"To ensure the modernity of these enterprises, Radom
has various engineering schools and a Polytechnic which produces
experts in many areas, " says Adam Włodarczyk, the City's Mayor.
The city lies in the southern part of the Warsaw voivodeship near
the Mlecza River. Spread over 112 square kilometres, it has a population
of 233,000. During medieval times the town was on the main trading
route connecting Lithuania and Russia with Małopolska and Silesia.
Today this strategic location remains important as five national
roads pass through the city, which means it still is a key place
on the east-west trade route.
The French company Seita is well known in Radom for its operations
at the local tobacco factory, which employs 1,400. Radom is also
well-known for its small arms factories, and could be likened to
Birmingham in England not so long ago.
The highly qualified and motivated workforce makes the city a good
place for investors, both foreign and domestic. Greenfield sites
with a highly developed infrastructure with good communications
are extra attractions. Local authorities are accustomed to working
with foreign capital, providing investors with active help as well
as a warm welcome.
Radom is also an important academic centre, with institutes of higher
learning such as the Higher School of Finance and Banking and Private
Environmental Protection School helping to create a cadre of skilled
managers and directors for the whole region.
There is also a plentiful supply of natural resources, such as lime
and marl, which are exploited on an industrial scale for the construction
industry around Wierzbica and Iłża. Food processing, leather and
shoe production and the chemical industry play significant roles
here. Among the best-known companies are the Berta Glass Factory
in Jedliński and the clothes factory in Pionki.
Bur industry does not dominate the region, and nature still plays
a key role. The Kozienicki Forest and Iłzeński Woods are attractive
in their own right for their natural scenic beauty, and the construction
of a new reservoir in Domaniów will create a large new recreational
area for both locals and foreign tourists alike.
The surrounding countryside has many museums. In the south there
is the Radom Rural Museum with an ethnographic skansen park spread
over a wide area. In the village of Orońsko the local manor house
is home to the Polish Crafts Association and a permanent exhibition
of crafts dating back centuries.
One of the biggest regional attractions is in the town of Szydłów.
This is a historic town with a late gothic parish church, a late
renaissance town hall and a castle in which the Folk Instruments
Museum is located. In the eastern part of the town is an old Jewish
cemetery dating back to the turn of the 18th century.
But while remembering the past, Radom is also looking to the future.
To attract investors and speed up economic growth regional, the
authorities have created the Radom Economic Zone, which is made
up of three sub-zones:
- The Northern Zone, covering 260 hectares, offers excellent infrastructure
for advanced technology investors in computing, electronics, automation
and producers of radio and telecommunications equipment.
- The Southern Zone, around the Combined Heat and Power Station,
covering 180 hectares, will specialise in developing modern construction
materials, biotechnology and pharmaceuticals. There are plans to
build a special technology transfer centre here.
- The Eastern Sector, or the Sadków Airport, will be a forwarding
and transport depot, complete with warehouses, bonded warehouses
and a customs centre.
CONTACT: Urząd Miasta,
ul. Kilińskiego 24
26-600 Radom
Tel: ++ 048-362-02-01
Fax: ++ 048-362-67-53
www.radom.pl