Chopard - 3,000 movements made each year
Tribune des Arts - No315 - October 2003
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At a time when each major watchmaking brand is seeking to develop its own movements, Chopard is well ahead with its workshops in Fleurier: 6,000 m2 with a current workforce of over 70 people. Started six years ago by the visionary Karl-Friedrich Scheufele, this manufactury now produces five different calibres with 13 variants including a tourbillon. A real achievement, given the difficulties and the costs incurred in the development of just one movement.
"We're moving slowly, one step at a time, without cutting corners", explains Karl-Friedrich Scheufele who recalls that he started out with two technicians from Geneva, joining forces with Michel Parmigiani who had settled in Fleurier.
It was therefore somewhat by accident that Chopard established a foothold in this peaceful village of the Neuchâtel Jura, a stone's throw from Sainte-Croix.
"To begin with, we rented a workshop in a building belonging to the Swatch Group," Karl-Friedrich Scheufele remembers. "It had been built in 1904 for the "Ebauches Fleurier" company and then grew in the 1960s, to the great displeasure of the village's inhabitants as it was the highest in the commune. By the time we arrived, it had long been closed down and each floor was being rented out to different craftsmen. We bought it from Nicolas Hayek in 2000 and have embarked on a complete renovation of it, floor by floor. Which shows just how much spare space there is for us to develop".
The pinnacle of mechanics
"ISO 9001" certified, thereby guaranteeing a coherent structure, the Chopard manufactory at Fleurier is continuously developing. At present, it manufactures around 3000 "L.U.C." movements each year ("L.U.C." stands for Louis Ulysse Chopard) reserved for high-end watches engraved with the Chopard signature, in tandem with other activities such as casing or the after-sales service subcontracted to it by its parent company in Geneva. The Fleurier manufactory is essentially an independent profit centre within the family group.
However, its backbone still remains the design and development of top-class mechanical movements, the majority of which even bear the famous "Poinçon de Geneve" quality hallmark, which sets particularly high standards. It is therefore a formidable feat to have managed, in six years, to develop and manufacture so many movements because nowadays, apart from the screws and wheels, imposing state-of-the-art machines produce each element on site.
"Each part is cut rather than stamped, partly because we only produce in small series and partly because it gives us enormous flexibility to respond rapidly to different market demands," explains Karl-Friedrich Scheufele.
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