How many watches does rolex make

And everything from Rolex movements to bracelets are assembled by hand. A machine however helps with doing things such as applying the right pressure when attaching pins, aligning parts, and pressing down hands. Having said that, all Rolex watch hands are still set by hand via a trained technician. It would be an understatement to suggest that Rolex is obsessive about quality control. A predominant theme in the manufacture is that things are checked, re-checked, and then checked again.

It feels as though their goal is to ensure that if a Rolex watch fails, it does so before it leaves the factory. Large teams of watchmakers and assembly people work on every single movement that Rolex produces. This is before and after their movements are sent to COSC for chronometer certification. And on top of that, Rolex re-tests their movements for accuracy after they are cased for several days while simulating wear before they are sent out to retailers.

Rolex makes their own gold. While they have a small handful of suppliers that send them steel Rolex still works the steel in-house to make all the parts , all the gold and platinum is made in-house. Large kilns under hot flames are used to melt and mix the metals which are then turned into cases and bracelets. Because Rolex controls the production and machining of their gold, they are able to strictly ensure not only quality, but the best looking parts.

To our knowledge Rolex is the only watch manufacture that makes their own gold or even has a real foundry in-house. The philosophy at Rolex seems to be very pragmatic, if a human does it better, then let a human do it, if a machine does it better, then let a machine do it.

First of all machines are huge investments and in many instances keeping people around to do it is less expensive. In fact, Rolex is fortunate to have the ability to equip its facilities with robotic help where needed. Massive columns of parts are attended to by robotic servants that store and retrieve trays with parts or complete watches.

A watchmaker needing parts must simply place an order with the system, and it is delivered on a series of conveyer systems to them in about minutes. Robotic arms populate the Rolex manufacture locations when it mostly comes to repetitive or highly detailed tasks that require consistency.

Many Rolex parts are given an initial machine polish by a robot, but amazingly they are hand-finishing and polished as well.

In fact, each case is tested both before and after a movement and dial are placed inside of it. Dive watches receive a separate treatment all together. After being air pressure tested, Rolex proceeds to test the water resistance of each and every Rolex Submariner and Deep Sea watch in actual water. This type of test is much less common. Submariner watches are placed in large tubes that are filled with water to ensure that they are water resistant to meters. The test is extremely complex because Rolex employs a complex system for testing if water entered the case.

After the watches exit the tank, they are heated up and a drop of cold water is placed on the crystal to see if condensation forms. An optical sensor then scans them for trace amounts of water.

Less than one in a thousand watches fail the test. The story is much more intense for Deep-Sea watches. The pressure tank looks like something from a science fiction movie. Imagine something that looks like a several ton Gatling gun.

This machine takes well over an hour and measures each watch to a pressure equivalent to 12, meters deep. It has been said that Rolex has preposterous standards for the materials it buys from its suppliers. This includes things like metals as well as precious stones such as diamonds, rubies, and emeralds. Rolex has a massive gemological department whose goal it is to buy, test, arrange, and set diamonds and other precious stones in a range of Rolex models.

One of the things they do is check incoming stones to ensure that they are real. Using x-rays for example, they can test diamonds to ensure they aren't fake. Rolex reports that in the years they have been testing diamonds, only two in 20 million have been fake.

That might seem like such a small amount it isn't even worth their time to perform the test. Nevertheless, to ensure absolute quality, Rolex tests each batch of diamonds. This should also have an illustrative effect on the diamonds they use, which happen to only be IF in clarity, and D-G in color the four grades closest to white.

Each and every diamond or precious stone no matter how large or small on a Rolex watch is hand-selected and hand-set. Rolex employs traditional jewelers to create custom settings for stones in their most exclusive watches, done using the same processes employed in creating the world's finest jewelry.

It was amazing to see this level of artisanship and delicate care inside what many people believe to be a mass producer. If you look at Rolex watches over time, they are more about evolution rather than revolution.

This idea of always improving versus changing goes right into their manufacturing process as well. They are constantly learning how to improve quality through better processes and techniques. The move from aluminum to ceramic bezel inserts is a perfect example.

Nevertheless, from starting to shape the parts of the case to testing a completed watch for accuracy, the process takes around one year. Of course Rolex could speed this up for certain models if necessary, but each watch requires so many parts and virtually everything is made from base materials in-house. Once all the parts for a Rolex watch are completed, they are then mostly hand-assembled and individually tested. The testing and quality assurance process is rather intense.

A good example is how Rolex makes each of their watch dials. All of the dial are made in-house, and one of the most impressive facts is that all of the applied hour markers are set individually by hand.

Often times at other brands, machines perform this process, but Rolex learned that a human eye is better trained to spot problems. So individual hour markers are applied and riveted by hand. Dials are dropped from 20cm up in the air to ensure that none of the hour markers fall out. This is a careful and time consuming process, and it is among the many elements of making watches at Rolex that is done by a skilled human being.

Taken together, because of Rolex's rather fanatical dedication to quality across their huge production, watches take on average, about a year to produce. After having said all of the above it probably doesn't come as a big surprise that Rolex makes virtually everything in-house as a totally vertically integrated manufacturer. As of right now the only major parts that Rolex doesn't make for all of their watches are the synthetic sapphire crystals and many of the dial hands though I have a feeling the latter will change in the next several years.

Rolex produces their own gold, cases, bracelets, dials, bezels, and movements in-house with incredible efficiency and quality. It isn't just that Rolex can afford all the most useful machines, but also that Rolex invests into processes and techniques that are tightly-held trade secrets. The real value inside the Rolex factory are their tools and know-how, which no one could replicate even if they had a copy of their facilities.

Making everything in-house allows Rolex to be truly independent. Watch collector's often agree that there is the watch industry and then there is Rolex - the two just happen to make similar products. It is hard to love watches and not appreciate what Rolex is and what they produce. Traveling there I can fully understand why they aren't only the most successful high-end watch manufacture, but why they are also one of the most successful luxury brands in the world.

If I had to say one last thing about Rolex, it is that even if you personally don't like how their products look on your wrist which puts you in a minority or people if after a few years you don't appreciate at least some models , you simply can't deny the absolute sense of confidence, reliability, and dignity the brand name communicates. I can personally attest to that. We strive to offer you an amazing customer service to make your buyer experience as great as it can be.

From your initial contact to after you have your new watch on the wrist. Our number one goal is to make you so satisfied with your purchase that we get the honour of helping you with your next watch purchase.

We will guide you through your whole experience with us.