The Fragokov cooperative, one of the largest engineering companies in the Prešov region and regularly listed as one of the top 200 best Slovakian companies, was founded in 1949. Originally called the Eastern Slovak People’s Car Repair Company (Východoslovenské ?udové autodružstvo, abbreviated to VLAD, in Slovak) by the late 1980s the cooperative employed more than 2,000 workers.

In 1996 the car repair cooperative was split into six worker cooperatives. The two original plants in Prešov were united into the new cooperative, Fragokov, to continue with production, and in 2007 a new 2,500-square-metre production plant was opened. In 2008, the business name was changed to Fragokov – export, výrobné družstvo (manufacturing cooperative) representing the fact that more than 75 per cent of company production going to export.

Today, Fragokov is divided into three divisions. Hydraulics deals with the design, production and assembly of original components for hydraulic brake and clutch systems and cylinders for vehicles like tractors, passenger cars, trucks, forklifts and mobile cranes and the production of other automotive components. The Toolmaking division designs, produces and assembles injection moulds and tooling, jigs and fixtures and stamping tools for sheet metal working and cutting. Pressroom-Plastic is for mould testing and for the series production of moulded plastic parts. The Pressroom is equipped with pneumatic, hydraulic and fully automatic electrical injection moulding machines.

The cooperative’s leading customers include companies like Zetor Tractors, Guttman and SaarGummi, and it has an annual turnover of €4.9 million (2011). The turnover has continued to grow over the years, despite the global economic crisis, and since 1996 the cooperative has made modernizing investments of nearly €7.5 million. Currently it employs 152 workers, of whom 40 are members.