Freight forwarding Katowice – transport to and from the Czech Republic

A conurbation next door to Ostrava

Katowice is the core of a continuous urban area of more than two million people that includes Gliwice, Chorzów, Sosnowiec, Bytom and Dąbrowa Górnicza. For companies in the Moravian-Silesian Region it is the nearest large industrial market abroad: about 100 km from Ostrava, 270 km from Brno and 470 km from Prague.

The main route runs along the D1 to the Bohumín – Gorzyczki crossing, then the A1 to Gliwice and the A4 east to Katowice. An urban expressway parallel to the A4 links the town centres. From the Třinec and Frýdek-Místek area the shorter way is via Český Těšín and Cieszyn on the S52 and S1 through Bielsko-Biała and Tychy.

The short distance even allows a same-day round trip; when a line is down for lack of a part, we send an express van.

Coal, steel and zinc

The region grew on hard coal; mines still operate, alongside coking and power generation. Poland's largest steelworks stands in Dąbrowa Górnicza on the eastern edge, zinc and lead are smelted in the north of the conurbation, and engineering firms build mining equipment, conveyors and drives. Cars are made in Tychy and vans in Gliwice, each surrounded by parts suppliers.

• steel sheet, coils, sections and tubes,
• zinc sheet, alloys and galvanised products,
• mining machinery, conveyors, gearboxes and spare parts,
• automotive components for Czech suppliers,
• cables, electrical installation material and building products.

Czech companies ship semi-finished metal, engineering components, chemicals, glass and food the other way; trade between the two Silesias runs daily in both directions.

Airport and broad-gauge rail

Katowice Airport, north of the city on the A1, is one of Poland's most important cargo airports; we collect air freight there and usually deliver it to Czechia the same day. In Sławków, on the conurbation's eastern edge, the broad-gauge line from Ukraine ends and goods are transferred between gauges; we can collect from that terminal by truck.

Heavy loads and steelworks rules

Coils need a coil-well trailer and proper securing; long sections and tubes need side loading by crane. Steelworks and metal warehouses require helmets, vests and safety shoes, often a site induction, and load in queue order. Mining machinery can be out of gauge, in which case dimensions, weight and permits are settled in advance. For regular full loads see full truckload transport.

Before we collect

• the exact site address and gate – steelworks and mines often have several gates kilometres apart,
• the order or delivery note number under which the material is ready,
• weight and dimensions of each piece, and for coils the inner diameter and width,
• loading method: overhead crane, side loading or forklift from the rear,
• the required unloading time in Czechia and whether a crane or forklift is available there.

For just-in-time deliveries, remember Polish holidays that are working days in Czechia: 3 May, Corpus Christi, 15 August and 11 November. Shipping warehouses often do not load on these days, so plan buffer stock or collect a day earlier.

Vehicles over 12 t may not drive on Polish public holidays during the day, and in summer also on Friday evenings, Saturday mornings and Sundays. The A4 from Katowice to Kraków has separate toll collection; other motorways use electronic tolling, all included in our calculator. Paperwork: CMR plus invoice or delivery note, and for metals often a mill certificate, which you should request from the supplier in advance.