Lego constructor children's encyclopedia. History of LEGO
This section of the Eksmo catalog will be of interest to those who are fond of building models from Lego parts. With richly illustrated building instructions included in these editions, you won't have to buy new play sets to create different models. Detailed step-by-step diagrams, ideas and recommendations will help any fantasy to be easily translated into reality, since the collections contain an accurate description of the necessary details and their quantity. In addition, all this is backed up by a large number of high-quality pictures taken from different angles to clearly demonstrate to the child each stage of the assembly.
True fans of the designer will especially like the books “Lego. Encyclopedia of facts" and "Lego. A book about everything. In them you can find information about everything related to the legendary designer, from the history of its creation to the technologies for building such complex figures as a ball or a model of a man from cubes.
Older ones will surely be delighted with the large colorful editions of the LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Idea Book. 181 Amazing Mechanisms and Gadgets” and The LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Big Book, which will provide a real inexhaustible source of ideas for building new devices and mechanisms from LEGO MINDSTORMS parts.
Thematic publications of the section, such as "Knights and Castles", "Planets", "Wolves and Crocodiles", contain not only modeling ideas, but also cognitive information that helps to expand the horizons of the child. Most of the publications presented here will also be of interest to children because, in addition to ideas, puzzles and fascinating stories, they also contain prefabricated mini-sets of toys. Such publications allow the child to develop imagination, logical and analytical thinking and form the skills of making engineering decisions.
Not only boys, but also girls play Lego with pleasure. For them, in this section there are books "Girlfriends, Beach and Fun" and "A Gift for Adventure Lovers". Young fans of the world-famous designer will find in them puzzles and games, ideas for creativity, helpful tips, Interesting Facts and, of course, mini-sets.
There are many series. The most popular are:
DUPLO - sets for children from 0.5 to 4 years old, distinguishing feature which are blocks twice the size of standard elements;
· Ninjago - a collection that tells about the confrontation of six ninjas and their teacher against Lord Garmadon and his army of skeletons, Lord Garmadon, who leads the snake clans, and other villains;
· Friends - a series for girls, originally based on the animated series "Girls from Heartlake City";
Creator - a popular series that allows you to create houses and vehicles;
· "City" - one of the most popular collections, divided into several areas - "Farm", "Airport", "Harbor", "Fire", etc.;
· Star Wars - sets created based on the legendary science fiction saga "Star Wars";
Super Heroes - a series based on DC Comics and Marvel film comics, the most famous hero is Batman;
· Batman Movie - a separate collection dedicated to Batman from The LEGO Movie and its sequels.
Founded by Ole Kirk Christiansen in 1932 in Billund, Denmark. Initially, the company specialized in wooden furniture and toys, later it began to produce designers from special plastic blocks. Today, LEGO play sets are one of the most sought after and popular in the toy industry. In addition to classic construction sets, LEGO produces themed sets (including those based on movies) and computer games.
Name
The name LEGO comes from the Danish words "LEg GOdt" ("play well, play with pleasure"). Later it turned out that this word is translated from Latin as “I put together”, which perfectly reflects main idea LEGO constructors.
History of LEGO
1932 Ole Kirk Christiansen, carpenter and joiner, founds his own company in Billund, Denmark. His firm manufactures ladders, ironing boards, chairs and wooden toys. His son, Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, works for family business from 12 years old.
1934 Christiansen has about 7 employees. The first line of toys under the LEGO trademark appears. Soon the company itself changes its name in accordance with the brand.
1935 LEGO releases the Kirk's Sandgame playset and the popular wooden duck on wheels. In addition, the company offers Dagny Holm design clothes hangers.
1936 Gottfried decorates the workshop with his father's motto "Only the best is good enough" ("Only the best is good enough"). The LEGO company releases new toy"Numskull Jack on the goat", which became the staple of the year.
1937 Gottfried Kirk Christiansen turns 17. He starts building models for LEGO.
1939 The factory has 10 employees. The motto "Only the best is good enough" becomes the official LEGO slogan.
1939 Denmark is occupied by the Germans. Gottfried does not go to study in Germany, as previously planned, but becomes a manager in his father's company.
1942 The LEGO factory burns to the ground, but production wooden toys manages to resume pretty quickly.
1943 The factory has 40 employees.
1946 LEGO becomes the first company in Denmark to buy special equipment for the manufacture of plastic toys and parts for them. The cost of the device is 30 thousand Danish crowns, the company's income this year reaches 450 thousand Danish crowns. The purchase of equipment is fully justified.
Product of the year: wooden LEGO bricks with "decorations" - letters and numbers.
1947 The Windsor SH Plastic Molding Machine is available to LEGO. As a test, six series of wooden toy animals are produced and exported to India.
Products of the year: plastic ball for children and educational game "Monopoly".
1948 The factory has 50 employees.
Product of the year:"A game of Tiddlywinks".
1949 LEGO produces about 200 different plastic and wooden toys, including the first construction sets - the forerunners of today's LEGO sets. They are sold exclusively in Denmark. Branded four-color packaging appeared.
Products of the year: the first "Automatic Binding Brick" with four and eight spikes, a plastic fish, a plastic sailor.
1950 Gottfried Kirk Christiansen turns 30. He has been appointed junior vice president of the company.
Product of the year: three sets of plastic bricks that are sent to kindergartens.
1951 The first film about LEGO was shot (cameraman and director - Christian Lund) - black and white and without sound. Plastic toys account for half of the company's products.
Products 
of the year: a building made of bricks (base area - 10x20 spikes), a plastic Ferguson tractor that can be assembled and disassembled.
1952 Ole Kirk Christiansen plans to expand the company and builds new plant. The company has its own canteen.
Product of the year: large plastic and wooden cars.
1953 Bricks "Automatic Binding Brick" get a new name - "LEGO Mursten" ("Lego Bricks"). Corporate logo LEGO is printed inside each piece. A trademark application has been filed.
Products of the year:"Gift box" including a plastic Chevrolet car.
1954 The LEGO trademark was officially registered on May 1st. Gottfried Kirk Christiansen goes to England and meets a purchasing agent on the ferry with whom he communicates about toys. After that, Gottfried comes up with the idea of creating a LEGO system.
Products of the year: windows and doors for LEGO constructors.
1955 The company improves bricks and launches revolutionary project- "LEGO System of Play". This is a fundamentally new gaming platform. Gottfried shows her at the Nuremberg Toy Fair (Germany), where she gets a lot of positive feedback. LEGO starts its first real export - to Sweden.
Products of the year: 28 playsets and 8 cars plus additional items.
1956 LEGO Spielwaren GmbH becomes a distributor in Germany.
Products of the year: cyclists and motorcyclists (small plastic figures of men).
1957 Gottfried Kirk Christiansen becomes managing director of LEGO. A new way of bonding bricks has been invented. The LEGO Group is celebrating its 25th anniversary.
Products of the year: international and Danish flags, glowing LEGO bricks.
1958 Patented new system block connections - “pins and tubes”. It makes models more stable. Gottfried Kirk Christiansen becomes the head of the company, which at that time has 140 employees. Product of the year: inclined bricks (tiles).
1959 Futura, LEGO's development department, is made up of five employees. A market analysis department and its own photo studio appear. The technological equipment of the company has been significantly improved and partially automated. LEGO toys are sold in France, UK, Belgium and Sweden.
Product of the year: Bilo-fix (combination of wood and plastic).
1960 A warehouse of wooden LEGO toys burns down. A decision was made to discontinue their production. The company has 450 employees. LEGO bricks are sold in Finland and the Netherlands.
Product of the year: bricks with numbers.
1961 The LEGO range includes 50 play sets and 15 vehicles, as well as various additional elements. Sales start in the US and Canada under a license agreement with Samsonite Corporation. Deliveries of products to Italy are being established. Gottfried Kirk Christiansen buys a small Piper Apache aircraft, a landing site is organized in the immediate vicinity of Billund.
Products of the year: kit " Big city”, the Terapi line for preschoolers.
1962 The LEGO Wheel line has been relaunched. Sales start in Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, Morocco and Japan.
1963 LEGO production begins the use of ABS, a special plastic that provides better adhesion of parts. Sales start in Austria, and INTERLEGO AG is established in Switzerland.
Product of the year: toy London Bus (London bus).
Gottfried Kirk Christiansen lists the features every LEGO product should have:
1. Unlimited game potential.
2. Suitable for girls and boys.
3. Suitable for all ages.
4. Suitable for any season.
5. Healthy and calm games.
6. You can play for a long time - even several hours.
7. Development of imagination and creativity.
8. The more LEGO bricks the better.
9. Additional elements and sets are always available.
10. Quality is visible in every detail.
1964 In addition to the main and special LEGO sets, a line of models is launched. First sales in the Middle East (Lebanon). LEGO bricks are on display at the Danish Pavilion at the New York World's Fair. A new LEGO factory opens in Germany.
Products of the year: car models, Jumbo line (together with the Samsonite brand).
1965 First sales in Spain. The company employs over 600 people.
Products of the year: special bricks - “tiles”, a set of doll furniture.
1966 The company's product range includes 57 sets and 25 vehicles. 706 million LEGO elements were produced in one year. Branded designers are sold in 42 countries around the world.
Products of the year: railroad on accumulators, light bricks.
1967 At this point, there are 218 different LEGO elements (not including color variations). 19 million LEGO sets are sold every year. The wheel for small toy cars is invented.
Products of the year: biplane, motorized trucks.
1968 The LEGOLAND Amusement Park in Billund is open. On the first day, it attracts 3,000 visitors. The LEGO Group introduces the first NCR 390 computer for DKK 85,000. First sales in Latin America (Peru and Curacao).
Product of the year: Jeep (designed by Kjeld Kirk Christiansen).
1969 The LEGO DUPLO line for kids under five has been launched internationally. The first movie about LEGOLAND appears. Start of production of PVC tires for LEGO cars.
Product of the year: 12 volt train motor.
1970 In Billund, LEGO has about 1,000 employees.
Products of the year: colored gears for models, cars LEGO Impulse boxes.
1971 A new plastic molding shop was opened. Minitalia, the first and main competitor of LEGO, appears in Italy.
Products of the year: line of furniture and utensils for doll house, the book "We play with LEGO".
1972 The license agreement with Samsonite (USA) ends. The company has its own PR department. Sales are launched in the Czech Republic. To date, almost 2 billion LEGO bricks and other elements have been produced.
Products of the year: new cars for the LEGOLAND park, re-launch of electric trains.
1973 A new LEGO logo appears, which brings all the company's products under one label. Sales start at Eastern Europe(Hungary). Firms are opened in the USA and Portugal. German psychologist Karin Grossman writes Get More with LEGO! — Scientific research 200 children playing with the legendary construction set.
Products of the year: boats for the LEGOLAND park.
1974 The LEGOLAND amusement park has a LEGO replica of the famous Mount Rushmore. Founded in Spain.
Products of the year: Lego men, Car and Caravan line.
1975 LEGO has 2,500 employees. English becomes the official corporate language.
Products of the year: The Expert Series and Moon Landing lines.
1976 LEGO monument unveiled in Billund (sculptor Robert Jacobsen).
Products of the year: Harley Davidson motorcycle, LEGO VILLE line.
1977 Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen, grandson of the company's founder, joins the management of the LEGO Group. The DUPLO plant in Billund becomes independent.
Products of the year: LEGO TECHNIC line, DUPLO men.
1978 Designed new principle– "System within a System". The DUPLO logo appears - a rabbit. Dayton (Ohio, USA) hosts the first LEGO Road Show, which later becomes worldwide.
Products of the year: the USS Constellation and The Castle lines.
1979 Kjeld Kirk Christiansen has been appointed President and CEO of INTERLEGO A/S. The DUPLO logo is registered as an independent trademark.
Products of the year: FABULAND and SCALA lines.
1980 The department of educational products was created.
Products of the year: toys for newborns DUPLO, sound elements DUPLO.
According to the survey, by the early 1980s, 70% of Western European families with children under 14 had LEGO sets in their homes.
1981 The LEGO World Show is open in Denmark.
Products of the year: special educational program of 22 elements.
1982 The LEGO Fiction department is opened, and the company itself is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
Products of the year: DUPLO Mosaic and Technic I educational lines.
1983 There are 3,700 LEGO employees worldwide.
Products of the year: DUPLO rattles, DUPLO trains, FABULAND books.
1984 Subsidiaries founded in Brazil and Korea. McDonald's is partnering with LEGO to promote jointly in the US and Canada.
1985 The LEGO Award (an annual international award for exceptional efforts for children) is founded. The company has 5000 employees. Collaboration begins with Prof. Seymour Papert.
Products of the year: DUPLO farm, LEGO Technic line, new series of LEGO trains.
1986 The LEGO Group has been awarded the title of "Purveyor to Her Majesty the Queen of Denmark".
Products of the year: DUPLO Family line, computer system controls for LEGO models.
1987 The company has 6000 employees. LEGO products are sold in 115 countries. Korean climber Yong-hu leaves a LEGO man at the top of Everest.
Products of the year: monorail for the LEGOLAND park, the DUPLO Playboard line.
1988 The first official LEGO World Championship is held. The LEGO Art exhibition tours the UK.
Products of the year: DUPLO Circus, DUPLO Plane, Forest People, Black Star lines.
1989 Dr. Seymour Papert becomes head of the LEGO Education and Research Department. Now it is called LEGO Dacta (from the Greek word for "study"). The first LEGO Dacta Center opens at LEGOLAND.
Product of the year: The Pirate line.
1990 The LEGO Group is recognized as one of the 10 largest toy manufacturers in the world, the only one in Europe (others are located in the US and Japan).
Product of the year: DUPLO Zoo range.
1991 The company has 7550 employees. The number of molding machines at the five LEGO factories reaches a thousand.
Products of the year: Ships, Flex-system elements and 9-V train lines.
1992 Two Guinness records at once: 545 meters railway LEGO and a castle made of 400,000 LEGO bricks. Subsidiaries are opened in Japan and Hungary. The first LEGO exhibition in Russia.
Product of the year: LEGO DUPLO Toolo line.
1993 The building of the GUM department store on Red Square in Moscow is decorated with the help of a LEGO constructor. Children's clothing brand LEGO Kid's Wear launched.
1994 A subsidiary was opened in Mexico. The LEGO-exposition "Journey into Space" was opened at the Houston Space Center (USA).
Products of the year: the LEGO Belville and DUPLO playhouse lines.
1995 Gottfried Kirk Christiansen has died. Weekly LEGO TV programs are broadcast in Latvia and Lithuania. The company participates in exhibitions all over the world.
Products of the Year: LEGO DUPLO PRIMO, LEGO FreeStyle, LEGO SYSTEM Aquazone.
1996 Website www.lego.com launched. The LEGO SYSTEM line is being developed (Time Cruisers, Western, Exploriens).
1997 The LEGO Imagination Center opens at Disneyland, Florida. First The educational center LEGO MINDSTORMS launches at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, USA. A major LEGO event at the Kremlin Palace in Moscow brings together over 300,000 participants, mostly children.
1998 In the LEGO universe, the slogan "Just Imagine ..." ("Imagine ...") appears. The company begins cooperation with the Danish publishing house Egmont Group to produce books for children.
1999 LEGO opens its own online store. Products of the Year: Star Wars and Winnie the Pooh and Friends lines.
LEGO bricks have been named one of the "Products of the Century" by Fortune magazine.
year 2000. The British Toy Association calls LEGO the "Toy of the Century". The LEGO Group begins to actively interact with major film studios: the LEGO Harry Potter line is launched. In addition, LEGO is partnering with Steven Spielberg.
year 2001. LEGO My World wins Germany's prestigious award for best software, and a robot from the LEGO Mindstorms line is launched from the International Space Station into Earth orbit.
Products of the year: the LEGO BIONICLE and LEGO DUPLO dolls lines.
2002 LEGO brand stores are opened in Cologne (Germany), Milton Keynes (Great Britain) and Moscow (Russia). The LEGOLAND amusement park is also opening in Germany.
2003 The first film based on the BIONICLE lineup, The Mask of Light, is a big hit at the box office.
2004 Jørgen Vig Knudstorp named new CEO companies. LEGO partners with Ferrari to release sets based on world-famous race cars.
2005 year. LEGOLAND Amusement Parks sold to Merlin Entertainments Corporation. The site www.lego.com allows you to invent your own models, and then buy online the elements needed to create them.
2006 The website www.lego.com has over 8 million unique visitors per month. A new and greatly improved version of the LEGO robotics system has been launched. The board game Parcheesi appears.
2007 The LEGO Group is celebrating its 75th anniversary. The LEGO Club has about 2.5 million members. A licensing agreement was signed with Lucasfilm Inc., and the LEGO Indiana Jones line was soon launched.
2008 The LEGO Signature Brick is celebrating its 50th anniversary. A huge model of the Taj Mahal Palace has been created, consisting of 5922 elements. On the this moment It is the largest LEGO building in the world.
year 2009. The LEGO Group is recognized as the fifth largest toy manufacturer in the world. Together with Warner Bros. The world's first feature film based on LEGO bricks and men is being created. In the same year, long-term partnerships with Disney and Pixar were launched.
Product of the Year: LEGO Games is a series of board games that the whole family can play.
2010 The first online LEGO Universe game is launched. The world's largest LEGO mosaic was created in London (dimensions 15.3x6.4 meters, consists of 384,000 LEGO bricks).
Products of the year: Prince of Persia and Atlantis lines.
2011. LEGOLAND amusement park opened in Florida (USA). The LEGO Group is recognized as the third largest toy manufacturer in the world.
Products of the year: the LEGO Technic Unimog and LEGO Ninjago lines.
year 2012. Organizational changes are being made in the LEGO Group, aimed at the future growth of the company.
Product of the Year: A new line of LEGO Friends aimed at girls ages 5 to 8.
Official site: www.lego.com
Russian site: www.lego.com/ru-ru
Slogan: Play On
Just Imagine...
The most famous toy in the world, the dream of many little boys and girls - construction set lego appeared in Denmark, the kingdom of children's fairy tales, in the homeland of Hans-Christian Andersen. It seems that it was there, in a country with a magical atmosphere, with love for the world of childhood, that a wonderful designer was supposed to appear, they could come up with it and appreciate it. Wonderful invention - designer lego became a part of life in Denmark: there in 1968 was built Legoland- whole small world from 45 million cubes lego, where children go with pleasure and, with no less pleasure, adults. Constructor lego received numerous prizes and awards in different countries world, quite rightly it has been called one of the most important inventions of the 20th century.
lego- the most recognizable brand in the world of toys, was created in 1932 by Ole Kirk Christiansen, a carpenter from the small town of Billund in Denmark (Billund, Denmark). Ole Kirk Christiansen produced stepladders, stools, ironing boards and wooden toys in his small factory. The name of the company was received in 1934 from the phrase "LEg GОdt"- "play well" in Danish. Ole Kirk Christiansen announced a competition for the best name for the company among his employees and in a difficult competition he won it himself.
1978 Lego set
Since then, the name adorns all the company's products. From adolescence, his son, Gottfried (Godtfred), who later headed the company, also worked next to his father. Many can envy the boy’s “hard childhood”, since the age of 17 he has been fully devoting himself to modeling and manufacturing wooden toys. Later leadership Lego Group will be taken over by the founder's grandson Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen.
In 1949 lego begins production of "Automatically connected blocks" with four or eight ledges - you can already recognize the prototype of the future famous designer in them. In 1954, such bricks began to be called "LEGO bricks". The modern dice attachment system was patented later in 1958. In the same years, the company also developed its own "game system" - a certain set of basic and additional elements of the designer, which every year became more and more complicated. Transport figures, figures of people, then animals, many additional elements and many, many, many more cubes were added to the cubes later.
Form for stamping Lego bricks. Before being on display at Legoland California in August 2008, she stamped over 120 million pieces (legogod photo).
In 1973, the logo appears lego, which we know now, before that, products were produced under several logos, but the company's active entry into the international market led to the creation of a single mark recognizable in all countries. In 1998, a new, more concise version of the logo was created.
lego manufactures products for children different ages and adults are happy to fold not so primitive cubes. most famous series lego that's what it's called Lego or Lego system it is represented by many series: "City", "Castle", "Space", "Pirates", series dedicated to " Star Wars"and" Harry Potter ", etc. A series for young children is being produced - DUPLO and for the little ones Primo.
Have lego also a little known series Znap- it does not contain classic cubes, this series is most suitable for the construction of bridges, openwork ceilings. Series "Technic" equipped with more complex parts and suitable for robot lovers. Series Mindstorms offers to create not just your own robot, but also, using a computer module, program it at your discretion. Of course, this costs more effort and time than if you bought a ready-made robot, but the result exceeds all expectations.
Modern sets are much brighter than their predecessors. lego transport
Basis for success lego- its simplicity and versatility. Responding to the needs of its customers, constantly changing and improving lego has firmly taken its place in children's rooms, it is not boring with it and your imagination is practically unlimited. Small cubes can turn into any toy, any object, embody any fantasy, it all depends on the player. Receiving a box as a gift lego, the child receives a future, potential world, creating which he plays, learns, and develops at the same time. The only but significant drawback lego in the eyes of most buyers is the high cost of the designer, which is far from accessible to everyone.
Summary
LEGO is the most recognizable brand in the world of toys, was created in 1932 by Ole Kirk Christiansen, a carpenter from the small town of Billund, Denmark. Ole Kirk Christiansen produced stepladders, stools, ironing boards and wooden toys in his small factory. The company got its name in 1934 from the phrase "LEg GОdt" - "play well" in Danish. Ole Kirk Christiansen announced a competition for the best name for the company among his employees and, in a tough competition, he himself won it. Since then, the name adorns all the company's products. From adolescence, his son, Gottfried (Godtfred), also worked next to his father, later took over the company.
Many can envy the boy’s “hard childhood”, since the age of 17 he has been fully devoting himself to modeling and manufacturing wooden toys. Later, the leadership of the Lego Group will be taken over by the grandson of the founder, Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen.
Official site: www.lego.com/ru-ru
Story
Founder
Born into a poor farming family in Jutland (western Denmark). After learning the craft of a carpenter, in 1932 he founded a company for the production of items for everyday use, the main profit of which was brought by ironing boards and ladders. However, with the start financial crisis his business went into decline. Then, together with his son, Gottfried Kirk Christiansen, he took up the production of popular wooden cubes. Christiansen named the toy company LEGO, a combination of two Danish words -leg and godt (to play well). Since 1947, the cubes have become plastic and, in addition, have acquired pins, having the ability to connect with each other. This is how the first LEGO bricks were born. After the death of Ole Kirk Christiansen in 1958, his son Gottfried took over the company.
The history of the creation of the number one constructor began in 1932 in Denmark, Ole Kirk Christiansen, then a foreman of carpenters and a joiner, starts his own business and is engaged in the production of stairs, ironing boards and wooden toys. 17 years later, in 1949, the first plastic Lego brick was created.
The history of the LEGO company name is simple: it was coined by Kirk Christiansen based on the Danish phrase leg godt ("play with pleasure").The LEGO Group began making its first plastic toys in 1947, and the prototype of today's "bricks" was born in 1949 under the name Automatic Binding Bricks. The toys that today are associated with the LEGO name appeared in 1954-1958 and became one of the most popular children's entertainment in Europe in the late 50s. In 1969, the first set of the LEGO DUPLO series was released, in 1977 the LEGO TECHNIC series was released, and LEGO for newborns - LEGO PRIMO has been produced since 1995. In 1947 Ol Kirk and Godtfred (Ol Kirk Christiansen's son) received samples of "blocking" plastic bricks, manufactured by Kiddicraft. These cubes were designed and patented in the UK by Mr. Hilary Harry Fisher Page, child psychologist.
LEGO, the first in Denmark, buys a DKK 30,000 machine that processes plastic. Two years later, the company produces about 200 different types of plastic and wooden toys, including those self-attaching bricks - the forerunners of today's LEGO bricks. The factory covers an area of 2300 square meters. meters, and its staff is about 50 workers. In 1949, the LEGO company began producing its own similar bricks, made from cellulose acetate, inspired by traditional wooden blocks that could stack on top of each other and, most importantly, snap together. These cubes had several round "hats" and a hollow rectangular base, which allowed them to be attached to each other, but not so strongly. Since 1953, the bricks have been called "LEGO Mursten" ("Lego bricks"), and the LEGO company begins to export plastic products and the "LEGO Game System" (28 sets and 8 cars) to Sweden.
Using plastic to make toys retailers and the buyers of that time were not highly valued. Many shipments from the LEGO group were rejected and after poor sales it was thought that plastic toys could never replace wooden products. By 1954, Christiansen's son, Godtfred, became junior managing director of the LEGO Group. It is his active work on foreign market allowed the idea of the "Lego toy system" to be promoted. Godtfred saw great potential in Lego bricks (LEGO) as the basis for a creative play system, but the bricks still had some problems from a technical point of view: their ability to "grab" was limited, they were not Despite this, in 1956 the first representative office of the company was established in Hohenwesstadt, Germany.
Chronology
In 1932 the company was founded. Its founder was the Dane Ole Kirk Christiansen
In 1942, the factory burned down completely. But the Christiansen did not lose heart and after a couple of years they resumed production.
In 1947, the cubes began to be made of plastic, and at the same time, the parts acquired pins for connecting to each other. This is how the first “real”, in our understanding, LEGO constructor appeared.
In 1963, the material used to create LEGO bricks, cellulose acetate, was replaced by acrylonitrile (butadiene styrene), or ABS plastic, which is still used today. Lego bricks, made of plastic in 1963, still hold their shape and color 40 years later, and are just as meticulously bonded to Lego bricks made today.
In the period from 1966 to 1968, a network of LEGO trains appears. At the same time, a 4.5-volt motor was invented, and in 1969, a 12-volt motor. The company's products include 57 different sets and 25 machines. Lego production reaches 706 million pieces per year!
On June 7, 1968, the LEGOLAND park was opened, built on the territory of 59 hectares and so small Denmark. In the first season, 625 thousand people visited, and at the toy exhibition in Luxembourg, Lego takes first place.
Since 1970, Lego has been producing products for the LEGOLAND park, incl. trucks, police cars, etc. In Lego sets, gear wheels of different colors and sizes appear. Later, they will become the main item technical program LEGO. This year, the number of employees of the company reached 1,000 people.
In 1973, the LEGO logo that we know now appears - a white inscription in a red square, before that the products were produced under several logos, but the company's active entry into the international market led to the creation of a single sign recognizable in all countries.
In 1974, Lego figures appear - the LEGO family. This set is a huge success all over the world, comparable only to the success of the boys and girls series. In the same year, the presentation of the LEGO AG factory and store in Bar, Zug, Switzerland takes place. For the first time, Lego products are produced outside of Denmark. In 1992 this name will be changed to LEGO Produktion AG.
Since 1977, the main aspect of production has been the technical side - complex sets for older children have been produced. After 3 years, the "Educational Products Department" was founded, which in 1989 was renamed LEGO Dacta. The word "Dacta" comes from the Greek "didactic" and translates as "the study of the goals, means and content of learning as a pedagogical process." On February 21, 1989, American Professor Seymour Papert of the Laboratory for the Study of Computers as Learning Tools was appointed "Lego Professor of Learning Studies". Dr. Papert, together with the LEGO group, begins work on linking the LOGO programming language with Lego sets.
In 1986, a new Lego factory was opened in Brazil.
1996 - lego.com launched
In 1998, a new, more concise version of the logo was created.
2000 - The British Toy Sellers Association named the LEGO brick the most significant toy of the 20th century.
2011 - LEGO tookfifth place in a survey of 48,000 people from 15 major global regions in terms of trust in the company.
2013 - the transition of the numbering of LEGO sets to five-digit numbering (before that, 5 digits in the set number meant a high price and set size).
Production
All LEGO bricks are built to a specific standard with a high degree of precision (bricks made in 2013 can be matched with bricks made in 1958) that allows them to be put together without much effort. In addition, after connection, the parts must be securely attached to each other. To ensure these conditions, molds for stamping elements of the designer are produced with an accuracy of 10 microns.
The basis of production is injection molding machines, in which elements of the designer are stamped from multi-colored thermoplastics by injection (injection) under a pressure of 25-150 tons and a temperature of +232 ° C.The main production facilities of the company are located in Denmark, the Czech Republic and Mexico.The main plant in Billund (Denmark), where rows of machines stand in workshops up to half a kilometer long, churns out about 21 billion cubes a year. It takes about 60 tons of plastic per day. This LEGO factory covers an area of 6,000 square meters and employs 450 people.
The plant in Kladno (Czech Republic) produces 35-40% (over a million parts) of all the company's products, there is also a giant robotic warehouse, one of the largest in Europe, where orders are processed and products are sent to outlets worldwide.
Logo
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Current state
Designers have created so many themed collections that LEGO bricks have become a dream for both teenagers and structurally minded adults. From small plastic parts, you can assemble everything - from an orbital station to a treasure island. Today, LEGO is one of the most popular plastic construction and toy companies in the world. Lego rightfully bears the title of leader in the production of educational play sets. LEGO is a privately held company headquartered in Billund, Denmark. LEGO designs and manufactures products to develop children's creativity and imagination. The representative office of the LEGO Company in Russia and the CIS and Baltic countries was opened in 1996. The LEGO range is updated annually by 35-50%.
Today, the design of the long-awaited LEGO project has already been developed. HOUSE. Big LEGO house will be located in the heart of LEGO's hometown of Billund, Denmark. The building will have an area of 7600 square meters. The building resembles "giant LEGO bricks" that are stacked in such a way as to create a creative atmosphere both outside and inside.
The 30 meters high building will include 1900 sq.m. public plazas, cafes and restaurants, a shop, exhibition areas showcasing the "past, present and future of LEGO", rooftop gardens will be placed. Attendance is estimated at 250,000 people a year.
The company "BIG" the developer of the design project stated: We have designed a building that should show that the concept of "game" and Lego is the same concept. Hans Peter Vollmann, Head of Marketing at LEGO adds: "The creative use of the shape of the LEGO® bricks is correctly rendered in the design and shows what is at the heart of the LEGO game, so we think this is the right take on LEGO. HOUSE . And it just looks amazing."
Interesting Facts
Annually LEGO holds festivals for fans all over the world. The first tower built by fans in 1980 in England, was 13.1 meters high. In Russia, the tower was erected four times. The largest of them, 25 meters, assembled in the late 90s in Moscow, even got into the Guinness Book of Records. Today, the tower in the Chilean capital is considered the tallest Lego building. Santiago- 31 meters. It took three days and 550 thousand cubes to set the record.Interestingly, the number of cubes that annually migrate from store shelves to children's rooms can encircle the earth five times. Of course, having previously fastened them into one tape.
And by the 65th anniversary of the existence of the company in the constellation Ursa Minor appeared Star named LEGO. In the same year, 17-year-old Danish composer Frederik Magle wrote LEGO Symphonic Fantasy.
Reaching the moon 10 times is possible if you put all the cubes ever made one on top of the other.
2 thousandths of a millimeter is the accuracy of LEGO elements.
There are 4 Legoland parks in the world: in Denmark, Great Britain, USA and Germany.
There are 62 building blocks for every person on the planet.
36,000 LEGO pieces are produced per minute.
30.5 meters - the height of the tallest "LEGO"-tower.
Patents
