Fabryka Samochodów Ciezarowych
Encyclopedia
FSC is a large automotive factory established in Poland
while it was part of the Soviet
bloc. It was founded in 1950 and the first vehicle left its assembly line on November 7, 1951. The factory was built on a green field site in Lublin
, to first produce light trucks and later vans, as well as vehicles for the military.
After the collapse of the communist system in Poland in 1989 and the establishment of a free market economy, the state-owned FSC factory began to establish links with companies outside Poland. In 1995 the factory entered a joint venture with the South Korea
n conglomerate Daewoo
. It soon become a part of the new company Daewoo Motor Polska. In December, 1995 the factory started assembling Daewoo Nexia
passenger cars. Around 40,000 were produced before production ended in 1998. Daewoo also began a joint project with British manufacturer LDV
to develop a new van.
Daewoo also produced the Lublin van and the Honker
military vehicle.
Daewoo experienced serious financial problems following the financial crisis in Asia, which brought serious difficulties to the Lublin factory. Daewoo Motor Polska entered bankruptcy in October, 2001 and all production in the Lublin factory came to a halt. LDV bought Daewoo's share in the van project and moved the tooling to its factory in Birmingham
, putting it into production in 2005 as the Maxus
.
In 2003 the FSC factory was bought by Intrall
, a British investment group, and production of the Lublin van resumed.
) the armoured personnel carrier
OT-64 SKOT
. Around 4,500 were produced for the Polish and Czechoslovak armies as well as export customers.
Some of the vehicles produced at the factory:
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
while it was part of the Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
bloc. It was founded in 1950 and the first vehicle left its assembly line on November 7, 1951. The factory was built on a green field site in Lublin
Lublin
Lublin is the ninth largest city in Poland. It is the capital of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 350,392 . Lublin is also the largest Polish city east of the Vistula river...
, to first produce light trucks and later vans, as well as vehicles for the military.
After the collapse of the communist system in Poland in 1989 and the establishment of a free market economy, the state-owned FSC factory began to establish links with companies outside Poland. In 1995 the factory entered a joint venture with the South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
n conglomerate Daewoo
Daewoo
Daewoo or the Daewoo Group was a major South Korean chaebol . It was founded on 22 March 1967 as Daewoo Industrial and was dismantled by the Korean government in 1999...
. It soon become a part of the new company Daewoo Motor Polska. In December, 1995 the factory started assembling Daewoo Nexia
Daewoo Nexia
The Daewoo LeMans/Racer is a subcompact car, first manufactured by Daewoo Motors in South Korea between 1986 and 1994. It was replaced by the facelifted Daewoo Cielo—a car mechanically identical to the LeMans, differentiated only by its modified styling cues...
passenger cars. Around 40,000 were produced before production ended in 1998. Daewoo also began a joint project with British manufacturer LDV
LDV Limited
LDV Group Limited was a British van manufacturer, based in the Ward End area of Birmingham.In its history part of Rover Group and Leyland DAF, was latterly a wholly owned subsidiary of the Russian GAZ group...
to develop a new van.
Daewoo also produced the Lublin van and the Honker
Tarpan Honker
Honker is a Polish multi-purpose all-terrain pick-up truck. Created in 1984, it is still in production in a variety of models. It is best known as the light truck used by the Polish Army both at home and in Iraq...
military vehicle.
Daewoo experienced serious financial problems following the financial crisis in Asia, which brought serious difficulties to the Lublin factory. Daewoo Motor Polska entered bankruptcy in October, 2001 and all production in the Lublin factory came to a halt. LDV bought Daewoo's share in the van project and moved the tooling to its factory in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, putting it into production in 2005 as the Maxus
LDV Maxus
The Maxus is a van model, originally produced by LDV Limited. It was launched in late 2004. The model was jointly developed by LDV and Daewoo Motor, prior to Daewoo entering receivership in 2000, in a five year, £500 million development programme...
.
In 2003 the FSC factory was bought by Intrall
Intrall
Intrall, or International Truck Alliance, is a Russo-British automotive company with headquarters in London, England, and manufacturing in Poland. At the end of 2003 the company acquired from Intrall Treasury factory of Daewoo Motor Poland in Lublin, then operating from January 2004 to 2007 years,...
, a British investment group, and production of the Lublin van resumed.
Products
From 1963 to 1970 the company manufactured (together with a factory in CzechoslovakiaCzechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
) the armoured personnel carrier
Armoured personnel carrier
An armoured personnel carrier is an armoured fighting vehicle designed to transport infantry to the battlefield.APCs are usually armed with only a machine gun although variants carry recoilless rifles, anti-tank guided missiles , or mortars...
OT-64 SKOT
OT-64 SKOT
The OT-64 SKOT is an amphibious armored personnel carrier , developed jointly by Poland and Czechoslovakia well into the 1960s.-History:OT-64 was intended to replace the halftrack OT-810, which was nearly...
. Around 4,500 were produced for the Polish and Czechoslovak armies as well as export customers.
Some of the vehicles produced at the factory:
- Lublin truck (1951–1959)
- Żuk vanZukThe Żuk was a van and light truck produced in Lublin, Poland, between 1958 and 1998 by FSC. It was based on FSO Warszawa which in turn was a copy of a Soviet passenger car GAZ-M20 Pobeda. The chassis, suspension and engine from FSO Warszawa formed the basis of the Żuk and the Nysa light vans...
(1959–1998) - Lublin vanLublin vanFSC Lublin was a Polish manufacturer of vans and trucks produced in Lublin by FSC.The production of the Lublin van, which started in 1993, was intended to replace the aging Żuk. It did so in 1998....
(1993–2007) - Nysa Van (1958–1994)
- HonkerTarpan HonkerHonker is a Polish multi-purpose all-terrain pick-up truck. Created in 1984, it is still in production in a variety of models. It is best known as the light truck used by the Polish Army both at home and in Iraq...
(1997–2007, 2009–present) - Daewoo NexiaDaewoo NexiaThe Daewoo LeMans/Racer is a subcompact car, first manufactured by Daewoo Motors in South Korea between 1986 and 1994. It was replaced by the facelifted Daewoo Cielo—a car mechanically identical to the LeMans, differentiated only by its modified styling cues...
(1995–1998)