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Sometimes the Little Old Watchmaker Has Circuitry

by:Gewinn     2020-06-07
Newcastle, Switzerland-
After work, there was still something stirring when the WEEE Claret factory, located high in the neuch tel mountains, was dark.
In the 19 th century Manor, there was a new wall
Gothic tapestries and Masters-
Painting in style, the ground floor of the workshop is filled with low mechanical hum.
It\'s from 16-
The Axel robot is equipped with more than 144 tools to create a complex watch case for Mr.
A complex clock of red wine. “The 16-
The shaft robot performs all the milling and turning to produce our three-
3D case \".
Red wine, the brand\'s founder, said in an interview in Geneva.
\"There\'s nothing more than this 16-
Half-axis robots anywhere in the watch industry
There are only five axles in standard.
\"At a time when the world\'s human labor force is still trying to determine whether artificial intelligence applications and automation will disrupt social stability, or just bring room service orders faster, the Swiss watch industry has the same disagreement.
Some watchmakers still operate manually.
Some people are hesitant to talk about their automated operations: they prefer to continue the story of an old watchmaker leaning over the workbench.
Others, however, are proud of them: \"We use the country-of-the-
The art and technology of making clocks in Swiss watch tradition . \"Claret said.
\"There is no contradiction between the two.
\"There is a machine like this, which is a laser flashlight.
Inspired by people used in the aerospace industry, red wines designed and produced can be adjusted to perform what he calls \"micro-manipulation\" of tiny components \".
For example, it is used to produce small glass pieces of 11 sep, all of which are customized
Cut, this is needed in X-Trem-Please note, Sir.
Red Wine launched in 2012.
\"Our flash cutting laser completed the task of the standard electrical laser in 72 hours in four hours,\" Mr. Claret said.
\"This machine can adjust itself and work on elements that are too small for manual intervention.
It allows us to create complex situations that are difficult to do by hand. ”Mr.
He founded his own factory in 1989 and launched his own watch brand in 2009.
He produces about 100 complex clocks a year and is considered the most complex in the industry.
In 2012, he set up an independent engineering division, the project of the WEEE Claret, in part to work with BC technology in Le Locle, Switzerland, to produce the robots he uses in the factory. In Mr.
In the eyes of red wine, the robot can allow his workers to focus on the details of high-grade clocks.
The robot does not mind repetitive tasks, and with proper programming, multiple tasks can be performed at the same time, responding to irregular situations or detecting defects.
If a fault occurs, the engineer can intervene online at home.
\"Robots serve human beings . \"Claret said.
\"We assemble and finish by hand, but we do many other tasks with these machines because they don\'t go wrong unlike humans.
30 years ago, when Japanese Seiko Epson first used robots on its quartz watch production line, he used a prescient slogan: \"One day, all watches
However, it was not until 2013 that the first mechanical watch was fully assembled by a robot.
Swatch\'s sister 51, which was shown on Baselworld that year, was in 65-without human intervention-foot-
A clean long assembly line
Room environment.
Therefore, it marks a milestone in the history of mechanical tabulation.
Consisting of 51 components
Half of traditional mechanical watches --
The price is $150.
However, it cannot be repaired because it is sealed by the factory.
Since then, automation has been high in various ways. Terminal watchmaker
The Italian brand Officine Panerai, founded in 1860, is easy to admit that robots help upgrade its production, especially since 2014-
Opened 107,600-square-foot state-of-the-
Art Factory in newchetel.
\"From a philosophical point of view, this modern manufacturing helps to achieve two goals, innovation and
Panerai\'s chief executive, Angelo Bonati, since 2000, said in an interview on February: \"quality production. (A few days ago, Sir.
Bondi announced his retirement; Jean-
Former chief executive Marc Pontroué of Roger Dubuis will take office on April 1. )
\"Today, it is out of place to show a clock manufacturer that the use of metal files is inappropriate . \"Bonati said.
\"We must tell the truth.
Some operations are still manual, but we mainly use cutting.
An edge machine that implements the results we need.
Panerai, which produces 80,000 watches a year, develops, assembles and manufactures its own movements.
\"We have an industrial fleet of about 15 degrees Celsius. N. C.
\"The machines are all made in Switzerland and meet our specifications and we will update them regularly,\" said jéréme Cavadini, manufacturing director at Panerai . \".
We also have smart robots. ” (C. N. C.
Computer numerical control-
According to Mr. , machines that perform pre-programmed command sequences
Cavadini has been in manufacturing for about 30 years. )
Another robot, designed a 24
The foot swivel arm manufactured by Mitsubishi Motors can perform a series of complex functions to verify the timing performance of the Panerai movement.
\"This robot can wrap each action around six different locations and check its performance without interruption until the limit of power reserves, which can be 10 days . \"Cavadini said.
\"It can test accuracy, detect faults and record performance at locations that simulate human wrist movements.
\"It can even work on weekends, so when the watchmaker returns to the factory on Monday, the machine has completed the timing control they need to start assembling immediately.
\"The robot can also save the performance history of each action to the database and record the information of each component . \"Cavadini said.
Since the robot has completed the performance test and data registration, Panerai can look up the complete pre-set of the watch
Sales history when it is presented for service.
\"Our next goal is to connect historical data with the\" life experience \"of the watch after sales ,\"Cavadini said.
\"But we haven\'t arrived yet.
While increasing mechanization often results in less manpower, Panerai says it has actually doubled the size of the team --
From 250 employees in 2010 to 135.
Some employees now perform tasks that didn\'t exist before, such as programming and maintaining machines.
Still, Panerai has had to take steps to alleviate the anxiety of workers, including ensuring that the noise levels of the machine do not exceed the standard and holding a meeting to answer questions.
Also, \"we made a video to explain the functionality of the robot and show our employees that they have nothing to fear ,\"Cavadini said.
\"Today, one of our watchmakers is also a programmer for timing robots.
Even Richard Mille uses a degree of automation, although the company produces only 4,600 watches a year --
The number of its 60 models is small.
At 2013, the watchmaker opened a 32,000-square-
Located in the foot manufacturing plant of Les Breuleux, Jura, Switzerland.
The site, which includes factory ProArt, is dedicated to the production of Mille shells, moving substrates, bridges and other components. There, a state-of-the-art nine-
Tons of milling machines operated by an engineer make complex shells and produce microscopic components.
\"The accuracy of the parts produced by our machine is micron . \"
Miller said in an interview.
\"Or we use them to make prototypes. ”Mr.
Tonneau of Milleshaped cases —made in high-
Scientific and technological materials including grade 5 titaniumT. P. T. (
North thin layer technology)
Carbon, carbon nanotubes, ceramicsZ. P. (
Polycrystal of four directions zirconium)—
Special processing technology that only machines can provide is required.
Nevertheless, for a brand that produces a small number of diverse designs, Mr.
Miller admits that investing heavily in high-tech is economically meaningless. tech machinery.
\"Economically, our factory has adapted to our own particular business model,\" he said . \"
\"These machines enable us to fully implement the diversity and uniformity of components.
Nevertheless, where aesthetics works, human hands, eyes, and experience are necessary.
\"There is a limit to high use
Precision machines, this is the need for artistic finishing . \"Mille said.
\"I like to do different types of polishing on the watch, satin, matte finish or on the polished interior, where we have to intervene manually.
Although not all watchmakers have the means or desire to invest heavily in modern production methods,Mille and Mr.
Red wine is one of the few people who do this and think it gives them a competitive advantage.
\"Modern tabulation is a shuttle between modern and traditional . \"Mille said.
\"We have 1 feet in the 21 st century and 19 th century.
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