The traditional May Day Open House enjoyed exceptional interest this year. Although we can only estimate the exact number of visitors to several thousand, the organisational team is unanimous in that the UNEX complex welcomed the most visitors it has seen in many years.
The fluctuating April weather at the end of the month came to its senses, which meant that visitors could enjoy the entire prepared programme in beautiful sunny weather. A large children’s playground rose up in the area between the production halls: an inflatable obstacle course, wild surfing simulator, face painting, children’s workshops, games, and contests. A short distance away, the main programme took place: children were entertained by the Minions Bob and Stuart, and guests both large and small were captivated by extraordinary ball and hacky sack feats performed by Czech, European, and world champion Honza Weber, who even managed to juggle a bowling ball and mobile phone at one point. The musical guest for this year’s Open House was Absolut Bon Jovi Revival, who presented an excellent and authentic performance of the hits of American singer Jon Bon Jovi and his band.
The training centre hosted two secondary schools that have been collaborating with UNEX for many years: Střední průmyslová škola a střední odborné učiliště Uničov (Secondary Industrial School and Secondary Technical School Uničov) and the Střední škola technická a obchodní Olomouc (Secondary Technical and Business School Olomouc). On display were such things as a 3D printer, a LEGO robot that can solve a Rubik’s Cube all by itself, other robots that can move autonomously along a marked route, and many others. The third secondary school was Olomouc’s Střední škola zemědělská a zahradnická (Secondary School of Agriculture and Horticulture), who brought with them future master blacksmiths that transformed fiery-hot iron into practical products for the home, right before the visitors’ very eyes. UNEX’s human resources stand also expressed support for education—human resources staff presented not only the various forms of collaboration students can enjoy during the course of their studies, but, most importantly, also provided information on open positions suitable for vocational school graduates and other people interested in employment.
Visitors also had the opportunity to view most of the production areas. The largest queue formed at the oxy-cutting hall, where Minion figurines and other children’s motifs that the children could then take home with them were cut for children “in real time.”
One of the traditions for the Open House is a of birds of prey presentation, which is always, without a doubt, the most-photographed subject of the entire day. Each year, the Uničov fire brigade’s presentation is highly popular, and this year they even exhibited their fire proximity suits and other machines and equipment. One of this year's new attractions, however, was the participation of the Police of the Czech Republic, whose members provided demonstrations of their equipment to interested visitors—with which trying on the bullet-proof vests was the most popular.
There were also plenty of refreshments for budget-friendly prices to ensure that Open House visitors didn’t go hungry or thirsty.
View the photographs and video to see what it looked like at UNEX on this festive day.
Thank you for your visit, and we look forward to seeing you again next year at the 2018 Open House!
