Václav Laurin

Václav Laurin
Václav Laurin in 1893
Born (1865-10-16)16 October 1865
Kamení, Austrian Empire
Died 13 August 1930(1930-08-13) (aged 64)
Mladá Boleslav, Czechoslovakia
Nationality Czech
Occupation Engineer, industrialist, automotive pioneer

Václav Laurin (16 October 1865, Kamení near Pěnčín – 13 August 1930, Mladá Boleslav) was a Czech engineer, industrialist and automotive pioneer who, along with Václav Klement, founded automobile manufacturer Laurin & Klement that later became today's Škoda Auto.

Career

He apprenticed as a locksmith in Mladá Boleslav, where, in 1895, he and Václav Klement founded the company Laurin & Klement (now Škoda Auto). At the beginning of December 1895, the mechanic Václav Laurin and the book-seller Václav Klement, both bicycle enthusiasts, started manufacturing bicycles of their own design, patriotically named Slavia in the nationalist atmosphere of the end of the 19th century.[1] In 1905, Laurin manufactured their first automobile. Today, the company enjoys worldwide popularity under the brand Škoda Auto.[1]

Laurin was prominently engaged in the automobile company Laurin & Klement, together with his collaborator Václav Klement, co-founder of the company. He participated in the construction of vehicles there. In his later years, he was the technical director of Škoda Auto.

References

  1. 1 2 "The history of ŠKODA". ŠKODA UK. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  • "Václav Laurin". FINANCNICI.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  • "Václav Laurin (27.9.1865 – 4.12.1930): Konstruktér prvního českého motocyklu a automobilu". zivotopisyonline.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 2018-04-03.


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