří Gerner, Plant Manager of Amphenol's Ostrov plant.
"The industrial zone does not refer to the former Škoda Ostrov only in memory, but is literally connected to it physically. In fact, in the initial phase we managed to recycle the vast majority of demolition waste, which instead of being taken to the landfill found a use directly on the site as a substitute for natural resources. Panattoni Park Ostrov North is therefore a completely unique circular economy project that responds to the demands of the times in the context of the Green Deal and decarbonisation. I am convinced that this pioneering investment will show the way for building industrial infrastructure in the new low-carbon environment. The two planned buildings will aspire to an exceptionally high rating in BREEAM environmental certification according to the latest standards," says Pavel Sovička, Managing Director, Panattoni Czech Republic and Slovakia.
"For me, Panattoni will always be the company that relieved us of a huge and long-unresolved burden in the form of the dilapidated Škoda Ostrov site. I respect it as a company that was willing to invest huge resources in a complete revitalisation. And what else but modern industry could there be on this site? I am convinced that together we are writing a new chapter of the industry in Ostrov, and I hope it will be a very successful one. I wish Panattoni and the Ostrov to see prestigious investors find their way to us. I believe that they will always have their doors open to us," says Jan Bureš, Mayor of Ostrov.
On the basis of the approved master plan and the issued building permit, two buildings will be constructed on the reclaimed brownfield after Škoda Ostrov. In addition to the one that will be partially occupied by Amphenol, the plan includes a larger building with an area of over 100,000 m2 that may attract some of the growing e-commerce companies.
