Montblanc

Kong
[Moderator]
7855

• Show profile
• Show other posts

A Quick Visit to Montblanc Le Locle

Not long ago, spent a day to visit Montblanc's two manufactories. 

I was pleased with the Le Locle plant as the preparations and processes are systematic and organised.
After witnessing the assembly of the Montblanc Star Nicolas Rieussec series which are performed in a dedicated room and by specially trained team, it changes my perspective about Montblanc Watchmaking and the Nicolas Rieussec too.

Please join me for the e-tour ....


Began the morning session to the Le Locle facility  and started off from Geneva at 7am.


Some pics along the long but comfortable cruise ...





About 8:30am we passed by the Lake Neuchatel...



Current location at 8:50am



At last a signage displaying our destination !

Entering Le Locle at 9:10am ...

Driving in to the birthplace of traditional Swiss watchmaking, Le Locle, which is about 1,000 metres above sea level.



The horological neighbourhood ...

Turning to the right ....


We arrived at Montblanc after slightly two hours.

The entrance was at the left end, but could not miss the opportunity to snap several pics of the century old, 1906 Art Nouveau  villa.


Wow! A light breeze swept by, it was really cold!

Felt my fingers stiffened and depressing the shuttle seemed a bit difficult for the first time




A fusion of the past and the present, with the manufacturing facility at the basement.





Back to the gates ...


And dashed to the entrance of the Villa ...

Fuel to start the day and warm the hands !


Two original pictures of the Villa from different perspectives ....





Interesting brass arcs (with numerals engraved) on the flooring of the floor of the villa signifying the flow of time ....


A few vintage pieces with the wording 'Montblanc' on dials ....









As we walked to another room, the brass arc seemed to be following us


The Montblanc emblem on the new lintel...


Our host for the day, Mr Olivier Schwarz..


The signage outside of the cosy 'Welcome Room' ....


Old tiles and parquet flooring of the yester-year still present ...


Moving up a floor.  Historical pictures of the brand and factories were mounted on the wall ....


The evolution of the Montblanc logo....


Pictures of some previous leaders at important landmark events using the iconic Montblanc Meisterstuck 149 fountain
pens to seal agreements...the pen is also known as the Diplomat.


Now you know why the Montblanc Meisterstuck  fountain pen-nibs are engraved with '4810'.


Some newer pictures ...


Reached the second floor ...




The SoulMakers, absolute luxury and style!


Let's tour the suite...

















Exiting from the suite, a showcase of some of Montblanc pieces...


A slideable magnifier was installed for closer viewing ...


Proceeding to -1 ...


Lovely decor ...preserving the tradition.

Observe the transition of time...the 'new road' is the added basement.

From the building picture (above), basement was newly created.



From 'manual knob door ' to the 'automatic sliding panel' ...


If I heard correctly, this is One of the art-piece of project Montblanc Cultural Foundation.  There are many creative pieces
installed in the villa but I missed out snapping them.

The Montblanc Cultural Foundation, established in 1998, works closely with the Hamburg Gallery of Contemporary Art.

Each year, one piece of work will be chosen by Montblanc.  Would be nice to see the pictures of the art-pieces from 1998
onwards.


First stop, the Design Group, the team which works on the 'form and function'.

Here we have the movement designer, showing us the Calibre MB R110  for the Rieussec.



The form - sketches of  many aesthetic designs...





Once a design is approved, it will be digitised using CAD ...


Next another material-engineer will go through the design, to verify if the construction of the case is robust and manufacturable,
taking into the consideration of material and various coatings used.

Here we were in for a treat.  The above cases looked similar but they were of different coatings.

The piece  on the right was DLC-coated while the other was PVD coated.
The difference between them is the hardness. 

A piece of metal ( did not ask what metal) was passed to me and  was asked to scratch the cases.

Lovely!  Dreamt of such trial-destruction for a long time, and the opportunity was here!!

The PVD lug (obviously the left piece) was scratched, using the same metal piece on the DLC case, no apparent scratch on it!!

Does it tell us that DLC is tougher than PVD?  Or just Montblanc's DLC?

More details of the Montblanc DLC Process posted by Mike :    please click here to read.



Later she also showed an experimental approach to surface aesthetic. 

Perhaps a tattoo watch? 

Also showed that Montblanc tried various materials on their watches.  A sample of the bracelet with a combination of
steel and ceramic links.


Next shown was a PVD bezel...



Curious at how the bezel clicked as it was turned ... snapshots of the reverse side of the bezel with the cut-out-keys.






Next to the Quality Control Division ....



The Quality Control Division may have more test equipments than the assembly division ranging from various measuring
equipment to water-tightness testers.



A dial manufactured by external vendor was checked by sampling from a batch before being accepted to be used
by Montblanc using a vision system. 



Dial on test-fixture ...



Besides the cosmetic was checked, key dimensions were measured to ensure precise fitting with the case and movement.



Components which passed the Incoming Quality verification are stored in plastic cases (as they are very small) and
placed into the KARDEX automatic retriever.



Some movements awaiting to be tested  ...

I am impressed with the how well organised the Incoming Quality Division.  Besides the well-documented Standard
Operating Procedures (SOP), they also have controlled sets of samples which SOP could not effectively covered, especially
the cosmetic of the dials.

Montblanc and the dial-makers work together to agree upon the criterias for acceptance.  Some parts of cosmetic is
qualitative and subjective and not as straight-forward as dimensions.

Every dials, two sets of controlled-samples are made. One set with Montblanc and another with the vendor dial-maker.



Here are some of the controlled samples, properly organized ...


Observed a seal (with controlled number)  was attached to this Rieussec dial ...



Another one for the Montblanc Sport Chronograph Automatic ..



Next, a complete set of sub-assemblies by family are also kept !






A closer view ...



A few pics of a working sampe of the Rieussec ...
 







After the Quality Division, we proceeded to the next unit, and came across this showcase ...



A showcase to illustrate the different leathers & materials used for the watches ...



A galuchat strap...


The full piece of the stingray ...



Mother of pearl ...the cavities were cut-out used for dials...





Before entering the next unit ....

we were required to put on an overall ...


and shoe-covers ...


Ready to enter the assembly room ...


Greeted by two rare pieces of 'time-writer'  by Nicolas Rieussec ...





Then we entered into a special room, dedicated to assemble the Montblanc Star Nicolas Rieussec Chronographs !

A small showcase was installed to show the various components and sub-assemblies of the Nicolas Rieussec calibres ...



The balance assembly ...



The actual ..



Components from the dial-side ...



and for comparison.



This dedicated room housed less than a dozen of watchmakers...









Looking closer, there is a miniature assembly-line beneath the table ...


Specific components are placed according to the process flow.

After placing the components, with a press of a button, the completed piece will lower and slide forward and the
next piece to be worked will load up.


All completed calibres will be checked by the senior watchmakers.

If the condition of the calibre is not to the standard of the senior watchmakers, he will troubleshoot and disassemble fully
to tackle the issue.






In this room, there are a few machines which handles the precise processes which ensure the smooth running
of the calibres assembled.

This machine is auto-oiling machine which can apply accurate amount of oils onto the jewels or endstones.



The amount of oil to deposit is programmable.


The automated oiler in action (but without the calibres), just a test-run to show us the operation of the machine.


The engretest, used to check individual pairs of gears, which affect torque transmission.

The fixture to hold the movement under test.

 
Another auto-oil dropper specifically for the oil cup of the jewel bearing.



After dropping the oil, the quality of drop  (darker purple circle) could be viewed on the vision system.  Above was a reject
as the oil drop was not in the centre.


This is a good,  as the drop is concentric.



The tip of the oil dispenser above.



The above is a WTM ( Watch Test Mechanics), used to check variation of amplitude and the instantaneous
rate of the balance and spiral.



Another equipment which inspects tolerance of the interference between the pallet forks and teeth of the wheel which
affects the draw.


If the tolerance is out, adjustment will be done with another special tool.


After this, we left the "Nicolas Rieussec Room" to the neighbouring main assembly hall which all Montblanc watches
are assembled ...



Putting the dials onto one of the Star Nicolas Rieussec models...

The arrangement is in island-form.  Each island consists of four people and the team handles only the specific model
till completion.





Casing for paved diamond bezel Star Nicolas Rieussec model.


The completed pieces ...

Visual check  (under loupe) to ensure no aesthetic defect/s.



A closer view.



Preparing to encase the calibres....


This station is for hands-placement ...


A clip showing how the hands were placed ...

Encasing completed.

The Supervisor in charged, Mr Daniel also informed, all pieces assembled in his division are thoroughly checked and
tested for the rate and water-resistance.

And it just pasted noon time. 

On the way to the Villeret plant next.




Thanks to the Montblanc Le Locle team for patiently guiding us through the plant and explaining the process.


Kong







Related Posts :

Don's Visit to Le Locle Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Site Info.