The Power of Necessity | Innovation in Watchmaking
As the world remains at home, we are forced to come together—remotely, of course—to find a new way to work and solve novel problems. The watch industry is no different, and faced with global challenges it has navigated unknown paths into great innovation. Whether it be pilots taking to air, a world returning from war, or a need for technological change, the watch industry responds. Let’s look back at some of the most important timepieces that came from periods of change. For from necessity comes innovation.
World War I and the Breitling Chronograph | 1915
While pocket watches had been around for hundreds of years by the late 1800s, it wasn’t until the Sino-Japanese War of 1894 and the Boer War of 1899 that the idea of a wristwatch was conceptualized. Relying on precision timing became important to soldiers so they would solder on lugs and use leather to strap pocket watches to their wrist, allowing freedom with both hands to check the time.
Leon Breitling started his manufacture in 1884 making pocket watches, and quickly became obsessed with the chronograph function. This obsession lead to innovation in accuracy and technology; ideals that were carried on when his son, Gaston, took over Breitling in 1914.
In the years leading up to WWI, the wristwatch became increasingly common among soldiers and a must have-among officers. New technologies used to wage battles were introduced, including one of the most important: the airplane. Gaston identified a need during this technological advancement and produced one of the world’s first chronograph wristwatches with a separate pusher. This allowed pilots quick access to accurate time thus enabling the measurement of fuel levels against flight times.
Moreover, the innovation made it much easier for pilots with thick gloves to start and stop the chronograph without needing to wind the crown. This was especially useful as the counter went up to 30 minutes—about how much time a pilot had on a low fuel mission.
The pusher was one of the earliest big steps in the history of the pilot’s watch, and a precursor to the Chronomat and Navitimer collection so popular today.
World War II and the Panerai Radiomir | 1936
After WWI, the military of the world went home dawning the watches strapped to their wrist that served them so well, causing an uptick in interest. Where else could they be of use? Rolex was the first to act with the invention of the waterproof case in 1926. But, on the cusp of the popularization of the wristwatch as a tool and accessory, World War II began.
Enter Panerai. Started by Giovanni Panerai in 1860 in the city of Florence, the company made a huge profit from selling high quality timekeeping instruments to the Italian Navy. During WWII, they created a highly luminous, radium-based paint patented as “Radiomir.” While extremely useful, it would also go on to be known, tragically, as deadly to those who worked closely with the radioactive paint.
The company created 10 prototypes of the exceedingly large Panerai Radiomir for the Italian frogmen commandos. This developed into the production of the 1938 variant, featuring overlapping dial plates, perforated indices and a metal bar for the lugs. By the time WWII had gripped the world in 1940, the navy needed even more durable watches and updates were made to make the Radiomir more water resistant. This waterproof, legible, and durable watch would go on to help define many touchstones of the modern dive watch.
Post-War and the Rolex Datejust | 1945
By the end of World War II, the watch industry—like the rest of the world—saught to rebuild and rejuvenate. While Switzerland remained unscathed by war, most of the Swiss watch companies had focused on government contracts and tool watches. This left the door open for Rolex to cater to the civilian population, and they did just that with the Rolex Datejust in 1945.
Post-war reconstruction ushered two new developments: the advancement of technologies made during World War II and a financial upturn. Rolex released the Datejust as the first watch featuring a date that jumps at midnight, as opposed to slowly turning. By this time watches had been commercialized and gaining popularity, but this marked the first time there was an explosion of interest in sporting a wristwatch.
The effect rippled amongst plenty of Swiss and European watch brands. The likes of Jaeger-LeCoultre, Omega and IWC all capitalized on the newfound interest and released their own famous-firsts in this period. But for Rolex especially, the Datejust—along with the 1950 addition of the cyclops date magnifier—opened the door to be one of the most prolific watch brands. The 1950s saw releases of model lines like the Explorer, Submariner and GMT Master.
The Quartz Crisis and George Daniel’s Omega Speedmaster | 1975
As technology rapidly advanced in the years to follow, there was a single invention that threatened to completely destroy the mechanical watch industry: The Quartz Crisis. In other places the shift was known as the Quartz Revolution, as it revitalized out-of-business industries in the microelectronics race.
Ironically, it was multiple Swiss brands such as Omega and Patek Philippe who competed to create the first quartz watch using newly researched computer chip technologies. But it was Seiko who cornered the market in 1969 with the release of the Astron.
But much of the Swiss industry was slow to accept this rising tide of electronic watches, insisting on a mechanical focus. By 1978, quartz had overtaken mechanical in popularity and by 1983 the Swiss watch industry was employing less than a third of what it once had. The industry needed a shakeup to survive.
The call was answered by Nicolas Hayek, who brought several brands under one roof (later known as the Swatch Group), and leading the charge with the production of the low-cost Swatch quartz watch to fund the research and development of luxury brands. The play paid off as Swatch became an instant success worldwide. But Hayek’s plan still required proof of mechanical value to the public. Validation was soon initiated by an American collector.
In 1974 Seth G. Atwood approached master watchmaker George Daniels—an already well-known figure in watchmaking—with a grant to produce a new escapement. No easy feat, the technology had gone back to 1755 with Thomas Mudge’s invention of the lever escapement.
Daniels accepted the contract and one year later presented an Omega Speedmaster with a custom made co-axial escapement using radial friction as opposed to a sliding. It took over two centuries for someone to re-invent this technology, proving in the middle of the crisis that there were still plenty of advancements to be made and appreciated in the watch world. Ironically, Omega would not adopt Daniels’s escapement on an industrial scale until 1999 with the Omega De Ville.
Rise of the Smartwatch and the F.P. Journe Elegante | 2014
When you think of smart watches, F.P. Journe doesn’t immediately come to mind. Afterall, the French watchmaker is known for his dedication to the craft and motivation to make pieces far more mechanically advanced than industry standards. Which is what made his announcement of the 2014 Elegante series so interesting.
Using rose gold instead of the usual yellow and a new gear movement layout, he produced a quartz watch with the look, research, and pedigree of a mechanical timepiece. It even had a 30 minute inactivity power saving mode that would reset to the correct time once moved again.
The release of the Elegante in 2014 could be considered bold as it was so close to the release of a new possible threat to the industry: the smartwatch. Apple unveiled its first in 2015 and quickly a new type of timekeeping started gaining popularity. This new development harked back to the quartz crisis and worried some watchmaking professionals. Will the new smartwatch lead to another decrease in interest in mechanical watches? Would the industry need to pivot yet again to match the interests of the public?
F.P. Journe proved the answer was yes and no. The Elegante took a long line of watchmaking tradition and infused it with new technology. He even noted himself that Louis Breguet would’ve tried to make the quartz timepiece if he was able to in his time. However, the brand is still known for—and makes most of—their sales from mechanical timepieces.
Brands like Breitling, TAG Heuer, Montblanc and Ressence have risen to the challenge of marrying classical watchmaking with smart technology as well; proving that great innovation is powered by great change.
In the midst of a global pandemic things may seem or feel like there’s no path forward, but we only have to look back at history to realize it’s exactly in these times that creativity takes hold, thus begging the question: what’s next?