r eports
Milling a component to +/- two microns
decorating a main plate with perlage
Laser engraving the main plate with the insignia of the manufacture
Final assembly of the in-house movement Calibre 61
screws are blued in the manufacture by hand and individually A beautifully hand engraved balance bridge
sunburst decoration on a gear wheel
Glashütte original practises a flat polishing technique using tin
of nine key parts, the disc for the ones from zero to nine is driven by a kinked 10-toothed wheel and that for the tenths from zero to three, a Maltese cross. The manufacture also houses the usual suspects: A laboratory for electroplating, a pre-assembly workshop, final assembly workshop, finishing and decoration studios, haute horlogerie atelier, and a restoration department. Yet one of the most fascinating aspects of Glashütte Original is a tiny, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it component. In accordance with Saxony watchmaking tradition, the movements are assembled with blued screws and gold chatons. Instead of automating the process, Glashütte Original manually blues all its blued screws. Each and every screw is carefully placed on a sintering iron and it turns from silver to yellow and then brown, followed by purple and finally blue. Experience of the operator, however, is paramount here, as the screws should be taken off the iron neither too early nor too late. According to Kranz, overheated screws cannot be used because the inherent properties of the material would have been altered.
CHerisHing tHe pAst
Just a short distance from the Glashütte Original manufacture is the German watchmaking museum and watchmaking academy. Opened in 2008, this 1,000-sq m historical building is the original site of the first watchmaking school in Glashütte and now displays more than 400 unique exhibits over two floors. Telling the story of German – 62
more precisely, Saxony – watchmaking is no easy feat considering it stretches back to the early 19th century and that this industry underwent some tumultuous times. The museum, thus, engages visitors with the help of modern technology. Whether it is to explain watchmaking terminology or to re-enact scenes from the past, a host of multimedia tools were used to tell the most accurate account. The museum is composed of Historical Rooms, which establish the chronological context, and Time Rooms, which are focused on the intricacies of watchmaking. In particular, the museum, as well as Glashütte Original, honours the contributions of four prominent figures who have contributed to the industry in their own ways: Ferdinand Adolph Lange (the visionary), Julius Assmann (the technical genius), Adolf Schneider (the entrepreneur), and Moritz Grossmann (the teacher). These were the brilliant minds that laid the foundation of watchmaking in Saxony. Going through the rooms, visitors get a full account of the ups and downs of watchmaking in this small town, from the heydays to the trying times during World War II, and finally into the new millennium. Glashütte Original’s unique story is inextricably linked to the history of Saxony, and indeed, Germany. This sterling manufacture today is an amalgamation of dozens of milestones, each one as symbolic and effectual as the next. A whole that is unquestionably greater than the sum of its parts, Glashütte Original is German watchmaking at its very purest.