Folks, Does anyone know how Omega used to produce their watches. Ie did they just work on Speedmasters for a few months, and then make a production run of Connies, or Geneva?

Reason i ask is that i have just got back 2 Extract of the Archives, and i have 2 watches that were produced less that 19 days apart, but have serial numbers 2.2 million different?

Cheers paul

 

Also, they're different calibres, and different watch models. So I think that tells us that they were producing both models at the same time. I would also assume that each model would be serialized independently... at least I think that's what you were asking.

 

Thanks guys. I guess i,m trying to get an appreciation of how many staff Omega had working just on assembling their watches - i foolishly thought that they made 2.2 million watches in 19 days !!!

Cheers paul

 

When I read the title I thought you were job hunting...

 

Me, too!

Feel free to change/clarify your thread title, like 'Omega serial number chronology question' or 'How many people at the Omega are building watches at one time?' Or ...

 

Thanks, but i,ll let this thread die naturally

I,m still amazed at the 2.2 million number though, especially, as we’re often told, this was the time that the Swiss watch mechanical industry was in dire crisis due to the quartz revolution

Wrt job seeking, Al, no chance, and just the opposite - i want to retire gracefully in a year or two!

Cheers, paul

 

But you could get a lot of traffic for awhile if you just called it: 'Omega spit out 2.2 MILLION watches in only 19 DAYS!! Or... NOT?'

 

2mil would cover the multitude of movements they would have at any one time in those days.
We often forget the amount of different ladies models in those days. Ladies models took up most of the catalog with many styles and sizes.

 

But thats my point ( of the question) - if that number is correct, thats 167,000 watches per day. Not sure that possible, is it?

 

Love it!

 

I think it’s all about the stockpile of movements they may have at any given time. Some made 18+ months before, others fresh off the production line.

 

Remember you have to distinguish the production of the parts, the assembly of the movement and the production of the complete watch. A movement can have been produced, say, 2-3 years before being used to make a complete watch.

 

There is an assumption that all serials are used. 7 million Speedmasters from 71-78? Or 861 movements?

 

I’ve always assumed that less than the theoretical maximum quantity of movements were made during any given year. 1963, for example, had movements numbered in the 20 million range, but I always thought that was for convenience/stock management rather than the fact that 1million movements would be made during that period. I may of course, be wrong.