WA Panerai tour (with 'crown' reference)

[drrd]

I like to see a bit of tech.

Some latest gen CNC machines on show at the Panerai factory.

Alexander from WatchAdvisor and Panerai's COO also suggest these machines are making Rolex parts as well (around 9'55" ->)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXva0CmGOoU

[Miguel:]

Wow! Shocking for sure if true..

[kieselguhr]

Panerai making parts for Almighty Rolex? Don’t spout such heresy unless you want to rile up the fanboy mob

[drrd]

Originally Posted by kieselguhr

Panerai making parts for Almighty Rolex? Don’t spout such heresy unless you want to rile up the fanboy mob

Ah, I see my wording was a bit ambiguous…

The COO of Panerai says the machines they use (Willemin-Macodel) are the exact same ones used by Rolex.

No doubt he can’t make the same claim about the software running on the machines but still nice to get a crumb of info about what goes on in the Rolex workshop.

[Tim Plains]

What's wrong or shocking about Rolex using the same machines as Panerai? I don't get it.

[Harry-57]

Didn't Panerai start out by recasing Rolex watches?

I'm not surprised they source some of their machinery from a common source. Many companies do. What's the scoop?

[Chewbacca]

Cool video. Thanks for posting it RD.

[Stew7]

Originally Posted by drrd

I like to see a bit of tech.

Some latest gen CNC machines on show at the Panerai factory.

Alexander from WatchAdvisor and Panerai's COO also suggest these machines are making Rolex parts as well (around 9'55" ->)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXva0CmGOoU

Willemin Macodel is a swiss-based company so they are a convenient source. They supply milling machines to a lot of the watch manufacturers, including Rolex.

Here's a nice video with some better detail that shows the level of automation for milling a case: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4-_Uj1rusM

Their equipment is widely used in the med device industry as well. They are highly customizable for different product types and extremely precise.

[drrd]

Originally Posted by Stew7

Willemin Macodel is a swiss-based company so they are a convenient source. They supply milling machines to a lot of the watch manufacturers, including Rolex.

Here's a nice video with some better detail that shows the level of automation for milling a case: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4-_Uj1rusM

Their equipment is widely used in the med device industry as well. They are highly customizable for different product types and extremely precise.

Thanks

Maybe laser sintering will make it's way into the mainstream next.

[JDsnewwatch]

Originally Posted by Harry-57

Didn't Panerai start out by recasing Rolex watches?

I'm not surprised they source some of their machinery from a common source. Many companies do. What's the scoop?

Technically, Panerai started out in the watch game encasing watches made by Aegler but labeled as Rolex. I explained this to someone recently (a non-watch person) who looked at me like I had two heads. (Sounds a lot like Panerai (I'm wearing a beloved 233 dot dial right now) was making fake Rolexes LOL if you didn't understand the relationship between Rolex and Aegler).