From a royal crown to F1 cars: meet the giant-build side of Kladno
A look back at the people and models behind LEGO’s Czech factory celebration in 2025.
A factory with a spectacular creative role
LEGO’s Kladno factory in Czechia opened in 2000 and marked its 25th anniversary in 2025. Alongside packing and processing, the site houses Model Production: the engineers, artists and designers who turn bricks into large public displays.
For that anniversary, the team created a two-metre-high version of the medieval Czech royal crown from 128,333 bricks. LEGO’s September 25, 2025 account describes its unveiling in Prague’s Hradčany Square. This is a retrospective of that celebration, not an announcement of a new event or a claim that the crown is still on display there.
The same factory helped put brick cars on the track
Earlier in 2025, Kladno’s specialists had worked on the ten drivable LEGO Formula 1 cars used for the Miami Grand Prix Drivers’ Parade on May 4. LEGO reports that 26 designers, engineers and builders spent more than 22,000 combined hours developing and constructing the group.
Each car contained nearly 400,000 bricks, together with other components needed to make it drive. That last point matters: these were engineered vehicles incorporating LEGO bodies, not ordinary boxed sets enlarged without changes. The spectacle connected model building with the practical demands of moving people around a real track.
The celebration gave children something to build
The crown event also included activities in which families could build crowns and royal minifigures. LEGO’s anniversary account describes longer-term local work, including partnerships with children’s homes and summer camps for employees’ children.
Our view is that the hands-on part is an especially useful companion to a monumental display. A giant model can spark the first question, but a table of bricks gives a visitor somewhere to take that curiosity. Watching and making become parts of the same experience, at very different scales.
What to notice the next time you see a giant model
Look first at the silhouette from a distance, then move closer to examine how curves and changes of color are suggested by individual elements. Consider what a model needs to communicate quickly to a passing visitor, and which details reward a longer look. Those are useful questions for a small fan build as well.
Our takeaway from Kladno’s 2025 projects is the range of skills behind the finished photograph. A recognizable shape, a dependable structure and an enjoyable public moment all need attention. The brick count is impressive, but it is only one way to appreciate the work of the people who brought the model into the world.
Reporting checked September 26, 2026. Plans and programs can change; follow the linked organizations for current information.