David Chokron
It is true that Seiko is primarily a quartz watch manufacturer, and a massive one at that. But like many of its Swiss counterparts, they also make large amounts of mechanical watches. The high end ones are available under two brand names. Credor is a small brand, almost a boutique one outside Japan. Then there is Grand Seiko. Founded in 1960, it is extremely popular in Japan where it stands for a very high level of quality. It is also being marketed throughout the world with high hopes. One of its workshops is named Shizuku-Ishi. Based near Morioka, north of the country's main island, it is where its mechanical calibers are manufactured. There lay a staggering number of machines, working with very limited manpower, a testament to Seiko industrial culture. On the other hand, the assembling workshops are almost crowded.
Mechanical
With a manufacturing capacity of 10 000 movements per annum, this workshop represents almost all of Japan's mechanical high end movement production. Machine assistance is virtually nowhere to be found. Even oiling and jewelling are hand-made. The co-ed staff works slowly, all of them using a binocular magnifier. From a corner of the room come hairsprings by the thousands, paired with a balance wheel. They are immediately assembled in a range of 5 calibers, all of them of small complication. The fastest of them, Cal. 9S85, beats at 5 Hz, or 36 000 vph, a figure Seiko was already able to reach in 1968. Such is Grand Seiko's culture: aiming at simplicity, a traditional sense of excellence and objective performance.
Hybrid
After a Shinkansen-train dash through the countryside, Seiko unveils the actual heart of its operation. Near Nagano, in the so-called Japanese Alps, lies the Shiojiri site, one that is labeled Epson. The hardware manufacturer was a spin-off of Seiko in the 1970's and has grown even bigger than its parent company. The Seiko Epson branch manufactures high end quartz movements (yes, there is still such a thing), and the very special Spring Drive calibers. This meca-electronic invention is like a hybrid engine, regulated by quartz but mechanical in nature, which runs with a -1/+1 second per day precision. It comes with a power reserve indication (72 hours), a GMT, a chronograph and even a decimal minute repeater, made by the handful per annum.
Methods
The site is also home to the manufacturing of Grand Seiko's external parts. Dial solarisation, beveled Dauphine hands, meticulously polished cases are produced with industrial-grade methods. If most operations are hand-made, they follow the strictest quality guidelines. In this place, Japanese organization is not a cliché but the guarantee of an irreproachable result, albeit of simple appearance. It allows Grand Seiko watches, be they purely mechanical or partly electronic, to be one of the best price/quality deals available on the market today.
