A KEEN EYE AND A SURE HAND - COMBINED WITH A CERTAIN SENSITIVITY - DETERMINE QUALITY In this age of industrial robots, we have somehow come round to believing that at the end of the production line the finished watch hops off a conveyor belt and into a neat little piece of packaging, from where some computerized istribution system whisks it to retail outlets and the expectant consumer. Nothing could be further from the truth, at least as regards the Omega Speedmaster Professional.

The fact is that manufacturing a Speedmaster is an extremely complex business. It takes time and virtually unlimited watchmaking expertise and patience. A complicated watch like the Speedmaster cannot be produced at the rate of other items manufactured automatically. Its mechanism is extremely sophisticated, the production process long and difficult. The mere process getting all the separate parts together before the watch can be assembled takes 14 months.

In the factory at L'Orient, every tiny lever, every miniuscule spring is punched,.trued, finished, polish and adjusted. The coupling spring, blocking-lever spring, hammer spring, command-lever spring a chronograph-wheel friction spring; the driving pinion friction spring, zero action pusher spring, hammer slideshaft spring, stop, and the minute counter jumper spring: every single one an elaborately formed steel component, just like the blocking lever, the cam jumper, the hammer and so on. The Speedmasters movement is packed with components that demand precision of the very highest order during manufacture.

At this point we should point out that the case is manufactured independently of the movement by a specialized company. Whether in solid gold or stainless steel, the case makes quality demands of its own. Particularly if it is to watertight. Its progress from blank to finished Speedmaster is punctuated by innumerable indididual operations, culminating in the final polishishing that leaves it looking sleek and immaculate.

There's no witchcraft involvolved. It's all pure mechanics. Punching, shaping, slackening, drilling, turning, milling, chamfering, polishing and the final quality control. Every step of the way is interrupted for more testing. Meticulous work according to hard and fast procedures. The Speed- master requires uncompromising precision. When everything is perfect, the back is screwed onto the case.

The polishing and satin-finishing are an art of their own. Or, as Philippe Chapatte, the man responsible for giving the Speedmaster Professional its final polish, puts it, "When it's supposed to shine, you can't make it shiny enough. When it's supposed to have a satin finish, it's always too glossy." The Speedmaster case -with satin-brushed sides and gleaming bevelled edges -is particularly complicated to polish, he says. The middle part alone requires 22 different operations, with the bezel accounting for a further five and the back for four more. All done by hand, with rotating brushes. Philippe Chapatte has the solid hands and closely clipped finger- nails of a professional polisher. And he takes undisguised pleasure in the Speedmaster. "Something I polished has been to the Moon." Each case - bezel, back and middle takes him a good half hour to complete. And to round it off, the final test. Is the case really watertight? To find out, the case is placed in a pressurized bath of water heated to 50°C. The slight pressure also reveals whether condensation forms under the crystal. Further tests follow when the movement has been placed in the case and the Speedmaster is ready for operation.

But back to the movement and lemania in L'Orient. The factory here is responsible for every operation involving the movement and the casing of the Speedmaster to the moment it is ready for delivery. It takes 80 separate operations , to make the bottom plate alone. Stamping, centering, drilling, milling, trimming, cleaning, checking, thread-cutting, brushing, sand-blasting, circular-graining -- it goes on and on. Everything precise to a hundredth of a millimetre. Not one part of the process is automatic. Skilled hand- craftsmanship is the order of the day. The same thing applies to the barrel bar. And the balance cock. And the pallet cock. And the bridge for the hour counter. And so on. Every single com- ponent is made separately in a process consisting of numerous manipulations. And always with the same unremitting precision.

Pivots, pinions and wheels --in short, every single moving part subject to wear and tear -- has to be polished. Jumper springs, levers and other steel components needed for the Chronograph functions have to be ground, sometimes bevelled and in some places, practically hidden from view, even polished. Every single setting lever, for example, has to be chamfered and polished by hand. Wood, cardboard and leather covered wheels do the job perfectly. A single setting lever requires about seven minutes of concentrated work. The hour hammer-spring, with its chamfered -- and at one decisive point polished -- edges, takes slightly longer. But absolute precision is called for.

If the chamferiJ too extreme -- if the tip of the hammer spring is not exactly the way it should be -- it not function correctly. Ultimately, the qualityl depends on instinct, a sharp eye and a steady hand. Altogether, 28 parts in the Speedmaster are chamfered by hand, making a total of five hours' work. It's all about infinite patience and attention to detail. That, plus the trained eeye of a skilled craftsman. Men with hands that ripple with muscles.

The Speedmaster Professional is a precision instrument, make no mistake. But as reliable as the movement may be, it is also strikingly handsome.Asthetically refined, in accordance with the dictates of the traditional art of watchmaking. There is a separate department at Lemania, the atelier haut de gamme, which specializes exclusively in applying the circular-graining to the plate and the Cotes de Geniive decorations to the bridges and bars. With the loving care that you would expect to be lavished on a beautiful timepiece.

In the assembly department the pace of life is also determined by the speed with which the complicated chronograph movement can be putf together by hand. With infinite patience the watchmakers here assemble pinions, wheels, levers, springs, escapement, balance, bridges and bars. It is they too who adjust the movements. In five positions, to a maximum tolerance of -4 to +6 seconds per day. For chronometer like precision.

The final stage of the process is the positioning of the dial and hands. Black, and classically simple, with its no less classical inscription "Speedmaster Professional", the dial comes first. The seconds-hand is slightly curved at the tip, one of the concessions made necessary by the domed crystal. The hands are finally poditioned by a firm, well-placed tap with a hammer. No doubt about it, the man wielding the tools knows exactly what he is doing. Securing the movement in the case is a job bound up with all kinds of testing and cleaning procedures. The tritium-covered luminous hands are cleaned and checked, likewise the dial. After removal of the provisional crown, the movement is placed in the case and protected by a dust cover. The O-shaped sealing ring is given a critical once over and lubricated with silicon, and finally the back is screwed on. Provisionally.

All that remains now are the final tests, which in the case of the Speedmaster take five days. Twenty four hours with the chronograph running, 24 hours without. A test to ensure that there is a power reserve of 50 hours. And so on. No problems? Fine. The Speedmaster Professional can be sealed for good -- and the water resistance test. Once this has been passed, the watch is given a final look over for scratches or blemishes . If, as one would expect, it is in perfect condition, it is ready for delivery.

Taken from "The Moon Book" ... Omega SA