Making Time with the Watchmakers

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com, 3/29/06, "High Times for Luxury Watchmakers").

"Owning a Complication"

Indeed, lately, the more complicated a timepiece, the more in demand it is. The tourbillion (French for whirlwind), originally invented in 1795, uses the Earth's gravity to keep ultra-precise time. It can start at $100,000 and is a prized complication. Perpetual calendars—which need some 100 parts, can calculate leap years, and don't require adjustment until the year 2100—are also popular. And the chronograph, once considered quite rare, has become something of a statement in recent years for its ability to measure time in different ways through several sub-dials on the face.

"This is about more than just time keeping," says Mayer. "It's all about adding a mechanical challenge and owning a complication." Indeed, in 1999, a platinum Patek Phillippe watch that was custom-made in 1933 for the New York banker Henry Graves Jr., containing 24 complications—including a split second chronograph and a chart of the nighttime sky over Graves' home—was sold at auction for $11 million.

Underscoring further the need for watchmakers is the growing secondary market of vintage timepieces. For these watches, should a problem arise, not only would the owner need a trained repairman but many of the spare parts needed are no longer being manufactured. "Every watch has its own challenge," says Mayer. "Many pieces are individually made."

A Popular Program

With sales of mechanical timepieces up and the number of watchmakers, with an average age of 60, moving in the opposite direction, the industry realized it was in danger of not being able to support the market. Jim Lubic, the executive director of the American Watchmakers-Clockmakers Institute, a trade group based in Cincinnati, says "There's no question we could probably use another couple thousand watchmakers without any problem." Currently, he notes, schools are putting out some 65 to 70 watchmakers annually. "But to keep up with attrition we need more like 75 to 100 a year."

Located in the small town of Lititz, Pa., in the heart of Amish country, the Technicum is housed in a Michael Graves-designed modern stone barn. The sun-filled interior contains the school's two classrooms, labs for waterproofing and cleaning, and a library. The stainless-steel cafeteria offers students espresso served in porcelain cups. The second floor houses a Rolex service center.

The Technicum receives at least 100 applications for each class of 12 students for the two-year, 3,000-hour curriculum. While Rolex underwrites the school, Lititz teaches the Swiss watchmaking skills necessary to work on every kind of timepiece, allowing its graduates flexibility.

Patience Required

Prospective applicants are vetted for their mechanical inclination, patience, self-motivation, problem-solving skills, abstract-thinking abilities, and discipline. Some, not all, have a background in watches or jewelry, a few have a college education, but most arrive fresh out of high school. Before they're accepted, final candidates are invited to spend a day at the school for interviews with the staff and then put through a series of tests to gauge their mechanical talents and thinking processes.

The first year is devoted to nothing but micromechanics. Pupils learn to handcraft and manufacture parts. For example, a four-day exercise consists solely of sharpening tools, so that the students learn the kind of precision, discipline, and patience they will need in working with watches. Likewise, 41 days are spent doing nothing but sharpening hairsprings. The only modern element to the craft is the use of a software program for mechanical drawings.

By the end of the first year, all students are required to build their own watch with a bridge, winding stem, and a balance staff. But most students create a timepiece well above the minimum requirements.