Only the best is good enough. This is the motto of the world-famous toymaker LEGO®, whose history began more than ninety years ago in Billund, Denmark. Since then, this Danish family-owned company has expanded its operations to forty countries and increased its number of employees to more than 27,000. LEGO Group entered Czechia in 2000, when it laid the foundations for a future factory in the industrial zone in Kladno. CzechInvest has continually assisted the company and has expanded its support multiple times. The manufacturing plant in Kladno was successively complemented with a distribution centre in Jirny operated in cooperation with DHL, the regional headquarters for Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa in Prague, a sales division and a shared-services centre
Lego in Czechia
Timeline
About the LEGO Group
The LEGO Group is a Danish family-owned company established in 1932 by Ole Kirk Kristiansen. The ownership rights have passed down within the family from generation to generation and the company still belongs to the descendants of the original founder. The name LEGO is a contraction of two Danish words, “leg godt”, meaning “play well”. The company originally manufactured wooden toys. In 1947, Ole Kirk Kristiansen purchased a press for producing plastic parts and began experimenting with this new material. The company began manufacturing plastic bricks in 1949 and later, in 1958, it patented a technical solution that made it possible for the bricks to firmly hold together without falling apart. The company still utilises this system to this day. LEGO® bricks made several decades ago have been handed down from generation to generation and still work on the same principle. Guided by the motto “only the best is good enough”, the company is committed to the development of children and its objective is to inspire and develop the builders of tomorrow through creative play and learning through play.
LEGO® ranks among the world’s most reputable brands. Its products are sold in 111 countries. In 2023, the company employed more than 27,000 people. Its owners donate 25% of all profits to the LEGO Foundation.
LEGO factory in Kladno and operations in Czechia
The factory in Kladno plays a key role in the company’s European production chain, in which the LEGO Group operates two other factories, one in Denmark and the other in Hungary. In Kladno, elements are decorated and processed, the LEGO bricks are packed in bags and whole sets are subsequently completed and packed. The finished sets are shipped from the factory to the central warehouse located in the town of Jirny, near Prague. The Model Production section of the factory produces models for LEGOLAND® parks and LEGO brand stores around the world. The factory also includes a research and development centre for packaging and processing.
When production began in Kladno in 2000, the company had 80 employees there. In 2023, approximately 3,500 people were employed at the plant.
The company’s sales division for Czechia and Slovakia and its regional headquarters for Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa are located in Prague, together with its shared-services centre.
Sustainability
The LEGO Group’s comprehensive sustainability strategy, including information on the progress achieved in individual areas, is regularly reported and published on the company’s website.
In terms of its factories, the company achieved zero waste to landfill in 2022. This means that at least 99% of generated waste is either reused, recycled, composted or dispatched for waste-processing options other than disposal in landfills.
In 2022, the company introduced to the market construction sets containing bags made of paper-based material instead of single-use plastics. This involves a project initiated at the research and development centre operating in the Kladno factory.
To learn more about LEGO’s operations Czechia, we sat down with Gabriela Bechynská, Senior Manager, Government & Public Affairs, EMEA, who provided us with some valuable insights.
The LEGO Group supports the development of Czech managers and gives them opportunities around the world. Can you provide some examples?
The LEGO group has significant operations in Czechia, given the presence of the factory, sales division, regional headquarters, shared-services centre and distribution centre. In the context of skill development, the company supports the enhancement of qualifications through the rotation of managers. A number of employees have thus received the opportunity to work outside of Czechia. They have assisted with the construction and commissioning of factories in Mexico, China and Vietnam. Two Czechs are also part of the global team of official designers of LEGO sets developed in Denmark. A number of Czechs also work at the company’s Danish headquarters
How else do you contribute to the development and retention of key employees?
LEGO is an awarded-winning employer. In 2023, it was named the winner of the Randstad Award for the best employer in Czechia. It won first place on the basis of voting by respondents across companies and sectors, who particularly valued the company’s outstanding reputation and financial stability, as well as the job security that it provides.
The company promotes a family-friendly environment. According to the internal family-leave directive, for example, all employees have a minimum of 26 weeks of paid leave for primary care providers and six weeks for secondary care providers. The company policy covers 100% of parents’ salaries for this entire period. Regular pay raises and bonuses are also provided during family leave.
Ecology is important for you. What is your strategy for reducing the company’s carbon footprint and what specific steps are you taking in that respect?
In accordance with its “Planet Promise”, the company states that it wants to have a positive impact on the world that future generations will inherit. An important part of fulfilling this promise is to make products, packaging and operations more sustainable and to minimise the impact that business and operations have on the planet.
During 2022, the company continued in its efforts to fulfil the approved science-based objective of reducing absolute carbon emissions by 37% in comparison with 2019. In light of the fact that 98% of carbon emissions come from outside of its own operations, the LEGO Group is working with suppliers to achieve this ambitious goal by 2032. The company is collaborating on this with the UN Global Compact, CDP, WRI and WWF. These organisations assess the CO2 emissions target and ensure that it is sufficiently ambitious in accordance with the Paris Agreement and clearly defines the path to reducing emissions.
At the same time, the company is investing in renewable sources of energy at all of its manufacturing plants. For example, solar panels have been installed on the roof of the Kladno factory.
LEGO and collaboration with CIIRC
The Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics (CIIRC) at the Czech Technical University is an important partner of the company in the area of research and development. The aim of joint projects implemented with CIIRC is to improve production and make it more efficient through the use of artificial intelligence. An example of this is the system for collecting and analysing production data using machine-learning methods introduced in vibrating drums that dispense individual LEGO® elements prior to their packing.