WatchProSite|Market|Digest
WatchProSite|Market|Digest

Roger Dubuis

Part II: Finishing

 

Every Roger Dubuis movement bears the Geneva Seal. A few years ago that did not mean much, for despite having the seal Roger Dubuis watches often suffered from quality control issues. Now that has changed. Under Richemont ownership management has made sure that the spirit, and not just the letter, of the Geneva Seal is adhered to.

 

Fine finishing at Roger Dubuis is performed assembly line style, with each step of finishing being broken down into smaller steps, giving rise to extreme specialisation amongst the craftsmen who do the finishing. A lever for instance, is finished in multiple steps: the faces and various edges are each finished by different craftsmen along the line.

 

 

 

 

Above: Flat polishing a steel part

 

Although parts are worked on in an assembly line style, they are still laboriously finished by hand. Despite their sometimes distracting aesthetics, Roger Dubuis movements are all very well finished, especially compared to its competitors in the segment of oversized, high-end watches.

 

Below: Polishing the teeth of a wheel

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As a personal observation, though I regard the finishing of Roger Dubuis movements highly, some of the movement parts can be revised to better show off the high level of finish. Certain aspects of a few calibres can be made more elaborate, like the arms of tourbillon cage for instance which can be less flat. No doubt they were designed in this way for efficient manufacturing and assembly but they can be improved.

 

Below: Roger Dubuis Excalibur Double Tourbillon

 

 

 

Below: Bevelling of outer edges; inner edge bevelling is shown further below

 

 

 

 

 

 

Below: Bevelling of inner edges

 

 

 

 

 

This message has been edited by SJX on 2010-10-16 10:12:55

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A visit to Manufacture Roger Dubuis in Geneva

 
By: SJX : October 16th, 2010-09:16
A visit to Manufacture Roger Dubuis By Su Jia Xian (SJX) The trajectory Roger Dubuis has taken in its 15 years is remarkable. Founded in 1995 by Carlos Dias, Roger Dubuis started out as a maker of makers in the classic Geneva style – with a twist. Movemen...  

Part I: Parts production

 
By: SJX : October 16th, 2010-09:16
Roger Dubuis is almost wholly self-sufficient in terms of movements. From movement concept to design and production, everything is done at the manufacture. Several dozen machines sit on the ground level, milling, turning, grinding and drilling the various...  

Part II: Finishing

 
By: SJX : October 16th, 2010-09:17
Every Roger Dubuis movement bears the Geneva Seal. A few years ago that did not mean much, for despite having the seal Roger Dubuis watches often suffered from quality control issues. Now that has changed. Under Richemont ownership management has made sur...  

Part III: Assembly

 
By: SJX : October 16th, 2010-09:17
After the parts are finished, those that require plating are sent to another facility for that, before being returned and sent upstairs for assembly. Dials, hands and cases are obtained from suppliers. The assembly area is quiet and well lit with a parque...  

Part IV: Redesigning the collection

 
By: SJX : October 16th, 2010-09:17
To clean up the aesthetics of the brand, Richemont hired Lionel Favre, formerly head of design at Chopard (coincidentally Favre’s successor at Chopard is Guy Bove, who was head designer at IWC). Favre has tweaked the look of nearly every single model in t...  

Thanks JX

 
By: DaMctosh : October 18th, 2010-06:31
What a beautiful manufacture. I think RD makes some of the nicest perpetuals; perhaps they could consider doing a few Hommage pieces for some like the in-line perpetual (1429). I suppose to each his own but I prefer the older designs.

Part V: The future

 
By: SJX : October 16th, 2010-09:18
Part V: The future In three to five years, Roger Dubuis aims to raise its output to a respectable, but still small, 6000 to 9000 pieces annually. Its current production is unknown, but I am sure it is a fraction of 6000. The brand has a sizeable boutique ...  

PLEASE BRING BACK THE OLD SYMPATHIE

 
By: Hororgasm : October 16th, 2010-13:15
great report mate, any ideas on their current production? are they doing stuff for other richemont companies(one would assume so).

Cartier flying tourbillon are made in Roger Dubuis factory BUT

 
By: SJX : October 16th, 2010-23:24
in a floor owned by Cartier and run by Cartier staff who came over from La Chaux-de-Fonds. There is no official statement on this, but I believe the Roger Dubuis part of the factory does work for other Richemont brands also. - SJX

Thanks for the detailed post.

 
By: dxboon : October 17th, 2010-00:27
While the pieces from Roger Dubuis are not my taste generally, it is good to see new developments taking place. Style-wise they are a little too in your face for me! I guess I'm not confident enough a watch wearer for their pieces. Cheers, Daos

Thanks SJX

 
By: aldossari_faisal : October 17th, 2010-02:12
Very interesting report , im staying tuned for the future of RD , personally i NEVER liked their recent past . Faisal

Thanks SJX for the report

 
By: E.S : October 17th, 2010-04:38
Interesting report, but I still like the old design, especially the Easy diver. Just my 2cent Thanks for sharing Best, eddy

Thanks so much for the good news!

 
By: SteveG : October 16th, 2010-11:56
Very nice visit and pictures, I am glad to notice that Richemont seems to be a good fit for a brand that always had so much promise.

Thanks for the report, SJX!

 
By: NickO : October 16th, 2010-12:42
I'll go on record and say I much prefered the three original Diaz designs from the comparisons you showed here. I wonder how others will feel and if the new designs really will prove the more popular? Best, njo2002

Thanks a lot SJX for this comprehensive report !

 
By: foversta : October 16th, 2010-12:52
Now we wish the best for the brand future after these difficult times. Fr.Xavier

Thank you for an interesting post.................

 
By: Topcat30093 : October 17th, 2010-04:06
Having just returned from visiting another manufacture, I was at least able to recognise a number of the processes required to create and assemble such timpieces.

Thanks SJX for the insight into RD

 
By: ling5hk : October 18th, 2010-17:56
I just hope RD will produce more smaller diameter watches. RD can be as good as Patek, may be even better. Regards Ling

Very interesting to see the state of RD today

 
By: AndrewD : October 19th, 2010-04:03
Thanks SJX both for the photos and the insightful essay. In some was Dias has left a great legacy. Certainly something that can be built upon again. Do you have any idea what Carlos Dias is doing now? Let's hope the company continues to make unique qualit... 

So we can expect ...

 
By: AndrewD : October 19th, 2010-14:35
... some big, bold wine styles, eye-catching names and labels, and targetted high-end marketing? He seems like the sort of man who would be successful at marketing anything. I wish him luck. Andrew