2006 TZ Tour Day 5 - Glashütte Original Page 2

2006 TimeZone Tour

Day 5 - Visit to Glashütte Original

by Michael Sandler

May 2007

The first stop on our tour of the manufacture was the tooling department. This group consists of approximately 20 employees whose primary function is to create tools and devices to be used by the watchmakers.

Here Dr. Müller explains the Prototyping process. Screens like this exist at a number of different places in the building, and help to explain the various production steps. Again, evidence of how the company aims to communicate with their customers and fans who visit the factory.

Display cases like this one can also be found throughout the building, each one demonstrating one or more steps in the production process.

Here we see "Swan neck" springs which have been cut out using spark erosion. Spark erosion is a manufacturing technique which allows for the production of small and complex parts to extremely fine tolerances. As I understand it, this entire process is carried out in distilled water, using a continuously moving fine wire as the cutting tool. The wire is electrically charged and brought very close to the metal although it never actually touches it. The electricity running through the wire produces an intense light, which cuts the metal without damaging or bending its surface.

Some views of the production area.

This machine is used to stamp out metal parts as an alternative to the spark erosion method described above. Spark erosion is the more commonly used and more flexible method..

A clock in the workshop!

Here we see another of the displays, this one documenting the cutting of movement plates. Tolerances here are incredibly fine, and are expected to be within 0.001 millimeters.

Some machines, like this one, are run three shifts a day in order to meet production demand.

A tray of movement plates. The apparatus at the right of the image is used to check that drillings in the plates have the proper depth and width.

This machine is used to create the engravings (text, etc.) on the movement plates.

As we move to the next area of the factory, a view of the center atrium from the second floor.

Another display case, this one showing some of the parts created in the Turning department

Raw materials for production. These rods are used to produce many different round parts (wheels, etc.).

Here Dr. Müller explains the "rolling" process, which is used to harden and polish pinions. The diagram he is holding shows all the specifications related to that specific pinion. Glashütte Original manufactures and finishes even the screws used in their movements. The smallest screw produced here is 0.35mm in diameter. All the parts produced here are used by Glashütte Original...none are sold to other companies.

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