GRITEC has opened a second production site in Prague and is preparing another plant in South Moravia. The sequence shows why industrial expansion in Czechia is often best treated as a series of operating decisions—not as one large property search.
When an international manufacturer expands in Czechia, the most visible moment is usually the opening of a new hall. The more important story is what came before it: demand, capacity limits, logistics, recruitment and the decision about which functions belong at which location.
GRITEC offers a useful current example. The German group, which produces prefabricated technical buildings for energy and utility infrastructure, announced on 16 September 2026 that it had opened a new production site at AVIA CITY in Prague-Letňany. The company is also preparing a further plant in Veselí nad Moravou, with operations planned for 2027.
This is not a case of moving from Prague to Moravia. It is a phased expansion of an established Czech operation. That distinction matters for manufacturers considering how to grow from one Czech site into a broader production network.
What GRITEC has confirmed
GRITEC says the new Letňany hall covers around 10,000 square metres and gives the group its seventh production site: five in Germany and two in Czechia. It complements the existing Czech operation in Prague-Malešice and is intended to add production capacity, improve logistics processes and provide more flexibility as demand develops.
The company has separately announced a production and warehouse project in the industrial zone at Veselí nad Moravou. Its September 2025 statement described a planned capacity of several hundred technical buildings per year, production for Czech and international customers and the creation of dozens of jobs. The hall was expected to be completed in the first half of 2027. GRITEC's September 2026 update continues to describe the site as scheduled to start operating in 2027.
| Location | Publicly confirmed status | Stated role or direction |
|---|---|---|
| Prague-Malešice | Existing Czech headquarters and production base | Established Czech operation |
| Prague-Letňany | Opened in September 2026 | Additional production capacity and logistics development |
| Veselí nad Moravou | In preparation | Further production capacity planned for 2027 |
The table is simple, but the sequence is instructive. GRITEC entered Czechia in 1993, built an established operation and is now adding capacity in two different labour and logistics environments. The next site is not being chosen as if the first one had never existed.
The product explains why location matters
GRITEC develops and manufactures factory-finished technical buildings made primarily from reinforced-concrete modules. Its portfolio includes transformer substations, switchgear buildings and other infrastructure solutions used in electricity, water, gas, industry, renewable energy and e-mobility.
These are not products that can be assessed only by counting factory floor area. Production combines concrete work, metal components, electrical fitting, testing, documentation and the movement of large finished units. GRITEC describes its service scope as extending from planning and project preparation to testing, dispatch, installation, maintenance and modernisation.
That operating model makes several location questions particularly important:
- Can large components and completed units move efficiently between the plant, suppliers and customer sites?
- Is there enough space for production, handling, storage and safe internal logistics?
- Can the company recruit a mixture of production workers, electricians, designers, supervisors and technical staff?
- Which activities should remain close to existing management and which can be built in a new regional team?
- Can quality, safety and documentation remain consistent as capacity is divided among sites?
A cheaper plot does not answer any of these questions by itself.
Why Prague can remain valuable after a company looks beyond Prague
Prague is expensive by Czech industrial standards, but it offers advantages that are easy to underestimate. It provides international transport connections, a large labour market, access to management and specialist services, and proximity to national institutions. A company with an established Prague operation also has accumulated knowledge that does not appear on a property comparison sheet.
GRITEC's Letňany expansion illustrates a practical way to use that base. The new hall is located in AVIA CITY, a historic industrial area with existing infrastructure and transport connections. It adds capacity without separating the expansion completely from the company's Prague organisation.
For another manufacturer, the same logic might support a leased production hall, an assembly site, a service workshop or a logistics unit near the original Czech team. Such a step can be faster and operationally safer than immediately creating an independent regional plant.
But Prague does not have to carry every later stage of growth. Once a manufacturer has real Czech operating data, it can compare another region with much greater precision.
What Moravia can add
Veselí nad Moravou is in the South Moravian Region, away from Prague's cost structure and labour market. For an industrial employer, a regional site can offer room for a purpose-built operation, a different commuting area and closer access to suppliers or customers along another transport corridor.
It can also create a different set of risks. Hiring several dozen employees in a regional market requires more than publishing vacancies. The employer must understand realistic commuting distances, wage expectations, shift preferences, technical-school links and competition from existing plants. A role that is readily available in Prague may be scarce locally, while some production skills may be easier to retain outside the capital.
GRITEC's earlier recruitment communication already gives a view of the intended workforce. It mentioned production roles such as concrete workers, locksmiths, electricians, crane operators, façade workers and roofers, alongside supervisors, designers, estimators, sales representatives and implementation technicians. That mix shows why a labour-market review must go beyond a single unemployment figure.
The public Czech environmental assessment record also confirms a new production and warehouse hall for GRITEC at Veselí nad Moravou. The project was found not to require further assessment under that specific procedure. This is useful public evidence of project preparation, but it should not be mistaken for confirmation that every permit, construction milestone or operating date is final.
A second location needs a defined mandate
The most common mistake in multi-site expansion is to describe the new plant only as “additional capacity.” That phrase is too broad to guide organisation, recruitment or investment.
Management needs to decide what the site will actually own. It may produce particular product families, perform specific manufacturing stages, serve selected regions, hold buffer stock or take responsibility for final assembly and dispatch. The answer affects machinery, layout, staffing, supplier contracts, quality control and the flow of data between sites.
Before committing to a second region, a manufacturer should be able to explain:
- which bottleneck the new site removes;
- which processes move there and which remain at the established plant;
- how incomplete work and finished products travel between locations;
- who owns quality, safety and delivery decisions;
- how the site will operate if demand develops more slowly than expected.
The goal is not to reproduce the first factory in another city. It is to design a network in which each location has a clear role.
The first Czech site should become a source of evidence
An established operation gives a company something more valuable than a generic market report: its own Czech data.
Recruitment records show which jobs are difficult to fill and how long hiring actually takes. Supplier history reveals which inputs can be sourced locally. Transport data shows where delays and handling costs occur. Customer orders indicate whether capacity is required for a temporary peak or a sustained change in demand.
That evidence should shape the next location decision. If the first site is copied without analysis, the company may reproduce the same constraints on a larger scale.
For a German Mittelstand manufacturer, this staged approach can be particularly practical. Czechia is close enough for group management and engineering teams to remain involved, but local execution still requires Czech recruitment, documentation, supplier relationships and day-to-day authority. Geographic proximity does not remove operational differences.
What has to be built behind the factory wall
A new hall is only the visible layer of an industrial expansion. The operating system around it must be designed at the same time.
People and responsibility
The regional management structure must be clear before recruitment accelerates. Employees need to know which decisions can be made locally and which require approval from Prague or group headquarters.
Process transfer
Work instructions, technical drawings, quality records and safety procedures have to function in the language used by the Czech team. Simply sending files from the original plant is not a transfer process.
Suppliers and logistics
The company must decide which suppliers serve the whole Czech network and which relationships should be regional. Large or time-sensitive inputs may change the economics of the location more than rent does.
Data and systems
Production, purchasing, stock, maintenance and quality data should be comparable across sites. If every plant records the same process differently, management gains capacity but loses visibility.
Local relationships
Municipalities, schools, employment partners, landlords, utilities and technical contractors all influence the speed of implementation. These relationships are not a substitute for permits or contracts, but they make practical coordination easier.
What other industrial investors can learn from GRITEC
GRITEC's expansion does not provide a universal template. The company has been present in Czechia since 1993 and is expanding a proven business. A first-time investor starts from a different position.
The case nevertheless supports four useful conclusions.
First, Czech growth can be staged. A company can add capacity close to an existing team before building a larger regional operation.
Second, Prague and Moravia do not have to compete for the same role. They can serve different functions inside one Czech production network.
Third, demand should lead the expansion. GRITEC explicitly presents its growth as measured and linked to market potential, rather than as capacity added for its own sake.
Fourth, the regional decision should be based on operations. Labour, transport, supplier access, process ownership and management capacity matter more than a headline property price.
Preparing a Czech industrial expansion
Kodo helps international companies examine the commercial and operating questions around a Czech or wider European expansion. This can include market research and competitor analysis, location and partner mapping, local supplier research, Czech communication and practical business support in Czechia.
We do not replace legal, tax, environmental, engineering or permitting specialists. Our role is to connect the market case with the local work needed to make decisions and keep a project moving.
If your company is considering its first Czech site or the next stage of an existing operation, send us a no-obligation enquiry.
Frequently asked questions
How many production sites does GRITEC now operate in Czechia?
GRITEC states that the new Prague-Letňany plant is its second operating production site in Czechia, alongside Prague-Malešice. The planned facility in Veselí nad Moravou would add another Czech production location when it begins operating.
When is the GRITEC plant in Veselí nad Moravou expected to open?
GRITEC says the site is scheduled to begin operations in 2027. An earlier company announcement expected the hall to be completed in the first half of that year. As the facility is still in preparation, companies and job applicants should check GRITEC's current information before relying on a specific date.
Is Prague or Moravia better for a manufacturing investment?
Neither is automatically better. Prague can provide international access, management proximity and a broad service base. A Moravian location may offer a different labour market, more expansion space and closer access to particular suppliers or customers. The correct choice depends on the role of the site and verified operating data.
Can Kodo select and permit an industrial site?
Kodo can support market validation, location comparison, partner and supplier research, local communication and implementation coordination. Formal legal, environmental, tax, engineering and permitting work must be handled by the relevant qualified specialists and authorities.
Related reading
- Beyond Prague: Why the Triangle Industrial Zone Matters to R&D and Technology Investors
- Entering the Czech Market: What International Businesses Should Prepare Before They Launch
- Holcim’s CZK 1 Billion Czech Investment: A Practical Green Manufacturing Case Study
Sources reviewed
- GRITEC: Capacity Expansion in the Czech Republic—New Production Site in Prague, 16 September 2026
- GRITEC: Construction of a New Production Plant in Veselí nad Moravou, 24 September 2025
- GRITEC: The Company
- GRITEC: Services
- Czech Environmental Information Agency: New GRITEC Production and Warehouse Hall in Veselí nad Moravou
