THE GENESIS OF PRECISION

Founding of the LeCoultre Watchmaking Atelier – 1833

Switzerland’s liberal revolution of December 1830 – which, among other benefits, guaranteed the freedom of commerce – encouraged entrepreneurs in the Vallée de Joux to embark on artisanal and industrial adventures.

 Obsessed with precision, in 1830, Antoine LeCoultre, a self-taught watchmaker, had already invented a machine for cutting pinions from steel and went on to develop precisely calibrated cutting and stamping machines that could measure and cut components more accurately and on a smaller scale than ever before.

Obsessed with precision, in 1830, Antoine LeCoultre, a self-taught watchmaker, had already invented a machine for cutting pinions from steel and went on to develop precisely calibrated cutting and stamping machines that could measure and cut components more accurately and on a smaller scale than ever before.

Building on the foundation of this new invention, Antoine LeCoultre transformed the first floor of the family forge in Le Sentier into a watchmaking atelier in 1833. By grouping together a handful of watchmakers, he began creating timepieces of great accuracy, marking the debut of a long series of production that continues to this day.

Once the pinion-cutting machine was invented and the production set in motion, Antoine LeCoultre was determined to ensure that his artisanal methods were of the highest quality. To guarantee the excellence of his produced components, he invented the Millionometre in 1844, which made it possible not only to measure components with an unprecedented level of precision, but also to miniaturise them even further.

By enabling the measurement and reproduction of parts with absolute precision, Antoine LeCoultre freed watchmaking from the constraint of producing timepieces one-by-one, thus laying the foundations of the modern watchmaking industry.