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HOROLOGICAL NEWS
GPHG UNVEILS 2018 PRE-SELECTION
he jury of the 2018 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) has named its watch
pre-selection on its gphg.org website. The 72 pre-selected watches, divided into twelve
categories, are competing to win one of the sixteen prizes that annually salute the year’s
finest watches. This 18th edition of the GPHG has attracted record participation with
representatives from all the major watch groups, as well as a number of independent brands. The
winners will be announced Friday, November 9th, in Geneva. To see the watches prior to the event,
the 2018 GPHG roadshow kicked off in Venice on September 28th. Then the 72 pre-selected watches
will f ly to Hong Kong for display October 10-11, then to Singapore (October 17-21). Upon returning
to Geneva, the 72 watches will take up residence in the Palatine rooms of the Musée d’Art et
d’Histoire (MAH) from November 1st to 14th, where the GPHG will organize an exhibition dedicated
to watchmaking art and culture, with the support of several local institutions.
T
IWC OPENS NEW MANUFACTURING FACILITY
IWC THIS FALL OPENED A NEW MANUFACTURING FACILITY NEAR ITS SCHAFFHAUSEN,
Switzerland, headquarters that for the first time in the company’s history combines
movement and case production into one facility.
The 13,500-square-meter facility, which took twenty-one months to build, will house 238
workstations with room for up to 400.
IWC will produce more than 1,500 watch components at the sleek, energy efficient one-
story building, including components for the automatic movements of caliber families 52
and 82, the manual-wind movements of caliber family 59 and the chronograph movements
of caliber family 69. The facilities are set to allow the full range of movement components to
be manufactured, including bottom plates, bridges and oscillating weights, as well as small
components including switching levers, springs and latching elements.
“The entire process of creating value, from the raw material to the
individual movement component and on to the finished manufacture movement progresses
in a logical order in a single story,” explains IWC COO Andreas Voll. “The close proximity
of the offices and the production facilities also facilitates communication and allows the
different departments to coordinate more quickly. I have been dreaming of this ever since I
started at IWC back in 2007.”
The basement of the new manufacture houses the case production department where
IWC will make its stainless steel, titanium, platinum, red gold, white gold and bronze
watch cases.
Visitors will also enjoy the new facility as IWC has created a touring path throughout. The
various watchmaking steps are clearly illustrated on information
boards and on tables that have been specially set up for the purpose. Watch enthusiasts can
even try their hand at adding circular graining to movement components or setting stones.
14 | INTERNATIONAL WATCH | FALL 2018
iWMAGAZINE .COM