KATR was founded in 1991. It was established by auctioning off (in a small privatization) the sawmill in Stará Ves near Rýmařov, which at that time already had more than a hundred years of tradition in lumber production. This original sawmill was founded in 1885 by the owner of the local estate, Count Harrach (František Arnošt Maria Alfred Count Harrach of Rohrau and Thannhausen) on the site of a former paper mill.
The introduction of two-shift operation, gradual investments and technological innovations have led to significant economic results.
Due to the favourable economic situation, the owners of the company decided to strengthen their self-sufficiency and expand their range of services, so in 1994 they participated in a large privatisation, when they gradually began to buy shares in the forest company SILVA SERVIS, which was their strategic supplier of sawlogs. This move was necessary to ensure stability, the possibility of increasing the supply of the main raw material and consolidating the company's position among lumber producers.
In 1996, the sawmill industry was in a major crisis. All of the company's financial resources were subsequently used to purchase shares in SILVA SERVIS. With the takeover of SILVA SERVIS in 1998, sawmill log resources were increased.
Thus, by the end of 2003, KATR gradually purchased 99.5% of the shares and in 2004 took over the assets of the forestry company SILVA SERVIS.
As a result, the company KATR was established, which currently has its own sawmill with an adjusting line, lumber drying plants and forest nurseries with high seedling production thanks to modern foil nurseries with controlled irrigation. Furthermore, it has a network for the management of tendered forest units (from Stará Ves, Janovice, Ruda, Šternberk, Krnov and Karlov pod Pradědem), harvester and forwarder logging technology, a mechanisation centre for the repair of its own trucks and cars, which also provides service for foreign entities, a fuel filling station, which is also open to the public, and last but not least, administrative facilities at the company's headquarters.
The headquarters of KATR is located in North Moravia in the Bruntál district, near the town of Rýmařov in the village of Stará Ves.