The strength of Roger Dubuis is to be a fully integrated Manufacture. It is just 17 years ago that Roger Dubuis entered the world of Haute Horlogerie. In that time it has become fully accepted and its talent and daring widely acknowledged.
The company was founded in 1995 following a meeting between the talented master watchmaker, Roger Dubuis and the adventurous designer and entrepreneur, Carlos Dias. Since then it has risen to the highest levels of the art of watchmaking. Its dynamism quickly made a strong impression on the world of fine watchmaking, creating extraordinary watches that displayed a fine balance of traditional expertise and avant-garde design. The company soon required a new structure that was able to support its impressive expansion and in 2008 joined the Richemont group.
The movements have always been at the heart of the company’ s developments in style and technique. Their special features and hand finishes are evidence of their exclusive, in-house production. And the ability to produce virtually all components in-house − including the spring balance − is an assurance of quality, responsiveness and independence. Roger Dubuis has chosen to produce all the components of its movements because this encourages creativity and gives it total control. More than 30 movements are produced and decorated entirely by hand to meet the new technical, aesthetic and performance requirements of the Geneva Seal hallmark. Roger Dubuis today is the only watchmaker whose total production is certified by this hallmark. Because it produces all its own movements, it is important to submit them, particularly the chronometers, for external certification.
Since it was founded, Roger Dubuis has also designed, developed and produced 5 chronograph movements that are real works of art with a unique structure. Certain movements contain more than 600 parts that are checked at each stage of production, both for dimensional accuracy and for appearance. These parts are produced industrially and finished individually by hand to functional tolerances often measured in microns. After assembly by the watchmakers, each mechanical movement undergoes one week of checking its precision and the perfect adjustment of its functions. This is followed by two weeks of rigorous testing by an independent body, the Official Swiss Chronometer Control, in order to receive its COSC certification. Once back at the Manufacture, the certified movement is cased-up before going through two more weeks of in-house testing. Starting in June 2012, each watch will undergo a further week of tests required for certification with the Geneva Seal hallmark. From the production of the components to the Geneva Hallmark certification, it normally takes 4 – 7 months for a Roger Dubuis watch to be released for sale. Geneva Seal This highly prestigious hallmark is an official guarantee issued by the Canton of Geneva to those few manufacturers who choose to submit their watches to the very strict Geneva Seal requirements. It certifies that the mechanical movement of the watch has been made by hand, assembled and regulated in Geneva. In 2011, its 125th anniversary, the Geneva Seal certification was extended to apply to the complete watch: in addition to the 12 historical criteria for the movement, two more were introduced that relate to the watch’s external parts and its performance. For Roger Dubuis, the seal is essential evidence of its dedication to excellence, which probably explains why it is the only watch manufacturer whose entire production is made to Geneva Seal standards. A guarantee of exclusivity: of the 20 million watches produced in Switzerland each year, only 24,000 are hallmarked with the Geneva Seal. A guarantee of performance: each watch is individually checked so that its functionality, water-resistance and precision can be certified. A guarantee of provenance: the hallmark certifies that the mechanical movement has been assembled, cased and regulated in the canton of Geneva. A guarantee of expertise: every component in each part of the movement is individually finished and decorated by hand in the spirit of the traditional Geneva watchmaking crafts. A guarantee of durability: the meticulous finishing applied to the movement’s components helps to reduce friction that ensures exceptional durability. The materials used and the techniques of production give the movement a virtually unlimited service life.
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