Swiss made = swiss parts?

[RollieKid]

Hi all,

Obviously, in this day in age many companies manufacture parts of their products in other countries around the world ie. Honda cars are not all made in Japan, Nike's products are mostly made in china etc..

So my question is does the words "swiss made" on rolex watches mean the whole watch is made in Switzerland and includes swiss parts? Sorry if this is stupid question...

[steubi1]

By law "Siwss Made" means today that 50% of the added value have to be generated in Switzerland.

The strong groups and brands have launched an attempt to change it to 80%.

For Rolex I know that 100% is made in Switzerland. They do even have their own gold casting in-house....

Regards

Tom

[padi56]

A Swiss watch

Only when it is totally Swiss, may any Swiss watch carry the indications [Swiss made] or [Swiss] or any other expression containing the word "Swiss" or its translation, on the outside. According to Section 1a OSM, a watch is considered to be Swiss if:

Its movement is Swiss;
Its movement is cased up in Switzerland,and the manufacturer carries out the final inspection in Switzerland. Rolex watches are now 100% Swiss made, the only part they still out source as far as I know is the mainspring but thats Swiss made to..

[sherwin]

interesting when you mentioned that the movement is swiss.

my dad got a "wenger" (swiss army knife co) watch, it carries "Swiss" on the dial. But when i did a battery change for him, it had the case from china.

but then, it was a cheap A$200 watch for beating about in his workshop, so you cant expect a fully made swiss watch there.

[RollieKid]

Thats good to hear...so it is "swiss made"..sweet!

[tomallen]

Originally Posted by padi56

A Swiss watch

Only when it is totally Swiss, may any Swiss watch carry the indications [Swiss made] or [Swiss] or any other expression containing the word "Swiss" or its translation, on the outside. According to Section 1a OSM, a watch is considered to be Swiss if:

Its movement is Swiss;
Its movement is cased up in Switzerland,and the manufacturer carries out the final inspection in Switzerland. Rolex watches are now 100% Swiss made, the only part they still out source as far as I know is the mainspring but thats Swiss made to..

I understand the new Blue lume it a product of Japan and is outsourced

[padi56]

Originally Posted by tomallen

I understand the new Blue lume it a product of Japan and is outsourced

Thats possible but would doubt it,the lume is very secondary with me, its just a form of paint just like the paint on the dials.

[tomallen]

Originally Posted by padi56

Thats possible but would doubt it,the lume is very secondary with me, its just a form of paint just like the paint on the dials.

I totally agree with you. If it is out sourced Rolex will probably buy the rights to produce it in house.

[phelix_da_kat]

I was reading something similar..

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-0...-barriers.html

[Dr.Brian]

Shockingly little of your "Swiss made" watch has to be actually manufactured in Switzerland. You could have a Chinese case, bracelet, dial, etc. and a mostly Chinese movement assembled in some basement in Switzerland. As of the current regulations, that would be legal to call Swiss made. Sadly, people happily pay their 2-15 hundred dollars for a Swiss masterpiece that should probably say made in china. They think, made in Switzerland like Rolex and Omega, but in reality, they're lucky if the movement is all Swiss.
Of course, many companies, like Rolex, hold themselves to a higher standard.

[sherwin]

Originally Posted by Dr.Brian

Shockingly little of your "Swiss made" watch has to be actually manufactured in Switzerland. You could have a Chinese case, bracelet, dial, etc. and a mostly Chinese movement assembled in some basement in Switzerland. As of the current regulations, that would be legal to call Swiss made. Sadly, people happily pay their 2-15 hundred dollars for a Swiss masterpiece that should probably say made in china. They think, made in Switzerland like Rolex and Omega, but in reality, they're lucky if the movement is all Swiss.
Of course, many companies, like Rolex, hold themselves to a higher standard.

thats crossed my mind many times. like the case of my dad's wenger "swiss army knife" watch. i think its wenger's approach to charge so much for it.

my dad didnt pay anything close to rrp, so he couldnt care less, but the poor guy who did wouldve been better off saving his money and buying a true swiss watch.