Opelwerk Brandenburg
Encyclopedia
The Opelwerk Brandenburg (Opel's manufacturing plant at Brandenburg an der Havel) was built, with impressive speed, in 1935 on the initiative of the government
in order to ensure supplies of Opel trucks
for the army
. Opel
were an obvious candidate for the project, having pioneered mass production techniques in German passenger car production at their Rüsselsheim
plant: by the late 1920s the company held more than 25% of the domestic passenger car market. Between November 1935 and August 1944 more than 130,000 trucks were produced at the Brandenburg plant.
was fully employed. Rapid progress was envisaged, with the factory scheduled to be ready for use in October of that same year, in order to free up capacity at Rüsselsheim ahead of the launch of the 1936 passenger car range.
The available site covered 850000 square metres (1,016,591.5 sq yd) on the southern bank of the Silo Canal
and is today the location of the town's Silo Canal East industrial zone. At the time of the Opel project the site was not fully needed and much of it continued to be devoted to agriculture. It appears that the project involved displacing local residents, but the 1935 press release reassured readers that the unused portion of the plant site would, until further notice, be made available free of charge to former residents displaced by the development.
The first sod of soil was dug on 7 April 1935, and on 10 August 1935 it was possible to celebrate the completion of the building's shell. On 18 November 1935, just 190 days after the foundation stone had been laid, the first truck came off the production line. Production took place in one of several 24200 square metres (28,943 sq yd) two-storey production halls 178 meters long. Coach work and painting took place on the ground floor, while the assembly of chassis, engine and axles was undertaken on the first floor. There were in total 1,200 production machines, each with its own motor, which allowed for a greater flexibility than the belt-driven machines characteristic of more traditional factory layouts. Twenty-seven production lines had a total length in excess of 5,000 meters (over 3 miles). The plant had its own power station which turned out 4,000 kW of power, consuming 7 tonnes of coal per hour in the process.
Total cost of the plant was recorded as 14 Million Reichsmarks. The scheduled capacity provided for the production of 150 Opel Blitz
trucks each day. The originally published annual capacity of 25,000 trucks was already exceeded in 1939 when 27,936 trucks were produced. In July 1942 one of the company's rising talents was appointed to take over as production direction: Heinrich Nordhoff
would later become more widely known as the leader who built up the Volkswagen
business.
On 6 August 1944 in a British Air raid an estimated 20% of the plant was destroyed. Nevertheless, a resumption of production at the end of the war was believed possible. However, Brandenburg found itself in the Soviet occupation zone, and it quickly became apparent that the victorious powers had their own plan for Opel's production facilities. The plants in Rüsselsheim and Brandenburg were deconstructed and crated up before being transported to the Soviet Union
. Unlike the company's principal passenger car
which re-emerged as the Soviet built Moskvitch 400/420
, the existing Opel Blitz truck range never returned as Soviet vehicles.
The all-wheel-drive Blitz "A" was added to the range in July 1940. Including about 4,000 Half-track
versions, this model accounted for approximately 130,000 units between 1940 and 1944.
A smaller all-wheel-drive vehicle, originally launched by Auto Union
(Horch
) in Zwickau
was also assembled under licence at the Opel Brandenburg plant between 1940 and 1943.
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
in order to ensure supplies of Opel trucks
Opel Blitz
Opel Blitz was the name given to various German light and middle-weight trucks built by Opel between 1930 and 1975.During the years preceding the Second World War Opel was Germany's largest truck producer...
for the army
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
. Opel
Opel
Adam Opel AG, generally shortened to Opel, is a German automobile company founded by Adam Opel in 1862. Opel has been building automobiles since 1899, and became an Aktiengesellschaft in 1929...
were an obvious candidate for the project, having pioneered mass production techniques in German passenger car production at their Rüsselsheim
Rüsselsheim
Rüsselsheim is the largest town in the Groß-Gerau district in the Rhein-Main region of Germany. It is one of seven special status towns in Hesse and is located on the Main, only a few kilometres from its mouth in Mainz. The suburbs of Bauschheim and Königstädten are included in Rüsselsheim...
plant: by the late 1920s the company held more than 25% of the domestic passenger car market. Between November 1935 and August 1944 more than 130,000 trucks were produced at the Brandenburg plant.
History
A press release early in 1935 stated that Adam Opel AG, backed by the government, had decided to build a new plant at Brandenburg an der Havel because production capacity at their existing RüsselsheimRüsselsheim
Rüsselsheim is the largest town in the Groß-Gerau district in the Rhein-Main region of Germany. It is one of seven special status towns in Hesse and is located on the Main, only a few kilometres from its mouth in Mainz. The suburbs of Bauschheim and Königstädten are included in Rüsselsheim...
was fully employed. Rapid progress was envisaged, with the factory scheduled to be ready for use in October of that same year, in order to free up capacity at Rüsselsheim ahead of the launch of the 1936 passenger car range.
The available site covered 850000 square metres (1,016,591.5 sq yd) on the southern bank of the Silo Canal
Silo Canal
The Silo Canal, or Silokanal in German, is a canal in the German state of Brandenburg. It provides a short cut for vessels navigating the River Havel, avoiding the winding and constricted navigation through the city of Brandenburg an der Havel....
and is today the location of the town's Silo Canal East industrial zone. At the time of the Opel project the site was not fully needed and much of it continued to be devoted to agriculture. It appears that the project involved displacing local residents, but the 1935 press release reassured readers that the unused portion of the plant site would, until further notice, be made available free of charge to former residents displaced by the development.
The first sod of soil was dug on 7 April 1935, and on 10 August 1935 it was possible to celebrate the completion of the building's shell. On 18 November 1935, just 190 days after the foundation stone had been laid, the first truck came off the production line. Production took place in one of several 24200 square metres (28,943 sq yd) two-storey production halls 178 meters long. Coach work and painting took place on the ground floor, while the assembly of chassis, engine and axles was undertaken on the first floor. There were in total 1,200 production machines, each with its own motor, which allowed for a greater flexibility than the belt-driven machines characteristic of more traditional factory layouts. Twenty-seven production lines had a total length in excess of 5,000 meters (over 3 miles). The plant had its own power station which turned out 4,000 kW of power, consuming 7 tonnes of coal per hour in the process.
Total cost of the plant was recorded as 14 Million Reichsmarks. The scheduled capacity provided for the production of 150 Opel Blitz
Opel Blitz
Opel Blitz was the name given to various German light and middle-weight trucks built by Opel between 1930 and 1975.During the years preceding the Second World War Opel was Germany's largest truck producer...
trucks each day. The originally published annual capacity of 25,000 trucks was already exceeded in 1939 when 27,936 trucks were produced. In July 1942 one of the company's rising talents was appointed to take over as production direction: Heinrich Nordhoff
Heinrich Nordhoff
Heinz Heinrich Nordhoff was a German engineer famous for his leadership of the Volkswagen company as it was rebuilt after World War II....
would later become more widely known as the leader who built up the Volkswagen
Volkswagen
Volkswagen is a German automobile manufacturer and is the original and biggest-selling marque of the Volkswagen Group, which now also owns the Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, SEAT, and Škoda marques and the truck manufacturer Scania.Volkswagen means "people's car" in German, where it is...
business.
On 6 August 1944 in a British Air raid an estimated 20% of the plant was destroyed. Nevertheless, a resumption of production at the end of the war was believed possible. However, Brandenburg found itself in the Soviet occupation zone, and it quickly became apparent that the victorious powers had their own plan for Opel's production facilities. The plants in Rüsselsheim and Brandenburg were deconstructed and crated up before being transported to the Soviet Union
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....
. Unlike the company's principal passenger car
Opel Kadett
The Opel Kadett is a small family car produced by the German automobile manufacturer Opel between 1937 and 1940, and then again from 1962 until 1991 , when it was replaced by the Opel Astra.-Original model :...
which re-emerged as the Soviet built Moskvitch 400/420
Moskvitch 400/420
The Moskvitch 400-420 was a car from Soviet manufacturer Moskvitch introduced in 1947.People in Rüsselsheim remember dismanteling the Kadett production tooling after World War II, to go into a large number of freight cars on their way to Moscow...
, the existing Opel Blitz truck range never returned as Soviet vehicles.
Employees
In November 1935 the company recorded 680 employees, which had risen to 3,365 by 1940. The plant's all-time peak employment level was 4,286, the figure reached in 1943.Production volumes
Between April 1937 and August 1944 the plant produced 82,356 Blitz „S" (Standard) 3-ton trucks, plus a further 14,122 long-wheelbase versions and a further 8,336 low chassis models for special conversions: these were mostly destined to support bus bodies.The all-wheel-drive Blitz "A" was added to the range in July 1940. Including about 4,000 Half-track
Half-track
A half-track is a civilian or military vehicle with regular wheels on the front for steering, and caterpillar tracks on the back to propel the vehicle and carry most of the load. The purpose of this combination is to produce a vehicle with the cross-country capabilities of a tank and the handling...
versions, this model accounted for approximately 130,000 units between 1940 and 1944.
A smaller all-wheel-drive vehicle, originally launched by Auto Union
Auto Union
Auto Union was an amalgamation of four German automobile manufacturers, founded in 1932 and established in 1936 in Chemnitz, Saxony, during the Great Depression. The company has evolved into present day Audi, as a subsidiary of Volkswagen Group....
(Horch
Horch
Horch was a car brand manufactured in Germany by August Horch & Cie, at the beginning of the 20th century.-History at a Glance:The company was established first by August Horch and his first business partner Salli Herz on November 14, 1899 at Ehrenfeld, Cologne. August Horch was a former production...
) in Zwickau
Zwickau
Zwickau in Germany, former seat of the government of the south-western region of the Free State of Saxony, belongs to an industrial and economical core region. Nowadays it is the capital city of the district of Zwickau...
was also assembled under licence at the Opel Brandenburg plant between 1940 and 1943.
Sources
- Hans-Jürgen Schneider: 125 Jahre Opel, Autos und Technik, Verlag Schneider+Repschläger 1987 (no known ISBN)
External links
- http://stadtbrb.internet4um.de/f2p21-die-alten-opelwerke.html#p21