Rolex Proposes Expansion in Bulle
Rolex presently employs around 14,000 people worldwide, 9000 of them in Switzerland. The proposed expansion in Bulle, situated in the Swiss canton of Fribourg, is estimated to increase that number by 2000 employees.
The new campus is slated to be finished in 2029. In the interim, Rolex has taken over a Tetrapak factory in Romont to augment production. Once outfitted, the former Tetrapak facility will employ 250-300 people, who will move to the Bulle campus upon its completion.
Linked article in German (English translation).
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"General Purpose"
Marathon Watches wrangles collaboration with Jeep.
Both companies have served up military-spec, general-purpose wares for decades. While the tale may be apocryphal, it is said that the name Jeep is derived from the abbreviated shorthand for the general-purpose specification: GP.
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Ceralume
An experimental, glow-in-the-dark ceramic from IWC.
While not nearly as robust as zirconium oxide, standard-issue Super-LumiNova is, itself, also a ceramic. The fusion of the two materials is interesting. While I doubt the glow is nearly as strong as pure Super-LumiNova, if the tech progresses well it would be interesting to see it applied to bezel markings, dial indices, and hands.
At the Bench With Remy Cools
Independent watchmaker Remy Cools and his first and currently only employee, Clémence Thériat, interviewed by Business Insider in a video that provides an insightful look inside his atelier as well as some of the processes and approaches that he and Thériat apply in crafting the tourbillon wristwatches he designed.
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Antoine Simonin Has Passed Away
Co-founder of the Watchmakers of Switzerland Training and Education Program (WOSTEP) and arguably the world's most pre-eminent publisher and purveyor of horological books, Antoine Simonin has had an indelible and far-reaching impact on the world of horology.
Clarity Over Complication
Arnaud Chastaingt, Director of the Chanel Watchmaking Creation Studio, in conversation with Hervé Borne of Worldtempus:
There’s nothing worse than going round in circles with your so-called DNA and constantly reliving the past. This attitude shows a lack of respect. Freedom of creation was always one of Gabrielle Chanel’s primary values. You can’t dwell on the past; it doesn’t work. Goethe’s phrase: “Make a better future with the expanded elements of the past” is an excellent summary.