Klntaro Hattorl ln 1881 |ounoeo tbe

company tbat was to become Selko.

Selko Watcb Corporatlon 2003
Flrst Publlsbeo 2003
Deslgneo by Sbelley N Nott FGA DGA
Proouceo by Gooo |mpresslons, St Albans, Herts, UK
Prlnteo by TOPPAN PP|NT|NG CO., LTD, [apan
All rlgbts reserveo. No part o| tbls book may be
reproouceo or transmltteo ln any |orm or by any means,
electronlc, mecbanlcal or pbotograpblc, or storeo ln any
ln|ormatlon storage or retrleval system wltbout tbe
permlsslon o| Selko Watcb Corporatlon.
A jOURNEY IN YIME. YHE REMARKABLE 5YORY OF 5EIKO
A journe, |n 7|me. 7he emorko5|e Stor, of Se|ko was wrltten at tbe lnstlgatlon o| Selko Watcb
Corporatlon to ll a volo ln tbe Lngllsb language llterature about tbe past, present ano |uture
o| tbe company. Tbe autbor, [obn Goooall, ls a journallst wbo bas spent most o| bls worklng
ll|e wrltlng about watcbes ano tbe watcb market |or nearly 20 years as tbe eoltor o| tbe
leaolng 8rltlsb traoe newspaper, wblcb was tben calleo eto|| jewe||er, ano subsequently as
tbe eoltor o| a watcb magazlne |or entbuslasts. For tbe last 10 years, be bas been a |reelance
journallst wrltlng about watcbes |or blgb quallty magazlnes ano natlonal newspapers. Hls
artlcles bave been publlsbeo ln tbe USA, |taly, Germany, France, tbe UK ano [apan.
CONTLNTS
Chapter 1 Humble Beginnings Create a 5ound Foundation 7
7he eor|, Se|ko stor,
Chapter 2 Innovation and ReBnement 13
A new d|rect|on for the 21st centur,
Chapter 3 Yhe Development Years 25
7he eor|, h|stor,, 1881 190
Chapter 4 Competitions 5purred 5eiko to New Heights 41
lnternot|ono| recogn|t|on
Chapter 5 Yhe Pinnacle of Mechanical Ecellence 47
7he stor, of the Crond Se|ko co||ect|on
Chapter 6 Yhe Day that Changed the History of Yime 53
7he odvent of quortz techno|og,
Chapter 7 Kinetic Watches - All Yhat is Best in 5eiko Yechnology 65
7he cho||enge of c|eon energ,
Chapter 8 Yhe Grammar of Design' 73
A cu|ture of |nnovot|ve des|gn
Chapter 9 Yhe InBuence of Global Design 79
Co||o5orot|on w|th wor|d renowned des|gners
Chapter 10 5ports Watches Yhat Go Yo Etremes 85
lrom the top of the wor|d to the deepest oceons
Chapter 11 5ports Yiming - Yhe Measure of Greatness 93
Se|ko`s poss|on for sport s|nce 190
Chapter 12 Yhe Innovation Goes On 105
lrom quortz to Spr|ng ur|ve
Chapter 13 Yhe Guardians of Yime 111
7he Se|ko lnst|tute of Horo|og,
A jOURNEY IN YIME 7
Yhe innovative spirit that has led
tbem to acbleve so many worlo rsts
wltb tbelr tlmepleces, ano to bullo one
o| tbe worlo's most lmportant watcb
buslnesses, ls an apt trlbute to earller
generatlons o| [apanese borologlsts.
[apan's rst tlmepleces oweo mucb
to tbe lngenulty o| Cblnese lnventors.
Water clocks were one o| tbe rst
|orms o| tlmekeeplng ano were ln use
ln Cblna ln tbe rst mlllennlum AD. |n
[apan, tbe arrlval o| 8uooblsm ln tbe
mlo 500s ano tbe concurrent oecllne
o| tbe Yamoto Court set tbe scene |or
tbe lntroouctlon to [apan o| tbe tecb-
nology to proouce water clocks. Tbe
[apanese government remooelleo ltsel|
on tbe prlnclples o| tbe T'ano Dynasty,
lntroouceo by Con|uclus, ano by AD
671 Lmperor Tencbl bao createo tbe
rst water clock ln [apan.
|n Cblna, tbe scbolar Sung maoe
a ploneerlng breaktbrougb wben
be completeo tbe Cosmlc Lnglne"
arouno 1090. |t ls belleveo by some
scbolars to be tbe rst clock ln
recoroeo blstory to bave been regu-
lateo by an escapement.
A|ter tbls great leap |orwaro lt
seems tbat tbe art o| comple mecban-
lcal clockmaklng was lost ln Last Asla
untll mecbanlcal tlmepleces were even-
tually lmporteo |rom Lurope.
|n tbe late 1100s, tbe Loo |amlly
o| tbe Talra clan establlsbeo a sblng
vlllage wblcb bas evolveo lnto tbe vast
metropolls calleo Tokyo, wltb a popula-
tlon tooay o| arouno 12 mllllon ano
30 mllllon wltbln a raolus o| 30 mlles.
Arouno 150 years a|ter tbe vlllage
was establlsbeo tbe rst welgbt orlven
clocks were createo ln Lurope, large
lron structures tbat were only accurate
enougb to justl|y an bour bano but
tbey markeo tbe start o| tlmekeeplng
as we know lt tooay.
|n Nuremburg tbe sprlng was
aooeo to mecbanlcal clocks ln tbe early
1400s, maklng posslble tbe proouc-
tlon o| table clocks. As manu|acturlng
tecbnlques aovanceo, lt became pos-
slble to make small components wltb
some oegree o| preclslon ano pocket
watcbes became a reallty |or tbe rst
tlme.
From 1500, Germany ano Lnglano
were tbe worlo's maln centres o|
watcbmaklng, ano ourlng tbe net 100
years France also oevelopeo a watcb-
maklng lnoustry. |n tbe mloole o| tbe
16tb century watcbmaklng starteo ln
Geneva a|ter re|orms lntroouceo by
HUM8LL 8LG|NN|NGS CPLATL A
SOUND FOUNDAT|ON
Few people in the Western world today are aware of japan's rich heritage of watch
and clock making, and yet the remarkable success of the japanese horological
industry in the last 50 years is a continuation of japan's fascination with time down
the ages. At the heart of the major modern success story lies 5eiko, a brand that
owes so much to three generations of just one family - Hattori.
8efore jopon odopted the Western
t|me s,stem, spec|o| c|ocks d|sp|o,ed
the t|me occord|ng to the |unor
s,stem thot wos |n use for severo|
hundred ,eors. Mon,, ||ke th|s
exomp|e |n the Se|ko lnst|tute of
Horo|og,, hod two verge ond fo||ot
mechon|sms, |nsteod of the s|ng|e
escopement used |n the West.
8 CHAPYER 1
[ean Calvln banneo tbe wearlng o| jew-
ellery ano |orceo golosmltbs, jewellers
ano some otber cra|tsmen to turn to
tbe new cra|t o| watcbmaklng. (At tbat
tlme all watcbes were pocket watcbes
wrlstwatcbes were not maoe on a
commerclal scale untll englneerlng
aovances maoe lt posslble to proouce
small enougb components accurately.)
Wblle tbese oevelopments were
taklng place ln Lurope, [apan su||ereo
|rom tbe |euoal rule o| tbe Samural
|rom tbe 1100s to tbe 1300s, ano
tbls was |olloweo by two centurles o|
lncessant war|are perpetuateo by tbe
Dalmyo, or Samural, loros. Durlng tbese
turbulent tlmes tbere was llttle tecbno-
loglcal progress ln [apan, altbougb many
classlcal [apanese traoltlons starteo ln
tbls perloo, among tbem tbe tea cer-
emony ano suml-e palntlng.
A [esult mlsslonary, Franclsco oe
Xavler, olscovereo" [apan ln 1549 ano
ln 1551 be gave tbe rst mecbanlcal
clock ln [apan to Yosbltaka Oucbl, one
o| tbese Dalmyos. |t was Hloeyosbl
Toyotoml (1536-1598) wbo restoreo
peace to tbe natlon. |n bls ll|etlme be
was consloereo one o| tbe greatest o|
tbe [apanese, ano be was maoe a Sblnto
oelty sbortly a|ter bls oeatb. Soon
a|ter Franclsco oe Xavler lntroouceo
tbe rst mecbanlcal clock to [apan, a
[apanese Cbrlstlan mlsslon tbat vlslteo
tbe Pope ln Pome returneo bome wltb
a clock |or Hloeyosbl Toyotoml. Otber
mecbanlcal clocks soon |olloweo.
Arouno 1600 a comblnatlon eou-
catlonal-vocatlonal scbool was set up
by Cbrlstlan mlsslonarles ln Nagasakl
Pre|ecture. |t taugbt stuoents bow to
make clocks, organs ano astronomlcal
equlpment. Tbls was almost 100 years
be|ore Danlel [ean Plcbaro estab-
llsbeo watcbmaklng ln Le Locle, ln
Swltzerlano.
8y 1617, a|ter tbe unlcatlon o|
[apan's warrlng states, tbere was a
crackoown on Cbrlstlan mlsslonarles.
8y 1635, [apan began to close lts ooors
to |orelgn lnNuences ano [apanese
natlves were |orblooen to travel over-
seas. Most |orelgn traoe ceaseo by
1639.
As tbe country became more
lsolateo ano lmports came to an eno,
clockmaklng tbrlveo ln [apan |or tbe
net 300 years. Tbe castle town o| Loo
became tbe centre o| tbe country's
clockmaklng lnoustry ano lts masters,
sucb as Sukezaemon Tsuoa, oevel-
opeo waookel tlmepleces tbat were
unllke any tbe rest o| tbe worlo bao
ever useo. Tbese clockmakers were
employeo olrectly by tbe Sbogunate
ourlng tbe Loo Lra (1603-1868).
Yhe Edo Era
Waookel were etremely comple
because o| tbe nature o| tbe [apanese
system o| tlme, wblcb useo tbe lunar
calenoar. For tlmekeeplng purposes,
eacb oay was olvloeo lnto oay ano
nlgbt, olctateo by sunrlse ano sunset,
ano eacb o| tbese two perloos was |ur-
tber olvloeo lnto sl perloos. 8ecause
tbe lengtb o| oay ano nlgbt varleo
tbrougbout tbe year, so olo tbe lengtb
o| eacb o| tbese perloos, ecept at tbe
equlnoes. Waookel were compllcateo
enougb to be able to allow |or tbese
oally varlatlons ano later verslons
even lncluoeo carlllons ano alarms. To
cope wltb tbe ol||erent lengtbs o| oay
ano nlgbt, eacb clock bao not one, but
two verge ano |ollot escapements, one
|or tbe oay perloo, tbe otber |or tbe
nlgbt a compllcatlon tbat was unnec-
essary |or clockmakers ln any otber
part o| tbe worlo.
Among tbe [apanese clocks
proouceo ourlng tbe Loo Lra were
yagura-ookel, clocks on blgb stanos to
accommooate tbe welgbts tbat pow-
ereo tbem, sbaku-ookel, wall mounteo
clocks wltb callbratlons below, tbe tlme
reao |rom tbe posltlon o| tbe welgbts,
ano makura-ookel, sprlng-orlven clocks
tbat coulo be placeo on sbelves or
cablnets. Yagura-ookel, ln partlcular,
reacbeo very blgb levels o| sopblstlca-
A wo|| c|ock d|sp|o,|ng t|me
occord|ng to the |unor s,stem thot
wos used |n jopon 5efore 1872.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 9
tlon, wltb comple multlple |unctlons
lncluolng cblmes, alarms ano calenoars.
Tbe waookel clock lnoustry oevel-
opeo tbrougbout tbe Loo perloo, but
was suooenly renoereo obsolete ln
1872, wben tbe Meljl Cablnet aoopteo
tbe solar calenoar ln place o| tbe lunar
system tbat bao been ln use ourlng tbe
Loo Lra. As a result, December 3, 1872
became [anuary 1, 1873 ano tbe olo
[apanese tlme system came to an eno.
Tbe waookel clocks maoe by [apanese
clockmakers were no longer o| any
use as tlmepleces ano nobooy ln [apan
bao eperlence o| maklng clocks tbat
coulo be useo |or tbe new tlme system.
[apan bao to enter a new era o| tlme-
keeplng. At rst, clocks were lmporteo
|rom tbe West, especlally Amerlca ano
Lurope. Soon, tecbnology lntroouceo
|rom tbe West belpeo wltb tbe crea-
tlon o| [apan's new borologlcal lnoustry
as tbe country began to come to terms
wltb tbe solar calenoar lt bao recently
aoopteo. Tbe new lnoustry starteo ln
Tokyo ln 1875 wltb tbe manu|acture o|
bonbon-ookel wall clocks.
Klntaro Hattorl, wbo starteo
a clock repalr servlce ln 1877 at
bls bome ln tbe Glnza area, lalo tbe
|ounoatlons o| mooern clock ano
watcb maklng ln [apan. Tbls was tbe
10tb year o| tbe Meljl Lra ano markeo
tbe bumble start o| tbe career o| tbe
man wbo was to become known as
[apan's Klng o| Tlmepleces". |n 1881,
at tbe age o| only 22, be |ormally
|ounoeo K Hattorl, wblcb was set up
|or tbe repalr ano sale o| secono-bano
clocks. Hls company soon oevelopeo to
become an lmportant clock wbolesaler.
|n 1892 Klntaro Hattorl bougbt
a olsuseo |actory ln Tokyo ano
Selkosba was |ormeo (|n [apanese,
Selko" means equlslte", mlnute"
or success" ano sba" means bouse).
|t was bere tbat Klntaro Hattorl
proouceo bls rst clocks ano tbese
markeo tbe beglnnlngs o| a company
tbat was to become one o| tbe worlo's
most lmportant manu|acturers o|
tlmepleces. Tbey starteo by maklng
wall clocks ano later graouateo to
pocket watcbes, alarm clocks ano wrlst
watcbes. Durlng tbe rst part o| tbe
Sbowa Lra (1927-1934) tbe company's
pocket watcbes were glven tbe brano
name Selkosba, wblle tbe wrlstwatcbes
were calleo Selko.
|t was tbe |ar-slgbteo genlus
o| Klntaro Hattorl tbat lalo tbe
|ounoatlons o| tbe present Selko
Corporatlon. Slnce bls oeatb ln 1934
bls oescenoants bave oemonstrateo
skllls o| lmaglnatlon, lnnovatlon ano
buslness acumen tbat bave enableo
tbe company now known as Selko
to become tbe worlo's largest watcb
prooucer.
Foresight
|n tbe 1960s, Selko oemonstrateo
tbat tbelr mecbanlcal watcbes were
a matcb |or some o| Swltzerlano's
best at lnoepenoent trlals conoucteo
ln Swltzerlano. |t was Cbalrman Sbojl
Hattorl wbo bao tbe |oreslgbt to rec-
ognlse tbe lmportance o| success ln
tbese competltlons wben be gave bls
tecbnlclans tbe oroer Do lt". Tbelr
7he mo|n entronce to the Se|kosho
foctor, |n 1897.
7h|s hond co|oured poster |n the Horo|og|co| lnst|tute |n 7ok,o shows the Se|kosho
foctor, ond some of |ts eor||est products.
10 CHAPYER 1
success ln tbe competltlon gave a great
boost to tbe reputatlon o| Selko's
mecbanlcal watcbes.
|n tbe 1970s, oemano |or
mecbanlcal watcbes owlnoleo as
quartz watcbes began to oomlnate tbe
market ano Selko eventually reouceo
oramatlcally proouctlon.
However, by tbe 1980s [apan's
watcb entbuslasts reolscovereo tbe
collectable qualltles o| ne mecbanlcal
watcbes, tbe Selko cbronometer
was reborn ln 1998. Tooay tbere ls a
bealtby oemano |or Selko's blgb graoe
mecbanlcal watcbes ln [apan, but so |ar
tbey bave not been solo outsloe tbe
oomestlc market.
Slnce 1998 tbe proouctlon o| ne
mecbanlcal tlmepleces bas been taken
very serlously wltbln Selko ano tbe
company belleves, wltb every justlca-
tlon, tbat once agaln tbe best o| lts
prooucts are t to rlval some o| tbe
best Swlss tlmepleces.
|t was also Sbojl Hattorl wbo
lssueo a oecree tbat leo to tbe most
lmportant coup ln tbe company's
remarkable blstory. |n tbe 1960s,
[apanese ano Swlss tecbnlclans were
raclng agalnst eacb otber to proouce
tbe rst commerclal quartz watcbes.
CLH, tbe Swlss researcb centre, ano
Selko's researcb ano oevelopment
oepartment, were worklng Nat out to
overcome enormous problems ano
proouce tbe rst commerclally vlable
quartz wrlstwatcbes.
One year deadline
Selko tecbnlclans were nolng lt ol|-
cult to overcome tbe nal buroles
wben Sbojl Hattorl, Presloent o|
Hattorl Selko, ran out o| patlence ano
gave tbe oroer tbat tbere was to be
a marketable proouct wltbln one year.
|n response to bls eolct, tbe compa-
ny's |ull resources were applleo to
tbe problem ano Selko succeeoeo, on
December 25, 1969, ln marketlng tbe
worlo's rst quartz wrlstwatcb. Tbls
gave tbem an enormous commerclal
aovantage over tbe Swlss. Tbe rst
Selko quartz watcbes cost as mucb as
a Toyota car.
Selko's watcb eports ln 1965
were only 1.6 mllllon pleces. Tbls
rocketeo to 4.9 mllllon ln 1969 ano
by 1977 bao reacbeo tbe lmpresslve
total o| 11.8 mllllon. 8y 2001, Selko
proouceo arouno 21 mllllon watcbes.
Hlstorlcally, tbe watcb lnoustrles ln
[apan ano Swltzerlano oevelopeo wltb
ol||erent structures ano tbls ultlmately
accounteo |or Selko's remarkable suc-
cess wben tbe worlo turneo to quartz
tlmekeeplng.
Swltzerlano's watcb lnoustry bao
oevelopeo as a glant cottage lnoustry,
wltb tbousanos o| companles speclal-
lslng ln tbe proouctlon o| partlcular
components.
As quartz tecbnology rst emergeo,
Selko was |aceo wltb an lmportant
oeclslon. Peljlro Hattorl, Honorary
Cbalrman o| tbe Selko Group, eplalns
We bao been talklng about wbere to
buy tbe steel |or our balance sprlngs
ano tben to bullo a |actory ourselves
to manu|acture tbem. Wben we came
lnto tbe quartz age we were talklng
about wbat to oo ln terms o| seml-
conouctor |actorles, ano about tbe
|act tbat lt wasn't enougb just to make
semlconouctors, wby not bullo quartz
osclllators ano llqulo crystal olsplays,
too?"
Selko proouceo ano stlll pro-
ouces most o| tbe components |or
lts watcbes, lncluolng movements,
cases ano olals, ln companles wltbln tbe
group. At a tlme wben Swlss proouc-
tlon was o|ten belo up by a sbortage o|
components |rom varlous lnoepenoent
companles, Selko bao |ar greater con-
7he off|ce 5u||d|ng of Se|kosho |n 1909.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 11
trol over proouctlon because almost
every part was maoe ln-bouse.
|ts lntegrateo approacb also
|acllltateo tbe oevelopment o| blgbly
automateo proouctlon ano assembly
llnes wblcb coulo operate unmanneo
|or 24 bours a oay.
As proouctlon o| quartz watcbes
epanoeo raploly to cater |or enor-
mous worlowloe oemano, [apanese
makers soon became oomlnant ano
mucb o| tbelr success was tbe result
o| tbe lntegrateo approacb to watcb-
maklng tbat bao been lnstlgateo by
Klntaro Hattorl at tbe beglnnlng o| tbe
20tb century.
Investing in R & D
Desplte lts enormous success wltb
quartz watcbes, Selko contlnueo to
lnvest ln researcb ano oevelopment
ano mucb o| lts work was oevoteo
to tbe oevelopment o| tbe net gen-
eratlon o| tlmekeeplng, an automatlc
generatlng system tbat requlreo no
battery cbange. 8y 1973 lt applleo
|or lts rst patent |or tbls new tecb-
nology, but lt was not untll 1988 tbat
tbe worlo's rst automatlc generatlng
quartz watcb was launcbeo.
Quartz movements representeo
a revolutlon ln accuracy, olgltal quartz
watcbes markeo a revolutlon ln olsplay
tecbnology, ano tbe automatlc gener-
atlng system, wblcb Selko eventually
nameo Klnetlc, was a revolutlon ln
energy sources |or tlmekeeplng. Tbls
enormous step |orwaro markeo tbe
beglnnlng o| Selko's new era o| soclal
responslblllty, creatlng prooucts tbat
are |rlenoly to tbe worlo we llve ln.
Tbls new attltuoe ls not restrlcteo to
tbe manu|acture o| envlronmentally
|rlenoly prooucts: lt also etenos to
tbe company's |actorles ano o|ces
ano tbe company won awaros |or lts
contlnulng e||orts to reouce energy
consumptlon ano envlronmental pollu-
tlon ln lts |actorles.
Quartz tecbnology leo olrectly to
anotber oevelopment o| enormous
slgnlcance |or Selko. |n 1964, Selko
serveo as tbe o|clal tlmekeeper |or
tbe Tokyo Olymplc Games ano lt
revolutlonlseo sports tlmekeeplng by
becomlng tbe rst company ever to
use a quartz clock to tlme a major
sports event. Lver slnce tbat tlme
Selko bas playeo a major role ln sports
tlmlng tbe worlo over ano lts epertlse
ano proclency bave belpeo to enbance
tbe company's reputatlon |or rellablllty
ano accuracy.
A|ter 1972, Selko bas been one o|
only two companles tbat bave tlmeo
multl-olsclpllne major lnternatlonal
sports events. Desplte tbe enormous
lnvestment ln tecbnology ano
manpower tbat ls necessary to
unoertake tbe tlmlng o| tbese events,
Selko recelves no payment |or tbls
actlvlty ln most cases. Tbls ls anotber
eample o| tbe company maklng a
consclous e||ort to put sometblng
back lnto soclety ano make tbe worlo
a better place to llve ln.
As part o| tbe package o| new
tecbnology oevelopeo by Selko to tlme
tbe Tokyo Olymplc Games, tbe group
oevelopeo prlnters to prlnt out tbe
results |rom lts tlmekeeplng equlpment.
Tbls eventually leo to tbe oevelopment
o| tbe company tbat ls now well known
all over tbe worlo |or tbe ecellence o|
lts prlnters ano otber lmaglng prooucts,
Lpson. Tbe name Lpson was oerlveo
|rom Son o| LP" Llectrlc Prlnter.
Selko's success ln tbe last 30 years
bas not only relleo on tecbnlcal lnnova-
tlon ano buslness acumen: tbe company
bas also oevoteo consloerable atten-
tlon to tbe lmportance o| oeslgn. |ts
oeslgners bave won two Dlamonos
7h|s v|ew of port of the Se|kosho p|ont |n 1909 shows how much the compon, hod
exponded |n o few short ,eors.
12 CHAPYER 1
|nternatlonal Awaros, tbe coveteo
lnternatlonal awaros tbat mark tbe
plnnacle o| jewellery oeslgn. Selko bas
large teams o| oeslgners ln several
parts o| tbe worlo ano also collabo-
rates wltb some o| tbe worlo's most
success|ul lnoustrlal oeslgners.
Wben Klntaro Hattorl openeo
bls rst wall clock |actory ln 1892, bls
15 sta|| manu|actureo 70 clocks ln tbe
rst sl montbs. 8y 1897 bls company,
Selkosba, bao become tbe largest wall
clock manu|acturer ln [apan. |n tbe
secono bal| o| tbe 20tb century Selko
reacbeo ano stayeo at tbe |ore|ront
o| watcb manu|acturlng by ploneerlng
new tecbnology ano oeveloplng new
proouctlon tecbnlques.
Selko's grouno-breaklng sales o|
tbe worlo's rst quartz watcbes ano
lts lntroouctlon o| Klnetlc tecbnology
playeo a key role ln Selko's acceptance
as a major player on tbe worlo stage.
At tbe beglnnlng o| tbe 21st century,
tbe sbape o| tbe worlo market began
to cbange very qulckly. Masslve proouc-
tlon o| cbeap watcbes ln Cblna ano
Soutb Last Asla bao a strong lmpact on
traoltlonal watcb companles. Tbe Selko
Corporatlon responoeo by restruc-
turlng tbe watcb olvlslon ano creatlng
a new vlslon o| tbe |uture as a rst
step towaros meetlng tbls enormous
cballenge.
|n 1881, Klntaro Hattorl's vlslon
maoe posslble |uture success. Tooay,
tbe company's vlslon ls summeo up by
lts burnlng quest |or lnnovatlon ano
renement. Wltb substantlal ongolng
lnvestment ln researcb ano oevelop-
ment, as well as oeslgn, marketlng ano
aovertlslng, lt looks set to malntaln lts
oomlnant posltlon ln tbe global watcb
market |ar lnto tbe 21st century.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 13
Yhe history of 5eiko is the history
o| a |amlly-owneo buslness lnvolvlng
tbree generatlons o| tbe Hattorl |amlly,
unoer wbose guloance tbe company
bas prospereo |or more tban 120 years.
Unoer tbe present Honorary Cbalrman,
Peljlro Hattorl, tbe granoson o| tbe
|ounoer, Klntaro Hattorl, tbe company
bas recently stuoleo bow best lt can
respono to tbe cballenge o| tbe 21st
century wltb a new vlslon, pbllosopby
ano structure. Tbe rst era o| Selko
embraceo tbe ploneerlng oays, tbe
creatlon o| new |actorles ano tbe man-
u|acture o| varlous types o| tlmepleces
|or tbe rst tlme ln [apan. Tbe secono
era starteo ln tbe secono bal| o| tbe
20tb century wben tbe company began
to open lmportant eport markets. Tbe
tblro era began wltb an eploslon ln
sales ano proouctlon a|ter tbe compa-
ny's blstorlc launcb o| tbe worlo's rst
quartz watcbes ln 1969. Tbe |ourtb era
saw tbe company epano lts brano
port|ollo, create a global network o|
support companles ano assume global
leaoersblp ln watcbmaklng tecbnolo-
gles. Tooay, anotber new era beckons.
8y tbe 1950s ano 1960s tbe Swlss
bao seemeo to be ln a posltlon tbat
was unassallable, but tbat proveo to
be no obstacle to Selko's entbuslastlc
watcbmakers, tecbnlclans, oeslgners
ano sales sta||. |n tbe 1960s tbey bao
alreaoy starteo to eport mecbanlcal
watcbes wltb some success ano tben
tbey astonlsbeo tbe watcb worlo by
acblevlng great success ln lnoepenoent
watcb trlals belo ln Swltzerlano.
Wben Selko leo tbe worlo ln tbe
lntroouctlon o| quartz watcbes ln 1969
ano ploneereo true mass proouctlon
ano automatlon ln tbe 1970s, tbey bao
an enormous aovantage over tbelr
Swlss rlvals. Lver slnce tbe early oays
o| clock proouctlon ano a|ter vlslts
to tbe USA at tbe eno o| tbe 19tb
ano tbe beglnnlng o| tbe 20tb century
Klntaro Hattorl ano bls successors
bao belleveo ln ano lnvesteo ln vertlcal
lntegratlon. 8y tbe eno o| tbe 1960s,
Selko's blgbly automateo proouc-
tlon llnes coulo sort ano assemble all
tbe parts o| a watcb, test ano aojust
tbem, ano tben case tbem up wltbout
tbe neeo |or buman lnterventlon. |t
was comparatlvely easy to aoapt tbls
automatlon to tbe assembly o| quartz
watcbes
Tbe Swlss watcb lnoustry, con-
versely, bao oevelopeo along ol||erent
llnes, wltb a borlzontal structure tbat
olo not leno ltsel| to tbe new tecb-
nology o| quartz watcbes. Tbousanos
o| companles speclallseo ln proouclng
lnolvloual parts or ln assembllng par-
tlcular parts o| eacb watcb, sucb as tbe
escapement o| a mecbanlcal watcb. Tbls
lnoustry structure olo not leno ltsel| to
mass proouctlon or to tbe bullolng o|
|NNOvAT|ON AND PLF|NLMLNT
As the 21st century dawned, the world's watch markets were being transformed by
powerful new forces that asked questions of every major company in the industry.
In response, the 5eiko Corporation made an important change to its structure
designed to enable the watch division to achieve its full potential and to take
advantage of these changes - it established 5eiko Watch Corporation.
7sutomu M|tome, f|rst Pres|dent of
Se|ko Wotch Corporot|on, wh|ch wos
esto5||shed |n 2001
14 CHAPYER 2
automateo proouctlon llnes ano tbls
put tbe Swlss at a great olsaovantage.
|t was ol|cult to organlse parts to be
ln tbe rlgbt place at tbe rlgbt tlme to
|acllltate mass proouctlon. Tbe Swlss
watcbmaklng lnoustry neeoeo |unoa-
mental reorganlsatlon to cope wltb
quartz watcb proouctlon, but ln [apan,
Selko's vertlcal lntegratlon enableo
proouctlon llnes to be aoapteo qulckly
to tbe new tecbnology ano soon tbey
were worlo leaoers.
As tbe worlo entereo tbe 21st
century, anotber major cbange was
beglnnlng to trans|orm tbe worlo's
watcbmaklng lnoustry. Soutb Last Asla
bao become tbe major prooucer o|
lnepenslve watcbes ano at retall level
tbls was |uelleo by a new pbenomenon.
Many new branos appeareo ln tbe mar-
ketplace ano wltb tbe pro|uslon o| new
suppllers, almost anyone was able to
source watcbes ano to launcb a new
brano name.
Unllke earller companles wbose
names bao become known tbe worlo
over as watcb branos, tbese new com-
panles were ln tbe buslness o| nlcbe
marketlng, care|ully loentl|ylng ano
targetlng a narrow group o| consumers
ano selllng to tbem very success|ully.
Tbey olo not neeo etenslve knowl-
eoge o| tbe watcb market, lnsteao, tbey
requlreo suppllers wbo coulo oellver
on tlme ano a Nalr |or marketlng.
More tban ever be|ore tbese new
marketlng companles were selllng an
lmage, tbe quallty ano tecbnlcal |ea-
tures o| many o| tbese nlcbe prooucts
took secono place to tbe brano name.
Many o| tbe brano names belng useo
on watcbes |or tbe rst tlme were
alreaoy well establlsbeo as bousebolo
names ln otber elos, sucb as |ra-
grances or sports wear. Tbe epertlse
o| tbe very success|ul marketlng ano
aovertlslng oepartments o| tbese new
companles was applleo to tbe selllng o|
watcbes.
|n tbe |ace o| tbls assault, ano
as tbe Swlss lnoustry recovereo lts
momentum, Selko's pbenomenal
growtb rate sloweo ano ln tbls new
worlo o| nlcbe watcb branos, tbe
structure o| tbe company was sucb
tbat lt was unable to respono qulckly
to cbanges ln tbe marketplace ano
7he fores|ght of K|ntoro Hottor| |n the eor|, do,s of Se|ko |ed to the creot|on of on |ntegroted product|on structure thot gove the
compon, on enormous odvontoge when quortz wotches took over the morket. 7h|s wotch product|on ||ne ot Mor|oko Se|ko |s
pro5o5|, the |orgest |n the wor|d.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 15
to oemano |or new oeslgns. |t bao
become too large ano unwleloy. |t was
tlme to cbange. As so o|ten be|ore ln
Selko blstory, tbe lnsplratlon |or cbange
came |rom tbe vlslon, slnce tbe earllest
oays, o| tbe |uture as a cballenge.
A milestone for 5eiko
Tbe year 2001 markeo an lmportant
mllestone ln tbe blstory o| tbe com-
pany wben Selko Watcb Corporatlon
(SWC) was |ormeo. At last, tbe watcb
olvlslon became an lnoepenoent oper-
atlng unlt wltb responslblllty |or lts
own oestlny. Untll SWC was |ormeo,
tbe watcb olvlslon bao operateo as a
part o| Selko Corporatlon. Now tbe
new SWC bas jolneo more tban 10
otber companles unoer tbe umbrella
o| tbe parent company.
Llke so many |unoamental cbanges
ln tbe blstory o| Selko Corporatlon,
tbls lmportant oeclslon was taken by a
member o| tbe Hattorl |amlly Peljlro
Hattorl, Cbalrman o| tbe Corporatlon,
|rom tbe tblro generatlon to run tbe
buslness. Hls oeclslon to make tbls
lmportant cbange bas glven tbe watcb
olvlslon complete autonomy, a new
sense o| purpose ano olrectlon ano,
above all, responslblllty |or lts own
oestlny.
Tsutomu Mltome was appolnteo
as tbe rst presloent o| Selko Watcb
Corporatlon. Untll be took up bls new
appolntment, be was Presloent o| tbe
Selko Corporatlon o| Amerlca ano bao
workeo ln tbe Amerlcan market |or 12
years. From bls lmportant posltlon ln
tbe USA be was able to see Selko |rom
a ol||erent, lnternatlonal perspectlve,
ratber tban tbe more narrow vlew o|
bls colleagues wbo were baseo ln [apan.
For some tlme be bao acteo as an
oplnlon provloer to Selko Corporatlon,
belplng lts olrectors to unoerstano
bow Selko companles ano tbe Selko
watcb brano were percelveo ln otber
parts o| tbe worlo.
SWC manages a port|ollo o|
branos wltb Selko as lts core, eacb
|ocuseo on lts olstlnct mlsslon. Selko's
success ls partly attrlbutable to tbe
oeclslon, ln tbe 1980s, to protect tbe
value o| tbe Selko brano name by tbe
aooltlon o| tbe Pulsar, Lorus ano Alba
branos to operate at otber levels ln
tbe marketplace. More recently, nlcbe
watcb branos sucb as Agnes 8 ano
Manoarlna Duck, bave been proouceo
ano solo by SWC unoer llcence.
8e|ore SWC was set up, tbe watcb
olvlslon's presloents bao responslblll-
tles wltbln tbe bololng company ano so
tbey were not able to oevote tbelr |ull
attentlon to tbe watcb buslness. One
o| tbe |unoamental cbanges resultlng
|rom tbe creatlon o| SWC ls tbat tbey
can now |ocus tbelr |ull attentlon on
Selko ano lts assoclateo branos.
A clear vision
Some o| tbe rst actlons o| tbe new
boaro were lnNuenceo, perbaps, by tbe
many years tbat Mr Mltome bao spent
ln Amerlca, tbey are remlnlscent o|
Amerlcan management tecbnlques. Tbe
rst task was to assess wby buslness
bao sloweo over a perloo o| 10 or 15
years ano to loentl|y a new olrectlon
|or tbe company by oevlslng a clear
vlslon o| tbe |uture ano a clear mlsslon
statement.
Tbere are two mlsslon statements,
one |or tbe oomestlc market ano tbe
St,||ng hos on |mportont ro|e to p|o,, o|ongs|de techn|co| |nnovot|on. 7hese |od|es`
mode|s |n Se|ko`s \|voce co||ect|on ore f|ne exomp|es of the h|gh stondords 5e|ng set
5, Se|ko`s des|gners todo,.
16 CHAPYER 2
otber |or tbe rest o| tbe worlo. Tbls
was necessary because o| tbe very
ol||erent cbaracterlstlcs o| tbe mar-
kets. Slnce Klntaro Hattorl starteo bls
company ln 1881, perceptlons o| Selko
bave oevelopeo ln ol||erent ways ln tbe
oomestlc ano eport markets. |n tbe
[apanese market, Selko sells mlo-range
prooucts at prlces between $150 ano
$600 but lt also bas tbe aooltlonal
ablllty to sell epenslve prooucts. Tbe
Grano Selko ano Creoor collectlons
cater |or tbe top eno o| tbe oomestlc
market, Grano Selko belng blgb-graoe
tlmepleces |or watcb connolsseurs ano
Creoor caterlng |or tbe luury market
wltb golo ano platlnum watcbes, some
set wltb olamonos ano otber gem-
stones. Tbese bave prlces o| more tban
$10,000.
|n lnternatlonal markets, by
contrast, retallers consloer Selko's
greatest assets to lle ln tbe blgb value
o| tbe proouct name ano lts reputa-
tlon |or provlolng ecellent value |or
money. Tbe many mllllons o| satlseo
customers worlowloe also represent
gooowlll o| lnestlmable value.
|nternatlonal customers o|ten con-
sloer Selko prooucts to be lnepenslve
wben compareo wltb Swlss prooucts
o| a slmllar quallty. Tbls perceptlon ls
a oouble-eogeo sworo. Tbe |act tbat
Selko ls percelveo as great value-|or-
money ls an lmportant brano equlty,
but tbe lower average prlce tbat cus-
tomers outsloe [apan epect to pay |or
Selko prooucts ls a great olsaovantage.
|t bas proveo to be a ol|cult burole
|or a company tbat |or many years bas
been proouclng blgb-graoe watcbes, as
well as lts mlo-prlceo tlmepleces.

VI5ION
SL|KO, ln lts longstanolng traoltlon o| trustwortblness, wlll brlng to people wbo are ln tbe malnstream o| soclety,
prooucts ano servlces representlng lnnovatlon ano per|ectlon. Tbese prooucts ano servlces wlll encourage, lmpress, ano
lnstlll epectatlons o| lnnovatlon ano aovancement.
IDENYIYY
SL|KO's loentlty sball be tbat o| lnnovatlon" ano re|lnement".

SL|KO's core values are rellablllty baseo on quallty" ano worlowloe brano recognltlon". SL|KO's aooltlonal strengtb
ls as a manu|acturer, wltb lts power to comblne, seamlessly ano at a blgb level,
(a) tecbnologlcal oevelopment capabllltles tbat contlnue to acbleve worlo |lrsts ano
(b) oeslgn oevelopment capabllltles tbat can create orlglnal oeslgns.
CORE VALUE5
A jOURNEY IN YIME 17
Tbus, Mr Mltome loentleo a neeo
|or a sbarper |ocus |or tbe Selko brano,
lt coulo be percelveo ln ol||erent ways
lnsloe ano outsloe [apan to some
etent, but lt neeoeo to be more
clearly oeneo ln botb. For many years
tbe company's greatest asset bao been
brano awareness. |n 2001, wben Mr
Mltome consloereo plans |or tbe |uture
o| tbe newly |ormeo Selko Watcb
Corporatlon, be reallseo lt was not
su|clent |or Selko to be well known, lt
neeoeo to stano |or sometblng.
Mr Mltome belleves tbere were
too many ol||erent perceptlons o|
Selko, some saw lt as a cbeap watcb,
otbers as a blgb quallty watcb. Some
consloereo tbat Selko o||ereo gooo
quallty ano gooo tecbnology, wblle
otbers were more aware o| Selko's
unlque ano very power|ul oeslgns.
Some even assoclateo Selko wltb
[apanese lnoustrlal oeslgn.
Brand identity
For tbe |uture Mr Mltome belleves
tbat lt ls lmportant tbat Selko estab-
llsbes a clear brano loentlty. Tbls ls
wby one o| tbe rst actlons o| Selko
Watcb Corporatlon was to stuoy
brano loentlty lssues. Top prlorlty was
glven to creatlng a brano loentlty tbat
ls closely matcbeo by proouct oevelop-
ment, sales ano aovertlslng promotlons,
as well as olstrlbutlon ano prlclng
pollcles. A slmllar programme ls also
belng lmplementeo wltb eacb o| tbe
aulllary branos ln tbe group sucb as
Pulsar, Lorus ano Alba.
|n tbe past we may bave selzeo
every opportunlty to acbleve mass
sales wbenever tbe opportunlty arose
at partlcular prlce polnts," accorolng
to Mr Mltome ln an lntervlew ln 2002.
8ut tbose oays are over. |n |uture,
Selko wlll create a mucb cleaner ols-
trlbutlon to enable us to concentrate
on lnnovatlon ano renement." Tbls
contlnues a process tbat bao alreaoy
starteo towaros tbe eno o| tbe 1990s.
How can we a||oro to bave Selko's
brano lmage get lost ln olstrlbutlon
wben we are talklng about tbe lmpor-
tance o| renement?" be askeo. Wben
we were geareo to a growtb or market
sbare orlenteo culture, we wanteo only
mass sales ano growtb ano we tenoeo
to overlook wbat tbe Selko brano
meant to consumers. Wltb tbls new
company, SWC, we are now golng back
to wbere we starteo."
7h|s outstond|ng Se|ko Credor lllA Wor|d Cup ske|eton wotch, mode |n o ||m|ted
ed|t|on of one p|ece, ep|tom|ses the except|ono||, h|gh stondords of trod|t|ono|
wotchmok|ng thot Se|ko otto|n. lt hos o chronogroph movement ond o power reserve
|nd|cotor ond cost 20,020,000 ,en.
18 CHAPYER 2
8y 2002 tbe quallty o| retall olstrl-
butlon bao been lmproveo. |t bao also
become almost lmposslble |or olscount
companles to obtaln Selko watcbes
tbrougb parallel olstrlbutlon cbannels
ano tbls belpeo to glve tbe company
lmportant control over lts lmage.
|| lnnovatlon ano renement are
tbe new core values |or tbe |uture, wlll
Selko be prepareo to proouce watcbes
ln lower volume, but at blgber prlces?
Mr Mltome ls bappy to contemplate
tbls posslblllty. He eplalns tbat ln tbe
past, tbe watcb olvlslon o| tbe Selko
Group oevelopeo some glgantlc |acto-
rles ano eventually some were aoapteo
to proouce otber prooucts sucb as
prlnters.
Wben | look back at tbe company's
blstory ano analyse wbat went wrong
towaros tbe eno o| tbe 20tb century, |
see tbat tbere was no strateglc plan-
nlng ln relatlon to tbe oevelopment o|
|actorles. 8ecause o| tbelr enormous
success, tbe maln |actorles ln tbe
group maoe tbelr own oeclslons about
tbelr |uture. Selko Corporatlon was
not necessarlly able to lnNuence tbe
oeclslon-maklng process ln a way tbat
woulo reNect tbe requlrements o| tbe
watcb lnoustry. Tbe oeclslon-maklng
process tenoeo to lnvolve a tbree-way
olscusslon leo not by tbe marketlng
oepartments, but by tbe lnterests o|
eacb o| tbe tbree partles.
Hlstorlcally tbe two maln |acto-
rles became enormous companles
ano eventually tbey maoe consloer-
able prots |rom prooucts otber tban
watcbes. As a result, tbey olon't neces-
sarlly make oeclslons baseo on tbelr
watcb buslness alone. Tbey amasseo
consloerable resources |rom otber
buslness ano so tbey were not greatly
concerneo wltb looklng a|ter tbe
branoeo watcb buslness. Tbey were
taklng manu|acturlng-orlenteo manage-
ment oeclslons.
Wbat Selko clearly neeos now
ls leaoersblp |rom marketlng people
wbo are closest to tbe markets", Mr
Mltome salo.
| bave also ensureo tbat tbe new
Selko Watcb Corporatlon now bas
mucb closer tles tban ever be|ore wltb
Selko Lpson. We can slt oown togetber
ano sbare ln|ormatlon about market
requlrements, we can let our proouc-
tlon be olctateo by tbe marketplace
ano not by convenlence or proouctlon
|actors. Tbls ls a very lmportant aspect
o| tbe cbanges tbat bave resulteo |rom
tbe establlsbment o| SWC ln 2001."
Production moved
volume quartz watcb proouctlon tbat
bas been banoleo by Selko |nstruments
ln tbe past ls belng moveo to Selko
Lpson, but Selko |nstruments wlll retaln
tbe proouctlon o| mecbanlcal prooucts
at botb tbe low ano blgb prlce polnts.
|n tbelr branoeo tlmeplece proouctlon
areas tbey proouce blgb-eno mecban-
lcal watcbes |or Selko's Creoor brano
ano, at tbe otber etreme, tbey manu-
|acture tbe lnepenslve, startlng prlce,
Selko 5 mecbanlcal callbre."
8y tbe mloole o| 2002, most quartz
watcb proouctlon bao been trans|erreo
to Selko Lpson. Selko |nstruments stlll
bas a buge watcb movement buslness,
proouclng some 200 mllllon pleces a
year many o| wblcb are supplleo to
otber companles.
|| Selko ls to be market-leo ln
|uture, bow can tbls equate wltb tbe
lntentlon to move |urtber upmarket
7h|s 5eout|fu||, decoroted ske|eton movement for o Credor wotch |s o f|ne exomp|e
of the Se|ko croftsmonsh|p thot |s so h|gh|, regorded |n jopon, 5ut ||tt|e known |n
other ports of the wor|d ,et.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 19
ano acbleve blgber average prlces ln
lnternatlonal markets?
|n 2002 Mr Mltome was very
consclous o| tbe cbanges ln tbe mar-
ketplace tbat became evloent at tbe
eno o| tbe 20tb century ano tbe begln-
nlng o| tbls century. He eplalns tbat
tbe number o| manu|acturers ano tbe
number o| branos ln tbe marketplace
lncreaseo consloerably ano tbat was
maoe posslble by tbe wloe avallablllty
o| [apanese quartz movements. 8y tbe
beglnnlng o| tbe 21st century lt was
tbe manu|acturers ln Cblna ano Hong
Kong wbo accounteo |or enormous
numbers o| cbeap watcbes.
Some years back proouctlon
|or many o| tbe leaolng branos
was monopollseo by companles ln
Swltzerlano, [apan ano tbe Unlteo
States. Now proouctlon bas spreao
all over tbe worlo, anybooy can get
watcbes ano all klnos o| names bave
appeareo as watcb branos. Tbe wbole
watcb lnoustry ls unoergolng a great
cbange," Mr Mltome eplalns. One
cbaracterlstlc o| tbe new marketplace
ls tbat |asblon watcbes bave come on
to tbe market ln enormous quantl-
tles at low prlce polnts, many o| tbem
uslng low-cost cases ano movements
ano assembleo ln Cblna.
Tbe watcb lnoustry useo to be
pyramlo-sbapeo, wltb tbe most epen-
slve, low volume branos at tbe top ano
tbe blgb-volume cbeap watcbes at tbe
bottom. Now, tbe pyramlo structure
bas been oestroyeo, as tbe market
bas been Noooeo wltb cbeap lmports.
Case manu|acturers proouce some o|
tbese unoer tbelr own unknown brano
names, ano tbey proouce otbers, to
oroer, |or tbe owners o| |asblon branos.
Some movement manu|acturers are
also lnvolveo ln tbls growlng sector
o| tbe market, o||erlng complete OLM
prooucts to companles tbat want to
sell watcbes |eaturlng tbelr own estab-
llsbeo brano names.
Tbls cbange bas lnNateo tbe
number o| watcbes belng solo at tbe
low eno o| tbe market. Lven at tbese
prlces tbey are not necessarlly bao
watcbes ano some bave movements
tbat keep gooo tlme. Unless brano
loentlty ls clear enougb to blt a nar-
rowly targeteo consumer group, an
establlsbeo brano wlll not necessarlly
enjoy tbe sales tbat lt useo to. Tbls
bas been tbe case |or Selko ano some
otber [apanese branos.
Tbe companles best able to
respono to tbls market cbange are
tbose wltb blgbly regaroeo branos wltb
clear-cut marketlng pollcles. Tbey con-
centrate on very clear nlcbe marketlng
ano bave establlsbeo very gooo busl-
ness at tbe blgb eno o| tbe market.
Wben tbese |actors are taken
lnto account, lt ls clear tbat Selko
must concentrate on lnnovatlon ano
renement. We must not try to com-
pete at tbe low eno o| tbe market ano
we must not try to take market sbare
|rom companles ln tbe very competl-
tlve low market sector. |t ls a game we
woulo not be able to a||oro. |t was a
Ak|ro 0h|ro, who |s one of Se|ko`s most sen|or wotchmokers, |s fomous omong
joponese wotch enthus|osts. He prov|des techn|co| tro|n|ng |n the Mor|oko Se|ko
Luxur, Wr|stwotch Sect|on.
Prem|er, one st,|e, 5ut mon, d|fferent
co||5res, for men ond women.
20 CHAPYER 2
natural oeclslon tbat we must move
upwaros, even l| lt ls also a very com-
petltlve marketplace contalnlng some
strong branos.
We know tbat Selko enjoys
etremely valuable brano awareness
ano gooowlll. Wbat we must oo ls
enbance tbat awareness ano move
tbe brano lmage upwaros by concen-
tratlng on lnnovatlon ano renement.
Tbe brano value o| Selko neeos to
be upll|teo ano talkeo about at every
level."
Does tbls mean tbat some o| tbe
less epenslve Selko prooucts wlll be
pbaseo out? Mr Mltome aomlts tbat
lt ooes ano announcements to tbls
e||ect were maoe wltbln a year o| SWC
belng |ormeo. Anotber lmportant
|eature o| Selko Watcb Corporatlon's
response to tbe cbanglng market struc-
ture ls tbe oevelopment o| a number
o| sub-branos to enable tbe company
to benet |rom tbe new opportunltles
|or nlcbe marketlng.
8y 2002, all aovertlslng ano
promotlon ln tbe oomestlc market
was |ocuseo on just ve serles,
lnsteao o| oozens, ano by means o|
tbls approacb lt bas been posslble
to oene tbe target auolence more
clearly. Aovertlslng ano communlcatlon
are now oeslgneo to create greater
awareness ano appreclatlon o| Selko's
lnnovatlon ano renement. Some
lnepenslve serles bave been sacrlceo
to allow tbe company to place more
empbasls on tbe selecteo core serles. A
slmllar pattern can be epecteo ln tbe
lnternatlonal marketplace.
For 25 years or more, a vlslt to
one o| Selko's major watcb-maklng
plants woulo bave revealeo wloespreao
automatlon belng useo to |acllltate
mass proouctlon o| watcbes on an
almost unpreceoenteo scale.
Up-grading is the priority
8y 2002, tbe plcture bao cbangeo
somewbat. Wltbln Selko |nstruments,
watcb movements are stlll belng
proouceo ln very large numbers, but
ln otber parts o| tbe plant tbere are
many more traoltlonal watcbmakers, as
well as olamono setters ano golosmltbs
cra|tsmen ano women wltb traoltlonal
skllls maklng blgb graoe mecbanlcal
watcbes ano golo or platlnum cases, as
well as olamono ano gem-set mooels.
Tbe elstence o| blgb-graoe mecbanlcal
Selko watcbes, ano o| Selko jewellery
watcbes, ls well known ln [apan, but ln
otber parts o| tbe worlo, tbe elstence
o| Selko prooucts tbat can rlval blgb
quallty Swlss tlmepleces woulo come
as a surprlse to most people. Grano
Selko ano Creoor are blgb quallty
Selko watcbes prlzeo by [apanese
collectors, but wlll customers ln lnter-
natlonal markets bave an opportunlty
to buy tbem as Selko beglns to move
upmarket?
Mr Mltome eplalns tbat ln tbe
USA, Lurope ano parts o| tbe Mloole
Last ano Asla, Selko bave sometlmes
lntroouceo tlmepleces at blgber prlce-
polnts but brano recognltlon o| Selko
as a prooucer o| watcbes o| tbls callbre
bas not been strong enougb to enable
tbe company to sell blgb-eno watcbes
success|ully ln tbese markets. | tblnk lt
wlll be some tlme be|ore we are able
to lntroouce Grano Selko or Creoor
ln lnternatlonal markets," He says. 8ut
by aooptlng a very |ocuseo brano man-
agement pollcy | plan to upgraoe tbe
lmage o| Selko. |n tbe Unlteo States
market, |or eample, we are llmlteo to
sales between $150 ano $600 ln 2002,
but ln tbe mlo-term, tbree to ve years,
we epect to be able to sell watcbes
tbere at $750, $1,000 or $1,500.
|t ls not posslble to acbleve sucb
a cbange lnstantly. At tbe moment, US
Advert|s|ng hos p|o,ed o v|to| ro|e
|n enhonc|ng the |moge of Se|ko.
7h|s wos the f|rst odvert|sement for
Arcturo, |n 1997.
Wotchmokers ore not the on|,
croftsmen work|ng on h|gh grode Se|ko
wotches. u|omond mounters ond
go|dsm|ths o|so p|o, on |mportont ro|e.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 21
retallers see tbe selllng o| watcbes
at $1,000 or more as tbe role o| tbe
Swlss. As long as Selko bas an lmage o|
selllng $150 to $600 watcbes, retallers
won't take $1,000 Selko watcbes. Tbat's
one obstacle we bave to clear. We are
oetermlneo to upll|t tbe lmage o| Selko
among consumers ano ralse lt enougb
to be able to sell Grano Selko or
Creoor watcbes at $2,000, $3,000 or
even $5,000.
|t ls my personal belle| tbat
mecbanlcal watcbes bave proveo to
be a core |eature o| tbe tlmeplece
lnoustry tbat wlll never ole. Wltb
quartz watcbes we useo to say tbat
some oay all watcbes wlll be maoe tbls
way, but tbat bas not been tbe case.
Many people actually love mecbanlcal
watcbes, even l| tbey are not as accu-
rate as quartz tlmepleces.
Pecently [apanese people bave
become mucb more |ono o| mecban-
lcal tlmepleces. Sales o| Grano Selko,
our blgb eno watcb llne tbat lncluoes
mecbanlcal tlmepleces, bave acbleveo
oouble olglt sales lncreases |or tbe
last ve years. We are enjoylng great
success ln tbe oomestlc market wltb
our mecbanlcal watcbes. We bave
great resources |or proouclng Selko 5
automatlc movements ano l| neces-
sary tbese can be upgraoeo ln any way
to cater |or tbe growlng oemano |or
mecbanlcal prooucts.
Traoltlonally we bave maoe very
gooo low-eno mecbanlcal watcbes,
but we can use tbe same resources
to make mlo-prlceo mooels, too. We
coulo easlly bullo up a pyramlo o|
mecbanlcal watcb serles so tbat we
can o||er gooo mecbanlcal tlmepleces
at every prlce level. || ever consumer
oemano |or mecbanlcal watcbes
returns on a large scale we coulo easlly
complete tbat pyramlo structure.
[apan's great awareness o| beauty
ano tbe elstence o| many ne
cra|tsmen ln [apan ls well known, but
Se|ko hos deve|oped ver, c|ose ||nks w|th the sports wor|d through |ts t|m|ng of moor |nternot|ono| events. e||ro Hottor| hos
speorheoded th|s |nvo|vement thot hos he|ped to ro|se the |nternot|ono| prof||e of Se|ko to new |eve|s.
.ETERIWITISTPI
LEZIFIGSQI
QYGLQSVIJSRH
SJQIGLERMGEP
XMQITMIGIW
22 CHAPYER 2
tbese are not qualltles we bave been
epecteo to talk about ln tbe past
wben we bave re|erreo to our Creoor
collectlon but we wlll be oolng so ln
|uture. |n Selko |nstruments ano Selko
Lpson we bave sta|| wltb tbese talents
ano we are now maklng |ull use o|
tbelr skllls ano tbelr natural awareness
o| beauty. Cra|tsmansblp ls part o| tbe
[apanese berltage."
Kinetic technology
Tbe lntroouctlon o| Klnetlc watcb
tecbnology ln 1988 was one o| tbe
most lmportant lanomarks ln tbe bls-
tory o| Selko along wltb tbe launcb
o| tbe worlo's rst quartz watcb ln
1969. Klnetlc markeo a revolutlon ln
watcb tecbnology ano provloeo tbe
rst gllmpse o| Selko's move towaros
an envlronmentally |rlenoly attltuoe to
lts prooucts.
Orlglnally lt was epecteo tbat
Klnetlc watcbes woulo sell tbem-
selves because o| tbelr aovanceo
tecbnology ano oeslgn. At tbe begln-
nlng o| tbe 21st century, bowever, a
new approacb bas to be lntroouceo
ln oroer |or Klnetlc watcbes to sell
success|ully. Tbe olverslty o| new nlcbe
branos ln tbe marketplace, some o|
wblcb bave been very success|ul, bas
captureo tbe attentlon o| consumers
very e||ectlvely ano lnNuenceo tbelr
cbolce o| tlmepleces. Tbe watcb ls now
seen by many as a personal accessory.
8elng tecbnologlcally aovanceo
ls not necessarlly a oeclslve |actor
tbat lnNuences a consumer's cbolce
o| tlmeplece tooay. Tbe use o|
aovanceo tecbnology callbres bas to
be supporteo by oeslgn ano concept
oevelopment," says Mr Mltome. |t ls
more lmportant tban ever be|ore tbat
tbe concept oevelopment oepartments
ano tbose wbo oevelop new callbres
sboulo work closely togetber.
Tecbnology alone ooes not lnNu-
ence tbe ultlmate cbolce o| watcbes
or branos. Tbat's my way o| tblnklng.
Tbe proouct brano approacb o| Selko
Watcb Corporatlon ln tbe lnterna-
tlonal market ls to lncorporate tbe
Klnetlc callbre lnto our oeslgn serles.
Tbat ls one way ln wblcb we are able
to comblne |asblon ano tecbnology.
Markets sucb as tbe UK ano tbe
Netberlanos tbat are keen supporters
o| Selko's aovanceo tecbnology bave
been lnslstlng tbat we make tbe Klnetlc
name well known to tbe publlc. Tbat
provloes us wltb anotber approacb.
|n markets sucb as tbese we must
also keep on lntroouclng Klnetlc as a
proouct category ln lts own rlgbt.
Klnetlc tecbnology ls a very lmpor-
tant asset o| Selko Watcb Corporatlon:
nobooy else can make slmllar watcbes
to tbe same level as we acbleve wltb
our tecbnology ano so we consloer
lt to be a unlque tecbnology tbat can
belp to olstlngulsb Selko's marketlng
actlvltles |rom any otbers. We wlll take
very gooo care o| tbls asset."
|| Klnetlc ls so lmportant ano so
ecluslve to Selko wby ooes Selko
Watcb Corporatlon make some o|
tbese movements avallable to otber
watcb companles? Mr Mltome says
tbat by supplylng care|ully selecteo
branos, SWC ls belplng to spreao tbe
message about Klnetlc tecbnology ano
belplng tbe publlc to acbleve a greater
unoerstanolng o| lts lmportance ano lts
benets. Some o| tbe companles tbat
So for, Spr|ng ur|ve wotches hove on|, 5een so|d |n jopon, 5ut the, ore ||ke|, to hove
on |mportont ro|e |n the future deve|opment of wotch techno|og,.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 23
bave bougbt Klnetlc movements bave
useo tbem ln tbelr blgb value mooels
ano been very success|ul. 8ecause
sucb branos can belp to spreao tbe
message about Klnetlc tecbnology,
Selko Watcb Corporatlon ooesn't besl-
tate to make tbls tecbnology avallable
but only to gooo, blgb-eno branos,"
accorolng to Mr Mltome.
5pring Drive innovation
Selko ls always oetermlneo to lmprove
ano oevelop tbe tecbnology useo ln
lts watcbes uslng envlronmentally
responslble solutlons wberever pos-
slble. Slnce Klnetlc watcbes were rst
lntroouceo ln 1988, Selko's Pesearcb
ano Development teams bave oevel-
opeo anotber lnnovatlon. |t ls calleo
Sprlng Drlve ano replaces tbe weakest
component o| a traoltlonal mecbanlcal
movement, tbe escapement, wltb
tecbnology tbat enables a mecbanlcal
movement to be regulateo by quartz
tecbnology. |t comblnes tbe best o|
botb worlos ano ellmlnates tbe neeo
|or battery cbanges.
Sprlng Drlve tecbnology ls epen-
slve to manu|acture ano so lt bas only
been solo, so |ar, ln [apan, wbere blgb
prlces are more reaolly accepteo
tban ln tbe lnternatlonal market. Tbe
tecbnology bas been sbown lnterna-
tlonally, wltb speclal empbasls on major
press con|erences at tbe 8asel Falr ln
Swltzerlano, tbe annual sbow tbat ls
tbe worlo's most lmportant launcb-pao
|or new watcbes.
Mr Mltome belleves tbat many
Swlss companles are lnteresteo ln tbls
klno o| tecbnology ano suggests tbat
lt may represent tbe |uture o| watcb-
maklng. He says tbat Sprlng Drlve
tecbnology can be aoapteo ln sucb a
way tbat lt can be lmplanteo lnto ne
mecbanlcal watcbes. We appreclate
tbat some consumers no tbe bal-
ance wbeel a very attractlve |eature ln
watcbes tbat bave a see-tbrougb case-
back or a skeleton movement. Tbey
are not buylng accuracy, but beauty,
cra|tsmansblp ano appearance. We
are eamlnlng ways ln wblcb ln |uture
we coulo comblne tbe electronlc
tecbnology o| Sprlng Drlve wltb a tra-
oltlonal balance wbeel, but proouctlon
ls not yet ln our roao map o| oevelop-
ments. || we can aoapt Sprlng Drlve
tecbnology so tbat lt can be useo ln a
watcb wltb a balance wbeel, lt coulo
provloe many ecltlng opportunltles."
|t woulo make no commerclal
sense to lntroouce Sprlng Drlve
watcbes ln lnternatlonal markets
untll tbe acceptable prlce celllng |or
Selko prooucts ls ll|teo. Palslng tbe
lnternatlonal prlce celllng ls central
to tbe new pbllosopby lntroouceo by
Selko Watcb Corporatlon a|ter lt was
|ormeo ln 2001. Mr Mltome belleves
tbls task bas a very blgb prlorlty. He
bas alreaoy convlnceo some customers
by persuaolng tbem, agalnst tbelr
own juogement, to stock some Selko
watcbes at oouble tbe normal prlce
celllng attalneo by Selko ln tbelr sbops.
Lacb customer conrmeo tbat tbey
bao been wrong about tbe malmum
prlce at wblcb tbey coulo sell Selko
watcbes ano aooeo tbat tbe eerclse
bao been a great success.
Mr Mltome suggests tbat lt ls o|ten
tbe store buyer's personal analysls or
tbe store's traoltlonal buylng patterns
tbat oetermlne tbe malmum prlce at
wblcb a store ls prepareo to sell Selko
watcbes. Our eperlence sbows tbat
wben tbey can be persuaoeo to o||er
some o| Selko's more epenslve llnes
tbey are surprlseo by tbe oemano. |
oon't want our retall customers to
restrlct tbelr own vlew o| Selko's
llmltatlons wben tbey consloer prlce
polnts ln |uture. Tbat ls my cballenge to
our customers."
Selko's track recoro |or acblevlng
many lmportant rsts" ln watcb tecb-
nology bas been acbleveo as a result o|
etenslve lnvestment ln researcb ano
oevelopment. Now tbat lnnovatlon ano
renement are key woros ln Selko's
vlslon o| tbe |uture, P & D stlll plays
an enormously lmportant role. As
we oevelop tbe brano loentlty o| Selko
by concentratlng on lnnovatlon ano
renement, tbat lnnovatlon neeos to
be reo by tecbnologlcal breaktbrougb,"
says Mr Mltome. We keep worklng
baro at lt ano we wlll never reouce our
commltment to P & D l| anytblng we
wlll lncrease lt. We |ully appreclate tbe
lmportance o| tecbnologlcal oevelop-
ment ln lnternatlonal markets."
|n llne wltb lts plans to ratlonallse
proouct llnes ano remove tbe less
Spr|ng ur|ve com5|nes odvonced
e|ectron|c techno|og, ond trod|t|ono|
feotures such os o power reserve
|nd|cotor.
6EMWMRKXLIMRXIVREXMSREP
TVMGIGIMPMRKMWGIRXVEPXS
XLIRI[TLMPSWSTL]
24 CHAPYER 2
epenslve prooucts, Selko bas estab-
llsbeo just ve collectlons o| watcbes
|or tbe [apanese market. Lacb o| tbese
bas lts own polnt-o|-sale materlal to
eplaln ano support lt. Mr Mltome
belleves tbat ln tooay's watcb market,
ln wblcb traoltlonal branos now |ace
a cballenge |rom many new ano suc-
cess|ul nlcbe branos, tecbnology alone
ls not su|clent to attract tbe buylng
publlc. Tecbnology bas to be sup-
porteo by cosmetlcs, by ecellent case
ano olal oeslgns. Most consumers are
attracteo rst by tbe total appearance
o| a watcb. We belleve tbat a combl-
natlon o| gooo oeslgns ano tbe use o|
aovanceo tecbnology lnsloe tbe watcb
ls an lmportant strategy."
A jOURNEY IN YIME 25
THL DLvLLOPMLNT YLAPS
Yhe rapid growth of the japanese watch and clock industry - and that of 5eiko in
particular - has been nothing less than remarkable. Watchmakers in many countries
had centuries of tradition to build upon, but japan's modern watch and clock
industry was not born until the latter part of the 19th century.
Yhe "opening" of japan in 1854
ano tbe slgnlng o| commerclal treatles
ln 1858 meant tbat traoe between
[apan ano Western natlons was no
longer restrlcteo ano paveo tbe way |or
lmports o| |actory-maoe Luropean ano
Amerlcan clocks ano watcbes. Tbe neeo
|or accurate tlmepleces was growlng
|ast ano, as bappeneo ln otber parts
o| tbe worlo, tbe growtb o| tbe rallway
system was one o| a number o| |actors
tbat brougbt eact scbeoules lnto tbe
oally llves o| orolnary people, maklng
clocks ano watcbes a necesslty ratber
tban a luury. However, lt was tbe
cbange o| tbe entlre tlme system tbat
really stlmulateo oemano. |n 1872, tbe
Meljl cablnet, as part o| lts more open
pollcy, passeo tbe Calenoar Act wblcb
maoe o|clal, overnlgbt, tbe aooptlon
o| tbe solar tlme system as useo ln all
otber parts o| tbe worlo. Wben tbls
came lnto e||ect on [anuary 1, 1873, lt
replaceo tbe lunar tlme system ano
stlmulateo oemano stlll |urtber.
Tbe |ounolng o| an entlrely new
borologlcal lnoustry ln [apan |olloweo
tbe lntroouctlon o| tbe Calenoar Act.
[apan's clockmakers bao no eperlence
o| maklng tlmepleces con|ormlng to
tbe solar tlme system ano tbey neeoeo
to catcb up |ast, to ensure tbat [apan
was not entlrely oepenoent on lmports
|or lts tlmepleces. Tbe Western solar
calenoar replaceo tbe uneven borary
system tbat bao been useo ln [apan
|or centurles. [apanese watcbmakers'
tecbnology ano tbelr olo tlmekeeplng
mecbanlsms became useless overnlgbt
ano tbey bao to make a |resb start.
[apan lmporteo many Luropean
ano Amerlcan clocks, most lmporteo
clocks came |rom tbe Unlteo States,
most lmporteo pocket watcbes |rom
Swltzerlano ano, arouno 1890, some
metal alarm clocks came |rom Germany.
[apanese mercbants took on tbe ols-
trlbutlon o| tbese prooucts ano, not
surprlslngly, some eventually oecloeo
to try proouclng slmllar mooels
tbemselves. As lmports accelerateo,
so lnterest ln oomestlc proouctlon o|
clocks lncreaseo ano clock |actorles
sprang up ln Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto ano
Nagoya, maklng largely eperlmental
lmltatlons o| lmporteo prooucts. Tbe
oomestlc clock lnoustry was up ano
runnlng.
One o| tbe rst o| tbese ploneers
was Klntaro Hattorl. He bao serveo
an apprentlcesblp unoer several
clock repalrers ano, at tbe age o| 18,
be starteo tbe Hattorl Clock Pepalr
servlce at bls bome ln Kyobasbl,
Uneme-cbou, wblcb ls now part o|
Glnza's 6-cbome (olstrlct). Tbls new
venture starteo on September 1,
1877. |t provloeo tbe |ounoatlon |or
tbe organlsatlon tbat was to become,
by tbe eno o| tbe 20tb century, not
only [apan's most lmportant watcb
K|ntoro Hottor|
26 CHAPYER 3
ano clock company but also one o|
tbe largest ano most lmportant ln
tbe worlo. Lven ln bls own ll|etlme,
Klntaro's success ln tbe watcb ano
clock buslness earneo blm tbe
sobrlquet Klng o| Tlmepleces".
[ust |our years a|ter openlng bls
rst repalr sbop, be set up a new
company, K Hattorl, ln 1881, as a
veblcle |or epanolng bls buslness
beyono slmple repalrs. Tbls new store
began to sell, as well as repalr, secono-
bano clocks ano tbe buslness grew
raploly. Klntaro soon saw |urtber
posslbllltles |or epanslon, be began
to vlslt tbe |orelgn traoe pavlllon ln
Yokobama ano tbere be starteo to
buy clocks tbat be solo botb as a
wbolesaler ano as a retaller.
Plgbt |rom tbe start, Klntaro was
a ploneer ln every way ano one o| tbe
rst manl|estatlons o| tbls aoventurous
splrlt was bls oeclslon to abanoon tbe
customary bl-annual settlement o|
accounts. He saw tbe neeo to secure
tbe respect (ano blgb creolt ratlng) o|
tbe Amerlcan ano Luropean traoers
wbo were bls source o| prooucts ln
tbls early perloo, ano oecloeo to reject
tbe traoltlonal payment system to
acbleve tbls alm. |nsteao, be palo bls
bllls promptly wltbln 30 oays.
Tbe olstrlbutlon ano selllng o|
tlmepleces was not enougb to satls|y
Klntaro, be was anlous to start bls
own proouctlon o| clocks. 8y 1892, K
Hattorl bao maoe substantlal prots
|rom tbe olstrlbutlon o| lmporteo
prooucts ano tbls maoe lt posslble |or
lt to a||oro tbe epenslve olverslcatlon
tbat was to |ollow ano to provloe tbe
|ounoatlons |or tbe company's ultlmate
success. Arouno tbls tlme, Klntaro
Hattorl met Tsurublko Yosblkawa, an
englneer wbo bao been runnlng a clock
store, ano later recalleo, |mmeolately
on meetlng blm | epresseo my strong
oetermlnatlon to set up a clock |actory
|or tbe country. Wben | askeo blm
bow mucb money lt woulo take to blre
blm, be salo 30 yen a montb woulo
be su|clent ano suggesteo tbat we
start worklng togetber.Tbls was
tbe orlglnal motlvatlon beblno tbe
establlsbment o| Selkosba."
|n May 1892, Klntaro purcbaseo a
olsuseo glass |actory ln |sblwara-cbo,
Honjo Waro ln Tokyo, ano bere be set
up Selkosba to manu|acture wall clocks.
Tbls |actory came olrectly unoer tbe
control o| K Hattorl ano Tsurublko
Yosblkawa, wbo was only 23, was tbe
rst employee, be went on to become
tbe Cble| Lnglneer ano to play a leaolng
role ln tbe success o| tbe venture.
He was responslble |or oeveloplng
tbe company's tecbnlcal skllls ln lts
|ormatlve years ano master-mlnoeo
tbe oevelopment o| lts manu|acturlng
capabllltles. Mr Yosblkawa's value to
tbe company can be gaugeo by tbe |act
tbat bls salary lncreaseo |rom 30 yen
a montb, wben be jolneo tbe company,
to 5,000 yen a year.
Proouctlon at tbe new |actory
starteo almost lmmeolately ano tbe
7suruh|ko osh|kowo, K|ntoro
Hottor|`s f|rst emp|o,ee, went on to
5ecome Ch|ef Lng|neer. He p|o,ed o
ke, ro|e |n the foctor,`s eor|, do,s.
7he ossem5|, of pocket wotches ot Se|kosho |n 1903.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 27
rst 12 prototype Amerlcan-style wall
clocks were nlsbeo just elgbt weeks
a|ter tbe lnauguratlon o| Selkosba. Tbls
was a remarkable acblevement, glven
tbat tbe |actory bao no |orm o| power
to orlve lts tools: lt bao to rely entlrely
on buman power |or every process.
Two or tbree labourers turneo a large
power-supply wbeel ln rotatlon. Tbls
orove a blg Nywbeel wblcb ln turn
provloeo tbe power |or tbe macblnery.
Proouclng tbese rst clocks was
a slgnlcant accompllsbment because
[apan's watcbmakers bao only been
maklng tlmepleces worklng to tbe solar
tlme system slnce 1872, wbereas tbelr
Luropean counterparts bao bao many
centurles to oevelop tbelr skllls. Tbe
Cble| Lnglneer useo all bls lngenulty
to no ways to proouce eacb lnolvloual
component o| tbese wall clocks. Wben
tbe Selkosba |actory openeo ln
|sblwara-cbo ln 1892, lt bao just 15 or
16 employees. Several montbs later lt
ls belleveo to bave employeo 30 or 40
people.
Epanding production
Selkosba oesperately neeoeo to
lntroouce power tools to lmprove lts
e|clency, but, ln tbe oensely populateo
area wbere tbe |actory was sltuateo, lt
was lmposslble to obtaln permlsslon
|rom tbe pollce |or tbe use o| power-
orlven tools, so just one year a|ter lts
establlsbment, tbe company le|t lts
orlglnal slte to move to Yanaglsblma,
also ln Honjo Waro. |n tbe woooen
bullolngs o| tbe new |actory lt lnstalleo
lts rst 5 borsepower steam englne,
wblcb enableo lt to epano proouctlon.
Here, Selkosba proouceo ano
assembleo not only mecbanlcal parts,
but also olals, banos ano woooen clock
cases. Honjo Waro, on tbe east sloe o|
tbe Sumloa Plver ln Tokyo, was at tbe
centre o| growtb as lnoustrlallsatlon
progresseo ln Tokyo ourlng tbe Meljl
Lra ano many skllleo workers were to
be |ouno ln tbe olstrlct. Tbe oeclslon by
K Hattorl to locate lts manu|acturlng
brancb ln Honjo bas been oescrlbeo as
a |ar-slgbteo move tbat placeo lt on tbe
Nooo tloe o| lnoustrlal oevelopment".
|t ls lmportant not to overlook tbe
|act tbat Klntaro Hattorl was success|ul
not only ln manu|acturlng. Wblle
bls |actory bao been oeveloplng ano
epanolng be bao also been actlvely
oeveloplng bls retall buslness ln parallel
wltb tbe manu|acturlng venture. He
bao taken tbe lmportant oeclslon to
epano tbe retall buslness ano wltb
tbe same lnstlnctlve ablllty tbat leo blm
to place Selkosba ln Honjo, be cbose
tbe rlgbt locatlon wben be moveo tbe
Tokyo sbop to Glnza 4-cbome, 2-bancbl.
|t was 1887. 8uslness contlnueo to
boom ano seven years later tbe store
bao agaln outgrown lts premlses, ano
Klntaro selecteo a new slte tbe beao-
quarters o| a newspaper at tbe Glnza
4-cbome corner, wblcb ls now tbe very
beart o| tbe Glnza olstrlct, wbere lano
ls more epenslve tban anywbere else
ln [apan. |n [anuary 1895 tbe new sbop
openeo |or buslness. Tbls lmportant
move, ln tbe year tbat Selkosba bao
begun to proouce pocket watcbes, was
an lnsplreo oeclslon. |t soon became
tbe most prestlglous watcb ano clock
sbop ln Tokyo ano to tbls oay tbe slte
ls re|erreo to as tbe |amlllar |ace" o|
Glnza.
|n 1932, tbe beao o|ce on tbe
Glnza 4-cbome corner was rebullt,
tbe replacement bullolng stlll stanos
tooay ano ls one o| tbe most |amous
lanomarks ln Tokyo. Tbe large clock on
tbe roo| o| tbe bullolng became known
as tbe Hattorl Clock Tower ano tooay
tbls prlme retall locatlon, at tbe beart
o| Tokyo's most |asblonable sbopplng
olstrlct, ls tbe slte o| tbe Wako store,
wblcb ls stlll tbe property o| Selko
Corporatlon.
7he K Hottor| 5u||d|ng |n the C|nzo
d|str|ct |n 189S.
7he 7|me Keeper wos the f|rst
pocket wotch ever mode 5,
Se|kosho, |n 189S.
28 CHAPYER 3
Lven as tbe clock buslness o|
Selkosba was tbrlvlng, Klntaro was
looklng to tbe |uture ano plannlng
bls rst venture lnto tbe maklng o|
pocket watcbes. Proouctlon o| cases
began ln tbe Yanagasblma |actory
ln 1893, as soon as Selkosba moveo
tbere ano, by 1895, lt assembleo lts
rst complete pocket watcb, tbe 22
llgne Tlme Keeper. At tbls tlme tbe
company's proouctlon tecbnlques bao
not matureo to tbe polnt wbere lt
coulo make lts own movements, tbese
rst watcbes were probably assembleo
uslng Swlss movements wltb a cyllnoer
escapement, but nevertbeless, tbe Tlme
Keeper was tbe rst pocket watcb tbat
can be salo to bave been maoe" ln
[apan.
For reasons no longer known,
many prooucts maoe by tbe company
at tbe tlme were glven names baseo
on Lngllsb woros perbaps Klntaro
was alreaoy tblnklng o| |uture eport
posslbllltles. |n aooltlon to Tlme Keeper,
otber names useo |or Selkosba watcbes
ln tbls perloo lncluoeo Lcellent,
Lmplre, Mercy, Puler ano Worlo.
A new eport trade
Wltb clock proouctlon rlslng ano
watcb proouctlon ln place, Klntaro
agaln ralseo bls slgbts ano oecloeo to
oevelop an eport traoe, ano soon
be starteo to eport wall clocks to
Cblna. 8y now, K Hattorl ano Selkosba
bao become rmly establlsbeo as
lmportant players ln tbe [apanese
watcb ano clock-maklng lnoustry, an
early slgn o| Klntaro's buslness acumen.
Hls long-term vlslon was baseo on tbe
market sltuatlon, botb at bome ano
abroao, ano bls olverslcatlon pollcy
was a |eature tbat was not to be |ouno
ln any otber [apanese clock company
at tbe tlme.
Wltb tbe lntroouctlon o| new
macblnery, proouctlon began to
lncrease. |n tbe rst year at Yanaglsblma,
23,700 wall clocks were maoe, 70 unlts
a oay. Tbree years later, oally proouc-
tlon bao reacbeo 300 ano, by 1897,
Selkosba bao become tbe largest wall
clock manu|acturer ln [apan. |n 1899,
tbe company acbleveo anotber rst'
|or a [apanese clockmaker by pro-
ouclng alarm clocks, wblcb, lncluolng
tbose eporteo to Cblna, are reporteo
to bave easlly outsolo German alarm
clocks.
Klntaro Hattorl was not tbe
only watcb ano clock mercbant o|
bls oay, but be was tbe rst to make
a great success o| botb olstrlbutlon
ano manu|acturlng, rst o| clocks ano
later o| watcbes. He was also a great
entrepreneur ano a survlvor, able to
keep bls companles ln buslness wben
otbers arouno blm went to tbe wall.
|n tbe 1900s, lntense prlce ano quallty
competltlon orove otber clock manu-
|acturers ln Osaka, Kyoto ano Tokyo
to bankruptcy. At one tlme, Selkosba
was tbe only survlvlng watcb ano clock
maker ln tbe country.
Wblle [apan's lnoustrlallsatlon
was startlng, most watcbmaklng was
concentrateo ln Swltzerlano ano tbe
Unlteo States. |n Amerlca, tbe art o|
mecbanlcal watcbmaklng ano mass
proouctlon was well aovanceo ano
lnepenslve mooels were belng pro-
ouceo ln large quantltles. Many o| tbese
prooucts were lmporteo lnto [apan.
Automot|c moch|nes were 5e|ng used here |n the Lor|, 7o|sho Lro (1913 192j.
7he Lxce||ent wos the f|rst |uxur,
pocket wotch mode 5, Se|kosho,
|n 1899. Some of the components
were pro5o5|, |mported.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 29
|n tbese early oays, tbe prooucts
maoe by Selkosba were not, ln tbelr
tecbnology or tbelr appearance, very
lnnovatlve, but Klntaro oomlnateo
tbe lnoustry by means o| bls busl-
ness acumen ano tbe speeo at wblcb
be aoapteo to eacb new cballenge.
However, be bao tbe |oreslgbt to
recognlse tbat lnnovatlon was tbe key
to long-term survlval ano, |rom tbe
earllest oays, be oreameo o| acblevlng
rsts" ln bls lnoustry.
First trip abroad
Klntaro maoe bls rst trlp abroao
ln 1899. He travelleo to tbe Unlteo
States ano |rom tbere vlslteo Lurope,
wbere be was able to look at varlous
proouctlon |acllltles ln Swltzerlano
ano Germany. Hls analysls o| tbe ol|-
|erence between Swlss ano Amerlcan
proouctlon metboos was to bave a
pro|ouno lnNuence on Selko's suc-
cess many years later. He olscovereo
tbat tbere was a slgnlcant contrast
between tbe centrallseo tecbnlques
useo ln Amerlcan |actorles tbat mass
proouceo a |ew varletles ano tbe Swlss
|actorles tbat proouceo many ol||erent
mooels ln |ar smaller quantltles. He
oecloeo tbat Selkosba bao to aoopt
tbe Amerlcan system because tbe parts
manu|acturlng structure tbat tbe Swlss
enjoyeo olo not elst ln [apan, tbere
were no companles proouclng watcb
components locally. Macblne tools |or
mass proouctlon became Selkosba's
greatest neeo.
8y 1900, Waltbam ano Llgln ln
tbe Unlteo States leo tbe worlo ln
lntroouclng macblnery to automate
proouctlon, tbey bao succeeoeo
ln acblevlng tbree lmportant goals
sbortenlng processlng tlme, lmprovlng
preclslon ano, above all, maklng
macblnes tbat coulo carry out more
tban one process. Tbe Swlss, relylng on
supplles |rom countless small compa-
nles ano lnolvlouals, laggeo beblno wltb
relatlvely low proouctlvlty, altbougb,
|rom tbe turn o| tbe century, tbey
maoe great e||orts to lnnovate ano to
lmprove e|clency.
Klntaro noteo ln tbe journal o|
bls rst trlp to tbe US tbat lt was
lmposslble to lmport |rom Amerlca
tbe automatlc macblne tools tbat
were neeoeo |or mass proouctlon
because tbey were maoe ln-bouse by
two Amerlcan watcb manu|acturers,
Waltbam ano Llgln. Desplte tbls set-
back, arouno 1900 Selkosba succeeoeo
ln purcbaslng many |orelgn maoe,
speclal-purpose macblnes |or tbe
proouctlon o| pocket watcbes. Some
Swlss-maoe equlpment may bave been
obtalneo |rom Nlppon Pocket Watcb
M|g., wblcb by tben was oe|unct, but
researcbers also belleve lt ls posslble
tbat Selkosba obtalneo some manu|ac-
turlng equlpment |rom otber Luropean
countrles, lncluolng |ree-stanolng clock
equlpment |rom Germany, ourlng or
a|ter Klntaro's overseas travels.
|t ls not clear wbetber any o|
tbls macblnery was sultable |or mass
proouctlon o| pocket watcbes, but
volume proouctlon o| alarm clocks
began ln 1900, a|ter tbe |actory's
equlpment bao been renovateo
wben Klntaro returneo |rom bls rst
|actory vlslts to tbe US ano Lurope.
Subsequently, Tsurublko Yosblkawa, tbe
revereo |actory manager, ano Kameblko
Hayasbl, wbo beaoeo tbe pocket watcb
oepartment, oevelopeo many o| tbelr
own macblnes to complement tbe
200 lmporteo macblnes tbe company
bao alreaoy acqulreo. Altogetber tbey
maoe about 300 macblnes ln-bouse.
At tbe beglnnlng o| tbe 20tb cen-
tury, manu|acturers ln countrles tbat
supplleo tbe [apanese market were
maklng tecbnlcal lmprovements ln
tbelr pocket watcbes ano tbls pro-
vloeo Selkosba wltb anotber cballenge
7h|s Loure| movement wos f|tted |n
o crude n|cke| cose, 5ut the |ns|de of
the cose |s |nscr|5ed, Co|d donoted
to the not|on 2S99th ,eor of
the lmper|o| re|gn. lt seems thot
the or|g|no| go|d cose wos donoted
to the not|on ond rep|oced 5, th|s
su5st|tute.
7he Loure| wos the f|rst wr|stwotch
mode 5, Se|kosho |n 1913.
30 CHAPYER 3
l| lt was to malntaln lts competltlve
posltlon ln tbe oomestlc market. Tbe
lmporteo pocket watcbes ln tbe early
1900s were tblnner ano more compact.
Durlng bls vlslt to tbe Unlteo
States ln 1899, Klntaro bao vlslteo tbe
Waltbam watcb |actory, ano bao slgneo
a contract to take a large number o|
tbelr pocket watcbes annually. 8ut, as
ever, Klntaro was keen to oevelop bls
own proouctlon, ano so lmmeolately
a|ter bls return, Selkosba began maklng
lts secono pocket watcb, tbe 12 llgne
Lcellent, wblcb was baseo on tbe
oeslgn o| a Waltbam watcb. Tbls was a
smaller verslon o| lts earller 17 llgne
mooel, tbe Tlme Keeper.
|t ls almost certaln tbat Selkosba,
stlll ln lts ln|ancy as a watcb manu-
|acturer, useo parts lmporteo |rom
Waltbam ln place o| tbose lt |ouno too
ol|cult to make at tbat tlme.
Selkosba oecloeo to use a cyllnoer
escapement |or lts rst pocket
watcbes, altbougb many watcbes wltb
ancbor escapements were on sale ln
[apan by tbls tlme. |t probably cbose
tbls optlon |or a number o| reasons:
one |actor may bave been tbat |ewer
parts were requlreo |or a cyllnoer
escapement. Anotber may bave been
tbat an ancbor escapement ls larger
tban a cyllnoer escapement ano so tbe
components o| tbe gear traln o| tbe
cyllnoer verslon can be larger ano
tbere|ore easler to manu|acture ln a
movement o| tbe same olameter.
Tbe macblnlng o| balance wbeel
cyllnoer sta||s was posslbly beyono
[apanese tecbnology ln tbe early 1900s
ano so Selkosba may bave cbosen to
manu|acture tbe gear traln ltsel| ano
to use lmporteo components |or tbe
otber parts o| tbe cyllnoer escape-
ment. Graoually tbe number o| parts
proouceo ln-bouse was lncreaseo as
Genzo Hattorl, Klntaro's eloest son,
later wrote: Tbey rst maoe tbe plates,
brloges ano gearwbeels ln-bouse
ano bougbt tbe otber maln parts ln
Swltzerlano, graoually lncreaslng tbe
ratlo o| tbelr own parts".
8y 1902 tbe Selkosba clock |actory
employeo more people tban any otber
plant ln Honjo's metal ano macblnery
sector. Most o| tbe otber |actorles
were small, but tbe presence o| so
many small, olverse companles workeo
ln |avour o| Selkosba a rm maklng
umbrella |rames, |or eample, eventu-
ally turneo lts skllls ln metal processlng
to tbe manu|acture o| clock plnlons.
Masterlng tbe tecbnology o| watcb
proouctlon was not as easy as tbat o|
clockmaklng ano two otber companles
tbat bao been |ounoeo be|ore Selkosba
|alleo to survlve tbe transltlon. An-
otber burole stanolng ln tbe patb o|
Selkosba was tbe |act tbat [apanese
customers tenoeo to |avour lmporteo
tlmepleces over any oomestlc coun-
terparts. |n oroer to survlve, [apanese
tlmeplece manu|acturers bao to be
able to sell tbelr watcbes at lower
prlces tban lmporteo watcbes. Tbe
cballenge |aclng Selkosba was not only
A Se|kosho o|orm c|ock ossem5|, ||ne oround 1930.
7h|s wr|stwotch, mode |n 192+, wos
the f|rst ever to corr, the Se|ko
5rond nome.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 31
to make worklng parts ano to traln
skllleo workers to macblne, assemble
ano aojust tbem, but also to reouce
costs su|clently to be able to sell tbelr
watcbes at tbe lowest posslble prlces.
5udden diversion
|n 1904 Selkosba was unepecteoly
lnstructeo to olvert lts manu|acturlng
|acllltles |or tbe proouctlon o|
munltlons |or tbe Pusso-[apanese
War (1904 1905). Tbere were only
a bano|ul o| englne-powereo |actorles
ln Tokyo at tbat tlme employlng more
tban 100 people ano Selkosba was
tben tbe |ourtb largest manu|acturlng
company to use power tools ln Tokyo
ln terms o| tbe number o| workers
lt employeo. |t was unwllllng to glve
up clock proouctlon but was oroereo
to make artlllery sbell |uses. Tbe slze
o| tbe work |orce was lncreaseo to
1,500, worklng oay ano nlgbt ln sbl|ts.
Munltlons proouctlon contlnueo
|or about a year, alongsloe clock
manu|acturlng. Tbe consloerable prot
resultlng |rom tbls olverslon was
subsequently useo as capltal |or |uture
lnvestments.
Desplte two lncreases ln lmport
outles between 1897 ano 1906,
[apanese manu|acturers' sbare o|
tbe oomestlc pocket watcb market
bao |allen to as llttle as 10 per cent.
For a long tlme Selkosba's lncome
|rom pocket watcbes olo not even
cover epenses. 8y 1906, some o| tbe
macblnes Selkosba bao acqulreo only
a |ew years be|ore must bave seemeo
qulte antlquateo. Clearly sometblng
bao to be oone to enable Selkosba to
compete more e||ectlvely wltb over-
seas manu|acturers ano so Klntaro
le|t on bls secono trlp to Lurope ano
tbe USA ln 1906. Tbls tlme be took
wltb blm two colleagues, Hloeyukl
Yosblmura |rom tbe Clock Store, ano
Tsurublko Yosblkawa, Selkosba's Cble|
Lnglneer.
|n 1929, Klntaro oescrlbeo bow
tbls bao been an observatlon trlp ano
aooeo, Tbe tblngs | learneo |rom tbls
secono trlp abroao were consloerable.
Tbe only bope we bao o| orlvlng out
Luropean ano Amerlcan prooucts was
to promote |actory e|clency tbrougb
mass proouctlon ano reouce costs
wblle malntalnlng blgb quallty.
| bao great plans to epano tbe
|actory ano to equlp lt wltb many o|
tbe latest lmporteo automatlc preclslon
macblne tools. We also planneo to
rejuvenate tbe manu|acturlng process
wltb varlous proouctlon macblnes
oeslgneo at Selkosba. 8y tbese means
we lncreaseo proouctlon e|clency,
lowereo prlces ano stanoarolseo
proouct quallty, ano were nally able to
acbleve our oeslreo results."
A consloerable number o| tbe
latest macblnes were lmporteo ano
Mr Yosblkawa galneo many loeas
|rom Amerlcan |actorles |or tbe
ln-bouse proouctlon o| automatlc
macblnery. A subsequent report salo
tbat, Yosblkawa ls a great man: l| one
macblne ls purcbaseo, be can make
new ones uslng lt as a mooel. Wben
one turnlng macblne was bougbt, be
maoe many macblnes ano proouceo
equlpment |or alarm clocks."
Tbe growtb o| Selkosba's alarm
clock proouctlon a|ter tbe 1904-1905
Pusso-[apanese War was remarkable.
|n 1906, tbe company proouceo 70,000
alarm clocks. 8y 1907 tbls jumpeo
to 120,000 ano by tbe |ollowlng year
170,000. Meanwblle, [apan's lmports o|
German nlckel-plateo alarm clocks su|-
|ereo a steaoy oecllne. Selko was now
truly competltlve ano lts clocks were
tbe nest avallable.
|n 1908, Selkosba's proouctlon o|
alarm clocks outstrlppeo lts wall clock
Se|kosho mode jopon`s f|rst
chronogroph |n 19+1, o pocket
mode|, wh|ch cou|d record t|me
|ntervo|s up to 30 m|nutes.
7h|s Lxtro l|ot wotch wos mode
5, the uo|n| Se|kosho foctor,
oround 19+8. lt feotures o 10 ||gne
movement w|th smo|| seconds.
32 CHAPYER 3
proouctlon, wblcb remalneo steaoy
at about 100,000 unlts a year, but
because tbe unlt prlce o| alarm clocks
was lower tban tbat o| wall clocks, tbe
value o| alarm clock proouctlon never
eceeoeo tbat o| wall clocks ourlng tbe
Meljl Lra (1897 1906). Tbe growtb o|
alarm clock sales bao been belpeo
by an lncrease ln alarm clock lmport
outles ln 1906 |rom 25 to 50 per cent,
as part o| broaoer re|orms ln Customs
outles ano tbls reln|orceo Selkosba's
market oomlnance.
Stanoaro proouctlon lots o| alarm
clocks were |ar larger tban tbose o|
wall clocks ano ln terms o| mass pro-
ouctlon tecbnology tbls seems to bave
playeo a cruclal role ln tbe company's
subsequent lmprovements ln pocket
watcb proouctlon tecbnlques. Plnlon-
cuttlng proveo to be tbe most ol|cult
process to automate, but by 1909 an
automatlc plnlon-cuttlng macblne bao
been oevelopeo |or pocket watcbes
|rom one o| Yosblkawa's oeslgns. A
number o| moolcatlons were maoe
ano eventually lt was reporteo tbat
one employee coulo banole tbe plnlon-
maklng work tbat prevlously neeoeo
25 employees.
8etween 1907 ano 1912 more
englnes were lnstalleo. varlous power
systems, sucb as steam englnes, oll
motors ano gas englnes were useo
ln comblnatlon |rom arouno 1907.
Lverytblng was nally converteo to
use electrlc power by 1914, ano tbe
steam ano gas englnes were pbaseo
out, wblcb must bave representeo tbe
blggest slngle lmprovement ln |actory
|acllltles.
New Emperor
Tbe accesslon o| tbe new Lmperor
ln 1912 markeo tbe beglnnlng o| tbe
Talsbo Lra ano tbe arrlval o| a com-
petltlve cballenge to Selkosba's posltlon
|rom many new [apanese companles
tbat starteo to proouce clocks ano
pocket watcbes. Selkosba responoeo
by oeclolng to oevelop [apan's rst
wrlstwatcb.
Tbe orlve to lnnovate contlnueo
to obsess Klntaro as be ponoereo bow
to |ull tbls oream o| creatlng bls own
wrlstwatcb. He qulckly reallseo tbat lt
was only acblevable l| be proouceo all
tbe parts |or tbese prooucts ln-bouse,
ano tbat tbls was tbe way to stay
abeao o| tbe ever-growlng competl-
tors. 8y 1910, Selkosba succeeoeo ln
maklng balance sprlngs ano by 1913,
lt began maklng lts own enamel olals
|or tbe rst tlme. Klntaro bao set tbe
company's slgbts on oeveloplng [apan's
rst ever wrlstwatcb ano just one year
lnto tbe Talsbo Lra bls entbuslasm palo
olvloenos wben, ln 1913, lt was put
on tbe market unoer tbe name Laurel.
Tbls may bave been tbe rst Selkosba
proouct tbat contalneo components
manu|actureo entlrely ln-bouse. || lt
was, lt ls lmposslble to unoerestlmate
tbe slgnlcance o| tbls acblevement, |or
lt markeo tbe beglnnlng o| tbe pollcy
tbat was to put Selko lnto tbe top
rank o| worlo watcb prooucers bal| a
century later.
Tbe proouctlon o| wrlstwatcbes
bao presenteo tbe company wltb tecb-
nlcal ol|cultles |ar greater tban tbose
encountereo ln clock maklng. Tbe
parts were smaller ano more ol|cult
to manu|acture ano tbe mecbanlsms
were more compllcateo. All o| tbe
parts bao to be englneereo wltb mucb
greater preclslon tban bao been neces-
sary |or tbe larger parts useo ln clocks.
Many speclallseo tools were requlreo
to make watcb parts ano tbese
macblnes were mucb smaller tban tbe
general-purpose macblnery useo to
proouce clock components. At tbat
tlme lt was ol|cult |or [apanese manu-
7h|s Super Autouotor, mode |n 19S3,
hod o 1S ewe| movement thot wos
much more occurote thon the regu|or
Autouotor. lt wos 5osed on the Super
movement, Se|ko`s f|rst mode| w|th o
sweep centre seconds hond, ond hod o
centro| dote po|nter hond.
7h|s 19S0 Se|ko wotch hos o
seporote seconds hond. Loter |n
the some ,eor, Se|ko mode jopon`s
f|rst three-hond wotch w|th o centre-
mounted sweep seconds hond.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 33
|acturers to obtaln equlpment |or sucb
speclallseo proouctlon. For a long tlme
tbe company was only able to proouce
between 30 ano 50 a oay.
Worlo War | createo ecltlng cbal-
lenges ano opportunltles |or [apanese
companles. |mports |rom 8rltaln
ano Germany were cut o|| ano baslc
materlals became scarce. Tbe sbort-
ages createo a great opportunlty |or
[apanese companles to manu|acture
prooucts to replace tbose tbat were
no longer avallable |rom abroao. Tbe
[apanese clock lnoustry bao su||ereo
|rom a perloo o| recesslon arouno
1912 ano Selkosba's proouctlon bao
oecllneo. Wben war broke out ln
1914 tbere was a sbarp lncrease ln tbe
prlce o| metals ano lmports o| Lngllsb
ano Sweolsb steel |or tbe proouctlon
o| sprlngs ceaseo. Tbe clock lnoustry
ln Nagoya su||ereo |rom bottlenecks
causeo by tbe sprlng sbortage ano
lt was only rescueo by tbe swltcb to
munltlons proouctlon |or tbe [apanese
army gbtlng on tbe Allleo sloe, ano |or
tbe Pusslan mllltary.
Companies united
|n contrast to tbe clock lnoustry ln
Nagoya, Selkosba was unlteo wltb tbe
K Hattorl wblcb bao traolng |unctlon
unoer a slngle management structure.
K Hattorl bao bougbt large amounts
o| Sweolsb sprlng steel ano Amerlcan
plnlon bar steel be|ore tbe war, so
Selkosba was not lnconvenlenceo
wben steel lmports orleo up. Otber
companles, ln Nagoya, bao not
prepareo |or tbls eventuallty ano olo
not bave as strong a relatlonsblp wltb
[apanese suppllers as Selko. German
clockmakers coulo not respono to tbe
oemano |rom Lnglano ano France, ano
so Selko recelveo buge oroers |rom
botb countrles, wblle stlll enjoylng
gooo buslness ln [apan.
8y tbe mloole o| 1915 tbe company
bao recelveo oroers |rom 8rltaln ano
France |or more tban 800,000 alarm
clocks. Clocks maoe by Selkosba were
eporteo not only to Lurope, but also
to Soutb Last Asla, |nola, Soutb A|rlca,
Soutb Amerlca ano Australla. Wben
tbe number o| unlts belng proouceo
began to approacb mass proouctlon
levels |or tbe rst tlme, tbe blggest
problem on tbe proouctlon llnes
resulteo |rom tbe lnablllty to proouce
components to preclse tolerances so
tbat tbey were truly lntercbangeable.
Tbls was tbe result o| oeclent ole
jlgs ano lnsu|clent preclslon ln tbe
macblne tools. As a result, proouctlon
|rom varlous macblnes bao to be
care|ully matcbeo ln oroer to brlng
togetber components tbat were as
compatlble as posslble. Tlme ano tlme
agaln tbe sltuatlon arose ln wblcb a
comblnatlon o| parts |alleo to matcb
ourlng tbe nal assembly process. Tbls
became known as crosseo patbs" ano
resulteo ln a blgb level o| oe|ectlve
parts. 8ecause tbe parts were not
truly lntercbangeable, tbe ultlmate
quallty o| tbe movements oepenoeo
on correctlon ano aojustment by
skllleo workers, a waste|ul ano tlme-
consumlng process. Some parts were
not useable at all ano bao to be tbrown
away.
Selko bao to aoopt tbe new mass
proouctlon tecbnlques tbat were belng
ploneereo by Foro wltb tbe Mooel-T
ln 1909 ano, even earller, by Lastman
|or tbe proouctlon o| cameras. Mass
proouctlon was to become tbe key
to tbe |uture success o| tbe company
eventually known as Selko, tbe use o|
macblnery to turn out parts raploly
was an lmportant rst step towaros
tbls.
Tbanks to tbe raplo growtb
o| clock sales, tbe company was
outgrowlng lts structure. |n November
7he uo|n| Se|kosho p|ont |n Suwo, p|ctured |n 19+9.
34 CHAPYER 3
1917, tbe prlvately owneo company
calleo K Hattorl, manageo personally
by Klntaro Hattorl slnce 1881, became
K Hattorl & Co Lto, wltb a palo-up
capltal o| 10m yen. Selkosba was a
part o| tbls new corporate entlty,
known as K Hattorl & Co Selkosba
Factory, ano a slngle management
structure governeo tbe new corporate
entlty. At tbe same tlme tbe eport
oepartment o| tbe Hattorl Clock Store
was separateo ano establlsbeo as tbe
Hattorl Traolng Company.
Klntaro Hattorl always lnvolveo
bls |amlly ln bls buslness ano bls
motber, Haruko, playeo an lmportant
role ourlng lts |ormatlve years. Sbe
llveo lnsloe tbe |actory compouno
|rom tbe company's |ounoatlon ano
bas been oescrlbeo as tbe oe |acto
boss o| tbe Selkosba |actory. Sbe
was a strong woman wbo sbareo tbe
joys ano sorrows o| tbe employees
ano contrlbuteo masslvely to tbe
oevelopment o| tbe buslness.
Apprenticeships
Wben tbe |actory was rst set up,
|ew cra|tsmen wanteo to become
clock cra|tsmen, so Selkosba bao no
cbolce but to recrult elementary
scbool graouates ano traln tbem. As
early as 1897, about 300 puplls were
boaroeo at tbe |actory, but lt ls not
clear wben tbls practlce enoeo. A|ter
tbelr apprentlcesblp bao been
completeo, tbey were allocateo to
varlous workstatlons. |n tbe later Meljl
Lra, about bal| o| Selkosba's employees
were probably |ormer puplls o| tbls
lnternal tralnlng |aclllty, lncluolng many
work slte |oremen ano lmportant
skllleo cra|tsmen.
Durlng tbls tlme, Haruko
establlsbeo close relatlonsblps wltb
tbe company's personnel, botb
puplls ano |ormer puplls. Lamples
abouno. |n 1896, Klcbltaro Kurlmoto
was blreo as a cook to cater |or tbe
boaroers, worklng unoer tbe olrectlon
o| Haruko. He came |rom tbe same
provlnce as Haruko ano tbougbt o|
blmsel| as ber |ollower. He establlsbeo
a close rapport wltb ber ano went
on to become tbe personnel manager.
Mr Kurlmoto's lnstructlons were
carrleo out ln tbe |actory wltb tbe
autborlty tbat attacbeo to blm as ber
representatlve.
Tbe oeatb o| Haruko at tbe age o|
84, ln Aprll 1915, provloeo tbe lmpetus
|or cbange. Untll tbls tlme, Klntaro
bao personally presloeo over tbe
clock store ln Glnza ano tbe Selkosba
|actory ln Honjo. Lvery mornlng
be workeo ln tbe store ano every
a|ternoon be went to tbe |actory. A
management trlumvlrate bao been set
up ln|ormally a |ew years be|ore tbe
lncorporatlon o| K Hattorl ln 1917 ano
tbls e||ectlvely createo a systematlc
senlor management structure. A|ter
Haruko's oeatb, Selkosba's management
was entrusteo to tbese tbree olrectors,
but tbe olo, close personal relatlonsblp
tbat Haruko bao establlsbeo wltb tbe
7h|s Super, mode |n 19+0, feotured
Se|ko`s f|rst fu|| three-hond movement,
eor||er vers|ons were mod|f|cot|ons
of o co||5re w|th o smo|| seconds d|o|
ond on extro whee| to dr|ve o centre
seconds hond.
lns|de the uo|n| Se|kosho Suwo p|ont |n 19+9.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 35
employees was lost. Out o| necesslty,
a more mooern labour-management
relatlonsblp took lts place.
Presloent Klntaro Hattorl beaoeo
tbe trlumvlrate. Tbe otber members
o| tbls management team were Mlcblo
Sblnobara ano Genzo Kawaoa, botb
sons-ln-law. Mr Sblnobara became
a olrector ano was tbe |ull-tlme
management representatlve at Selkosba.
Mr Kawaoa took on responslblllty
|or tbe oroers |or munltlons ano
macblnery at tbe |actory.
A|ter tbe ol|cult years ln tbe
rst oecaoe o| tbe 20tb century, wben
many competltors bao been |orceo
out o| buslness, tbe market's growtb
began to attract a growlng number o|
competltors |rom 1912. Selkosba bao
long been tbe only oomestlc maker o|
certaln types o| clock ano o| pocket
watcbes, but by 1922, 22 clock ano
watcb manu|acturers were llsteo ln
Tokyo. Not surprlslngly, tbese newly
establlsbeo concerns attempteo to
poacb Selkosba's workers. Tbe com-
pany trleo baro to prevent tbls, but
lt coulo not o||er pre|erentlal conol-
tlons, ano especlally salarles, only to
tbose workers wbo bao been o||ereo
otber jobs, ano so lt o|ten lost tbem
to rlvals. As a result, Selkosba's tecb-
nology ano know-bow spreao to most
o| tbe new |actorles, ano competltlon
lntensleo.
|t was tbe long-term buslness
approacb o| Klntaro Hattorl tbat
permltteo K Hattorl to survlve, wltb
lnnovatlons ln one area belng |unoeo by
tbe prots o| anotber. Selkosba's alarm
clock ano pocket watcb manu|acturlng
ventures ran at a loss ln tbelr early
oays, subslolseo by tbe prots |rom
wall clock proouctlon. Alarm clock
proouctlon moveo lnto tbe black
a|ter a |ew years ano tben lncreaseo
proouctlon ano sales subslolseo tbe
proouctlon o| pocket watcbes, wblcb
bao been unprotable |or 15 years. Tbe
pocket watcb oepartment only began
contrlbutlng to prots |or tbe rst tlme
ln 1911, 16 years a|ter tbe rst 22 llgne
cyllnoer mooel went lnto proouctlon.
8y 1921 tbe Selkosba |actory proouceo
321,762 unlts entlrely ln lts own
|actory: tbey were wortb 3,539,382 yen.
Durlng tbose years, tbe proouct tbat
maoe tbe best use o| lmprovements ln
pocket watcb proouctlon tecbnology
was tbe 16 llgne Lmplre", wblcb was
rst proouceo ln 1909. |t was a luury
ltem wltb 15 or 17 jewels ano eacb
year some 150 were purcbaseo by tbe
|mperlal Court, to be useo as gl|ts.
8y tbe early 1920s, tbe borlzontal
ano vertlcal epanslon o| Klntaro's
buslness emplre ano lts use o| precl-
slon tecbnology belpeo K Hattorl &
Co to become leaoers ln tbe [apanese
borologlcal lnoustry. 8ut ln 1923, tbe
Great Kanto Lartbquake struck ano
tbe company's Glnza beaoquarters
ano tbe Selkosba |actory all burneo
oown (altbougb tbey bao survlveo tbe
eartbquake). A |resb start bao to be
maoe.
Klntaro, now well over 60, mlgbt
bave been epecteo to be sbattereo
by tbls oevastatlon, but bls energles
were by no means spent. He com-
mltteo all o| bls personal resources
to tbe company ano starteo to rebullo
tbe |actory. Amazlngly, be manageo to
resume watcb ano clock proouctlon
wltbln a |ew montbs, ln a barracks
bullolng, uslng bls survlvlng skllleo
workers. Tbe re a|ter tbe eartbquake
bao oestroyeo 1,500 watcbes tbat
bao been le|t wltb tbe company by
Product|on of the Morve| 5egon |n 19S ond ended |n 19S9. Lver,th|ng o5out
the movement wos groduo||, ref|ned, |nc|ud|ng occuroc,, eose of product|on ond
mo|ntenonce. 7he eor|, mode|s hod 17 ewe|s, 5ut |oter vers|ons hod 19 ond then 21.
36 CHAPYER 3
customers |or servlclng or repalr, but
lnsteao o| seelng tbls as a problem,
Klntaro turneo lt lnto an opportunlty
to boost tbe reputatlon o| Selkosba.
Hls concern |or bls customers was as
great as |or bls |actory. Lvery one o|
tbese lost watcbes was replaceo wltb
an equlvalent new tlmeplece ano tbls
ralseo tbe level o| trust ln tbe company
to new belgbts, tbls gesture was wloely
appreclateo ano bas entereo tbe |olk-
lore o| tbe lnoustry.
First 5eiko watch
[ust montbs a|ter tbe Lartbquake, tbe
company bao createo an entlrely new
watcb ano lt went on sale ln December
1924. |t was tbe rst to carry tbe name
Selko, lntroouclng to tbe worlo |or tbe
rst tlme tbe brano name tbat was
later to become synonymous wltb
preclslon ano accuracy, lnnovatlon ano
renement. From tbat oay |orwaro,
wltb tbe eceptlon o| a brle| perloo
ourlng tbe Secono Worlo War, all
Klntaro Hattorl's watcb prooucts
were unlteo unoer tbe new name, a
name tbat was soon to take lts place
alongsloe tbe lnoustry's most valueo
branos.
|n tbe mlo-1920s, as tbe worlo
moveo towaros economlc recesslon,
Klntaro agaln took a oenltely posl-
tlve approacb ano lntroouceo yet more
new tecbnology ln bls |actorles ano
tbls belpeo Selkosba, ln 1927, to pro-
ouce tbe smallest woman's wrlstwatcb
maoe ln [apan, just as tbe [apanese
began to take to tbe wearlng o|
wrlstwatcbes.
Tbe re-bullt |actory bao |aceo
stl|| competltlon |rom botb bome ano
|orelgn prooucers ano bao survlveo.
Tbe quallty o| lts prooucts bao rlsen
slgnlcantly, tbanks to tbe contlnueo
lnvestment ln new equlpment, ano tbe
trauma o| tbe oestructlon ln 1923 was
by tben only a memory. Sales bao con-
tlnueo to rlse, wltb a peak soon to be
reacbeo ln 1937, wben 2 mllllon tlme-
pleces were solo, accountlng |or about
bal| o| tbe total [apanese proouctlon.
Klntaro Hattorl olon't llve to see tbls,
bowever. He oleo ln 1934 at tbe age
o| 75.
A|ter bls oeatb, bls two sons,
Genzo ano Sbojl, succeeoeo blm ln tbe
|amlly buslness. |t was able to survlve
ano prosper because tbey bao always
been totally lmmerseo ln lt ano bao
|olloweo ln bls |ootsteps. Tbey, too,
belleveo ln lnnovatlon ano bao lnber-
lteo tbelr |atber's uncanny ablllty to
recognlse wbat was best |or tbe com-
pany ano lts |uture.
Tbe rebullt Selkosba plant manageo
to lmprove tbe quallty o| lts prooucts,
wblcb bao prevlously come ln |or
some crltlclsm. A|ter tbe eartbquake,
tbe company bao |aceo stl|| competl-
tlon botb |rom oomestlc rlvals ano
|rom tbe Swlss, but wltb lts lmproveo
prooucts Selkosba lncreaseo lts sales ln
tbe [apanese market.
One o| tbe rst lmportant moves
maoe by tbe new management team
was tbe creatlon o| a new company
calleo Dalnl Selkosba, wblcb was set
up ln 1937 ano took over tbe watcb
proouctlon actlvltles o| Selkosba. Tbe
[apanese woro oalnl" means secono".
Tooay lt ls known as Selko |nstruments.
|n tbe same year tbe company bao
a stroke o| luck wben tbe [apanese
government vlrtually balteo tbe lmpor-
tatlon o| watcbes a|ter tbe outbreak
o| tbe war ln Cblna. For tbe rst tlme,
7he Cronos wos deve|oped os o new wr|stwotch for men. lts movement wos s||ght|,
th|nner thon thot |n the Morve| ond other ref|nements |nc|uded o 5r|dge onchored ot
5oth ends ond u|oshock shock protect|on. Product|on 5egon |n 19S8.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 37
Selkosba was |ree |rom competltlon
wltb tbe Swlss, but as tbe war ln Cblna
contlnueo lnto Worlo War ||, Selkosba
was once more oroereo to reouce
watcb ano clock proouctlon |or clvlllan
use ano lnsteao to oevelop tlme |uses
ano marlne cbronometers.
Desplte tbls, consloerable e||ort
was concentrateo on tbe oevelop-
ment o| pocket ano wrlstwatcbes ano,
by 1940, tbe new company proouceo
[apan's rst 3-bano wrlstwatcb, ano
llke all prooucts slnce 1924, tbe latest
ln a long llne o| watcbes bearlng tbe
Selko name. Tbls was |olloweo ln 1941
by tbe rst [apanese pocket watcb
cbronograpb ano ln 1942 a marlne
cbronometer was proouceo at
tbe request o| tbe [apanese Navy. K
Hattorl & Co Lto bao become tbe sole
lntegrateo tlmeplece manu|acturer ln
[apan, wltb Selkosba proouclng clocks
ano Dalnl Selkosba concentratlng on
watcbes.
More destruction
On Marcb 9, 1945, just 22 years
a|ter tbe Great Kanto Lartbquake
bao oestroyeo tbe Selkosba |actory,
bomblng oestroyeo tbe Dalnl Selkosba
Kameloo wrlstwatcb |actory. Tbe only
part o| tbe group tbat survlveo tbe
war was tbe Dalnl Selkosba Suwa Plant
ln tbe Nagano Pre|ecture, about 100
mlles |rom Tokyo.
At tbe eno o| tbe war, Selko was
releaseo |rom lts obllgatlon to proouce
mllltary materlal ano watcb proouctlon
contlnueo agaln. 8e|ore tbe war Dalwa
Kogyo bao been starteo ln tbe Suwa
area as a |actory tbat cooperateo wltb
Dalnl Selkosba. Durlng tbe nal perloo
o| tbe war large numbers o| macblne
tools ano tlmeplece components were
trans|erreo tbere |rom Tokyo ano tbls
became an evacuatlon |actory |or Dalnl
Selkosba. As a result, tbe company was
able to resume tbe proouctlon o|
wrlstwatcbes as early as August 1946.
Tbe Secono Worlo War bao a
olsastrous e||ect on [apanese lnoustry,
ano Selkosba olo not escape tbe lmpact.
Not only bao Selko's plants bao to
swltcb to tbe proouctlon o| ltems |or
mllltary use, but problems emergeo
wltb raw materlals. |mporteo baslc
materlals became scarce ano altbougb
tbls sbortage stlmulateo oomestlc pro-
ouctlon o| some o| tbe materlals tbat
bao prevlously been lmporteo, serlous
supply problems remalneo. Tbe prlce
o| raw materlals, especlally metals,
lncreaseo oramatlcally ano lmports
o| Lngllsb ano Sweolsb steel, useo |or
sprlngs, stoppeo altogetber.
Durlng tbe war, materlal |rom
Kyusbu Yabata |ron Works was useo
|or tbe proouctlon o| sprlngs, but
tbls createo many problems ano
tbe quallty was not conslstent. Tbe
result was stagnatlon. Tbe lack o|
lnternatlonal competltlon because
o| lmport restrlctlons removeo
tbe lncentlve to be lnnovatlve or to
make lmprovements. At tbe eno o|
tbe war Selko watcbes solo very |ast,
but tbe quallty was not very blgb
ano Selko's prooucts were not even
competltlve agalnst tbe many low-cost
wrlstwatcbes tbat were avallable ln
[apan |eaturlng lmporteo Swlss move-
ments ln [apanese cases. Tbe mooels
maoe by Selko lmmeolately a|ter tbe
war only olsplayeo bours ano mlnutes
7h|s ver, occurote K|ng Se|ko wotch
wos o second generot|on mode| w|th
o second-hond stop mechon|sm for
occurote sett|ng. 7he use of Se|ko`s
u|oshock shock protect|on s,stem
wos h|gh||ghted on the d|o|.
7h|s wr|stwotch ossem5|, ||ne,
oround 19S0, used conve,or 5e|ts to
5oost product|on ond the stoff wore
protect|ve c|oth|ng to protect the
movements from dust.
Wr|stwotch ports ore 5e|ng
produced on these ossem5|, ||nes,
oround 19S0.
38 CHAPYER 3
ano tbe styles bao strong pre-war ano
war-tlme lnNuences.
Tbe most urgent cballenge |aclng
Selko was tbe neeo to get away |rom
tbe use o| pre-war movements at
tbe earllest posslble opportunlty ano
to start proouclng new watcbes |or
a new era, but lt was only ln 1948
tbat a new Selko mooel wltb seconos
was lntroouceo ano tbls was only a
mooleo two-bano callbre, lt bao not
been oeslgneo |rom tbe outset as a
tbree-banoeo watcb. Selko's rst watcb
wltb a centre seconos bano was calleo
tbe Super. |t bao been oevelopeo at
tbe Suwa |actory o| Dalnl Selkosba
ano wltb lts mooern styllng lt proveo
a great success. |t enableo Selko to
counteract tbe growtb ln sales o|
cruoe tbree-bano watcbes tbat useo
|orelgn two-bano movements tbat bao
been mooleo by some [apanese watcb
stores uslng ln|erlor klts ln oroer to
meet tbe oemano. |ntroouctlon o| tbe
Super slgnleo tbe beglnnlng o| a new
era |or Selko. Once agaln, Selko was ln
tbe leao ln tbe [apanese watcb lnoustry.
Dalnl Selkosba's Kameloo |actory
ln Tokyo responoeo by lntroouclng
tbe Unlque, a proouct tbat was slmllar
to tbe Super, but 0.3mm tblnner. Tbls
markeo tbe beglnnlng o| a perloo
o| bealtby competltlon between
Dalnl Selkosba's Kameloo ano Suwa
|actorles. Tbe Suwa |actory went on
to lntroouce a new ano blgbly accurate
watcb ln 1956 calleo tbe Marvel. Tbe
two |actorles responoeo to tbe neeo
to oeslgn even better watcbes by
competlng |or tbe glory ano tbe
company was tbe wlnner. Tbls |rlenoly
rlvalry concentrateo on acblevlng
tecbnlcal lmprovements ano belpeo to
brlng [apanese watcb tecbnology up to
worlo-class levels.
Designs based on research
Skllleo englneers were employeo a|ter
tbe war to oeslgn new clocks ano
watcbes, ano to base tbelr oeslgns on
sclentlc researcb. Tbey were glven
tbe task o| lmprovlng accuracy ano
aoolng |eatures sucb as automatlc
wlnolng, waterproong ano calenoars.
Tbe results were tbe rst oeslgns tbat
were truly orlglnal Selko prooucts ano
tbey were catcblng up |ast wltb tbose
o| Luropean manu|acturers. 8y tbe mlo-
1950s, Selko's sales stlll laggeo beblno
tbose o| tbe Swlss, wbose watcbes
bao nally reappeareo ln post-war
[apan. Tbe solutlon put |orwaro by
Selko's management was to reouce
tbe tecbnlcal gap between lts proouc-
tlon |acllltles ano tbose o| |orelgn
watcbmakers. Tbelr rst target was tbe
proouctlon o| mass proouceo compo-
nents tbat were unl|orm enougb to be
|ully lntercbangeable ano not baseo
on tbe oeslgn o| |orelgn mooels.
Tbe most aovanceo automatlc
macblne tools were lmporteo ano
otbers were oevelopeo lnternally so
tbat tbe quallty o| preclslon compo-
nents coulo be lmproveo su|clently
to enable tbem to be completely
lntercbangeable. Tbls nally put an eno
to tbe crosseo patbs" synorome tbat
bao plagueo assembly ln earller years.
Tbls reouceo costs ano ln tbe early
1950s, conveyor belts were lntroouceo
to tbe watcb ano clock assembly llnes.
8y 1965, Selko was salo to bave tbe
most automateo proouctlon unlts any-
wbere ln tbe watcbmaklng worlo, so lts
output was no longer oepenoent on a
llmlteo number o| skllleo cra|tsmen.
Mass proouctlon ano quallty
lmprovements gave an enormous
boost to sales o| Selko clocks ano
watcbes arouno tbe worlo. For tbe
rst tlme tbey solo ln very large
numbers ano soon tbe number
o| tlmepleces eporteo by Selko
eceeoeo tbose o| any otber country,
lncluolng Swltzerlano. At last, success
|or Selko prooucts ln eport markets
was acbleveo because o| tbelr accu-
rate tlmekeeplng, more tban just low
cost or volume proouctlon. Tbey were
beglnnlng to present a serlous cbal-
lenge to tbe Swlss watcbmakers.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 39
1892 Manu|acture o| wall clocks beglns.
1895 Manu|acture o| pocket watcbes beglns.
1899 Manu|acture o| alarm clocks beglns.
1902 Manu|acture o| oesk clocks ano muslc bo clocks.
1913 Manu|acture o| rst oomestlc wrlstwatcb beglns.
1924 Flrst use o| SL|KO" name |or watcb prooucts.
1930 Manu|acture o| sbutters |or cameras beglns.
1956 |ntroouctlon o| rst oomestlc sel|-wlnolng watcb.
1958 Commerclallsatlon o| quartz clocks |or broaocastlng.
1959 |ntroouctlon o| translstorlseo wall clocks.
1963 Completlon o| portable quartz cbronometer.
1964 Quartz Cbrlstal Cbronometer QC-951 plays a major
role at tbe Tokyo Olymplcs.
Small quartz clock aoopteo |or orlver's cabln o| tbe
Tokaloo bullet traln."
1968 |ntroouctlon o| worlo's rst quartz wall clock |or
bome use.
1969 |ntroouctlon o| Selko Astron, tbe worlo's rst quartz
watcb.
1972 |ntroouctlon o| worlo's rst laoles' quartz watcb.
1973 |ntroouctlon o| worlo's rst LCD quartz watcb wltb
sl-olglt olgltal olsplay.
1974 |ntroouctlon o| worlo's rst quartz oress watcb.
1975 |ntroouctlon o| worlo's rst multl-|unctlon olgltal
watcb.
1976 |ntroouctlon o| worlo's rst quartz alarm clock.
1979 |ntroouctlon oomestlcally o| Creoor ano Alba branos.
|ntroouctlon overseas o| Pulsar brano.
|ntroouctlon o| twln quartz watcb.
1982 |ntroouctlon o| tbe worlo's rst Tv watcb.
|ntroouctlon o| [apan's rst watcbes wltb volce
syntbeslzers.
|ntroouctlon o| Lorus brano overseas.
1983 |ntroouctlon o| Selko volce Notes, tbe worlo's rst
watcb able to recoro auolo memos.
|ntroouctlon o| tbe worlo's rst multl-|unctlon
analogue quartz watcb.
1984 |ntroouctlon o| tbe Selko Wrlst Computer Serles,
tbe worlo's rst wrlstwatcb computers.
|ntroouctlon o| tbe Selko Pyramlo Talk, a talklng"
clock.
|ntroouctlon o| tbe Selko LCD color televlslon.
|ntroouctlon o| tbe Alba Solar, an analogue watcb
wltb solar batterles.
Lrectlon o| [apan's rst large-scale clock wltb
automata, tbe Selko Mulllon Clock"
1985 Lassale brano ls lntroouceo.
1986 |ntroouctlon o| wlnolng/cbarglng quartz watcb.
1988 |ntroouctlon o| quartz watcb wltb auto generatlng
system.(K|NLT|C)
1990 |ntroouctlon o| worlo's rst olver's watcb wltb
olver's tables ano oeptb gauge.
Worlo's rst watcb wltb paglng |unctlons ln practlcal
use ln tbe US.
1993 |ntroouctlon o| worlo's rst quartz watcb uslng twln
lmpulse control motors.
|ntroouctlon o| S-Yaro" gol| clubs.
1994 |ntroouctlon o| olver's watcb wltb small K|NLT|C
mecbanlsm lncluoeo.
1995 |ntroouctlon o| Alba Spoon" serles.
1997 |ntroouctlon o| SL|KO K|NLT|C APCTUPA.
1998 |ntroouctlon o| Perpetual Calenoar, a watcb orlven
by worlo's rst ultrasonlc mlcromotor.
|ntroouctlon o| tbe SL|KO THLPM|C, tbe worlo's
rst watcb orlven by booy beat.
1999 |ntroouctlon o| tbe SL|KO K|NLT|C AUTO PLLAY
watcb, wblcb automatlcally resumes correct
lnolcatlon o| current tlme.
|ntroouctlon o| SPP|NG DP|vL, a bano-wouno watcb
wltb quartz accuracy, comblnlng tbe best |eatures o|
mecbanlcal ano electronlc englneerlng .
|ntroouctlon o| K|NLT|C CHPONOGPAPH, ln
a llmlteo eoltlon, o||erlng new levels o| tecbnlcal
sopblstlcatlon.
KEY LANDMARK5 IN
YHE HI5YORY OF 5EIKO
40 CHAPYER 3
(Components, Assembly)
(Mergeo)
(Name cbange)
(Absorbs Lpson)
Selko Lpson
Corporatlon
(Splns o||
prlnter olvlslon)
Sblnsbu Selkl Co., Lto.,
Later Lpson Corp.
Suwa Selkosba
Co., Lto.
Dalwa Kogyo Lto.
(Suwa Plant)
Watcbes
(Proouctlon)
(Name cbange)
(Founoeo) K. HATTOP|
(|nvests)
(Opens)
[apanese name cbangeo to Selko
|nstruments Kabusblkl Kalsba
Selko |nstruments &
Llectronlcs Lto.
Dalnl Selkosba
Co., Lto.
Watcbes
(Proouctlon)
Selko
|nstruments |nc.
Wako Co., Lto.
Selko Sales |nc.
(Comblnes 7
sales companles)
(Splns o||
clock olvlslon)
Peglonal sales
companles
(Petall) (Hololng company)
Selko Watcb
Sales |nc.
Hattorl Selko
Co., Lto.
(Goes publlc)
K. Hattorl
& Co., Lto.
SL|KO
COPPOPAT|ON
(Name cbange)
(Spllts o|| wbolesale
olvlslon, purcbases
reglonal olstrlbutors.)
(Splns o||
retall olvlslon)
(Splns o||
clock proouctlon)
(Splns o||
watcb olvlslon)
SL|KO WATCH
COPPOPAT|ON
(Marketlng, Deslgn,
Wbolesales)
Selkosba Clock
Supply Factory
(Splns o|| watcb
proouctlon)
Selkosba Co., Lto.
(Closeo oown &
spllt lnto two)
Selko Clock |nc. Selko Preclslon |nc.
Clocks
(Marketlng, Proouctlon, Wbolesale)
1881
1892
1917
1937
1942
1944
1945
1946
1947
1959
1961
1970
1983
1984
1985
1987
1990
1993
1996
1997
2001
YHE HI5YORY OF YHE 5EIKO GROUP
A jOURNEY IN YIME 41
COMPLT|T|ONS SPUPPLD SL|KO
TO NLW HL|GHTS
5eiko Bnally achieved international recognition after it entered the 5wiss
Observatory Chronometer competitions, competing successfully against some of
5witzerland's Bnest manufacturers on their home ground. It marked an important
turning point in the company's international fortunes and resulted in worldwide
recognition and acceptance.
From its inception, 5uwa 5eikosha
now Selko Lpson pursueo a quest
to oevelop tbe per|ect tlmeplece".
From tbe mlo 1950s lt began to acbleve
total oomlnance ln oomestlc tlmeplece
competltlons, wblcb bao been starteo
ln 1948 wltb tbe objectlve o| lmprovlng
tbe quallty o| [apanese watcbes. Tbe
Central |nspectlon |nstltute o| Welgbts
ano Measures o| [apan carrleo out
accuracy tests on samples |rom tbe
competlng companles. At rst, tbe
results were oepresslng: o| 180
watcbes submltteo |or testlng, 62 o|
tbem stoppeo ourlng tbe testlng. Tbls
provokeo tbe companles lnto a orlve
to ralse tbelr stanoaros, wltb tbe result
tbat levels ano quallty lmproveo year
by year.
Wben Selko submltteo tbe Marvel
to tbe |nstltute ln 1956, lt was so suc-
cess|ul commerclally tbat lt bao no
serlous competltlon ln tbe oomestlc
market.
8y 1958, tbe Marvel swept tbe
boaro wben lt took every place
|rom rst to nlntb ln tbe oomestlc
competltlon. Partlclpatlon ln tbese
competltlons provloeo tbe lncentlve to
ralse stanoaros ano Selko success|ully
rose to tbe cballenge.
Wben tbese oomestlc competl-
tlons came to an eno ln 1960 many
people worklng at tbe company's
Suwa plant were stlll oetermlneo to
bullo tbe best posslble watcb ano tbey
wonoereo bow tbelr prooucts woulo
|are ln competltlon wltb tbe Swlss",
accorolng to Tsuneya Nakamura. He
later became Presloent o| Selko Lpson
ano was closely lnvolveo wltb tbe
oevelopment o| Marvel ano Grano
Selko, as well as quartz watcbes.
Tbe Observatory competltlon belo
eacb year ln Neucbtel lncluoeo tbe
woro |nternatlonal" ln lts tltle but
lt rarely attracteo entrles |rom any
country outsloe Swltzerlano. Wben
be lnvestlgateo tbe rules o| tbe Swlss
cbronometer competltlon, be olscov-
ereo tbat |orelgn manu|acturers were
alloweo to partlclpate ano was tolo tbe
organlsers woulo welcome competl-
tlon |rom [apan".
Tbe company oecloeo tbe Swlss
cbronometer competltlon woulo
provloe tbe per|ect plat|orm, botb |or
7he Morve|, on the morket from 19S, won 1st to 9th p|oces |n domest|c
compet|t|ons ond |ed to Se|ko`s |nterest |n port|c|pot|ng |n |nternot|ono| compet|t|ons.
42 CHAPYER 4
tbe pursult o| accuracy ano |or lettlng
tbe worlo know tbe Selko name. So
ln 1963, Selko's Suwa Selkosba plant
became tbe rst [apanese watcbmaker
to enter tbe Neucbtel competltlon.
Tbe proouct selecteo as Selko's entry
was a tabletop quartz clock known as
tbe Crystal Cbronometer, wblcb was
entereo ln tbe marlne cbronometer
category. |t was awaroeo 10tb place,
wblcb was a remarkable acblevement:
never be|ore bao a manu|acturer |rom
outsloe Swltzerlano got lnto tbe top
10 places.
|n tbe |ollowlng year Selko
also partlclpateo ln tbe wrlstwatcb
category, but tbe results were very ols-
appolntlng. Tbe blgbest posltlon galneo
by entrles |rom lts Suwa Selkosba
plant was 144tb ano tbe submlsslons
|rom lts Dalnl Selkosba plant acbleveo
a olsmal best" o| 153ro place. Tbe
only reoeemlng |eature was tbat 14
Selko quartz cbronometers passeo tbe
cbronometer tests. Far |rom belng ols-
lllusloneo, tbese olsappolntlng results
serveo only to re up a splrlt o| com-
petltlon among Selko's oeslgners ano
watcbmakers. Tbe pursult o| lmproveo
accuracy became a prlorlty |or tbe
englneers ln botb plants ano tbey, too,
competeo agalnst one anotber ln tbe
race to make progress. Year-by-year,
Selko's competltlon results lmproveo.
Tbe event became an obsesslon
ano tbe plants went to etraorolnary
lengtbs to solve tbe problems. For
eample, Dalnl Selkosba's rst entrles
ln tbe cbronometer trlals su||ereo
|rom an unepecteo pbenomenon:
tbe balance sprlngs bao become mag-
netlseo ano tbls was |ouno to eplaln
tbe unsatls|actory competltlon results.
Desplte tbls enormous setback, none
o| tbe reports at tbe tlme re|erreo
to tbe competltlon team belng ols-
appolnteo. |n |ollowlng years, Dalnl
Selkosba ensureo tbelr tlmepleces
were antl-magnetlc, but nevertbeless
tbey were oetermlneo to mlnlmlse any
rlsks ano so tbelr entrles |or tbe com-
petltlon were sent to Swltzerlano uslng
one o| tbe soutbern routes, ln oroer
to avolo tbe lnNuence o| tbe eartb's
strongest magnetlc elos.
Tbey also oecloeo to make as
many components as posslble out o|
Permalloy a nlckel-lron alloy to
mlnlmlse tbe e||ects o| power|ul elec-
tronlc currents tbat coulo a||ect tbem
lnsloe an alrcra|t. Magnetlc elos pass
tbrougb Permalloy wltbout a||ectlng
tbe materlal. Tbe same materlal was
also useo lnsloe tbe contalners useo to
sblp tbe watcbes to Swltzerlano.
Tbe early competltlon tlmepleces
were unlque ano bore llttle resem-
blance to any prooucts ln regular
proouctlon. As tbe competltlon tlme-
pleces became more accurate, some
o| tbe aovances tbat bao maoe tbls
posslble were lntroouceo to Selko's
regular proouctlon watcbes. Tbere ls a
parallel wltb tooay's car manu|acturers:
sometlmes new oeslgn |eatures rst
trleo ano testeo ln motor raclng are
subsequently aoopteo ln proouctlon
mooels. Wben Selko was competlng ln
tbe cbronometer competltlons, tbe use
o| movements wltb an etremely |ast
beat proouceo oramatlc lmprovements
ln accuracy. Subsequently, |ast beat
movements were lntroouceo to some
mooels tbat went on sale to tbe publlc
ano belpeo to ralse publlc awareness
o| tbe accuracy o| Selko watcbes.
Co||5re 9S, wos n|cknomed 7he Pototo, 5ecouse of the shope of the movement
|ns|de the cose. lt wos one of the eor||est movements su5m|tted to the Sw|ss
compet|t|ons 5, the uo|n| Se|kosho foctor, |t ron ot 5eots o second.
Success|ve generot|ons of
movements mode 5, Suwo Se|kosho
for the Neuchte| 05servotor,
Compet|t|on. A|though the
movements ore housed |n coses
thot |ook ||ke pocket wotches, the,
comp||ed w|th the ru|es for entr, |n
the wr|stwotch cotegor,.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 43
At a tlme wben tbe Swlss were
nolng tbelr way ln terms o| uslng
blgber osclllatlng |requencles, tbe
Selko teams were breaklng new grouno,
testlng at two to sl tlmes tbe regular
|requencles. Some o| tbelr competltlon
watcbes useo 15 ano 20-beat move-
ments, but ourlng tbe testlng pbase,
eperlments were even carrleo out at
speeos up to 50 beats a secono. Tbese
were tbe secono generatlon callbre
052 movements ano tbey lncorporateo
a number o| lmprovements oeslgneo
to provloe stable support |or balances
operatlng at blgb speeos. Selko's engl-
neers oecloeo tbat |or anytblng otber
tban competltlon use, tbe use o| move-
ments |aster tban 10 beats a secono
woulo be meanlngless ano 8 beats a
secono seemeo an even better solutlon.
8y colncloence, tbe Swlss reacbeo tbe
same concluslon.
Anotber eperlment lnvolveo lllng
watcb cases wltb byorogen so tbat
tbere was no oygen lnsloe tbat coulo
cause ololsatlon ano rustlng. Tbls
system was subsequently useo ln tbe
proouctlon o| some vFA (very Flnely
Aojusteo) ano Grano Selko watcbes.
Friendly rivalry
Selko's Suwa ano Kameloo plants eacb
oevelopeo tbelr own watcbes |or tbe
Swlss Observatory trlals ano tbere
was a splrlt o| |rlenoly rlvalry between
tbem. Tbe oeslgners at tbe Suwa plant
opteo |or an oval movement, but Dalnl
Selkosba's Osamu Sugawara oeslgneo a
speclal competltlon callbre |eaturlng a
movement ln tbe sbape o| a olstenoeo
parallelogram ano tbls earneo lt tbe
unllkely nlckname o| Tbe Potato"
among tbe sta|| wbo workeo wltb lt.
Tbey starteo wltb a stanoaro 6-beat
tlmeplece known as Callbre 965, wblcb
bao a large balance ano barrel. At rst,
senlor management were sceptlcal
about Osamu Sugawara's potato"
oeslgn. Mr Sugawara subsequently
wrote an analysls tbat became known
as bls Flrestorm Peport". |n lt, be
salo tbat tbe blgber-ups" bao reacteo
angrlly wben tbe prototype was bullt,
but be convlnceo tbem tbat lt was tbe
only way to acbleve tbelr objectlves. |t
was vlrtually unpreceoenteo, even |or
tbe Swlss, |or an entlrely new oeslgn
to be entereo ln tbe Observatory
Competltlon.
Movements wltb a |ast beat
contrlbuteo ln a major way to tbe
blgber accuracy o| tbe competltlon
tlmepleces ano tbe concept was later
aoapteo |or use ln some regular pro-
ouctlon mooels.
Apart |rom tbe sbape, one otber
|eature tbat was lnnovatlve |or a Selko
movement was tbe use o| a Gulllaume,
or blmetalllc, balance wbeel. At rst,
nobooy ln tbe company knew anytblng
about blmetalllc balances or bow to
make tbem, altbougb tbey were aware
o| tbe benets tbey o||ereo ln terms o|
ellmlnatlng rate cbanges attrlbutable to
varlatlons ln temperature. A Gulllaume
balance was useo ln tbe P-67 competl-
tlon mooel. Wben tbey starteo work
on competltlon movements, Selko
tecbnlclans knew relatlvely llttle about
a number o| tecbnlcal |eatures o| some
Swlss watcbes, ano later tbey conslo-
ereo tbat startlng wltb a blank sbeet o|
paper bao maoe tbem stronger.
|n 1967, Dalnl Selkosba sent to
Neucbtel callbre 45 movements
tbat were belng useo ln tbe Grano
Selko ano Klng Selko llnes, ano tbese
were subsequently marketeo as spe-
clal pleces tbat bao passeo tbe tests
|or speclally callbrateo tlmepleces".
Tbey were known as tbe Observatory
Cbronometers ano tbese vFA Selko
watcbes took secono ano tblro places
Spec|o| coses were used when movements were su5m|tted to the compet|t|on. 7he
crocks |n th|s cose mork the weor ond teor of +0 ,eors.
44 CHAPYER 4
ln tbe cbronometer competltlon. A
watcb |rom tbe Dalnl Selkosba plant
was secono only to tbe wlnnlng entry
|rom Omega ano an entry |rom Suwa
Selkosba was tblro. Tbls was tbe last
year o| tbe Neucbtel competltlon belo
unoer tbe olo rules. Larly ln 1968, Suwa
Selkosba submltteo a tlmeplece tbat
acbleveo substantlally better results
tban tbe Swlss wlnnlng entry tbe pre-
vlous year. |mmeolately a|ter lt was
testeo, an announcement was maoe ln
Swltzerlano tbat tbe blgbly respecteo
competltlon bao been cancelleo.
Selko tben entereo tbe Geneva
Observatory competltlons ano at
tbe very rst attempt acbleveo a |an-
tastlc result. Swlss companles took
tbe rst tbree places, but Selko's
entrles were awaroeo every place
|rom |ourtb to tentb, wblcb was tbe
best result acbleveo by any manu-
|acturer o| mecbanlcal wrlstwatcbes.
Selko acbleveo rst place overall. 8y
any stanoaros, Selko's acblevement o|
movlng |rom 144tb place to rst place
overall ln just ve years was an out-
stanolng result.
Yhe right spirit
Wben Selko rst entereo tbe Swlss
competltlons, tbe company's aover-
tlslng useo tbe ambltlous copy llne,
Worlowloe, lt's Selko", but sales
arouno tbe worlo were stlll very slow.
However, tbe competltlons ano
Selko's growlng acblevements ln tbem
proveo to be tbe per|ect way to
ln|orm tbe worlo about tbe company's
success|ul quest |or accuracy. Selko
probably bas tbe Swlss Cbronometer
Competltlons to tbank |or lnstllllng tbe
rlgbt splrlt ln lts oevelopment teams
ano ln lts |actorles ano |or maklng tbe
name o| Selko more wloely respecteo
ln tbe lnoustry.
Success ln tbe Swlss competltlons
coulo be attrlbuteo to many |actors,
lncluolng lmproveo oeslgn, greater
control o| tbe quallty o| raw materlals,
blgber stanoaros o| nlsblng ano, above
all, tbe work o| tbe team o| regulators
wbo aojusteo eacb competltlon move-
ment to acbleve tbe blgbest posslble
accuracy.
Tbese regulators playeo a vltal
role ln acblevlng sucb gooo results ano
Suwa Selkosba bao a mucb-revereo
trlo o| callbrators. Tbe most senlor
o| tbem was Klyoko Nakayama. Her
career bao starteo as a tecbnlclan at
Dalwa Kogyo, wblcb later mergeo wltb
Dalnl Selkosya Suwa Plant to |orm
Suwa Selkosba. Sbe was present wben
Suwa Selkosba was rst establlsbeo. At
tbat tlme tbe |actory palo sta|| on a
plece rate system: tbe more watcbes
an employee assembleo tbe more be
or sbe earneo. Ms Nakayama o|ten
took parts bome ano workeo untll 4am.
Sbe later salo tbat sbe never |elt tbls
was a buroen because sbe really llkeo
watcbes.
|n tbe early oomestlc competl-
tlons Ms Nakayama was largely
responslble |or assembllng tbe gear
tralns. Sbe attrlbuteo ber success to
tbe |act tbat tbe palms o| ber banos
baroly persplreo at all. |n tbose oays
tbere was no alr conoltlonlng, so lt
was a great olsaovantage |or a watcb-
maker to persplre. My mecbanlsms
woulon't corrooe, oe|ect rates were
low ano | assembleo masslve num-
bers o| watcbes," sbe salo. Sbe was
success|ul as a watcbmaker not only
because ber movements olon't rust,
but also because ber aestbetlc sense
ano skllls enableo ber to proouce
superb watcbes. Tbe watcbes maoe
by Ms Nakayama bao an ecellent
reputatlon ano customers starteo to
request watcbes tbat bao been maoe
by ber. Sbe was a born watcbmaker.
K|,oko Noko,omo, one of the teom
of compet|t|on regu|otors, o wotch
|over down to her 5ones.
7h|s |s o second generot|on
movement of the k|nd used |n the
chronometer tr|o|s from 19-8.
7he frequenc, wos |ncreosed to 10
5eots o second ond o |orger w|nd|ng
crown wos f|tted.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 45
space o| tlme tbe company was able
to matcb tbe best watcbes |rom Swlss
manu|acturers. One englneer recalleo,
Tbls [oevelopment work] wasn't ln an
atmospbere o| 'l| lt |eels oo-able, let's
oo lt, l| we can't we won't'. No, lt was
Lventually sbe workeo |ull tlme ln tbe
researcb oepartment ano was lncluoeo
ln tbe Observatory Competltlon team
wben tbe company oecloeo to enter
tbe Swlss competltlons.
A living thing
Tbe work o| tbe blgbly valueo team
o| regulators at Suwa Selkosba wbo
were responslble |or tbe competl-
tlon tlmepleces seemeo to tbem to
be loomlng larger tban tbe cblloren
tbey bao care|ully reareo". Tbey o|ten
took no tlme o|| at weekenos or
bolloays. Anotber member o| tbe team,
Kenlcbl Kolke, recalleo tbat tbls was a
tougb but enjoyable tlme. A tlmeplece
tbat we kept company wltb up to
Saturoay woulo be gettlng lonely wben
tbe Sunoay bolloay came arouno, so |
coulon't settle oown l| | olon't look ln
on lt. We really olo tblnk llke tbls l|
we oon't take care o| tbat tlmeplece
tooay lt mlgbt just |all o|| tbe stralgbt
ano narrow tomorrow. lt was a llvlng
tblng."
Mr Kolke was convlnceo tbat
altbougb tbe regulators carrleo out
tbelr work pretty well ln tbe com-
petltlon, success was tbe result o|
teamwork. |t was tbe oeslgners
pursulng tbeory to tbe etremes, tbe
people ln tbe prototype oepartment
maklng parts tbat bao never been
maoe be|ore, ano tbe top eecutlves
wbo watcbeo over us tbat alloweo us
to proouce results tbls |ar-reacblng."
Tbanks to tbelr superlor tecbnlcal
skllls, Suwa Selkosba's |amous trlo o|
regulators were eventually selecteo as
Mooern Master Artlsans" by [apan's
Mlnlstry o| Labour because tbey bao
belpeo to take [apanese watcbes to tbe
top levels ln tbe worlo.
Tbe englneers wbo bao been
lnvolveo ln tbe cbronometer trlals
were lnvlteo to remlnlsce some 30
years later. Tbese speclal people bao
acbleveo sucb an lmprovement ln
tbe accuracy o| Selko's competltlon
tlmepleces tbat ln a remarkably sbort
ot|ng deto||s ond cert|f|cotes from the 197 compet|t|ons |n Neuchte|.
46 CHAPYER 4
7he compet|t|on teom ce|e5rot|ng success |n the Cenevo 05servotor, Compet|t|on.
Seoted |n the centre |s the fomous tr|o of regu|otors.
all because Cbalrman Sbojl Hattorl bao
lssueo tbe oroer 'Do lt'!" |t was one
o| a number o| eolcts maoe by varlous
generatlons o| tbe Hattorl |amlly tbat
were to leao to substantlal cbanges ln
tbe |ortunes o| Selko.
An enhanced reputation
Anotber member o| tbe competltlon
team later salo tbat be tbougbt lt was
gooo tbat Selko bao been able to go
so |ar wltb mecbanlcal tlmepleces
ano tben swltcb to tbe oevelopment
o| quartz watcbes. |t was tlme to
brlng oown tbe curtaln on researcb
lnto mecbanlcal watcbes tbere was
notblng more to be oone at tbat tlme.
Tbe tlmeplece researcb sectlon was
closeo ano some o| lts sta|| trans-
|erreo to quartz watcb oevelopment.
Tbe journey |rom obscurlty to global
recognltlon bao taken just elgbt years
elgbt years o| e||ort tbat cbangeo tbe
reputatlon o| Selko |orever.
Mr Nakamura later salo o| Selko's
partlclpatlon ln tbe cbronometer
trlals, | tblnk we bao a strong sense
o| purpose. |t wasn't about loglc, lt
was about our ooggeoness ano zeal to
'bullo a watcb tbat betters tbe Swlss'.
Our corporate prlnclples lncluoe tbe
pbrase 'tbe power o| tbe lnolvloual
ano tbe oemonstratlon o| compre-
benslve strengtb', but tbls mlgbt never
bave emergeo bao we not bao tbls
competltlon eperlence. |n tbls sense,
| wonoer l| lt wasn't tbe Observatory
Competltlons tbat createo tbe prlncl-
ples tbat became tbe ll|e ano soul o|
tbe company."
8, 198, Se|ko wos exper|ment|ng w|th even foster movements. 7he 5orre| hous|ng
the mo|nspr|ng wos |ncreosed |n s|ze to occommodote the stronger mo|nspr|ng
ond the movement shope wos chonged to o deformed pentogon. 7h|s wos Se|ko`s
u|t|mote compet|t|on movement.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 47
THL P|NNACLL OF MLCHAN|CAL
LXCLLLLNCL
5eiko's 120 year history of watchmaking has enabled it to master all aspects of the
art, from micro-engineering to precision polishing. Yhese skills are most evident
in the remarkable range of high-grade mechanical watches that are so much in
demand in the japanese market to where, for the present, they are restricted, as
demand in japan is already much greater than the supply.
Around the globe, 5eiko is best
known tooay |or lts quartz prooucts,
but ln tbe [apanese market lt bas long
enjoyeo a well-oeserveo reputatlon
|or tbe ecellence o| lts mecbanlcal
tlmepleces. Tbese prooucts are maoe
wltbout compromlse ano by bano to
ensure tbe blgbest posslble stanoaros
o| cra|tsmansblp.
Grano Selko (GS) ls tbe name o|
tbe mecbanlcal prooucts tbat repre-
sent tbe plnnacle o| Selko's ecellence
ln mecbanlcal watcbmaklng. Tbey rst
saw tbe llgbt o| oay ln 1960, wben
Selko was maklng vast numbers o|
mecbanlcal watcbes ano bao acbleveo
outstanolng success ln tbe Swlss
Cbronometer Trlals. Tbe company bao
alreaoy proouceo tbe Super ano tbe
Marvel collectlons, tbe sleek ano supe-
rlor Cronos, Crown ano Loro Marvel.
First models
Tbe rst Grano Selko mooels were
oevelopeo to cater |or tbe top
eno o| Selko's wrlstwatcb market.
Development work starteo, wben
tbe Dalwa Kogyo ano Dalnl Selkosba
Suwa plants were mergeo to |orm
Suwa Selkosba wblcb later became
Selko Lpson ln recognltlon o| tbe buge
success o| tbe Lpson brano. Tecbnlclans
worklng ln Nagano Pre|ecture, |ar
|rom Tokyo ano near tbe [apanese
Alps, oevelopeo tbe very top range o|
Selko watcbes. Tbe rst GS watcbes
were launcbeo ln 1960. |n tbe net 15
years, tbe Grano Selko range went on
to become tbe nest collectlon Selko
bao ever proouceo.
Development o| tbe orlglnal
GS range was olrecteo by Tsuneya
Nakamura, wbo jolneo tbe company ln
1944 ano oeslgneo tbe Marvel, wblcb
was rst marketeo ln 1956. |t was |ar
more accurate tban elstlng watcbes
ano proveo to be a great blt. Lven
tben, be was almlng to create tbe loeal
watcb". Grano Selko was createo as
tbe mooel wltb tbe ultlmate speclca-
tlon ano tbe company was oetermlneo
tbat lt sboulo be tbe best ln tbe worlo,
so, not surprlslngly, lt became Selko's
slgnature plece. 8y tbls tlme, tbey bao
oevelopeo tbe tecbnlcal skllls neeoeo
|or sucb an ambltlous project ano tbelr
eperlence ano success ln oomestlc
competltlons bao enableo tbelr
callbratlon skllls to be boneo. All tbe
tecbnlclans lnvolveo wltb tbe oevelop-
ment o| Grano Selko knew tbat tbelr
goal was to eceeo Swlss cbronometer
stanoaros ano so tbe skllls tbey bao
acqulreo ourlng tbe cbronometer com-
petltlons were oevelopeo ano aoapteo
|or use ln proouctlon on a larger scale.
Tbe company set out to make
Grano Selko watcbes to a stanoaro
blgber tban any tlmepleces ever maoe
be|ore ln [apan, cbronometer stanoaros
were tbe key to tbls ambltlon.
7he se|f-w|nd|ng Crond Se|ko
S8C002 hos on 18ct go|d cose
ond represents the p|nnoc|e of
joponese mechon|co| wotchmok|ng
exce||ence. lt 5oosts occuroc, of +S
to -3 seconds o do,. 8oth surfoces
of the sopph|re g|oss ore curved
ond hove on ont|-ref|ect|ve coot|ng.
48 CHAPYER 5
wbose knowleoge bao been banoeo
oown |rom one generatlon to tbe
net turneo tbelr skllls to otber work.
Swlss companles now openly aomlt
bow mucb tbey |eareo competltlon
Se|ko so|d wotches conto|n|ng
movements thot hod 5een cert|f|ed
os chronometers |n Sw|tzer|ond,
5ut th|s exomp|e w|th Neuchte|
Astronom|co| 05servotor,
Chronometer Cert|f|cot|on |n 199
|s o rore co||ector`s |tem.
Orlglnally cbronometer" was useo
to re|er to an etremely accurate
clock. |t takes lts name |rom tbe Greek
woros Cbronos ano Metron, meanlng
to measure tlme. Tbe Swlss O|clal
Cbronometer Control (Contrle
O|clel Sulsse oes Cbronometres,
also known as COSC), ls tbe
organlsatlon tbat sets tbe stanoaros
|or cbronometer testlng. |t ls an
lnoepenoent assoclatlon governeo by
tbe Swlss Clvll Cooe ano lt was set up
ln lts present |orm ln 1973. Prevlously,
cbronometer tests bao been carrleo
out by otber organlsatlons.
|n 1968, an organlsatlon calleo
tbe [apan Cbronometer Certlcatlon
|nstltute was establlsbeo to provloe a
cbronometer certlcatlon servlce. Tbe
rst watcb certleo by tbls new booy
was tbe 56 Klng Selko, rst marketeo
ln 1969, but Grano Selko watcbes
were not submltteo |or certlcatlon
because tbey were proouceo to tbe
company's own GS stanoaro". Tbls
ls more oemanolng tban tbe Swlss
cbronometer tests ano lnvolves testlng
tbe rate o| tbe watcb ln sl posltlons,
lnsteao o| tbe usual ve. Mr Nakamura
belleveo tbat tbe success o| tbe rst
generatlon o| Grano Selko coulo be
attrlbuteo to tbree lmportant |ac-
tors, accuracy, ease o| proouctlon ano
beauty.
Durlng tbe rst years o| tbe quartz
revolutlon, proouctlon o| Grano Selko
oecllneo, ano eventually ceaseo ln 1975
wben tbe accuracy ano rellablllty o|
Selko quartz watcbes pusbeo publlc
oemano |or mecbanlcal tlmepleces to
one sloe.
Mecbanlcal watcb proouctlon
came close to etlnctlon ln tbe rst 10
or 15 years tbat quartz watcbes were
avallable ano ln Swltzerlano, traoltlonal
watcb |actorles eltber closeo oown
or starteo to t quartz movements
ln tbelr cases. Many manu|acturers
coulo no no use |or tbelr traoltlonal
proouctlon equlpment ano mucb o| lt
was scrappeo. Most o| tbe cra|tsmen
ln the f|rst generot|on of Crond Se|ko wotches, o d|sk 5eor|ng o ||on em5|em wos
ottoched to the 5ock of the wotch cose. 7he em5|em 5ecome s,non,mous w|th
Crond Se|ko, 5ut |n |oter mode|s |t wos engroved on the cose 5ock, os con 5e seen
on the |eft.
7sune,o Nokomuro d|rected the
deve|opment of Crond Se|ko ond
des|gned ond deve|oped some
mode|s of the Morve|, os we|| os the
u|oshock shock protect|on s,stem
A jOURNEY IN YIME 49
Grano Selko slnce tbe secono genera-
tlon o| GS was launcbeo bao to walt
10 years be|ore tbelr wlsbes were
rewaroeo at tbe eno o| 1998, 24 years
a|ter tbe last one bao been solo. Tbere
was stlll enormous brano awareness
ano gooowlll |or tbe GS name.
Mechanical G5 revival
Tbe rst new mecbanlcal GS watcbes
|eatureo movements tbat were rene-
ments o| elstlng callbres ln tbe
same way tbat rst generatlon GS
ln tbe quartz watcb markets |rom
[apanese watcb companles, ano Selko
ln partlcular, ourlng tbe 1970s ano early
1980s. |n [apan, as ln Swltzerlano, watcb
|actorles oevoteo all tbelr e||ort to tbe
proouctlon o| quartz watcbes.
|n tbe mlo-1980s, tbere was a
graoual cbange ano mecbanlcal tlme-
pleces very slowly came back lnto
tbe llmellgbt. Tbe Swlss responoeo by
|ocuslng tbelr attentlon on blgb quallty
sprlng-powereo watcbes ano many
companles concentrateo on recreatlng
tbe past, proouclng reproouctlons o|
some o| tbelr best olo mooels.
|n tbe meantlme, tbe reputatlon
o| tbe GS collectlon contlnueo to
grow to tbe polnt wbere tbere was a
strong market oemano |or proouctlon
to begln agaln. As a result, tbe secono
generatlon o| Grano Selko was born ln
1988. Tbese new GS watcbes, launcbeo
ln [apan, |eatureo a quartz movement,
but tbey |alleo to set tbe worlo allgbt.
8y 1993, a new mooel uslng tbe Callbre
9F quartz movement was launcbeo ano
tbls bao a bolo, sbarp style tbat oweo
mucb to tbe rst generatlon o| Grano
Selko. |t attracteo a great oeal o| pralse
ano at last people were saylng, Flnally
tbere ls a new GS tbat llves up to tbe
name". Many people belleveo tbat once
Selko bao come tbls |ar, lt was lnevl-
table tbat tbere woulo be oemano |or
a mecbanlcal GS net, but altbougb tbe
company lntroouceo new mecbanlcal
watcbes, tbey were not ln tbe GS col-
lectlon.
|n 1992, lt aooeo a watcb wltb a
mecbanlcal movement to lts luury
oress watcb llne ano, ln 1995, launcbeo
an a||oroable collectlon o| mecbanlcal
watcbes ln lts Laurel sub-brano. As
lnterest ln sprlng-wouno watcbes
graoually returneo ln tbe [apanese
market, Selko aooeo more mecbanlcal
mooels to lts range, tbey launcbeo tbe
Creoor Cbronometer, wblcb came
wltb Swlss cbronometer certlcatlon,
ano a Creoor Cbronograpb, wltb a
newly oeslgneo movement.
8y now, lt was surely only a matter
o| tlme be|ore a mecbanlcal mooel was
aooeo to tbe secono generatlon o|
Grano Selko. Tbose wbo bao eagerly
antlclpateo tbe return o| a mecbanlcal
7he new mechon|co| CS movement
9SSS |s decoroted w|th trod|t|ono| ||nes
of po||sh|ng thot |dent|f, |t os o h|gh
c|oss movement. 7he rotor of the se|f-
w|nd|ng mechon|sm 5eors the some
decorot|on ond |s engroved w|th the
nome Crond Se|ko.
A|though the 9SSS |s f|n|shed to the
h|ghest trod|t|ono| stondords, |t wos
des|gned us|ng the |otest 3u Computer
A|ded ues|gn (CAuj softwore. lt con
5e v|ewed on-screen from on, ong|e
ond the softwore con s|mu|ote the
movement |n operot|on.
7h|s f|rst generot|on Crond Se|ko
Chronometer wos supp||ed w|th o
rot|ng cert|f|cote show|ng 1S do,s of
|nspect|on resu|ts.
7o och|eve the h|gh quo||t, |nherent |n
the Crond Se|ko ronge, mon, processes
hove to 5e corr|ed out 5, hond, 5ut
|n the eor|, do,s, product|on ||ne
exper|ence go|ned w|th the Morve| wos
opp||ed to some ospects of product|on.
50 CHAPYER 5
acblevlng tbe necessary accuracy, tbe
oeslgners turneo tbelr attentlon to tbe
nlsb o| tbe movement. Tbls new 9S
callbre was oeslgneo |rom tbe outset
to reacb tbe blgbest stanoaros o| accu-
racy ano appearance.
|n oeslgnlng tbls new callbre ln
tbe secono bal| o| tbe 1990s, Selko's
oeslgners bao two blg aovantages
over tbelr preoecessors ln tbe 1960s.
Tbey bao tbe benet o| computer
tecbnology to speeo up tbe oeslgn
process, especlally tbe proouctlon o|
very preclse tecbnlcal orawlngs, ano
lmprovements ln mooern macblne
tools maoe lt posslble to manu|acture
components wltb mucb greater precl-
slon. |t woulo not bave been posslble
to create an entlrely new callbre ln just
two years wltbout tbe benet o| com-
puter-aloeo oeslgn.
Tbls computer tecbnology maoe lt
posslble to oetermlne tbe loeal sbape
o| tbe teetb on eacb wbeel ln tbe gear
traln ano, as a result, tbe oeslgners
acbleveo a level o| e|clency ln tbe
transmlsslon traln tbat equalleo tbat
o| tbe 45 Observatory Cbronometer
ano otber ultra-speclal mooels |rom
tbe past.
Tbe oeclslon tbat tbe new gen-
eratlon o| Grano Selko watcbes must
0n|, o hondfu| of croftsmen st|||
hove the requ|s|te sk|||s to use the
Zorotsu method of po||sh|ng, wh|ch
eno5|es them to produce resu|ts
thot connot 5e och|eved |n on,
other wo,. lt |s used on the f|nest
Crond Se|ko wotches.
Mon, processes |n the product|on
of h|gh-grode wotches connot
5e outomoted. Here, honds ore
exom|ned one-5,-one to e||m|note
on, w|th t|n, |mperfect|ons.
Crond Se|ko movements ore |orge|,
ossem5|ed 5, hond, so |nev|to5|,
the, ore expens|ve. Here, honds ore
odded to o wotch.
watcbes bao useo reneo verslons o|
earller mooels. Tbe only eceptlon was
tbe cbronograpb. Lventually Selko's
oeslgners persuaoeo tbe company's
oeclslon makers to let tbem create an
entlrely new callbre, tbe 9S55. Tbey bao
tbe rare ano ecltlng opportunlty to
oeslgn a completely new escapement,
tbe part o| tbe watcb tbat provloes
lts accuracy ano can be consloereo as
tbe beart o| tbe watcb. Wben prob-
lems were encountereo, tbe new
oeslgners coulo not oepeno on asklng
tbelr preoecessors |or aovlce, because
most bao retlreo or le|t tbe company
wben mecbanlcal watcbmaklng stoppeo.
Nevertbeless, tbey stuoleo tbe compo-
nents ano materlals useo ln tbe past
ano were even able to track oown
some o| tbe oeslgners wbo bao once
workeo |or tbe company, ln oroer to
seek tbelr aovlce.
Tbe oeslgners were oetermlneo
to proouce not only a very accurate
movement, but also one tbat was
so attractlve ano well nlsbeo tbat
a watcb repalrer seelng lt wben lt
requlreo servlclng woulo say, Tbat's
a beautl|ully nlsbeo watcb". A|ter
7h|s Crond Se|ko outomot|c
\lA Week uotor wos the f|rst
mechon|co| wotch to c|o|m o
t|me d|fference per month of 0
seconds two seconds o do,. lt
come w|th o two ,eor guorontee.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 51
eceeo Swlss cbronometer stanoaros
con|ronteo tbe oeslgners wltb a con-
sloerable cballenge. Tbe stanoaro tests
|or a cbronometer lnvolve cbecklng
tbe accuracy or rate o| a watcb
ln ve ol||erent posltlons, but Selko's
oeslgners gave tbemselves an aooltlonal
task by aoolng a sltb testlng posltlon.
Watcbes run at sllgbtly ol||erent speeos
wben tbey are at ol||erent angles ano
so lt ls lmportant to cbeck tbat tbey
per|orm to blgb stanoaros ln eacb o|
tbe requlreo posltlons l| tbey are to
be certleo as cbronometers. Tbe aool-
tlonal posltlon tbat Selko lntroouceo ln
tbelr own tests rarely occurs wben a
watcb ls belng worn, but lt ooes occur
wben a watcb ls taken o|| ano placeo
on a Nat sur|ace.
Tbe aooltlonal test tbat tbe 9S
callbre bao to pass meant tbat Selko's
lnternal testlng o| cbronometer
watcbes was mucb more oemanolng
tban woulo normally be epecteo, but
tbls was ln tbe splrlt o| tbe cballenge
tbat tbe oeslgn team bao set |or tbem-
selves. Only l| lt passeo tests tbat were
more oemanolng tban any otbers coulo
tbe oeslgners be sure tbat Grano Selko
was tbe worlo's best.
Selko's nest watcbmakers use
traoltlonal metboos to assemble tbe
blgb-graoe 9S55 mecbanlcal move-
ments useo ln tooay's Grano Selko
mecbanlcal watcbes. |t comes as
sometblng o| a surprlse, tbere|ore, tbat
tbey are proouceo at Morloka Selko, ln
|wate Pre|ecture. Tbls |actory ls one
o| tbe most lmportant ln tbe watcb
lnoustry ano one proouctlon room ln
tbe plant ls almost tbe slze o| a |ootball
pltcb but tbls ls |or tbe mass proouc-
tlon o| less epenslve movements. Hlgb
graoe watcb assembly ls carrleo out ln
smaller, more traoltlonal worksbops
wltbln tbls plant, wbere tbe watcb-
makers work ln surrounolngs ln wblcb
any traoltlonal Luropean watcbmaker
woulo |eel at bome. At eacb work-
statlon a skllleo cra|tsman assembles
ano aojusts escapements wltb tbe alo
o| a mlcroscope, assembles tbe move-
ment, aoos tbe olal ano banos ano cases
up eacb watcb ln tbe nest traoltlons
o| tbe watcb lnoustry. Assembly o| tbe
9S55 callbre benets |rom tbe best
o| Selko's blgb accuracy mecbanlcal
wrlstwatcb manu|acturlng tecbnlques,
A cose |s exom|ned ofter |t hos 5een
po||shed us|ng the ort|st|c joponese
Zorotsu techn|que.
ln order to produce h|gh grode go|d
ond ewe||er, mode|s, Se|ko emp|o,
croftsmen w|th mon, d|fferent sk|||s.
Co|dsm|ths ossem5|e go|d 5roce|ets
5, hond.
Se|ko emp|o, d|omond mounters for
work on the|r gem-set wotches, os we||
os ewe||er,. Here, d|omonds ore set
|nto the cose of o go|d wotch.
osunor| N|sh|muro wos oct|ve os o
des|gner dur|ng the trons|t|on from
mechon|co| to the eor|, quortz wotches.
He des|gned mechon|co| Crond
Se|ko, Se|ko Sports, 8e||mot|c, Quortz
Super|or ond 7w|n Quortz mode|s.
52 CHAPYER 5
comblneo, wbere approprlate, wltb
Morloka Selko's own automateo tecb-
nology |or some processes.
Wben tbe oeslgners began
oeslgnlng cases |or tbe current gen-
eratlon o| Grano Selko watcbes, tbey
sougbt to create a watcb tbat woulo
attract people ano bave a real presence,
an enourlng oeslgn tbat woulon't soon
become pass. Above all, lt bao to be
recognlsable as a Selko, wltb a certaln
unlversallty," accorolng to Nobublro
Kosugl, manager at tbe Selko Watcb
Deslgn Centre.
Original design updated
Wben Grano Selko was brougbt back
to ll|e, tbe oeslgners starteo tbelr work
by creatlng repllcas o| tbe orlglnal GS
oeslgn. Tbls enableo tbem to appreclate
tbe most attractlve |eatures o| tbe
oeslgn, as well as some lnberent weak-
mucb manual work tbat proouctlon
ls not yet great enougb to be able to
supply lnternatlonal markets.
|n tbe 1960s, GS was Selko's slg-
nature range, slnce lts relntroouctlon,
lt bas agaln been recognlseo |or lts
ecellence ano ls consloereo to be tbe
slgnature range once more. Tbe reblrtb
o| Grano Selko mecbanlcal watcbes ln
1998 may be just tbe beglnnlng!
nesses. Selko's englneers reallseo tbat
water reslstance woulo be lmproveo
consloerably by alterlng tbe construc-
tlon o| tbe case wltbout loslng lts
best |eatures. Success o| tbe revlval o|
Grano Selko oepenoeo on retalnlng tbe
|eel o| tbe orlglnal serles, wblle aoolng
enbanceo |eatures wberever posslble.
For eample, tbe orlglnal mooel bao
bamboo lea| " banos, olamono sbapeo
ano presseo to glve tbem a certaln
contour. Only tbe top sur|ace was pol-
lsbeo. For tbe new GS, tbe top sur|ace
was olamono cut to glve a mlrror nlsb
ano ln aooltlon, tbe sloes were pollsbeo,
too. For tbe 18ct golo mooel, tbe
banos were curveo very sllgbtly by
bano so tbat tbey nestleo close to
tbe curveo olal.
Case pollsblng o| tbe blgbest pos-
slble quallty ls key to tbe appearance
o| Grano Selko watcbes ano so a spe-
clal [apanese process calleo Zaratsu"
pollsblng ls useo to attaln a superb
nlsb. Ltenslve use o| manual skllls ls
requlreo to acbleve tbe per|ect curves
ano tbe spectacular nlsb on tbe case
o| a GS watcb. Tbls speclal artlstlc
tecbnlque cannot be automateo: lt can
only be acbleveo wltb tbe buman toucb.
Zaratsu pollsblng was rst useo on tbe
secono Grano Selko mooel ano lt ls
stlll belng useo on current GS cases
tooay.
Altbougb quartz tlmepleces are
sure to oomlnate tbe market |or
tbe |oreseeable |uture, Selko bave
responoeo to tbe revlval o| lnterest
ln mecbanlcal watcbes wltb lts new
generatlon o| Grano Selko mooels.
Lperlence ln tbe oomestlc market
bas alreaoy sbown tbat tbese new blgb
graoe watcbes appeal to collectors, but
tbe proouctlon o| eacb one lnvolves so
7h|s d|omond cutt|ng too| opp||es o
super5 f|n|sh to wotch honds, 5ut
re|ot|ve|, few con 5e po||shed ot once.
7he S8C001 wos the quortz mode|
thot hero|ded the return of Crond Se|ko
mode|s |n 1988. lt hod o curved cose
5ock, to prov|de o more comforto5|e
f|t on the wr|st, ond occuroc, wos 10
seconds o ,eor.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 53
THL DAY THAT CHANGLD THL
H|STOPY OF T|ML
December 25, 1969, was probably the most signiBcant date in the history of modern
watchmaking and without doubt it was the most momentous day in the history
of 5eiko. On that day, the company sold the world's Brst ever quartz watch and
revolutionised our epectations of time. Overnight, the accuracy of wristwatches
changed from seconds a day to seconds a year.
Yhe phenomenon of quartz time-
keeplng was not new, but tbe ablllty
to mlnlaturlse tbe components to t
wltbln tbe connes o| a watcb case bao
taeo tbe nest bralns ln tbe watcb
lnoustry |or many years. Wben Selko
starteo lts quartz watcb oevelopment
project, tbe tecbnology to acbleve tbelr
goal olo not elst ano so tbey coulo
not get outsloe belp wltb tbls plo-
neerlng work. |n tbe true Selko splrlt,
almost everytblng tbat was neeoeo bao
to be oevelopeo ln-bouse.
Towaros tbe eno o| tbe 1960s, lt
was wloely known tbat tbe [apanese
ano tbe Swlss were neck ano neck ln
tbe race to be rst to market a quartz
wrlstwatcb. Selko crosseo tbe nlsblng
llne abeao o| tbe Swlss ano marketeo
tbelr rst quartz watcb, tbe Astron,
on December 25, 1969. Altbougb tbe
Swlss bao alreaoy unvelleo prototypes,
tbey olo not market tbelr rst quartz
watcbes untll 1970.
Tbe rst step towaros tbe use o|
quartz as a regulator ln tlmepleces
was tbe result o| work by Plerre Curle,
wbo was better known |or bls plo-
neerlng work on raoloactlvlty wltb bls
wl|e, Marle Curle. He rst observeo
tbe pbenomenon o| plezo-electrlclty
ln 1880 wblle be was worklng wltb
bls brotber, [acques. Tbelr olscovery,
wblcb subsequently leo to a revolutlon
ln tlmekeeplng ano a number o| otber
lnoustrles, was tbat some crystals
generate electrlclty wben pressure ls
applleo to tbem. Tbey also olscovereo
tbat tbe reverse ls true, wben an elec-
trlc current ls passeo across a quartz
crystal, lt oe|orms ano vlbrates.
As telepbony ano tbe use o| tbe
raolo oevelopeo ln tbe early part o|
tbe 20tb century, tbere was a neeo
to no ways to malntaln stable elec-
trlcal |requencles. Warren Marrlson,
a Canaolan telecommunlcatlons
englneer worklng |or 8ell Telepbone
Laboratorles, was searcblng |or solu-
tlons to tbls problem. |n tbe course
o| bls work be lnvestlgateo tbe prop-
ertles o| quartz crystals tbat bao
been olscovereo by Plerre Curle. Mr
Marrlson succeeoeo ln oeveloplng a
large, but blgbly accurate, clock tbat
utlllseo tbe stable |requencles gener-
ateo by a quartz crystal wben useo
ln an electrlcal clrcult. He was able to
oemonstrate tbat clocks regulateo by a
quartz osclllator were more accurate
tban tbe most accurate mecbanlcal
clocks tben belng useo as tlme stano-
aros ln astronomlcal observatorles. 8y
tbe 1940s, quartz clocks were belng
useo by tlme stanoaro laboratorles all
over tbe worlo.
Tbe major problem wltb tbese
early quartz clocks was tbat tbey were
bulky, Mr Marrlson's quartz clock
Se|ko chonged the h|stor, of t|me
when |t so|d the wor|d`s f|rst quortz
wr|stwotch, the Astron, on
uecem5er 2S, 199.
54 CHAPYER 6
lleo an entlre room. Apart |rom tbe
ol|culty o| mlnlaturlslng components
su|clently ln tbe 1940s ano early
1950s, tbere was anotber enormous
obstacle to tbe proouctlon o| quartz
wrlstwatcbes: tbere were no batterles
small enougb to t lnsloe a watcb case.
Tbe rst mlnlature batterles were
oevelopeo by Samuel Puben ourlng
Worlo War || ano manu|actureo by P P
Mallory, but tbey were not leak-proo|
ano coulo not store enougb electrlclty
to power a watcb |or a year or more.
Only wben Hamllton Watcb Company
ln tbe USA pooleo lts oevelopment
resources wltb Natlonal Carbloe
(later Unlon Carbloe) was a battery
small enougb |or use ln a wrlstwatcb
proouceo |or tbe rst tlme Hamllton
Watcb Co's rst electrlc watcb, tbe
Hamllton 500, was launcbeo ln tbe
USA ln [anuary 1957.
Hamllton's lntroouctlon o| bat-
tery powereo watcbes representeo
an lntermeolate step towaros tbe
success|ul oevelopment o| quartz
wrlstwatcbes. |n tbe 500, tbe maln-
sprlng was replaceo by a battery, but
tbe use o| a balance wbeel ano balance
sprlng was stlll retalneo. Tbls novel
approacb |alleo to proouce mucb o| an
lmprovement ln tlmekeeplng because
tbe |requency o| osclllatlon remalneo
tbe same as ln mecbanlcal watcbes.
Yuning fork accuracy
Tbe net step ln tbe oevelopment o|
battery-powereo watcbes was tbe
use o| a metal tunlng |ork, wblcb pro-
ouceo a more stable rate o| osclllatlon
at a blgber |requency, barnesslng tbe
prlnclple tbat a tunlng |ork vlbrates at
a constant |requency. Tbls tecbnlque
was employeo ln tbe 8ulova Accutron,
tbe lnventlon o| Ma Hetzel, a Swlss
englneer. Worklng |or 8ulova ln 8lenne,
be proouceo tbe rst prototype o|
tbe Accutron ln 1955, but lt was not
launcbeo untll 1960. |t contalneo a
tunlng |ork tbat was maoe to osclllate
360 tlmes a secono by a germanlum
Se|ko f|rst deve|oped |ts quortz Cr,sto|
Chronometer for the 05servotor,
Compet|t|ons |n Sw|tzer|ond ond then
put |t |nto product|on os the QC-9S1.
Lounched |n le5ruor, 19+, |t wos
used to t|me some events ot the 7ok,o
0|,mp|c Comes |n the some ,eor.
7he quortz cr,sto| osc|||otor |n the
QC-9S1 wos housed |n o |orge
vocuum tu5e 10cms |ong. lt hod o
frequenc, of ,29.388Hz ond |ts
c|rcu|tr, |nc|uded e|even germon|um
trons|stors ond three s|||con d|odes.
7he Astron movement 5egon the quortz revo|ut|on. 7he screws suggest thot |t cou|d
5e d|smont|ed s|mp|,, 5ut when |t wos f|rst |ntroduced no wotch repo|rer outs|de
Se|ko wou|d hove known whot to do w|th |t.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 55
translstor powereo by a button-slzeo
battery. |nsteao o| tlcklng, llke every
mecbanlcal watcb tbat bao ever been
maoe, tbe Accutron bummeo at a
eo pltcb, just above mloole C on
tbe muslcal scale. |t markeo a step |or-
waro ln tlmekeeplng accuracy, as lt was
clalmeo to be accurate to wltbln one
mlnute a montb, wblcb was ve to sl
tlmes better tban tbe best mecbanlcal
watcbes at tbe tlme. 8ulova clalmeo lt
bao an accuracy o| 99.9977 per cent.
However, lt was susceptlble to sbock
ano to eternal sounos ano so lt |alleo
to provloe tbe per|ect solutlon tbe
watcb lnoustry bao been seeklng.
Meanwblle, ln [apan, Selkosba
bao been busy oeveloplng lts quartz
tecbnology. 8y 1958, tbe company
bao createo a practlcal quartz tlme-
plece |or use by a raolo statlon, but
lt was stlll tbe slze o| a llng cablnet.
|n tbe |ollowlng year Suwa Selkosba
embarkeo on a quartz tlmeplece
oevelopment mlsslon calleo tbe 59A
Project". Tbls leo to tbe creatlon
o| tbe marlne cbronometer, a clock,
tbat became Selko's rst entry ln tbe
Neucbtel Observatory Cbronometer
Competltlon. |n February 1964 a
commerclal verslon o| tbe clock
was proouceo, calleo tbe Crystal
Cbronometer QC-951, ano lt was
useo wben Selko tlmeo tbe Tokyo
Olymplcs ln 1964. Subsequently tbe
59A Project oevelopeo otber small
quartz clocks |or tbe Observatory
Cbronometer Competltlons, as well
as verslons tbat were useo ln [apanese
8ullet Tralns.
Altbougb tbe prlnclple o| quartz
tlmekeeplng bao been known slnce Mr
Marrlson maoe bls rst quartz clock,
tbe cballenge |or tecbnlclans trylng
to aoapt tbe tecbnology |or use ln a
watcb coulo be summarlseo by one
woro, mlnlaturlsatlon". Lnormous
progress was neeoeo to aoapt tecb-
nology tbat once lleo a room untll lt
was small enougb to t lnsloe a watcb
case, but Selko set lts englneers to
work.
Quartz precision
|n a mecbanlcal tlmeplece tbe escape-
ment, wltb a balance wbeel at lts beart,
regulates tbe speeo at wblcb energy
ls releaseo |rom a colleo malnsprlng.
Tbls energy orlves a gear traln tbat
turns tbe banos. |n a quartz tlmeplece,
a quartz crystal osclllator ooes tbe
work o| tbe escapement ano oscll-
lates at an etremely preclse rate. An
electronlc clrcult counts tbese blgb
|requency vlbratlons ano uses lts clr-
cultry to reouce tbls to one pulse eacb
secono. Tbls pulse can be processeo by
anotber electronlc clrcult tbat enables
tbe tlme to be olsplayeo on a olgltal
olsplay. |n an analogue quartz tlme-
plece, a stepplng motor converts tbe
pulse lnto rotary movement to orlve a
gear traln tbat turns tbe banos to ols-
play bours, mlnutes ano seconos.
Altbougb tbe race to sell tbe rst
quartz watcb was very closely con-
testeo, Suwa Selkosba bao begun lts
oevelopment work 10 years earller,
wben Selko's mecbanlcal watcb proouc-
tlon was ln lts beyoay. Tbe cballenge o|
quartz tecbnology brougbt about a |un-
oamental cbange ln tbe skllls neeoeo by
tbose oeveloplng tbese revolutlonary
new watcbes. Mecbanlcal englneers bao
been success|ul ln lntroouclng lmprove-
ments ln mecbanlcal watcbes, but
quartz watcbes also necessltateo lnput
|rom eperts wltb otber speclalltles,
When he o|ned the compon, |n 19SS,
H|deok| osukowo produced des|gns
for Morve| mechon|co| wotches ond
su5sequent|, 5ecome |nvo|ved |n the
deve|opment of quortz t|mep|eces. He
|oter 5ecome CL0 of Se|ko Lpson.
8efore Se|ko succeeded |n perfect|ng
o quortz wr|stwotch, |t deve|oped
5otter,-powered mechon|co|
wotches, such os th|s 37LL. When
quortz wotches went |nto moss
product|on, these |ost the|r ro|son
d`etre ond d|soppeored from the scene.
56 CHAPYER 6
lncluolng electrlcal, cbemlcal ano otber
klnos o| englneerlng. Tbese speclallsts
became key players ln tbe oevelopment
o| tbe emerglng tecbnology.
Tsuneya Nakamura, wbo jolneo
tbe Dalnl Selkosba Kameloo Plant
ln 1944 ano trans|erreo to tbe Suwa
plant ln 1945, bao lnvestlgateo ano
wrltten a report about tbe pos-
slblllty o| partlclpatlng ln tbe Swlss
Observatory Competltlon. |n 1963
be was appolnteo Suwa Selkosba
Managlng Dlrector. As Managlng
Dlrector be bao tbe perceptlon to
appreclate tbat quartz tecbnology
coulo become tbe |uture stanoaro
o| tlmekeeplng altbougb, ourlng tbe
1960s, mecbanlcal watcbes were stlll
at tbelr zenltb. Some people even
ooubteo tbe wlsoom o| allocatlng
resources to quartz oevelopment at a
tlme wben Selko mecbanlcal watcbes
were selllng so well, but Mr Nakamura
completely rejecteo tbls llne o| tbougbt.
He belleveo tbat sales o| mecbanlcal
watcbes were so success|ul tbat tbey
bao createo su|clent leeway |or tbe
company to look to tbe |uture ano to
lnvest ln tbe oevelopment o| quartz
tlmepleces. Hls courage palo o|| |or
tbe company ano |or blm mucb later,
ln 1987, be became Presloent o| Selko
Lpson.
A huge investment
Tbe lnvestment neeoeo |or tbls
oevelopment work was buge, but
Selko accepteo tbe cballenge. |t was
consloereo necessary because o| tbe
company's on-golng quest |or tbe
per|ect tlmeplece". Once agaln, Selko's
ploneerlng splrlt came to tbe |ore, eve-
rytblng bao to be oevelopeo ln-bouse
ano tbls brougbt out tbe creatlve splrlt
ln tbe company's oevelopment team.
8e|ore concentratlng on tbe use o|
quartz as tbe osclllator |or tbe new age
o| battery powereo watcbes, Selko's
tecbnlclans eperlmenteo wltb a
varlety o| otber materlals. Koujl Kubota
starteo bls career as an englneer at
Dalnl Selkosba ln 1947 ano later jolneo
tbe ploneerlng quartz watcb oevelop-
ment team. |n an ecluslve lntervlew
ourlng researcb |or tbls book, be
eplalneo tbat a varlety o| materlals
were testeo as posslble osclllators, be
even trleo uslng tbe metal |rom a bal-
ance sprlng, but tbe 1kHz |requency lt
proouceo was too low to be use|ul. A
clock contalnlng a movement equlppeo
wltb one o| tbese balance sprlng metal
osclllators can be |ouno ln tbe Selko
|nstltute o| Horology ln Tokyo, wbere
Mr Kubota became curator o| worlo
tlmepleces ln 1999, ano serves as bon-
orary olrector. (Altbougb tbe |nstltute
was set up by Selko, lt contalns eblblts
by otber manu|acturers ano |rom many
perloos o| borologlcal blstory. See
Cbapter 13.)
Askeo l| tbe [apanese knew tbe
Swlss were ln tbe race to launcb tbe
rst quartz watcb, Mr Kubota salo tbat
Selko was aware o| tbe lntentlons o|
tbe Swlss, wbose Centre Llectronlque
Horlogere (CLH) researcb centre bao
alreaoy entereo a prototype quartz
watcb ln tbe Swlss cbronometer trlals.
Knowlng tbat Mr Kubota bao been
closely lnvolveo wltb quartz watcbes
slnce tbelr lnceptlon, we askeo l| be
coulo |oresee tbe oay wben any otber
tecbnology mlgbt take tbe place o|
quartz tlmekeeplng. He replleo, |t ls
K|n|ch| Ush|kosh| hod respons|5|||t,
for deve|op|ng s,stems for moss-
produc|ng quortz wr|stwotches.
Kou| Ku5oto, who wos |nvo|ved w|th the
deve|opment of Se|ko`s quortz wotches,
|s seen here ot the Se|ko lnst|tute of
Horo|og, w|th on exper|mento| c|ock
thot used o sect|on of 5o|once spr|ng
stuff os on osc|||otor, when exper|ments
were 5e|ng corr|ed out to d|scover |f
on, other moter|o|s wou|d funct|on
sot|sfoctor||, |nsteod of quortz.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 57
polntless to even try to replace quartz
tecbnology unless some otber system
reacbes tbe same level o| accuracy as
atomlc clocks." (Atomlc clocks are tbe
most accurate o| all, tbe best now bave
an accuracy o| one secono ln sl mll-
llon years, but sclentlsts epect to be
able to lmprove tbls to one secono ln
sl bllllon years. Sucb levels o| accu-
racy are lmportant ln some sclentlc
ano astronomlcal work ano ln tbe
communlcatlons lnoustry.)
Tbe early oays o| Suwa Selkosba's
quartz wrlstwatcb oevelopment pro-
gramme, ln tbe 1960s, were beset by
ol|cultles. Flrst tbey bao to proouce
a rellable, ourable tlmeplece. Tbey bao
alreaoy proouceo quartz clocks ano
entereo some o| tbem ln tbe Swlss
cbronometer competltlons, but regular
proouctlon tlmepleces presenteo an
entlrely ol||erent tecbnlcal cballenge.
Tbere was no problem l| a competl-
tlon tlmeplece stoppeo worklng once
tbe 45 oay test perloo was over, but a
quartz watcb ln commerclal proouctlon
bao to be rellable, robust ano ourable.
Tbese ol||erences were tbe cause o|
many ol|cultles ln tbe early oays.
Lventually Suwa Selkosba oecloeo
to start a|resb wltb a project to
oevelop quartz watcbes |or regular
proouctlon, lnsteao o| trylng to aoapt
tecbnology tbat bao orlglnally been
oevelopeo |or competltlon tlmepleces.
Tbe sbort ll|e o| batterles was one o|
tbe rst buroles tbey bao to overcome,
togetber wltb tbe ol|culty o| reouclng
tbe slze o| quartz movements. Tbey
also eperlenceo problems ln maln-
talnlng accuracy wben tbe earllest pro-
totypes were moveo about.
A Presidential decree
Tbe project team became boggeo
oown by tbelr ol|cultles, ano lt took
tbe lnterventlon o| tbe Hattorl |amlly
to klck-start tbe e||ort agaln. |n 1968,
Sbojl Hattorl, tbe Presloent o| Hattorl
Selko, ran out o| patlence ano gave tbe
oroer tbat tbere was to be a market-
able proouct wltbln one year, accorolng
to Hloeakl Yasukawa. Leavlng ln place
only one member o| tbe orlglnal oeslgn
team, be put togetber a new team
comprlslng |our or ve o| tbe brlgbtest
sta|| be coulo no ano oecloeo tbey
sboulo work on oeslgn ano preparlng
|or mass proouctlon ln parallel. Mr
Yasukawa bas slnce salo, | tblnk tbls
ls wbere tbe seeos |or tooay's Selko
Lpson culture o| 'creatlvlty ano cbal-
lenge' took root."
Tbls new team starteo work
towaros tbe eno o| 1968. Tbe tbree
key tecbnologles ln quartz analogue
wrlstwatcbes are tbe quartz crystal
osclllator, tbe CMOS |C ano tbe step-
plng motor. Lnglneerlng sta|| at Suwa
Selkosba oevelopeo all tbree o| tbese
tecbnologles ano provloeo an enor-
mous boost to Selko's |uture.
Tbe new oevelopment team assem-
bleo by Sbojl Hattorl oecloeo to use an
open-type stepplng motor wblcb was
smaller, tblnner ano more robust tban
anytblng useo be|ore, ano slmllar to
tbose stlll useo tooay. |t conserveo
energy by movlng tbe seconos bano
only once a secono, ratber tban trylng
to emulate tbe traoltlonal sweep sec-
onos actlon, tbereby overcomlng some
o| tbe problems eperlenceo wltb
tbe earller quartz watcb prototypes.
Tbere was consloerable reslstance
|rom tbe marketlng oepartment to tbe
|unoamental cbange lnvolveo ln uslng
Se|ko`s uo|n| Se|kosho p|ont
deve|oped th|s 0SLC ||qu|d cr,sto|
quortz wotch |n 1973. lt hod o
futur|st|c oppeoronce, 5ut wos
extreme|, d|ff|cu|t to produce.
Se|ko |ounched the wor|d`s f|rst
d|g|to| quortz wotch w|th o l|e|d
Lffect Mode (lLMj ||qu|d cr,sto|
d|sp|o, |n 1973. 7he s|x-d|g|t LCu
pone| wos monufoctured |n-house.
58 CHAPYER 6
a seconos bano tbat steppeo |orwaro
only once a secono, but eventually tbe
objectors were convlnceo by tbe argu-
ment tbat tbls was a posltlve |eature o|
a quartz watcb.
At one o| tbelr marketlng meet-
lngs, Mr Masablro Kurlta a leaolng
member o| tbe quartz watcb oevelop-
ment team bappeneo to say, |'ve
never seen a secono". Tbls leo to tbe
company's new catcbpbrase |or quartz
watcbes, Have you ever seen one
secono?"
Hlgb per|ormance |ntegrateo
Clrcults (|Cs) ano Large Scale
|ntegrateo clrcults (LS|s) wltb low
power consumptlon were not yet
avallable ano so tbe new oevelopment
team maoe use o| electronlc clrcults
oevelopeo by lts preoecessors. Tbey
lnberlteo a bybrlo clrcult comprlslng
76 translstors, 29 capacltors ano 83
prlnteo reslstors tbat were soloereo
togetber manually. Tbls bao been
oevelopeo ln keeplng wltb tbe com-
pany's pbllosopby, wbat ooesn't elst
we'll make ourselves" ano lt |acllltateo
Selko's ablllty to market tbe worlo's
rst quartz wrlstwatcb.
Tbe net slgnlcant step |orwaro
was to be tbe oevelopment o| an lnte-
grateo electronlc clrcult to process tbe
pulses generateo by tbe quartz crystal
osclllator ano reouce tbem to one
pulse per secono. Tbe Smltbsonlan
|nstltute bas oeneo an lntegrateo
clrcult (|C or cblp) as, An assembly
o| lnterconnecteo components on a
small semlconouctor cblp, usually maoe
|rom slllcon." |t aooeo, One cblp can
contaln mllllons o| mlcroscoplc com-
ponents ano per|orm many |unctlons."
Tbe lntegrateo clrcult was lnventeo
ln ol||erent |orms ln tbe Unlteo States
by [ack Kllby, o| Teas |nstruments,
ano Pobert Noyce, at Falrcbllo
Semlconouctor. Tbey coulo bave bao
llttle loea o| tbe lmportance o| tbelr
lnventlon ano tbe |ar-reacblng e||ects
lt woulo bave ln tbe elo o| electronlcs.
|n watcbmaklng, one o| tbe most
slgnlcant benets o| tbe lntegrateo
clrcult was tbat lt bao no movlng parts,
ano tbere|ore no |rlctlon tbat coulo
cause wear, unllke tbe escapement o| a
traoltlonal mecbanlcal tlmeplece. Tbls
reouceo tbe neeo |or malntenance ano
gave quartz tlmepleces a |urtber aovan-
tage over mecbanlcal tlmekeepers.
|n 1967, CLH entereo quartz wrlst-
watcb prototypes ln tbe Neucbtel
Observatory competltlon |or tbe
rst tlme. Tbe CLH laboratory bao
been set up ln 1962 as a jolnt venture
between a number o| manu|acturers.
Tbe rst prototype quartz tlmepleces
tbey entereo ln tbe cbronometer trlals
took rst, secono ano tblro places ano
slgnalleo tbe serlous lnterest o| tbe
Swlss ln quartz tlmekeeplng.
Tbe race was on.
Tbe Swlss bao maoe lt clear tbey
wanteo to market quartz watcbes
as soon as posslble, but Selko, too,
bao commerclal objectlves ln mlno.
Development work contlnueo at top
speeo ln Swltzerlano ano [apan as
companles ln botb countrles pulleo
out all tbe stops to be rst lnto tbe
marketplace.
Yhe Brst quartz sale
Selko won tbe race ano tbe rst Astron
quartz watcb was solo on Cbrlstmas
Day 1969, lt maoe blstory ano cbangeo
tbe worlo o| watcbmaklng |orever. Tbe
Astron's quartz osclllator bao a |re-
quency o| 8,192 cycles a secono (Hz)
ano tbe watcb was clalmeo to be accu-
rate to wltbln ve seconos a oay. |t was
proouceo ln a llmlteo eoltlon o| only
100 pleces ano solo |or 450,000 yen
wblcb was tben about tbe same prlce
as a Toyota Corolla car.
8y tbe tlme o| tbe 8asel Falr ln
Swltzerlano, |our montbs a|ter tbe rst
Astron was solo, a number o| Swlss
companles announceo tbe lntroouctlon
o| quartz watcbes |or tbe rst tlme.
Tbey useo tbe same 8eta 21 callbre
tbat bao been oevelopeo by CLH.
A|ter Selko's bugely lmportant launcb,
tbe quartz watcb race moveo at an
astonlsblng pace ano soon, Selko was
to take control o| tlme. Tbey launcbeo
new mooels ln qulck successlon ano
by tbe eno o| 1970, contlnueo to leao
tbe way by launcblng tbe worlo's rst
quartz watcb uslng a CMOS |C as lts
electronlc braln.
|n tbe rst Swlss prototype quartz
watcbes, a slngle |C comprlslng arouno
110 components was useo to manage
all tbe electronlc |unctlons o| tbe
watcb. Selko's Astron useo a bybrlo
clrcult a comblnatlon o| clrcults on
just 2S ,eors ofter Astron, some quortz
wotches hod o|most un||m|ted funct|ons.
7h|s d|ver`s wotch |nc|uded on o|orm
ond depth sensor.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 59
a slngle substrate. Tbese oevelopments
ln lntegrateo clrcult tecbnology were
|unoamental to Selko's raplo progress
ano soon tbey were |orglng abeao wltb
lmportant new oevelopment work. At
rst, Dalnl Selkosba wanteo to oevelop
quartz watcbes tbat woulo not use
lntegrateo clrcults, because tbey
were really a bano|ul to oeal wltb".
Masatosbl Tobyama, wbo later became
a olrector o| Dalnl Selkosba, was
searcblng |or a way to make a quartz
watcb wltbout an |C, but a cbance
meetlng wltb one person cbangeo bls
oplnlon ano bao a pro|ouno lnNuence
on tbe |uture o| Selko ano leo to tbe
use o| an |C ln Selko's secono quartz
watcb.
Dr Tobyama eplalns, A Swlss
pbyslclst calleo Dr Hoernl le|t tbe
Amerlcan company Falrcbllo to start
bls own small rm, |ntersll Corporatlon,
wltb a colleague. Dr Hoernl bao been
a olsclple o| Dr Sbockley, tbe Nobel
prlzewlnner wbo was one o| tbe lnven-
tors o| tbe translstor. Dr Hoernl was a
ploneer o| tbe semlconouctor lnoustry
ano tbe lnventor o| tbe planar process
tbat |orms tbe basls o| tooay's mlcro-
cblp tecbnology. Tbese two |ounoers
o| |ntersll oevelopeo MOS ano later
CMOS tecbnology.
|n Aprll 1967, a|ter a meetlng ln
[apan wltb Fujltsu, Dr Hoernl was
taken to meet tbe oevelopment team
at Dalnl Selkosba. He proposeo tbe
use o| |requency olvloers |or watcbes
uslng CMOS |Cs. As Mr Tobyama
bearo tbls be tbougbt, Tbls woulo
work per|ectly". At rst, Dr Hoernl
suggesteo a cblp tbat requlreo 6-volts
ano so tbe problem was wbetber
or not tbe 6-volt power supply lt
requlreo coulo be reouceo to 1.3
volts. |ntegrateo clrcults can be broaoly
olvloeo lnto bl-polar ano CMOS types.
Tbe bl-polar type works at blgb speeo,
but consumes a large amount o| elec-
trlcal current. Conversely tbe MOS,
ano lts more oevelopeo |orm, tbe
CMOS, ls slower, but requlres less elec-
trlc power. |t also bas greater potentlal
|or mlnlaturlsatlon. Dr Tobyama cbose
tbe CMOS route.
Dalnl Selkosba accepteo Dr
Hoernl's proposals ano ln [anuary 1969
oevelopment began. |t was completeo
ln May 1970. Tbe contract between
Dalnl Selkosba ano |ntersll bao specl-
eo tbat tbe CMOS |C sboulo bave
an lnput |requency o| 16kHz, a voltage
supply o| 1.3v or less, power consump-
tlon o| 7.5 mlcrowatt or less, tbe cblp
slze sboulo be 441.3mm, ano tbe
oevelopment leao tlme was set at 15
montbs. Tbe agreeo oevelopment cost
was $190,000.
Wblle Selkosba ano |ntersll were
oeveloplng tbe rst CMOS |C sultable
|or use ln a watcb, tbe Swlss bao been
uslng bl-polar |Cs ln tbe 8eta 21 move-
ment useo ln tbelr rst quartz watcbes,
but tbese bao very blgb power con-
sumptlon.
Dr Tobyama recalls tbe oevelop-
ment o| tbe rst CMOS |C useo by
Selko. As epecteo, tbe most ol|-
cult cballenge was tbat o| reouclng
tbe requlreo lnput voltage. Dr Hoernl
epenoeo 75 per cent o| bls e||ort on
tbls." Tbls CMOS |C was rst useo ln
Mosotosh| 7oh,omo wos
|nstrumento| |n he|p|ng Se|ko to
|ounch the wor|d`s f|rst d|g|to|
quortz wotch w|th o l|e|d Lffect
Mode (lLMj d|sp|o,. 7odo,, th|s
s,stem |s used |n o|| LCu wotches.
A v|ew |ns|de Se|ko`s exper|mento| lC p|ont |n Norosh|no. lt wos deve|op|ng CM0S
lCs, wh|ch hove 5ecome the |ndustr, stondord, ot o t|me when the Sw|ss ond others
were st||| us|ng energ,-hungr, 5|-po|or lCs.
60 CHAPYER 6
tbe Selko 36SQC wblcb was launcbeo
at tbe eno o| 1970. However, tbere
were problems wltb ylelos tbe per-
centage o| acceptable cblps ln eacb
batcb |rom |ntersll's proouctlon ano
so Selko took tbe momentous oecl-
slon to proouce all |Cs ln-bouse. Tbls
oramatlc pollcy cbange proveo to be
o| enormous slgnlcance ano maoe
tbe company even more sel|-su|clent.
|t also meant tbat tbey woulo not be
at tbe mercy o| an outsloe suppller |or
tbe supply o| CMOS |Cs.
Twenty years later Selko Lpson
bao become one o| tbe worlo's largest
manu|acturers o| CMOS cblps ano
[apan bao become tbe worlo leaoer ln
electronlc tlmepleces.
In-house manufacturing
Dalnl Selkosba oevelopeo verslons
tbat consumeo even less power a|ter
lt took CMOS |C manu|acturlng ln-
bouse. Tbe per|ormance o| tbese |Cs
was ne-tuneo to lmprove accuracy
to just seconos a year ano support was
bullt-ln |or aooltlonal |unctlons, sucb
as cbronograpb ano alarm |eatures.
Lventually tbe company epanoeo
lnto tbe oevelopment o| general-use
mlcro-controllers tbat are now |ouno
ln a wloe varlety o| bome ano lnous-
trlal equlpment. Tbls olverslcatlon
provloeo tbe |ounoatlon |or Selko
|nstruments, wblcb ls tooay a major
company ln lts own rlgbt, wltb con-
solloateo turnover o| US $1.8 bllllon
ln 2001.
Selko's 36SQ was tbe rst watcb
ln tbe worlo to utlllse a CMOS cblp,
now all quartz watcbes use CMOS
tecbnology. |n 1972, Selko replaceo tbe
sbort-llveo 36SQ serles wltb tbe 39
serles. Ano tbe oevelopment contlnues
tooay, typlcal |C cblps ln watcbes
contaln 100,000 components or more
ano tbey can be llkeneo to oeolcateo
computers.
|t was not just ln cblp tecbnology
tbat tbe approacbes o| Selko ano tbe
Swlss were at varlance. |n tbe earllest
quartz watcbes, tbere were lmportant
ol||erences between tbe quartz crystal
tecbnology useo by Selko ano by tbe
CLH ln tbe Swlss 8eta 21 movement.
Selko useo lts own proprletary quartz
crystal ln tbe sbape o| a tunlng |ork,
wblle tbe CLH callbre was tteo wltb
a bar-type quartz osclllator, wblcb was
eo at lts centre. Selko eperlmenteo
very brleNy wltb tbe bar type, but soon
appreclateo tbe superlor benets o|
tbe tunlng |ork verslon ano tooay, tbe
tunlng |ork sbape bas become tbe
lnoustry stanoaro.
A quartz crystal osclllates at a
preclse |requency tbat ls oetermlneo
by tbe volume o| tbe crystal, tbe larger
tbe crystal tbe lower lts |requency.
Selko's rst quartz movement useo
quartz crystals wltb a |requency o|
8kHz. Altbougb tbe rst quartz crystal
cbronometer clock maoe by Suwa
Selkosba, tbe QC-951, useo a bar-type
quartz crystal purcbaseo |rom anotber
company, tbe Astron, Selko's rst
quartz watcb, useo tunlng |ork quartz
osclllators tbat were manu|actureo ln-
bouse ano tbe company bas maoe lts
own quartz crystals ever slnce.
|n tbe early 1970s, tbe |ocus o| tbe
quartz revolutlon turneo |rom lnven-
tlon to proouctlon. Tbe evolutlon o|
quartz crystal proouctlon at Suwa
Selkosba oemonstrates tbe cballenges
tbat bao to be overcome ln oroer to
succeeo ln proouclng quartz watcbes ln
quantlty. Tbe early quartz crystals useo
ln tbe 35SQ watcb, launcbeo ln 1969,
were proouceo by bano. Flrst, a tunlng-
|ork-sbapeo tool was presseo agalnst a
quartz wa|er about 1.5mm tblck ano an
ultrasonlc beam was applleo ln oroer
to etract a quartz crystal ln tbe sbape
o| a tunlng |ork. Any lmper|ectlons
were pollsbeo out ano two boles were
orllleo, eacb to a ol||erent oeptb. Golo
was tben oeposlteo on tbe crystal to
|orm tbe electrooes, but be|ore tbls
was oone a person orew a llne on tbe
crystal, uslng a brusb, to prevent golo
|rom aoberlng to tbls part.
Tbe net stage o| proouctlon
was tbe most ol|cult. An operator
ln 198, CA |n Amer|co re|eosed
these two p|ctures. 7he upper p|cture
shows on CA sc|ent|st ho|d|ng on
outdoted mechon|co| wotch o|ongs|de
on LCu c|ock. 7he |ower p|cture shows
ur He||me|er, who hod o meet|ng w|th
ur 7oh,omo to d|scuss d|g|to| d|sp|o,
techno|og,.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 61
woulo bolo tbe osclllator wltb a palr
o| tweezers ano grlno tbe tlps o| tbe
tunlng |ork uslng a grlnostone coateo
wltb olamono oust, wblle observlng
progress unoer a mlcroscope. Tbls
process reouceo tbe crystal to tbe pre-
clse volume necessary to ensure tbat lt
woulo osclllate at tbe correct |requency.
Tbls was truly tbe work o| cra|tsmen,
because even a speck o| grouno quartz
oust on tbe osclllator coulo cbange
lts |requency. Tbe quartz crystal was
tben cleaneo ln an ultrasonlc tank. Tbe
|requency o| eacb crystal was cbeckeo
wblle lt was belng grouno ano a|ter lt
bao been cleaneo. |t was tben soloereo,
by bano, to a platlnum supportlng
wlre ano connecteo to tbe leaos tbat
powereo lt. Flnally lt was sealeo ln a
protectlve case.
Tbls work was etremely labour-
lntenslve ano anyone maklng 100
osclllators a oay recelveo a bonus.
|n tbe earllest oays o| proouclng tbe
35SQ, proouctlon was so slow lt
coulo be ol|cult to proouce 10 unlts
a montb. 8y 1974, pbotolltbograpblc
etcblng was lntroouceo ano tbls ena-
bleo proouctlon volumes o| osclllators
to be lncreaseo oramatlcally. Tooay,
tens o| tbousanos can be proouceo ln
an bour.
8y tbe latter part o| tbe 20tb cen-
tury ano at tbe beglnnlng o| tbe 21st
century, most watcbes use a quartz
crystal tbat osclllates at a |requency
o| 32,768 Hz. |n Selko's proouct range
one eceptlon ls tbe crystal useo ln
tbe Perpetual Calenoar, lt bas a |re-
quency o| 196kHz, wblcb enables lt to
attaln even greater accuracy.
Mr Nakamura observeo, One blg
ol||erence between tbe Swlss |noustry
ano us tbat we learneo o| tbrougb tbe
competltlon ls tbat, ln contrast to tbe
olstrlbuteo style o| tbe Swlss, bere we
are an lntegrateo manu|acturer. || we
belleve anytblng to be a requlrement,
lt's wltbln our management's scope
to take all tbe measures neeoeo to
act." Hls comments relateo to tbe
Cbronometer Competltlon, but bls
observatlon was very perceptlve. Tbls
lntegratlon was ultlmately one o|
tbe prlnclpal reasons tbat Selko was
able to epano proouctlon o| quartz
watcbes |aster tban any Swlss manu-
|acturers.
Accorolng to researcb by tbe
Smltbsonlan |nstltute, tbe 8eta 21
bao been oevelopeo by CLH, wblcb
was nanceo by a consortlum o|
Swlss watcb companles, ano eacb
was responslble |or a ol||erent area
o| tbe proouctlon o| tbe early quartz
movements. CLH oeslgneo tbe watcb
ano proouceo tbe lntegrateo clrcult,
Lbaucbes SA maoe tbe mecbanlcal
parts ano tbe quartz crystal osclllator
ano Omega proouceo tbe mlcromotor.
Tbe nlsbeo prooucts were assembleo
ln tbree ol||erent |actorles tbat pro-
ouceo nal prooucts to tbe oeslgns
o| tbe Swlss companles tbat placeo
oroers. 8y 1970, 16 Swlss companles
began selllng quartz watcbes unoer
tbelr own brano names.
8y contrast, tbe lntegrateo pro-
ouctlon llnes tbat bao been a |eature
o| Selko's |actorles |or some years
lmposeo |ew proouctlon restrlctlons
ln 197S Se|ko |ounched the wor|d`s f|rst d|g|to| quortz wotch w|th o chronogroph,
the 03+. lt cou|d record t|me to
1
l10 of o second ond hod o |op t|me funct|on. lt o|so
|ncorporoted on |nterno| ||ght, so thot |t cou|d 5e seen c|eor|, |n the dork.
62 CHAPYER 6
ano tbe only slgnlcant component
tbat was oepenoant on outsloe coop-
eratlon was tbe CMOS |C ano even
tbls was only manu|actureo as a jolnt
venture |or a sbort tlme.
Chameleon chemical
|n tbe late 1960s ano early 1970s tbere
was a growlng oeslre to olsplay ln|or-
matlon electronlcally ano to sbow as
mucb ln|ormatlon as posslble ln olgltal
|orm ano Selko was oetermlneo not
to be le|t beblno. Tbe lnsplratlon |or
Dalnl Selkosba's oevelopment o| llqulo
crystal olsplays (LCDs) came wben
Dr Tobyama was looklng tbrougb tbe
Marcb 3, 1968, eoltlon o| 'Ll|e' magazlne.
He was lntrlgueo by an artlcle about
Tbe Cbameleon Cbemlcal", wblcb
oescrlbeo bow llqulo crystal cbanges
colour as lts temperature lncreases.
Wbat rlveteo bls attentlon was a sen-
tence tbat salo tbat llqulo crystals bao
tbe ablllty to create electronlc lmages".
Tbe oeveloper o| tbls new tecbnology
was Pro|essor Ferguson, at tbe Kent
State Unlverslty ln tbe USA wblcb
ls now bome to tbe Llqulo Crystal
|nstltute.
Dr Tobyama was keen to meet
Pro|essor Ferguson so tbat be coulo
ask blm about creatlng electronlc
lmages". He soon olscovereo tbat
llqulo crystal olsplays were alreaoy
belng useo ln quartz clocks ano as
soon as be reporteo tbls to Sbojl
Hattorl, be was askeo to lnvestlgate
LCD tecbnology lmmeolately. [ust sl
oays later, be took a Nlgbt to Amerlca
ano rst vlslteo PCA ano met Dr
Hellmeler, wbo was ln cbarge o| llqulo
crystal researcb. One Amerlcan com-
pany bao alreaoy askeo PCA about tbe
posslblllty o| uslng LCDs ln watcbes.
One major olsappolntment was
tbat PCA aomltteo tbat tbe rst LCD
olsplays only bao a ll|e epectancy o|
3,000 bours, but tbey belleveo tbat |ur-
tber researcb woulo eteno tbls gure.
Net, Dr Tobyama met Pro|essor
Ferguson, wbose artlcle ln Ll|e bao
sparkeo bls lnterest ln tbe opportunl-
tles o| LCDs.
8y tbls tlme, Pro|essor Ferguson
was oeveloplng a new system to utl-
llse tbe propertles o| llqulo crystals,
be was oeveloplng Flelo L||ect Mooe
(FLM) LCD's, wbereas PCA were uslng
tbe oynamlc scatterlng mooe (DSM)
metboo. He was unable to sbow a
sample, but promlseo to seno one by
tbe eno o| tbe year. A|ter returnlng to
[apan, Dr Tobyama became unbappy
about tbe prospect o| entrustlng tbls
work to |orelgn companles, be rea-
soneo tbat lt woulo not leave Selko
|ree to scratcb wbere lt ltcbeo". Once
agaln tbe company oecloeo to unoer-
take proouctlon ln-bouse, malntalnlng
lts lnoepenoence.
Pesearcb work starteo on
7he wor|d t|mer, A239, wos equ|pped
w|th o two-|o,er co|oured LCu pone|
ond d|sp|o,ed o wor|d mop ond the
t|me. lt wos o|med ot |nternot|ono|
trove||ers.
7he ed|t|on of L|fe Mogoz|ne |n wh|ch ur 7oh,omo d|scovered on ort|c|e o5out o
chome|eon chem|co|. 7he outhor cou|d hove hod ||tt|e |deo of the progress thot wou|d
5e mode |n the deve|opment of ||qu|d cr,sto| d|sp|o,s |n the fo||ow|ng 30 ,eors.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 63
December 12, 1968 wltb guloance
|rom Pro|essors Toyosblma ano Mltsul
|rom Toboku Unlverslty, uslng tbe DSM
approacb oevelopeo by PCA. On tbe
last oay o| tbe year a package arrlveo
|rom Pro|essor Ferguson. Dr Tobyama
salo, Wben | openeo tbe package,
tbere was a llqulo crystal panel lnsloe,
ano lt salo to apply a current o| some
tentbs o| a volt. Wben we trleo lt,
tbe lmage was a clear as l| lt were
lnk on paper." Altbougb be bao only
just starteo bls researcb, Dr Tobyama
oecloeo tbat oevelopment lnto DSM
tecbnology sboulo be olscontlnueo ano
all e||ort swltcbeo to worklng on tbe
FLM type o| olsplay.
Mlcroma was tbe rst company
to launcb olgltal watcbes, but lts LCD
olsplay useo DSM tecbnology. 8y tbls
tlme, tbe jolnt researcb between Dalnl
Selkosba ano Toboku Unlverslty was
proouclng results ano ln 1973, Selko
was able to launcb LCD wrlstwatcbes
|eaturlng tbelr own FLM-type LCDs.
Tbe rst o| tbese prooucts were tbe
05LC (Dalnl Selkosba) ano 06LC (Suwa
Selkosba). As Dr Tobyama bao pre-
olcteo, tbe FLM-type LCD became tbe
maln type o| llqulo crystal olsplay.
Hamllton, tbe Amerlcan watcb
company, lntroouceo a |urtber twlst
ln tbe evolutlon o| quartz watcb tecb-
nology ln May 1970, wben lt launcbeo a
quartz watcb wltb a olgltal olsplay tbat
|eatureo Llgbt-Lmlttlng Dlooes (LLDs)
ln a mooel calleo Pulsar. Selko later
acqulreo tbe name |or a new brano
tbey were to launcb, ano lt bas been ln
use ever slnce.
At tbe tlme tbat Hamllton
launcbeo tbelr new rst olgltal LLD
watcb, Selko, ln [apan, ano Lbaucbes
SA, ln Swltzerlano, were ln tbe process
o| oeveloplng llqulo crystal olsplays
LCDs. LLDs consumeo so mucb
power tbat tbey coulo only be useo to
olsplay tlme at tbe press o| a button |or
a |ew seconos at a tlme. Tbe LCD ols-
play, conversely, provloeo a contlnuous
olsplay o| tbe tlme ano was mucb more
energy e|clent. Tbe watcb worlo was
ln a state o| turmoll ano lt was ol|cult
|or traoe buyers to know wblcb o|
tbese approacbes woulo oomlnate tbe
market. Tbere was also mucb oebate
about tbe |uture o| olgltal ano analogue
olsplays. Some were convlnceo tbat olg-
ltal olsplays representeo tbe |uture |or
wrlstwatcbes, wblle otbers argueo tbat
tbey were a passlng |ao ano wben tbe
novelty bao worn o||, analogue quartz
watcbes woulo outsell olgltal mooels.
As tbe contest between LLD
ano LCD olsplays beateo up, lt was
almost lmposslble to preolct wblcb
woulo prove most popular. Some
watcb lnoustry observers tbougbt
tbat sales o| olgltal quartz watcbes
woulo become more lmportant
tban tbose o| tbelr quartz analogue
counterparts, but tbls olo not bappen.
Selko never proouceo an LLD watcb,
altbougb lt consloereo tbe posslblllty
brleNy. |nsteao, lt took tbe oeclslon
to use LCD tecbnology |or lts olgltal
watcbes ano tooay lt ls clear tbat tbls
was tbe rlgbt cbolce. Wltb tbe ben-
et o| blnoslgbt we know tbat olgltal
olsplays |alleo to oomlnate tbe watcb
worlo. 8y tbe early years o| tbe 21st
7he wr|st computer, |ounched |n 198+, wos |n two ports, the wr|st mounted port|on
ond the contro||er. lt represents o ver, comp|ex morr|oge of quortz, LCu ond lC
techno|og|es, the f|e|ds |n wh|ch Se|ko hos p|o,ed o |eod|ng ro|e.
64 CHAPYER 6
century, analogue quartz watcbes are
stlll outselllng tbelr olgltal counterparts,
altbougb olgltal mooels bave contlnueo
to take a slgnlcant, but mlnor, sbare o|
tbe market.
Mass production
Meanwblle, tbe quartz analogue
market was oemanolng ever tblnner
mooels, provlolng anotber cballenge.
Mr Kenlcbl Usblkosbl took cbarge o|
tbe mass proouctlon o| Selko quartz
watcbes ano bls leaoersblp resulteo
ln tbe oevelopment ano proouctlon
o| a tblnner ano less epenslve quartz
movement. Lventually, tbe slze o| tbe
quartz mooule was reouceo su|clently
|or use ln a oress watcb. |n 1974, lt
was marketeo ln a watcb calleo tbe
41QD, tbe worlo's rst quartz oress
watcb. Tbls reouctlon ln slze was
acbleveo by omlttlng tbe seconos bano
ano olsplaylng only bours ano mlnutes.
One oevelopment tbat Selko ano
Luropean manu|acturers bao not
antlclpateo su|clently was tbe lnterest
o| companles ln Hong Kong ano
Talwan ln tbe watcb lnoustry. Wben
tbey entereo tbe market, a prlce war
broke out ln tbe olgltal wrlstwatcb
market. Tbls bao repercusslons ln tbe
Swlss watcb lnoustry ano also createo
ol|cult conoltlons |or Selko, wblcb
stlll wanteo to pursue lts watcbmaklng
ambltlons.
Selko's remarkable success slnce
tbe lntroouctlon o| quartz ln 1969 ls
partly attrlbutable to tbe |unoamental
oeclslons lt maoe ln tbe early oays o|
quartz. |t opteo |or tunlng-|ork sbapeo
quartz osclllators, oevelopeo tbe rst
open-type stepplng motors, CMOS |Cs
ano LCD olsplays |or olgltal watcbes,
all |our bave become tbe global stano-
aros ln quartz watcbmaklng tbat bave
enoureo tbrougb to tbe 21st century.
Tbe quartz revolutlon, ano especlally
tbe new tecbnologles oevelopeo by
Suwa Selkosba, lalo tbe |ounoatlons |or
tbe |uture o| Selko.
Work on CMOS |Cs by Dalnl
Selkosba's oevelopment team bao
pro|ouno ano |ar-reacblng lmpllcatlons.
Tbls tecbnology not only provloeo tbe
basls |or tbe oevelopment o| all |uture
watcbes, but also maoe posslble tbe
enormous Selko Lpson buslness tbat
bas lts roots ln electronlc tecbnology.
Tbe company's oevelopment o| |Cs,
stepplng motors ano LCDs contlnueo
|ar beyono prooucts |or watcbes, now
tbey are useo ln a broao varlety o|
equlpment |or lnoustrlal ano bome
use. Tbls provloeo tbe |ounoatlon |or
tbe present Selko |nstruments, wblcb
ls also an lntegrateo electronlc oevlce
manu|acturer. Tooay, tbe Selko Group
ls one o| [apan's largest ano lts suc-
cess all starteo wltb a quartz crystal.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 65
K|NLT|C WATCHLS ALL THAT |S
8LST |N SL|KO TLCHNOLOGY
Less than 20 years after selling the world's Brst quartz watch, 5eiko took another
giant step forward in the development of watch technology when it announced a
new generation of quartz watches that eliminated the need for battery changes.
Creating a watch that was not
oepenoent on batterles was o| con-
sloerable slgnlcance not only because
tbe new watcb was more user |rlenoly,
but because lt was envlronmentally
|rlenoly, too. Dlscaroeo batterles are
barm|ul to our envlronment, anytblng
tbat reouces tbe number o| batterles
tbat are belng olsposeo o| sboulo be
warmly welcomeo.
8y tbe early 1980s, Selko's
tecbnlclans bao oevelopeo a new
way o| generatlng ano storlng
electrlclty, lnsteao o| relylng on ols-
posable batterles. At tbe 8asel Falr ln
Swltzerlano ln tbe sprlng o| 1986 tbey
unvelleo tbe prototype o| a watcb tbat
was calleo AGM, an abbrevlatlon o|
Automatlc Generatlng Mecbanlsm, but
tbls was soon cbangeo to AGS, sbort
|or Automatlc Generatlng System.
Lventually lt was glven tbe more mem-
orable ano relevant name o| Klnetlc.
(Colllns Lngllsb Dlctlonary oenes
klnetlc" as relatlng to, cbaracterlseo by,
or causeo by motlon".)
At tbe beart o| tbe new tecb-
nology was tbe oeslre to create tbe
rst battery-|ree quartz watcb, but
Selko's ambltlons were even more
pro|ouno. Tbey bao set tbelr slgbts on
proouclng a mecbanlsm tbat woulo out-
per|orm all elstlng tecbnologles. Most
manually wouno mecbanlcal watcbes
wlll stop a|ter about 36 bours l| tbey
are not wouno ano even very epen-
slve mooels wltb etenoeo power
reserve" wlll only run between ve
ano elgbt or 10 oays at tbe most, but
tbey are |ew ano |ar between. Lven sel|-
wlnolng mecbanlcal watcbes stop a oay
or two a|ter tbey are last worn.
Tbe runnlng tlme o| most quartz
watcbes ls governeo by tbelr batterles,
most wlll run |or at least one year
be|ore a battery cbange ls requlreo,
ano a |ew mooels can run |or ve or
10 years. One o| tbe great attractlons
o| quartz watcbes bas always been tbat
tbey work wltbout any attentlon |or
long perloos o| tlme ano wltb mucb
greater accuracy tban tbelr mecbanlcal
counterparts. Tbe one olsaovantage
tbat tbey bao wben compareo wltb
mecbanlcal tlmepleces was tbat tbe
battery neeoeo to be replaceo ano
tbls can become necessary at an lncon-
venlent moment. For most people, l| a
quartz watcb stops lt ls lnconvenlent,
but to some people, sucb as olvers or
pllots, tbe |allure o| a battery coulo
bave serlous sa|ety consequences.
Tbe lack o| a sel|-wlnolng
mecbanlsm was one o| tbe very |ew
olsaovantages lnberent ln quartz watcb
tecbnology. Selko's oevelopment engl-
neers were also consclous o| tbe |act
tbat olscaroeo batterles are barm|ul
7h|s protot,pe of the K|net|c wos f|rst
|ounched ot o press conference ot the
8ose| lo|r |n Sw|tzer|ond, |n 198. 7he
cose wos mode from 5r|ght t|ton|um,
the most odvonced t,pe of t|ton|um
ovo||o5|e ot the t|me.
66 CHAPYER 7
to our envlronment. Tbey workeo
long ano baro to overcome all o| tbese
problems ano to comblne tbe accuracy
o| a quartz watcb wltb tbe sel|-su|-
clency o| a sel|-wlnolng mecbanlcal
tlmeplece. Tbey starteo serlous work
on tbe problem ln 1983. Tbe rst pro-
totypes contalneo a rotatlng welgbt,
slmllar to tbat useo ln a sel|-wlnolng
mecbanlcal watcb. Tbe rotatlon o| tbls
rotor, causeo by movement o| tbe
wearer's wrlst, was useo to generate
energy (klnetlc energy), wblcb coulo be
storeo, ano tbls was useo to power tbe
clrcultry o| a quartz watcb.
Tbe concept o| uslng move-
ment to generate electrlclty was not
new lt bao been Noatlng arouno
tbe company slnce 1969. Tbe rst
Klnetlc-relateo patent was applleo |or
ln 1971 but lt bao been wrltten o||
as an loea tbat was qulte lmpractlcal
|or use ln a quartz watcb because tbe
supply o| energy, movement o| tbe
wrlst, was erratlc. Tbe e|clent gen-
eratlon o| electrlclty usually requlres
a contlnuous source o| klnetlc energy
conslstently above a certaln mlnlmum
level. At rst, Selko's tecbnlclans coulo
only generate very small amounts o|
electrlclty uslng tbe lrregular move-
ments o| a tlny rotatlng welgbt ln a
watcb. Tbe loea o| barnesslng sucb a
tlny current to power a quartz watcb
movement seemeo llttle more tban a
oream.
Wben oevelopment o| tbe Klnetlc
concept starteo, lt was re|erreo to as
'lnternal generatlon' ln oroer to olstln-
gulsb lt |rom solar-powereo 'eternal
generatlon' watcbes, wblcb bao been
success|ully oevelopeo |or sale by Selko
by 1977. Serlous work on tbe concept
tbat leo to tbe lntroouctlon o| Klnetlc
watcbes really starteo at Selko Lpson
ln 1983. Tbe leaoer o| tbe project
was Masablto Yosblno. He salo, | tblnk
o| mysel| as tbe parent wbo brougbt
Klnetlc to blrtb, altbougb | am not tbe
one wbo later reareo lt to maturlty".
He became leaoer o| tbe oevelopment
team at tbe age o| 34.
A variety of projects
At tbe tlme, bls team bao tbe task o|
concelvlng sometblng new ln watcbes"
ano was alloweo |ree reln to oevelop
new tecbnologles o| any klno. Tbelr
work covereo multl-splnole watcbes
sucb as multl-|unctlon cbronograpbs
ano tbe provlslon o| watcb |unctlons
controlleo by uslng tbe baslc CPU ano
so|tware. Tbelr otber researcb tbemes
lncluoeo quartz watcbes wltb sweep
seconos banos (ln wblcb tbe seconos
bano sweeps smootbly lnsteao o|
jumplng once a secono) ano wrlst-type
stopwatcbes wltb bullt-ln ultra-mlnl-
ature prlnters. Tbe Klnetlc watcb was
just one o| tbese projects, tbey were
not worklng ecluslvely on Klnetlc. Mr
Yosblno was subsequently appolnteo as
general manager o| Selko Lpson's P &
D olvlslon ano tben became general
manager o| Corporate Plannlng O|ce,
wbere be coorolnateo oevelopment
work |or varlous prooucts belng oevel-
opeo wltb Selko Corporatlon.
Tbls project team, |aceo wltb
tbe cballenge o| oeveloplng Klnetlc
tecbnology, oecloeo to cballenge
conventlonal wlsoom, tbey re|useo
to belleve tbat a sel|-powereo quartz
watcb was lmpractlcal ano eventu-
ally tbelr lnnovatlve solutlons proveo
remarkably success|ul. At rst, energy
lssues provloeo tbem wltb apparently
lntractable problems. |t took mucb
baro work ano tbe commltment
o| a oeolcateo team to overcome
tbem. Tbey were able to succeeo
because tbey bao a wealtb o| oevel-
opment ano proouctlon epertlse at
tbelr olsposal. Tbey bao tbe know-bow
to proouce conventlonal mecbanlcal
watcbes, as well as tbe epertlse ln
7he wor|d`s f|rst K|net|c movement wos
the 7M, wh|ch oppeored |n 1988. 0ff
the wr|st |t ron for o5out 7S hours
when fu||, chorged. lt wos we|| rece|ved
|n Lurope 5efore |ts |mportonce wos
fu||, opprec|oted |n jopon.
Mosoh|to osh|no wos |n chorge
of the K|net|c proect ond |oter
5ecome genero| monoger of Se|ko
Lpson`s Corporote P|onn|ng 0ff|ce.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 67
electronlcs tbat bao been acqulreo
ourlng tbe oevelopment ano proouc-
tlon o| quartz watcbes. Above all, tbey
bao tbat vltal Selko attltuoe tbat wel-
comes tbe opportunlty to tackle a new
cballenge, startlng wltb a blank sbeet o|
paper.
Wben work on 'lnternal genera-
tlon' got unoerway ln 1983, lt coulo not
be embooleo ln a vlable proouct, but
every |ew years a new start was maoe.
Tbe stumbllng block was always tbe
same: tbe gap between tbe amount o|
electrlcal power tbat coulo be gener-
ateo ano tbe power tbat was requlreo
to operate a quartz watcb movement.
Tbls leo to tbe |allure o| many o| tbese
projects. Mr Yosblno was not oeterreo
by tbese past |allures. He olscusseo
tbe problems wltb Naoakl Yasukawa,
wbo jolneo tbe oevelopment team to
oevelop practlcal solutlons o| Klnetlc
problems ano tben became a sectlon
manager ln tbe Watcb Development
Group.
More power needed
Tbe two men concentrateo on tbe
neeo to proouce more electrlclty ano
oevelopeo a system wbereby elec-
trlclty coulo be generateo by turnlng
tbe crown o| a mooleo man's watcb.
We manageo to generate a current o|
100 mlcroamperes," Mr Yosblno recalls.
At tbat tlme, tblnklng o| bow mucb
current was requlreo to run a quartz
watcb, Yasukawa ano | bao agreeo '||
we can generate 10 mllllamperes, we'll
be able to proouce a vlable proouct'."
8ecause tbe oevelopment team
was worklng slmultaneously on sev-
eral otber projects, gettlng tbe Klnetlc
concept to work was not a make or
break oeal |or tbem. Havlng succeeoeo
ln generatlng one bunoreotb o| tbe
requlreo power, Mr Yosblno salo, Tbat
ls enougb: let's glve lt a try". Some
people ln tbe company tbougbt tbls
result was olscouraglng, but Mr Yosblno
was convlnceo tbey coulo make lt
work ano be oecloeo to go abeao wltb
|ull-scale oevelopment. Lnglneerlng, l|
you glve lt su|clent tbougbt, can soon
glve you a ten-|olo lmprovement, ano
l| you go about lt properly, can even
glve you a bunoreo-|olo lmprovement.
Tbat's bow | see lt. Tbere's also tbe |act
tbat | |elt strongly attracteo by tbe loea
o| tbe orlglnal mecbanlcal sel|-wlnolng
watcb ano bao jolneo a company tbat
maoe tbem."
Mr Yosblno eplalns, Tbe wrlst ls
a very bostlle envlronment, always sub-
jectlng tbe watcb worn on lt to a serles
o| vlbratlons ano sbocks. | tbougbt tbe
concept o| tbe sel|-wlnolng mecbanlcal
watcb tbat takes aovantage o| tbls ano
uses lt to power a watcb was won-
oer|ul! | wanteo to use tbe power tbat
ls generateo just by tbe watcb belng
worn on tbe wrlst. |t's alreaoy on tbe
wrlst, so we coulo use tbat |act to
power lt. Tbere's notblng to say tbat a
solar watcb bas to be on tbe wrlst, but
l| a watcb ls orlven by electrlclty gener-
ateo by movement o| tbe wrlst, tbere's
every reason |or lt to be on tbe wrlst.
You bave a marrlage o| convenlence
ano necesslty."
Development work starteo
wltb oetalleo lnvestlgatlons lnto tbe
relatlonsblp between rotatlon o| tbe
osclllatlng welgbt ano tbe generatlon
o| electrlclty. At rst, tbe oevelopment
englneers olsmantleo tbe oynamo tbat
powers tbe llgbts on a blcycle. Tbls
revealeo tbat only mlnuscule amounts
o| electrlclty coulo be generateo wben
a generator was turneo erratlcally. At
rst, we olon't even unoerstano bow
tbe rotatlon woulo a||ect tbe amount
o| electrlclty tbat coulo be generateo.
|t was no use looklng at run-o|-tbe-mlll
electrlcal generators, because tbey
were all oeslgneo to run contlnuously,
movement o| tbe rotor o| a watcb on
your wrlst ls qulte erratlc."
A|ter tbe team succeeoeo ln
lmprovlng power output to one tentb
o| tbelr target, tbey ran lnto a brlck
wall. || proouct oevelopment was to
contlnue, assumlng tbat |uture power
requlrements woulo be tbe same as
tbose o| quartz movements belng
maoe at tbat tlme, lt was clear tbat tbe
rotor woulo bave to be maoe larger
ano beavler. Tbe orawback was tbat
tbls woulo result ln quartz watcbes
tbat were tblcker ano beavler tban
tbose uslng conventlonal batterles tbat
bao to be replaceo.
Anotber |actor tbat bao to be
consloereo was tbat quartz move-
ments were alreaoy avallable tbat only
requlreo battery replacement every
Sho|ch| Nogoo wos c|ose|, |nvo|ved
w|th the deve|opment of K|net|c
techno|og,, stort|ng w|th protot,pes,
ond then work|ng w|th f|ve
generot|ons, from the 7M to the 1M.
68 CHAPYER 7
10 years. Tbere was lntense olscusslon
wltbln tbe company about tbe wlsoom
o| proouclng tblcker ano beavler
watcbes. |t was wrong to assume tbat
|uture generatlons o| quartz move-
ments woulo bave slmllar power
requlrements to earller generatlons.
Tbe only way to resolve tbe power
problem was to oevelop a quartz
movement speclcally |or Klnetlc, wltb
very low energy requlrements. At tbe
tlme, tbe lnoustry was tben movlng lts
|ocus |rom ever-lncreaslng accuracy
to tblnner ano tblnner watcbes. One
quartz oress watcb maoe tben was
only one mllllmetre tblck. Tbere was
no oemano |or watcbes wltb lower
power consumptlon tban tbe mooels
tbat were currently ln proouctlon.
Tbe oevelopment team persevereo
ano began to conouct a tborougb
revlew o| tbe |unoamental attrlbutes
o| quartz watcb oeslgn, lncluolng low
power consumptlon. Tbelr researcb
lncluoeo lmportant work tbat leo to
major aovances ln tbe generatlon ano
storage o| electrlclty. Tbey succeeoeo
ln oeveloplng an lnnovatlve voltage
multlpller clrcult tbat enableo tbe
quartz watcb clrcultry to be powereo
success|ully by an electrlcal generator
tbat proouceo mucb lower voltages
tban tbe mlnlmum tbat woulo otber-
wlse be neeoeo to operate tbe watcb.
|t proveo to be tbe breaktbrougb
tbat enableo tbe concept o| a Klnetlc
watcb to be trans|ormeo lnto a vlable
proouct.
One o| tbe englneers wbo later
ralseo Klnetlc tecbnology to maturlty
was Sbolcbl Nagao. Wben be rst
jolneo tbe oevelopment team be
bao been worklng on general quartz
watcb oeslgn, startlng wltb tbe oeslgn
o| gear tralns. He bao also workeo on
tbe Mooel 63 mecbanlcal watcb. He
was lnvlteo to joln tbe Klnetlc project
wben lt rst lookeo as l| lt mlgbt be
success|ul. He workeo at tbe |ront llne
o| Klnetlc oevelopment |rom tbe rst
generatlon 7M to tbe lntroouctlon o|
tbe mlnlature 1M callbre.
He eplalns, Wben | jolneo tbe
oevelopment group, all we bao was
tbe rst sample generator. Tbls was
tbe rst project | bao been lnvolveo
wltb ln wblcb a oeclslon bao not yet
been taken to proouce a commerclal
proouct. Tbe project lnvolveo a strong
element o| oevelopment tbat | really
enjoyeo."
Tbe team oevelopeo a per|ectly
balanceo comblnatlon o| a quartz
movement wltb very low electrlcal
power requlrements, ano an astonlsb-
lngly e|clent electrlcal generator ano
a storage system. Togetber tbese
|ormeo an electrlcal sel|-wlnolng
system to provloe power |or tbe
quartz movement.
Tbls great acblevement markeo tbe
beglnnlng o| an etremely e|clent eco-
loglcal system tbat can be operateo by
mlnute electrlc currents. |n tbls respect,
Klnetlc tecbnology symbollses every-
tblng tbat ls best about Selko.
To succeeo wltb Klnetlc tecb-
nology, Selko's englneers oevelopeo
many remarkable new oevlces. |n tbe
7h|s protot,pe |nc|uded the generotor, vo|toge mu|t|p||er ond |ow consumpt|on quortz
c|rcu|tr, thot formed the 5os|s of the 7M co||5re |ounched |n 1988.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 69
generatlng unlt, |or eample, tbe speeo
o| rotatlon o| tbe osclllatlng welgbt ls
multlplleo 100 tlmes by means o| a
gear traln tbat turns a samarlum cobalt
(AG2) mlcrorotor at speeos between
10,000 ano 100,000 rpm. Tbe rotor ls
suspenoeo ln a magnetlc elo ano ooes
not toucb lts bouslng lt ls suspenoeo
by magnetlc levltatlon". Tbe resultlng
magnetlc elo lnouces a current ln tbe
colls o| tbe generator. Tbls tlny, Nuctu-
atlng current was rectleo ano storeo
ln a capacltor. Tbls storeo energy was
tben useo to supply tbe quartz oscll-
lator ano tbe stepplng motor so tbat
tbey coulo provloe tbe tlmekeeplng
ano olsplay |unctlons. To acbleve tbls
uslng only a tlny current requlreo tbe
oevelopment o| CMOS |C oevlces
ano stepplng motors tbat useo only
|ractlons o| tbe power tbat bao been
requlreo by prevlous generatlons o|
quartz watcbes. |t also necessltateo tbe
oevelopment o| new actlvateo carbon
capacltors wltb an enormous capaclty.
(Pecently tbe capacltor ln Klnetlc
watcbes bas been replaceo by tbe use
o| a recbargeable cell wltb a mucb
greater capaclty, ensurlng tbe watcb
wlll operate |or sl montbs wltbout
any aooltlonal cbarge.)
O| all tbe new tecbnologles oevel-
opeo |or tbe Klnetlc movement, tbe
voltage multlpller ls tbe star per|ormer.
|t takes mlnlscule amounts o| electrlcal
energy |rom tbe power cell ano uses
lt to power tbe clrcultry o| a quartz
movement wltbout any wastage. A
current o| at least one volt ls requlreo
to power a quartz movement. || tbe
energy storeo ln tbe capacltor o| a
quartz watcb ls useo to power tbe
movement olrectly, tbe watcb wlll stop
worklng as soon as tbe voltage sup-
plleo to lts clrcult orops below one
volt. Uslng Selko's energy multlpller,
tbe movement wlll contlnue to work
even l| tbe voltage wltbln tbe power
cell |alls below one volt. Tbe voltage
multlpller bas been compareo wltb
tbe automatlc transmlsslon on a car. |t
oetects wben tbe voltage ln tbe power
cell |alls below one volt ano steps up
tbe output to ensure tbat lt ls maln-
talneo above one volt.
Tbe concept o| tbe voltage multl-
pller was as brllllant as lt was e||ectlve.
|t maoe posslble tbe completely stable
operatlon o| tbe quartz clrcultry. Tbls
makes lt posslble to ensure stable
operatlon o| tbe quartz clrcultry.
Lventually Mr Nagao's team pro-
ouceo a prototype, bavlng surmounteo
all tbe tecbnlcal problems. Tbls was tbe
prototype tbat was sbown ln publlc
7h|s Londmoster d|ver`s mode|, housed |n o one-p|ece cose, wos o good exomp|e of the
use of ACS (K|net|cj movement wh|ch never necess|toted open|ng of the cose for 5otter,
chonge. lt 5oosted o 20 5or woter res|stonce thonks to th|s woter-t|ght structure.
70 CHAPYER 7
|or tbe rst tlme at tbe 8asel Falr
ln Swltzerlano ln tbe sprlng o| 1986.
|ronlcally, |ew people reallseo tbat
altbougb tbe prototype was on ols-
play, work on tbe Klnetlc project bao
alreaoy been cancelleo. Tbe oeclslon
bao been taken |or tbree reasons, tbe
buge oevelopment cost, tbe blgb prlce
o| tbe watcb ano tbe tblckness ano
welgbt o| tbe watcb. |t was oecloeo
tbat |urtber oevelopment o| Klnetlc
tecbnology was unwlse at a tlme wben
tbere was a |asblon |or tbln watcbes
ln botb tbe [apanese ano worlo watcb
markets.
|n October 1986, Mr Nagao
attenoeo a borologlcal englneerlng
con|erence ln Swltzerlano wbere be
presenteo a paper eplalnlng Klnetlc
tecbnology. He says, | bao very mleo
|eellngs. | suppose | sboulo bave
counteo mysel| lucky to be able to
announce Klnetlc, because tbere were
so many otber oevelopments tbat
never saw tbe llgbt o| oay." (A quartz
watcb tbat was also powereo by tbe
movement o| a rotor was announceo
by one o| tbe smaller Swlss watcb
companles. |t was oevelopeo ln co-
operatlon wltb sclentlsts at a Swlss
unlverslty, but lt ran lnto so many
tecbnlcal problems tbat lt was soon
wltborawn.)
Tbe announcement o| Klnetlc
tecbnology causeo a mucb stronger
reactlon ln Swltzerlano tban anybooy at
Selko bao antlclpateo. Tbere was also a
very |avourable reactlon ln otber parts
o| nortbern Lurope, ano especlally
Germany. |n tbls part o| tbe worlo,
wbere oays are qulte sbort ln wlnter,
Klnetlc tecbnology was recognlseo as
superlor to tbat o| tbe solar-powereo
watcb. Selko's top management qulckly
reverseo tbelr earller oeclslon ano
oecloeo to commerclallse tbls lnnova-
tlve new proouct. Tbe oevelopment
team began to work wltb very llttle
rest. |n tbe early Klnetlc oays, | spent
most o| my Saturoays ano Sunoays
worklng at tbe company. | remember
tbat well," Mr Nagao recalls.
Tbe rst orawlngs |or a proouctlon
verslon o| tbe Klnetlc were completeo
ln 1987 ano just a year later tbe rst
Klnetlc watcb ln tbe worlo, tbe 7M,
was marketeo. |t was proouceo ln
small numbers ano su||ereo |rom a
number o| llmltatlons, not least tbat
lt utlllseo many components useo ln
otber Selko movements. Nevertbeless,
lt was anotber slgnlcant worlo rst"
|or Selko. Tbese grouno-breaklng new
watcbes were solo rst ln Germany
ln 1988 ano by Aprll tbey were also
launcbeo ln [apan. Mr Nagao later
eplalneo tbat tbese new watcbes
were success|ul ln Lurope, but ln tbe
[apanese market tbey attracteo cus-
tomer complalnts. 8eblno tbem lay
cbanges ln ll|estyle. |n 1988, [apanese
ll|estyles were more lelsurely tban
wben tbe rst sel|-wlnolng mecbanlcal
watcbes were maoe, ano people were
not as actlve as tbey bao been ln ear-
ller years.
Wben tbe orlglnal 7M movement
encountereo tbese problems, tbe oevel-
opment team reallseo tbat l| tbey coulo
not lmprove tbelr Klnetlc tecbnology,
tbe tremenoous |uture potentlal o|
tbe Klnetlc watcb woulo never be
reallseo. Tbey began to oevelop a new
callbre, calleo 5M, at tbe eno o| 1989
to aooress tbe problems assoclateo
ln 1988, Se|ko |ounched ACS, |ts f|rst quortz wotch powered 5, the weorer`s
movement. lt wos the forerunner to K|net|c.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 71
wltb tbe 7M. Mr Nagao eplalneo, |t
olon't seem rlgbt to accept tbe elstlng
poor oplnlon. We |elt we sboulo make
a callbre tbat satlseo us ano see wbat
people tbougbt o| tbat."
Tbe baro work o| tbe P & D
team on Klnetlc tecbnology proouceo
tecbnlcal aovances tbat were to prove
use|ul not only |or tbe Klnetlc watcb
project, but ln all later generatlons o|
Selko quartz watcbes. We teno to
aoopt an approacb tbat ls ol||erent
|rom tbat useo by most people arouno
tbe worlo. |n our own cbosen elo we
gatber everytblng tbat ls best ano tben
go |or broke. || we oon't oo tbat, lt's
very ol|cult to make any real progress,"
Mr Yosblno eplalneo.
|n tbe late 1980s Mr Yosblno le|t
tbe watcb oepartment ano moveo to
tbe oevelopment o| baro olsks, prlnters
ano PCs, but watcbes stlll bolo a strong
|asclnatlon |or blm. Tbe wrlstwatcb
ls tbe only plece o| equlpment tbat
you wear net to your skln |rom tbe
moment you get up ln tbe mornlng to
wben you go to beo at nlgbt, wltbout
ever belng aware o| lt. Wben you tblnk
o| tbat, tbere's really notblng else llke
lt. You become |ono o| lt, because lt
3 Tbe |ast-turnlng mlcro-rotor splns to
generate a magnetlc cbarge
4 Tbe generatlng coll block trans|orms
tbe magnetlc cbarge lnto electrlclty
5 A recbargeable cell stores generateo
electrlclty |or |uture use
Anatomy of a Kinetic Watch
1 Lvery movement o| tbe wearer's
wrlst makes tbe osclllatlng
welgbt revolve
2 Tbe gear traln amplles tbe
speeo o| rotatlon 100 tlmes
9 Tbe stepplng motor trans|orms tbls pulse ln to rotary movement
10 A gear traln transmlts tbls rotary movement to tbe banos
11 Tbe banos turn to lnolcate tbe eact tlme on tbe olal
6 Tbe clrcult block regulates voltage ano
amperage
7 Tbe tunlng-|ork-sbapeo quartz crystal
osclllates 32,768 tlmes a secono
preclsely ano oellvers a preclse
electronlc pulse to tbe clrcult block
8 Tbe clrcult block transmlts tbls preclse
electronlc pulse to tbe stepplng motor
72 CHAPYER 7
always moves arouno wltb you. Glven
tbat, | tblnk you can say tbat tbe watcb
ls sometblng tbat communlcates wltb
lts user ano, |or tbat matter, wltb lts
creator. Ano lt's all concentrateo tbere
on your wrlst."
|n tbe 20 years a|ter tbe rst
quartz watcbes were launcbeo, tbelr
power requlrements reouceo by a
|actor o| 30:1. Lven tooay, power
consumptlon ls stlll belng reouceo.
Wltbout tbls lmprovement, Klnetlc
tecbnology woulo never bave been
vlable, nor woulo tbe oevelopment
o| many Selko tlmepleces sucb as
sllm oress watcbes or mooels tbat
are enbanceo wltb aooltlonal |eatures,
ranglng |rom cbronograpbs to mooels
wltb speclal sensors.
Soon, awareness o| tbe aovantages
o| Klnetlc began to lncrease, not least
among olvers wbo were among tbe
rst to appreclate tbe value o| tbls
battery-|ree tecbnology, ano tbey were
among tbe most entbuslastlc cus-
tomers |or tbe new mooels. For tbem,
a watcb tbat coulo contlnue worklng
wltbout ever stopplng was an attrac-
tlve proposltlon.
Tbe work o| Selko's oevelopment
teams never ceases ano oevelop-
ment o| tbe Klnetlc range contlnueo.
Mr Nagao ano bls team went on to
create tbe 3M llne |or use ln women's
watcbes, tbe 4M, a sllm verslon tbat
was loeal |or oress watcbes, ano tbe
1M, a mlnlature Klnetlc movement.
An imaginative design
Tbe net major step |orwaros was tbe
unvelllng, ln sprlng 1998, o| tbe Klnetlc
Cbronograpb callbre, wblcb bao been
awalteo wltb great antlclpatlon. Tbls
was an lmaglnatlve proouct wltb a
oramatlc, eye-catcblng case oeslgn. Tbe
separate sub-olals maoe bolo state-
ments tbat enbanceo tbe oeslgn stlll
|urtber. Tbls ecltlng new mooel also
bao a see-tbrougb case back, so tbat
tbe |ull beauty o| tbe nely nlsbeo
movement coulo be seen. Tbe pro-
totype was rst sbown at a press
con|erence at tbe 8asel Falr tbat year.
Tbe Klnetlc Cbronograpb was
launcbeo ln February 1999 as a
llmlteo eoltlon o| 1,000 pleces |or
worlowloe consumptlon. Tbe regular
proouctlon llne was not lntroouceo
untll 2000. Tbls blgbly specleo watcb
useo tbe 9T82A Klnetlc movement.
Tbls generateo tbree tlmes more
electrlclty tban any prevlous Klnetlc
watcb. Tbls was essentlal ln oroer to
provloe su|clent power to orlve tbe
aooltlonal motors tbat were neeoeo
to turn tbe varlous banos. Wben |ully
cbargeo lt wlll run |or over a montb
wltbout any |urtber cbarge, assumlng
tbat tbe cbronograpb |unctlons are
useo |or tbree bours every oay. Glven
tbe etra power requlrement o| tbe
motors |or tbe aooltlonal banos o|
tbe |our sub-olals, tbls ls a remarkable
acblevement. Otber appeallng |eatures
lncluoe an lnstant zero reset |unctlon
|or tbe cbronograpb banos ano an
auto-braklng wbeel tbat reouces back-
lasb on tbe banos, a |eature taken |rom
tbe Grano Selko serles. |mprovements
sucb as tbese appeal to watcb connols-
seurs ano tbey clearly sbow bow mucb
attentlon ls belng palo to even tbe
smallest oetall ln tbese watcbes.
Mr Nagao eplalneo, Watcb
oeslgners bave only a llmlteo space
wltbln wblcb to t all tbe components
ano balance ls crltlcal. Tbls ls par-
tlcularly true o| Klnetlc watcbes. All
components bao to be revleweo |rom
tbe very start, because tbls was tbe
most e||ectlve way o| revlewlng quartz
tecbnology ltsel|.
| see no reason wby a Klnetlc
watcb sboulo not oo anytblng a quartz
watcb can oo. Tbe |uture o| tbe Klnetlc
ls only just beglnnlng!"
A jOURNEY IN YIME 73
THL 'GPAMMAP OF DLS|GN'
Yhe word design' was largely synonymous with movement design for the Brst
60 years of 5eiko's eistence. It was only in the second half of the 1950s that the
company began to pay serious attention to the design of the dials, hands and cases
of its watches. Yoday, design is at the heart of 5eiko product development.
Yhe growing importance of design
ln tbe Selko story ls not one tbat ls
sprlnkleo wltb rsts" or revolutlon.
|nsteao, oeslgn emergeo |rom belng
a mysterlous art lnto a cra|t tbat ls
now lnNuenceo by lnput |rom market
researcb ano by a strong awareness
o| reglonal tastes ano neeos. Slnce tbe
1960s, ano especlally slnce tbe 1970s,
tbe pbenomenal growtb ln sales o|
Selko watcbes suggests tbat tbe com-
pany bas reao tbe market correctly
most o| tbe tlme ln terms o| oeslgn
ano tecbnology, but |ew o| lts own
oeslgns bave stooo out as stars, lnsteao,
tbls ls a story o| steaoy lmprovement.
|mmeolately a|ter tbe Secono
Worlo War, wben Selko was restartlng
lts wrlstwatcb proouctlon, tbe only
oeslgners at Selko were tbose wbo
oevelopeo new movements. Tben,
almost all Selko watcbes bao rouno
cases ano any cbange o| oeslgn was
restrlcteo to mlnor oetalls sucb as
alterlng tbe sbape o| tbe lugs. Lven
ln tbe early 1950s, tbe sta|| wbo
proouceo prlntlng materlals |or olal
proouctlon were consloereo to be tbe
oeslgners".
Slnce tben, tbe meanlng ano lmpor-
tance o| oeslgn |or Selko bas cbangeo
beyono all recognltlon. Tbe cbange o|
attltuoe starteo ln 1956 wben a Deslgn
Sectlon was establlsbeo |or tbe rst
tlme at Suwa Selkosba, but, at rst, lts
responslbllltles were restrlcteo to olal
oeslgn. |n 1958, tbere was a blg step
|orwaro wben Dalnl Selkosba |or tbe
rst tlme oecloeo to employ oeslgn
graouates |rom college ano, ln 1959,
Taro Tanaka became tbe rst graouate
ever to be employeo by K Hattorl &
Co., Lto. Tbls was tbe rst move ln tbe
company's blstory towaros consloereo
oeslgn not just o| tbe olal, but o| tbe
wbole watcb.
Mr Tanaka jolneo at a tlme wben
nobooy ln tbe company useo tbe
[apanese equlvalent o| tbe Lngllsb
woro oeslgn" ano be o|ten bao ol|-
culty eplalnlng bls role. Later be salo
tbat wben be jolneo tbe company bls
rst job bao been to make sometblng
llke tbls" ano o|ten, Selko cases ano
movements were slmllar to tbose o|
Luropean prooucts. Hls ploneerlng
new role ln tbe company leo to tbe
establlsbment o| new guloellnes |or
oeslgnlng Selko watcbes.
Wben Mr Tanaka jolneo tbe
company, tbere was a strong |eellng
tbat altbougb Selko prooucts were
mecbanlcally souno, tbey were lag-
glng beblno wben lt came to case ano
olal oeslgn. So, rst, be set out to galn
eperlence ln tbe |actorles lnvolveo
wltb oeslgn, sucb as tbe case ano
7oro 7onoko wos the f|rst groduote
h|red for des|gn work 5, K Hottor|. He
creoted Se|ko`s Crommor of ues|gn
thot set out the ground ru|es thot
|mproved the des|gn ond f|n|sh of Se|ko
wotches.
74 CHAPYER 8
olal manu|acturlng plants. Mr Tanaka
learneo at rst bano about raw mate-
rlals ano tbe proouctlon processes tbat
were belng useo. At tbe same tlme, be
was presenteo wltb an opportunlty to
consloer care|ully wbat watcb oeslgn
was all about.
He eplalneo, One oay ln 1962 |
bao gone to tbe Wako sales counters,
just as | always olo, ano as | lookeo
ln one o| tbe sbowcases | saw many
watcbes sparkllng brllllantly. Tben |
lookeo on tbe otber sloe ano saw
watcbes tbat bao a ratber uneven
gleam, tbe ol||erence was all too
apparent. Tbe brllllantly sparkllng
watcbes were Swlss, ano tbose wltb
tbe ouller nlsb were by Selko."
Tbls contrast alarmeo Mr Tanaka.
He stuoleo tbem closely ano olscov-
ereo tbat wblle tbe cases o| Swlss
prooucts conslst o| Nat ano conlcal
sur|aces per|ectly smootb ano |ree
|rom olstortlon, tbe olals ano bezels
o| tbe Selko prooucts bao olstortlons
tbat be attrlbuteo to Selko's manu-
|acturlng tecbnlques. Tbe majorlty o|
Selko watcbes at tbe tlme bao brass
cases tbat were pollsbeo uslng bu||s
ano tben cbrome- or golo-plateo. |t
seemeo tbere was llttle tbat coulo be
oone about lt.
He was convlnceo tbat Selko bao
to proouce blgb quallty prooucts tbat
coulo matcb or surpass tbose |rom
Swltzerlano ano, wltb tbe sort o| vlslon
tbat bas so o|ten belpeo to set Selko
apart |rom otber companles, be set
out to resolve tbe problem. He createo
a oeslgn |ormula" ano eventually tbls
became known wltbln tbe company
as Selko's Grammar o| Deslgn". He
starteo by creatlng cases ano olals tbat
bao a per|ectly Nat sur|ace, wltb two-
olmenslonal curves on tbe bezel as a
seconoary |eature. Tbree-olmenslonal
curves were not useo, as a general
rule. He also oecloeo tbat all olstor-
tlon sboulo be ellmlnateo |rom tbe olal,
too, so tbat lt coulo be nlsbeo wltb a
mlrror sur|ace. Tbls |ormeo tbe basls
|or tbe new Selko style.
Tbe rst mooel tbat recelveo tbe
new treatment was tbe Dalnl Selkosba
|actory's 44GS, wblcb was proouceo
ln 1967. Later, tbe new Grammar
o| Deslgn was passeo on to Suwa
Selkosba ano useo |or tbe 61GAW,
ln 1968, ano ln tbe same year lt was
applleo to tbe new 45GSC |rom Dalnl
Selkosba. Mr Tanaka's oeslgn ano pro-
ouctlon prlnclples set new stanoaros
|or Selko's blgb quallty ano blgb precl-
slon tlmepleces, but tbe tecbnlque was
only applleo to blgb quallty watcbes
because lt was labour lntenslve ano
tbere|ore was not vlable |or low-prlce
prooucts.
Tbe Grammar o| Deslgn was very
mucb ln evloence as tbe Selko Style
began to emerge. |t was most evloent
7he +S CS H|-8eot, mode |n 198, |s o c|oss|c exomp|e of Se|ko st,||ng 5osed on the
Crommor of ues|gn creoted 5, Mr 7onoko.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 75
ln tbe Grano Selko ano Klng Selko
watcbes createo |or tbe oomestlc
market ln tbe 1960s ano tbe early
1970s. Tbe rules o| tbe Grammar o|
Deslgn" were useo |or 20 years, but
tbe concept was eventually sloellneo as
lncreaslng oemano |or a wloer varlety
o| styles obllgeo Selko's oeslgners
to epano tbelr borlzons beyono
tbe strlct prlnclples o| tbe Grammar.
Altbougb |ew people wltbln Selko
tooay bave bearo o| tbe Grammar o|
Deslgn, lts lmportance at tbe tlme
bas been compareo to tbat o| Selko's
success ln tbe Swlss Observatory
Cbronometer Trlals ano even tbe
oevelopment o| tbe quartz watcb. Mr
Tanaka can also take prloe ln bavlng
been lnvolveo wltb a number o| otber
lmportant oeslgn lnltlatlves. He belpeo
wltb tbe oeslgn o| stopwatcbes |or tbe
Tokyo Olymplcs ano tbe Selko 5 serles,
as well as Selko's Pro|esslonal Dlver's
Watcb 600.
Emphasis on design
Tbls growlng empbasls on oeslgn
began to brlng lts own rewaros not
only ln tbe |orm o| lncreaseo sales,
but also eternal recognltlon. |n 1964,
two Selko prooucts, tbe Crystal
Cbronometer 951, wblcb bao brougbt
a new age o| preclslon to competltlve
sport, ano tbe Sportsmatlc 5, wblcb
bao been oeslgneo to appeal to young
people, were among prooucts cbosen
|or tbe G-mark gooo oeslgn awaro.
Tbe publlc acclalm tbat resulteo |rom
tbese awaros belpeo Selko to appre-
clate, perbaps |or tbe rst tlme, tbat
consumers valueo tbe eternal oeslgn
o| lts prooucts, ano not just move-
ment oeslgn. |n 1967, lt responoeo
to tbese oeslgn awaros by startlng a
jolnt Deslgn Con|erence between K
Hattorl, ano tbe Dalnl ano Suwa |ac-
torles. Tbls belpeo to create a bono
between oeslgners |rom tbe tbree
companles. Tbls leo to oeslgn lmprove-
ments ln tbe outwaro appearance o|
all Selko watcbes, wbetber oeslgneo
by K Hattorl's, Dalnl Selkosba's or
Suwa Selkosba's teams. Furtber, tbls
Con|erence oecloeo to lntroouce lnter-
natlonal loeas to Selko ano, ln 1968, tbe
company began to seno sta|| overseas
to stuoy oeslgn, ano some were even
enrolleo at an |tallan jewellery scbool.
Tbe start o| tbe quartz revolu-
tlon, |rom tbe eno o| 1969, leo to an
lmportant new role |or tbe oeslgn
teams as tbey began to tblnk ln terms
o| oeslgns tbat were approprlate".
|n 1971, K Hattorl & Co., Lto. estab-
llsbeo a speclallseo oeslgn team ln lts
watcb olvlslon. For tbe rst tlme tbe
company began to use computers to
analyse tbe outwaro appearance o|
watcbes. |t was consloereo etremely
lmportant tbat a oeslgn olstlngulsbeo
a watcb as a quartz proouct, because
tbe rst quartz mooels cost as mucb
as a car ano lt was vltal tbat tbe publlc
coulo loentl|y tbese ecltlng new proo-
ucts at a glance.
|n 1973, Selko's rst ever entry ln
a oeslgn contest ln Swltzerlano won
pralse |rom tbe juoges, but lronlcally,
just as oeslgn was becomlng more
lmportant tban ever be|ore, tbe Deslgn
Team was olsbanoeo ln 1974 ano tbe
oeslgners were absorbeo lnto tbe
Proouct Plannlng olvlslon. Tbe oeslgn
work prevlously carrleo out by tbe
team was trans|erreo to tbe oeslgn
olvlslons o| Dalnl Selkosba ano Suwa
Selkosba. However, tbe neeo |or more
coorolnateo oeslgn soon re-emergeo
ano lt was not long be|ore tbe two
Selkosba olvlslons ano K Hattorl estab-
llsbeo a central oeslgn o|ce ln Glnza
once agaln, wltb tbe goal o| a more
lnternatlonal approacb to oeslgn.
8y tbe early 1980s, Selko's over-
seas buslness was growlng raploly ano
lt was oecloeo to aoo more mooels
sulteo to local tastes. Tbe oeclslon to
open oeslgn stuolos ln varlous parts
o| tbe worlo was taken because Selko
recognlseo tbe lmportance o| keeplng
ln toucb wltb oeslgn trenos ano market
requlrements all over tbe worlo. 8y
1980, Selko oeslgn actlvltles began ln
Dusseloor| ano New York. Slnce tben,
|urtber oeslgn centres bave been
openeo Parls, Mllan ano Hong Kong
ln 80's. |n aooltlon Selko |nstruments
ano Selko Lpson jolntly establlsbeo a
oeslgn o|ce ln Kameloo. Tbls network
o| oeslgn o|ces llalseo closely wltb
tbelr beaoquarters ano tbe early aoop-
Mr 7onoko he|ped to deve|op the
product thot wos eventuo||, co||ed
Lum|5r|te, o comp|ete|, sofe o|ternot|ve
to tr|t|um. ln th|s exomp|e, the wh|te
dots on the hour |ndexes ond the wh|te
pone|s on the honds ore Lum|5r|te.
76 CHAPYER 8
tlon o| 3D Computer Aloeo Deslgn
(CAD), ln 1989, |acllltateo tbe creatlon
o| tbese new oeslgns. Tbe group lntro-
ouceo Apple Maclntosb computers |or
oeslgn work ln 1991, ano was probably
one o| tbe rst lnternatlonal compa-
nles to oo so.
|n tbe late 1970s ano tbe 1980s,
quartz tlmepleces oomlnateo tbe
watcb market ano, as manu|acturers
oevelopeo ever more sopblstlcateo
tecbnology, more ano more |unctlons
ano |eatures were bullt lnto tbls new
generatlon o| tlmepleces. Wben |unc-
tlon-laoen watcbes were at tbe peak
o| tbelr appeal, Selko oeslgn, too, was
|unctlon-orlven.
Deslgns were createo arouno tbe
many new tecbnlcal |eatures o| quartz
watcbes. Tbls was a tlme wben tecb-
nology was tbe star. Lven tooay, many
people consloer tbat Selko's prooucts
were so success|ul ln tbe 1970s purely
because tbey were truly |unctlonal ano
bao no aooeo |rllls.
Mr Tanaka, tbe company's rst
oeslgn graouate ln 1959, contlnueo
to oevelop new solutlons to oeslgn
problems ano went on to comblne
|orm ano |unctlon wben be oevelopeo
a new type o| lllumlnatlon |or watcbes
ln tbe 1990s. He workeo wltb Nemoto
& Co, a cbemlcals company, to proouce
a lumlnescent proouct sultable |or use
on Selko's luury prooucts to llluml-
nate olals ln tbe oark. Togetber tbey
createo a lumlnescent palnt, orlglnally
known just as NW", but subsequently
known as Lumlbrlte, lt was lntroouceo
ln 1993. A|ter belng eposeo to llgbt
|or 10 mlnutes, lt ls able to provloe
an a|terglow tbat lllumlnates tbe olal
|or 3 to 5 bours wltbout any use o|
electrlclty.
Tbls tecbnology bas seen |urtber
lmprovements at varlous tlmes ano bas
been |eatureo on many Selko watcbes.
|t ls stlll ln use tooay ano ls a wonoer|ul
eample o| tbe enourlng lnNuence
o| tbe company's rst ever oeslgn
graouate. Lumlbrlte was lnventeo ln an
e||ort to ellmlnate |rom watcbes tbe
use o| raoloactlve prooucts tbat bave
an lmpact on proouctlon, as well as tbe
wearer.
However, by tbe early 1990s, tbe
rate o| lntroouctlon o| new |eatures
ln quartz tecbnology bao sloweo ano
manu|acturers once agaln neeoeo to
look |or otber |eatures to attract cus-
tomers to tbelr new prooucts. Tbere
was a growlng awareness o| tbe con-
trlbutlon tbat gooo oeslgn coulo make
lor the Sopporo W|nter 0|,mp|c
Comes, Mr 7onoko des|gned
these three t,pes of mechon|co|
stopwotches. 0n|, three des|gns
were needed 5ecouse the core
sports t|m|ng funct|ons were corr|ed
out us|ng quortz t|m|ng 5, th|s t|me.
7he Speedmoster S887001
chronogroph wos des|gned to
showcose Se|ko`s techno|og,. lt |s
the wor|d`s on|, chronogroph w|th
1
l100 second occuroc,.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 77
to tbe watcb lnoustry ano some watcb
manu|acturers reallseo tbat tbe publlc
woulo pay a premlum |or watcbes tbat
|eatureo outstanolng oeslgn.
As part o| tbelr quest |or gooo
oeslgn wltb consumer appeal, Selko's
oeslgners starteo to lntroouce market
researcb tecbnlques lnto tbelr oeslgn
actlvltles. At eacb stage o| tbe oeslgn
process tbey went out o| tbelr way to
get |eeoback |rom |rlenos ano mem-
bers o| tbe publlc be|ore ne-tunlng
tbelr creatlons. Tbey oevelopeo a
olalogue wltb tbelr target auolence
ano llsteneo care|ully to wbat tbey bao
to say.
Dreams realised
One o| Selko's oeslgners, Mr Nakanlsbl,
acbleveo remarkable success wltb a
oeslgn be proouceo ln only bls secono
year wltb tbe company. Wben you've
almeo |or tbe elo o| oeslgn ano got
a job ln tbls elo, you want at some
polnt to create sometblng tbat wlll
be recognlseo. | oeslgneo a Selko
Speeomaster ourlng my secono year
wltb tbe company. |n some ways | |elt
tbat my oreams bao been reallseo
mucb more qulckly tban | epecteo
ano | wasn't sure wbat was golng on.
| bao jolneo Selko Lpson ano tbougbt
'| guess |'ll be oolng computer oeslgn',
but lnsteao | enoeo up ln watcb oeslgn
ano | was put ln cbarge o| Speeomaster.
My attltuoe was tbat | wanteo buyers
to bolo on to my proouct |or 10 or
even 20 years wltb tbe |eellng '|'m glao
| bougbt tbls'. Tbls was my attltuoe
wben creatlng tbls oeslgn, wblcb was
my rst plece o| work, | poureo lnto lt
every ounce o| energy tbat | bao."
|n tbe early 1990s, Selko's
oeslgners lnvestlgateo tbe posslblllty
o| enterlng tbelr oeslgns ln overseas
oeslgn competltlons. Mr Okaya, one
o| tbe oeslgners, salo, We bao tbe
lmpresslon tbat tbe 'Grano Prl oe
la vllle oe Geneve' was a contest to
encourage oeslgners wltbln Swltzerlano,
but wben we askeo, 'Can we submlt an
entry as well?' tbey alloweo us to par-
tlclpate. | was awaroeo a Grano Prl ln
1991. |t was very slmllar to tbe sltua-
tlon tbat bao leo to our partlclpatlon
ln tbe Observatory Competltlons." He
was awaroeo tbe prlze |or a bangle
watcb ln tbe Plvoll serles.
He eplalneo, | bao entereo Selko
at a tlme wben tbe entlre company
was looklng towaros a new era ano
Selko oeslgn o|ces bao been set up
ln Parls ano Glnza. A new age seemeo
to be oawnlng tben wltb tbe eno o|
mecbanlcal watcbes ano tbe beglnnlng
o| tbe quartz era. We tbougbt, 'Now
we'll be on a ol||erent patb |rom tbe
Swlss, now lt's golng to be all about
oeslgn.'
|n tbe mlost o| tbls, tbe role o|
tbe oeslgner was cbanglng. Our role
was no longer just about oeslgnlng tbe
olal ano sketcblng out tbe case. Tbere
wasn't mucb olalogue wltb outsloe
partles ano tbere was no way to get
lnoepenoent |eeoback about tbe skllls
o| ln-bouse oeslgners. Tbls was wben |
starteo to get tbe |eellng tbat | woulo
really llke to enter an outsloe oeslgn
competltlon ano tbls leo to our entry
ln tbe Geneva Grano Prl."
Slnce wlnnlng tbat prlze ln 1991,
Selko bas recognlseo tbe lmportance
o| oeslgn not only ln lts watcbes, but
also ln otber actlvltles. Accorolng to
Tomoblro Asayama, wbo bao majoreo
ln metal engravlng ano jolneo Selko
as Deslgn Dlrector o| tbe Creoor
olvlslon, Here, we tblnk about tbe
overall lmage o| tbe brano ano tben,
as a result, wbat sboulo bappen wltb
oeslgn. Tbere's not mucb polnt cre-
atlng proouct oeslgns ln lsolatlon, lt
ls necessary to make a total oeslgn
e||ort, taklng lnto account tbe watcb,
tbe presentatlon bo, tbe aovertlslng
ano sales promotlon. Wltb our own
oeslgners ano a manu|acturlng olvlslon
o| our own, we are llke an ln-bouse
company," be observeo. Mr Asayama
seemeo to represent tbe volce o|
7omoh|ro Aso,omo, ues|gn u|rector
of Se|ko`s Credor d|v|s|on, 5e||eves |n
the |mportonce of on o||-em5roc|ng
toto| des|gn effort.
Credor |s the nome g|ven to the
most soph|st|coted ond |uxur|ous
Se|ko products.
78 CHAPYER 8
tooay's Selko oeslgners wben be aooeo,
Wltb luury mooels, l| you create too
wloe an assortment tbelr rarlty value
oecllnes ano tbat's anotber problem.
|n tbe past, Selko bao a reputatlon
|or belng a company wbere tbe 'baro-
ware' ruleo tbe roost. Tbe key woros
tbat come back |rom surveys are
terms sucb as 'accurate', 'ooesn't break'
ano 'reassurlng'. Tbere were not many
comments along tbe llnes o| 'cool' or
'gooo oeslgn sense'. |n tbe |uture, lt ls
an lssue our oeslgners must consloer l|
tbey are to bave an lmpact on users."
Importance of design
Wben Mr Tanaka became tbe rst
graouate employeo as a oeslgner by K
Hattorl & Co., Lto., ln 1959, be mlgbt
bave been surprlseo to know tbat be
was tbe rst o| many, ano be woulo
bave been oellgbteo to see bow bls
passlon |or oeslgn ls tooay sbareo by
tbe 60 oeslgners wbo work, worlowloe,
on tbe creatlon o| Selko watcbes.
Tooay, ln Selko, oeslgn bas become
tbe olsclpllne tbat oomlnates tbe
company's actlvltles ln all areas, |rom
proouct oeslgn to tbe creatlon o|
aovertlslng. Tbe oeslgn team |orm tbe
beart o| tbe company ano tbey are
lnvolveo ln all aspects o| proouct ano
conceptual oeslgn, seeklng to bullo
a complete Selko Lperlence" lnto
every way tbat consumers encounter
tbe brano. Durlng tbe 20 years |ol-
lowlng tbe establlsbment o| tbe
Grammar o| Deslgn", ln tbe mlo 1960s,
tbe company succeeoeo ln attalnlng
stanoaros ln case ano olal oeslgn tbat
matcbeo tbe cbronologlcal ecellence
o| tbe movements. Now, tbe role
o| oeslgn bas epanoeo to pervaoe
all aspects o| tbe marketlng process,
lncluolng grapblc oeslgn |or commu-
nlcatlon materlals. Tbe evolutlon o|
oeslgn ls perbaps best eemplleo by
tbe Klnetlc Cbronograpb, launcbeo
ln 2000. Tbe oeslgn o| lts movement
was olctateo by tbe oeslre to create a
unlque case proo| tbat lnterlor ano
eterlor oeslgn were nally ln com-
plete barmony tbe ultlmate syntbesls
o| tecbnlcal lnnovatlon ano oeslgn
renement.
|n oroer to appeal to oeslgn ano
lmage consclous customers, Selko net
turneo to some o| tbe worlo's top
lnoepenoent oeslgners. Tbe story o|
oeslgn lnnovatlon contlnues.
Se|ko`s Credor ||ne |nc|udes |uxur|ous
ewe||er, wotches, such os th|s
d|omond-set mode|. Product|on of
Credor wotches |s ||m|ted, ond so the,
hove on|, 5een so|d |n jopon.so for.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 79
THL |NFLULNCL OF
GLO8AL DLS|GN
5eiko's success as an internationally famous brand has long depended on the
interaction between its internal design eperts and the design trends of the
European and global markets. Yhis is why, in the early 1980s, 5eiko decided to join
forces with leading eternal designers to create some truly unique products.
5ince the early 1980s the work
o| Selko's ln-bouse oeslgners bas been
supplementeo by means o| collabora-
tlon wltb lnoepenoent oeslgners. Tbe
rst eample was tbe Speeomaster
serles launcbeo ln 1983. |t was baseo
on a oeslgn proouceo especlally |or
Selko by tbe renowneo |tallan oeslgner,
Gluglaro. Altbougb best known as one
o| tbe worlo's leaolng car styllsts, be
bas occaslonally turneo bls talents to
tbe oeslgn o| prooucts ln otber elos,
sucb as tbe Nlkon F5 camera, |asblon,
traln statlon bencbes ano even pasta.
Hls cllent llst ls lmpresslve ano lncluoes
sucb styllsb names as Al|a Pomeo, Auol,
8MW, 8ugattl, ano Lancla. He bas been
lnvolveo wltb tbe oeslgn o| more tban
300 cars, lncluolng tbe volkswagen Gol|
ano tbe Toyota Arlsto.
|n Las vegas ln 1999, a jury o| more
tban 100 journallsts electeo Glorgetto
Gluglaro as Deslgner o| tbe Century.
|t ls approprlate, perbaps, tbat bls
personal motto ls ln keeplng wltb tbe
splrlt o| Selko. |t ls Go |or lt".
Untll Selko starteo to work wltb
Gluglaro, tbe company bao no prevlous
eperlence o| worklng wltb lnoe-
penoent lnoustrlal oeslgners, altbougb
lt bao unoertaken some jolnt oeslgn
work wltb |asblon oeslgners. As tbe
urge grew to epano lts oeslgn borl-
zons, Selko oecloeo tbere was llttle
polnt ln worklng wltb any oeslgners
wbo were not among tbe best ln
tbelr elo. Wben tbey rst contacteo
Gluglaro tbey got a pleasant surprlse,
tbey olscovereo tbat be alreaoy wanteo
to get lnvolveo ln watcb oeslgn, ano so
tbey came to terms qulte qulckly.
Wben Gluglaro's rst sketcb was
recelveo, tbere was a startleo reac-
tlon. Mr Hlrabayasbl, wbo was a senlor
manager ln Selko's Prooucts Dlvlslon,
salo, We bave to say tbat tbe rst ven-
ture wltb Gluglaro was a sbock. | really
oon't tblnk tbat we woulo ever get
sometblng llke tbat |rom an ln-bouse
oeslgner." Hls proposals lncluoeo olg-
ltal cbronograpbs wltb a tllteo olal ano
osh|o H|ro5o,osh| 5e||eves Se|ko
hos reoped some extreme|, r|ch
rewords from |ts cooperot|on w|th
wor|d-renowned des|gners.
7he d|g|to| chronogroph
Speedmoster wos the most popu|or
of the C|ug|oro des|gns |ounched |n
1983. 7he d|g|to| d|sp|o, wos tw|sted
20 c|ockw|se.
80 CHAPYER 9
cbronograpbs wltb sllolng buttons tbat
coulo be pusbeo up or oown. Wltb tbe
tecbnology avallable at tbe tlme, tbls
was qulte baro to lmplement.
Desplte tbe ol|culty o| translatlng
Gluglaro's oeslgns lnto practlce, Selko's
tecbnlcal team overcame all tbe bur-
oles. Tbls really provloeo a stlmulus
to our oeslgners ano oevelopers. |t
set tbem tblnklng, 'Now we're really
golng to bave to oevelop a very speclal
mecbanlsm |or tbls.' |n tbat sense we
reapeo some etremely rlcb benets,"
Mr Hlrabayasbl salo.
|n oroer to lmplement tbe unlque
button-operateo system, Suwa Selkosba
oevelopeo a new mecbanlsm ano
obtalneo a patent |or lt. Tbe |eature
tbat maoe Gluglaro's oeslgn |or tbe
1983 Speeomaster truly orlglnal was
tbe speclcatlon tbat tbe oome-style
LCD olgltal olsplay sboulo be tllteo 20
oegrees to tbe rlgbt. Tbls ecltlng new
mooel was rlcb wltb lnnovatlve |ea-
tures. 8y turnlng tbe bezel, wblcb bao
a bullt-ln rotary swltcb, lt was posslble
to select stopwatcb, alarm, countoown
tlmer ano otber |unctlons.
Unique design
All tbat Selko's managers bao lnltlally
epecteo to acbleve |rom collabora-
tlon wltb eternal oeslgners was a new
oeslgn |or tbe Speeomaster. Tbe result
was a watcb wltb unlque styllng, tbe
manu|acture o| wblcb cballengeo
Selko's epertlse ano resulteo ln a
oeslgn tbat nobooy else coulo mlmlc
or matcb. |t was recently reproouceo
as a collector's ltem, because o| strong
oemano.
Tbe net |amous oeslgner to work
wltb Selko was Austrlan born Lttore
Sottsass, wbo began bls career stuoylng
arcbltecture at tbe Turln Polytecbnlc.
He became a leaolng gure ln arcbl-
tectural ano lnoustrlal oeslgn ano
acqulreo a reputatlon |or worklng ln
a wloe range o| materlals, lncluolng
ceramlcs ano glass bre. He bas
been oescrlbeo as a |orwaro-looklng
oeslgner wbo ls also mlscblevous". Hls
work was known |or belng colour|ul
ano bumorous ln tbe 1980s at a tlme
wben many oeslgners were proouclng
mooern oeslgns nlsbeo ln black. |t
was salo tbat bls work coulo never be
ln|t|o| sketches for the Mocch|no Sport|vo, wh|ch come from Se|ko`s second
|nvo|vement w|th C|orgetto C|ug|oro.
A new mechon|sm hod to 5e deve|oped
for the un|que 5utton-operoted s,stem
spec|f|ed 5, C|ug|oro for th|s 1983
Speedmoster chronogroph.
C|orgetto C|ug|oro |s the Ch|ef ues|gner
for lto|des|gn, ond mode h|s nome
creot|ng |eod|ng-edge cor des|gns.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 81
oescrlbeo as blano ano oull. Hls most
tbougbt-provoklng comment on oeslgn
was, | oon't unoerstano wby enourlng
oeslgn ls better tban olsappearlng
oeslgn".
Tbree or |our years be|ore Selko
entereo lnto tbe jolnt venture wltb
Lttore Sottsass, be bao marketeo a
Sottsass" watcb ln tbe Unlteo States.
Desplte bls reputatlon |or brlgbt,
aoventurous oeslgn, tbls was qulte
stalo ano conventlonal ano was not
a great success. Mr Hlrabayasbl was
convlnceo tbat Sottsass really wanteo
to create a watcb oeslgn tbat reNecteo
bls oeslgn pbllosopby ano bls eventual
cooperatlon wltb Selko provloeo tbat
opportunlty.
Hls oeslgn approacb proveo to
be completely ol||erent |rom tbat o|
Gluglaro ano |rom tbe moment bls
rst presentatlon was recelveo, tbe
sta|| at Selko were oumb|ounoeo. Tbey
recelveo not plans or sketcbes, but
presentatlon boes contalnlng
|ull-slze samples maoe |rom a resln
accompanleo by comprebenslve mar-
ketlng packaglng. Actually, tbe way be
presenteo bls loeas surprlseo Selko
personnel to no small etent.
Tbe lmages tbat be presenteo to
Selko lnvolveo creatlng a tbree-olmen-
slonal |eel by lamlnatlng togetber
transparent plates. Tbe Selko tecbnl-
clans wbo bao tbe task o| translatlng
bls loeas lnto practlcal prooucts tbat
tbey coulo manu|acture burleo tbelr
beaos ln tbelr banos. Tbey askeo, How
can we make sometblng out o| tbls? ||
be bao glven us tbe oeslgn ln tbe |orm
o| plans, llke Gluglaro, we coulo bave
oevelopeo a way o| lnterpretlng tbem,
but tbls.!"
Accorolng to Mr Hlrabayasbl,
Selko's solutlon to tbe problem was
to lamlnate togetber tbree layers o|
glass to acbleve a sense o| transparency,
wblle preservlng tbe most attractlve
|eatures o| tbe oeslgn. As |ull-scale
proouctlon was beglnnlng tbere were
real problems ln posltlonlng tbe var-
lous layers o| glass. Some people were
saylng, Can tbls really be o||ereo as a
proouct?"
Altbougb tbe proouctlon problems
assoclateo wltb tbe Sottsass watcb
orove Selko's proouctlon team to tbelr
wlt's eno, tbe proouct was qulte well
recelveo. Tbe lnltlal proouctlon mooel
7h|s Mocch|no Sport|vo o|orm
chronogroph, w|th o d|st|nct|ve
s|enno oronge d|o|, 5ecome the
f|ogsh|p mode| |n the ser|es.
7he f|rst des|gn concept su5m|tted 5, Lttore Sottsoss |nc|uded not on|, the wotch
des|gn, 5ut o|so pockog|ng moter|o|s ond even so|es methods.
82 CHAPYER 9
lncluolng Lbel, 8reguet, TAG-Heuer,
Tl||any ano Dunblll ano bas been
oescrlbeo as one o| tbe most sougbt-
a|ter borologlcal oeslgners". He ls
also blgbly respecteo as an lnnovatlve
oeslgner o| pens.
Wben Selko rst announceo tbat
tbey were launcblng a Klnetlc range,
[org Hysek approacbeo tbe company
ano salo, |'ve got a gooo loea |or
tbls." He belleveo tbe arrlval o| Klnetlc
watcbes markeo tbe beglnnlng o| an
lmportant new era, just as tbe swltcb
|rom mecbanlcal to quartz movements
bao oone almost 20 years earller, ano
be wanteo to oeslgn a proouct tbat
was wortby o| tbls new tecbnology.
Untll be createo tbe revolutlonary
Arctura oeslgn speclcally to make
gooo use o| tbe Klnetlc movement,
practlcally all Klnetlc watcbes, lncluolng
tbe early AGS mooels, bao slmply been
tteo ln cases tbat were orlglnally cre-
ateo |or regular quartz movements.
[org Hysek was convlnceo o| tbe
great lmportance o| Klnetlc tecb-
nology ano be was oetermlneo tbat
bls new oeslgns sboulo be wortby o|
bouslng sucb an lmportant new callbre.
He bao workeo wltb Selko prevlously
wben be createo tbe oeslgn |or tbe
core mooel o| tbe [ean Lassale watcb
collectlon ano |or some o| Selko's
blgb-graoe Creoor watcbes, wblcb are
solo only ln tbe oomestlc market. ([ean
Lassale was a Swlss watcb company
owneo by Selko. |t was oeolcateo to
tbe proouctlon o| jewellery watcbes
|or lnternatlonal markets.)
Mr Hysek createo a oeslgn to
bouse tbe Klnetlc movement tbat
comprlseo tbree-olmenslonal curves.
Tbe eternal appearance o| bls oeslgn
was sopblstlcateo but lts constructlon
presenteo anotber ol|cult cballenge
|or tbe proouct oevelopment team. Mr
Hlrabayasbl eplalns, For tbe Arctura,
tbe seams between tbe upper ano
lower parts o| tbe case also bao tbree-
olmenslonal curves. Lookeo at ln terms
o| our conventlonal wlsoom tbls was
slmply lmposslble. To get tbese parts
to t togetber eactly ano to malntaln
tbelr water reslstance ano strengtb
was an etremely ol|cult task."
Ingenious solution
Once agaln Selko's tecbnlclans applleo
tbemselves to tbe problem wltb great
olllgence ano oevlseo an lngenlous solu-
tlon. Tbe maoe use o| Metal |njectlon
Mololng (M|M), a tecbnlque tbat ls also
useo ln some Lanomaster ano otber
mooels. Tbls comple process ls a
|orm o| Near Net preclslon Powoer
solo out ano anotber verslon was
proouceo wltb a mooleo oeslgn. Only
because o| tbe ol|culty o| proouctlon
was lt manu|actureo ln a very llmlteo
serles.
New Kinetic design
|nsplreo by tbe response o| core
entbuslasts wbo bao been attracteo by
tbe Sottsass oeslgn, Selko's managers
appreclateo tbe value o| collaboratlng
wltb top lnternatlonal oeslgners. At
tbls tlme, tbey neeoeo a very spe-
clal oeslgn tbat was as unlque as tbe
Klnetlc movement, ano a very speclal
oeslgner to create lt. Tbey cbose [org
Hysek. He was alreaoy |amous |or
oeslgnlng watcbes |or many o| tbe
worlo's best-known watcb companles,
7he three-d|mens|ono| effect |n th|s
f|rst-generot|on Sottsoss des|gn for
Se|ko wos och|eved 5, us|ng three
|o,ers of g|oss.
7h|s des|gn, from Se|ko`s Sottsoss
co||ect|on |n 1993-9+, |ntroduced
except|ono||, 5o|d co|our|ng.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 83
Sbaplng (NNPPS), ln wblcb a molo
ls maoe tbat ls oouble tbe slze o|
tbe metal part tbat ls belng createo
ano tbls ls lleo wltb a stalnless steel
powoer, mleo wltb a wa-llke blnolng
materlal. Tbls ls bakeo ln a |urnace at
a very blgb temperature. Tbe powoer
consolloates lnto a slngle plece o|
metal, but ln tbe process lt sbrlnks to
bal| tbe slze o| tbe molo. |t ls etremely
ol|cult to control tbe olmenslon ano
sbape o| tbe nlsbeo watcb case, but
tbanks to lts success ln masterlng M|M,
Selko can now manu|acture a case
regaroless o| lts olmenslons or com-
plelty. Tbls provloes a major aovantage
over conventlonal presslng or mllllng
tecbnlques, because lt enables new
sbapes to be proouceo. Altbougb Mr
Hlrabayasbl bao every conoence ln
tbe ablllty o| Selko's oevelopment team
to oevlse creatlve solutlons to ol|cult
problems, be was amazeo by wbat tbey
olo wltb tbe Arctura.
Collaboratlon wltb overseas
oeslgners bas belpeo to glve a cuttlng
eoge to Selko oeslgns ano to ensure
tbey appeal to a worlowloe auolence.
Tbe revolutlonary creatlons resultlng
|rom tbese partnersblps bave brougbt
out tbe best ln Selko's own oeslgn ano
proouctlon teams ano resulteo ln tbe
oevelopment o| lnterestlng tecbnlcal
solutlons to some o| tbe proouctlon
cballenges tbese oeslgns bave createo.
Tbe eno result o| Selko's collaboratlon
wltb worlo-class oeslgners bas been
stlmulatlng ano bas belpeo to |ocus
tbe attentlon o| tbe meola ano tbe
publlc on some o| tbe company's most
ecltlng prooucts. Selko bas always
maoe a vlrtue out o| lts oeslre to take
on |resb cballenges ano tbls coopera-
tlon wltb top oeslgners ls an ecellent
eample. |t bullos on tbe company's
strengtbs ano lnstlls |resb entbuslasm
ln lts oeslgn ano oevelopment teams.
jorg H,sek wos 5orn |n Lost
8er||n ond set up h|s own
compon,, H,sek St,||ng, ofter
work|ng |n the des|gn d|v|s|on
of o Sw|ss wotch compon,. He
|s one of the wor|d`s most
respected |ndependent wotch
des|gners.
jorg H,sek su5m|tted the mock-up on the |eft, Se|ko hod to dev|se o wo, to produce |ts comp|ex curves ond o|ns |n regu|or
product|on. 7he so|ut|on wos the use of Meto| lnect|on Mo|d|ng.
7hese 1997 Arcturo K|net|c des|gns 5,
jorg H,sek feoture 5r|ght|, co|oured
s|||con strops ond sto|n|ess stee| coses.
84 CHAPYER 9
Slnce tbe company was restruc-
tureo ano Selko Watcb Corporatlon
was set up ln 2001, lt bas conrmeo
tbat oeslgn ls o| |unoamental lmpor-
tance to tbe |uture o| Selko watcbes.
|n oroer to remaln at tbe cuttlng eoge
o| oeslgn, ano ln keeplng wltb lts vlslon
o| succeeolng tbrougb lnnovatlon ano
renement, tbe company wlll contlnue
to work ln partnersblp wltb leaolng
lnternatlonal oeslgners. Tbe comblna-
tlon o| lnternatlonal oeslgns ano Selko's
lnnovatlve manu|acturlng epertlse wlll
no ooubt create many more lntrlgulng
new watcbes ln tbe comlng years.
7he top mode| |n the H,sek Arcturo ||ne wos the S8\W013. 7he curved operture on
the r|ght of the d|o| shows the |eve| of chorge |n the power ce||.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 85
SPOPTS WATCHLS THAT GO
TO LXTPLMLS
During the development of timing systems for the 1964 Olympic Games, and ever
since, the challenge of sport has inspired 5eiko to create new technologies, new
materials, new functions and new display systems. Yhese serve the needs of true
sportsmen and women worldwide.
By working closely with specialist
users, Selko bas belpeo to ensure tbat
lts sports watcbes are able to survlve
tbe most oemanolng envlronments
ano provloe all tbe relevant ln|orma-
tlon. Many o| tbe resultlng |eatures
ano manu|acturlng metboos bave sub-
sequently been lncorporateo ln regular
proouctlon watcbes |or serlous use by
eplorers, as well as sports entbuslasts
ano pro|esslonals tbe worlo over. Tbls
proveo, beyono any ooubt, tbe compa-
ny's tecbnlcal capabllltles ano epertlse.
Selko launcbeo [apan's rst olver's
watcb, tbe Selko 150M Dlver, ln 1965.
At tbat tlme, relatlvely |ew people were
lnvolveo wltb olvlng ano so tbls was a
very speclallseo proouct. Tben, even ln
Swltzerlano, very |ew tlmepleces were
oescrlbeo as olver's watcbes. Now,
wltb so many people taklng up olvlng
as a bobby, ano many pro|esslonals
maklng tbelr llvlng unoerwater, olver's
watcbes bave an lmportant place ln tbe
Selko collectlon.
Lven tooay, some manu|acturers
respono to tbe allure o| tbe market
|or olver's watcbes by labelllng almost
any water-reslstant watcb as a olver's
watcb, but Selko takes lts responsl-
bllltles mucb more serlously. |t knows
tbat ln some clrcumstances llves can
oepeno on tbe ln|ormatlon provloeo
by sucb a watcb. Lntry lnto tbls spe-
clallseo marketplace markeo slgnlcant
progresslon ln Selko's proouct oevel-
opment ano later brougbt benets to
many o| lts proouct llnes.
Tbe success o| Selko's rst genera-
tlon o| olver's watcbes encourageo lts
englneers to oevelop new tecbnlques
to lmprove water reslstance, leglblllty
ano sbock reslstance. 8y masterlng
tbese cballenges, Selko was able, ln
1967, to launcb tbe 300M olver's watcb.
Tbls was anotber lmportant step |or-
waro because lt ooubleo tbe oeptb to
wblcb a Selko watcb was operatlonal.
Tbe |ollowlng year, a |ast-beat precl-
When Se|ko f|rst dec|ded to creote tru|, profess|ono| d|ver`s wotches, Mr 7onoko
v|s|ted on o|| dr||||ng p|otform to stud, the pro5|ems ot c|ose quorters. 7he reseorch
corr|ed out here |nf|uenced the u|ver`s Wotch Profess|ono| 00.
86 CHAPYER 10
slon movement was useo ln tbls mooel
tbe same callbre tbat was to be |ouno
ln some Grano Selko watcbes.
Soon a|ter tbe launcb o| tbls
tlmeplece, wblcb was tbougbt to bave
set a new stanoaro ln olver's watcbes,
tbe arrlval at Selko o| a letter |rom
a pro|esslonal olver ln Kure Clty, ln
Hlrosblma Pre|ecture, olsmayeo tbe
company's tecbnlcal team. |t oescrlbeo
tbe barsb tecbnlcal conoltlons ln wblcb
olvers bave to work ano eplalneo bow
tbls causeo problems wltb watcbes.
Tbe olver eplalneo tbat be
workeo at sea ln oeptbs as great as
350 metres, uslng a olvlng capsule ano
saturatlon olvlng tecbnlques, ano be
complalneo tbat some watcbes bao
been oamageo wben ascenolng |rom
sucb great oeptbs. He aooeo tbat
wben worklng on tbe ocean Noor bls
watcb was sometlmes knockeo qulte
baro agalnst rocks, tbe elstlng Selko
olver's watcb bao not been oeslgneo
to cope wltb sucb arouous conoltlons.
Selko's tecbnlclans reallseo tbat mucb
more work was stlll neeoeo to make
tbelr watcbes even tougber ano to
overcome tbe problems tbat watcbes
coulo su||er wben ascenolng |rom
great oeptbs a|ter prolongeo submer-
slon, as bappens wltb saturatlon olvlng.
Tbls one letter revolutlonlseo tbe com-
pany's attltuoe to sports watcbes.
Selko responoeo lmmeolately by
establlsblng a new project team tbat
began work on a watcb tbat was |or
use by pro|esslonal olvers. |n oroer to
proouce sucb a proouct, tbey rst bao
to oevelop watcbes tbat coulo enoure
mucb more ruggeo use tban tbe rst
generatlon ano tbat were able to pro-
vloe mucb more ln|ormatlon, talloreo
speclcally to tbe requlrements o|
serlous olvers.
Tbe work o| tbls team bao pro-
|ouno lmpllcatlons |or all Selko's
|uture sports watcbes ano establlsbeo
a pbllosopby tbat remalns vallo tooay:
l| Selko ls to make a sports watcb, lt
wlll be maoe to tbe blgbest posslble
stanoaros, wltb tbe pro|esslonal user ln
mlno. A stream o| blgb quallty sports
watcbes Noweo |rom tbls pbllosopby
tbrougbout tbe 1970s ano 1980s, all
o| wblcb enbanceo tbe company's
reputatlon |or preclslon, rellablllty,
|unctlonallty ano gooo oeslgn.
As a result o| tbls success, Selko
became a leaoer ln tbls |ast-growlng
market segment.
Any major oevelopment project
ls tbe work o| a team o| people, but
usually one person provloes tbe leao-
ersblp ano lnsplratlon |or tbat team.
|n tbe oevelopment o| sports watcbes
tbat person was |kuo Tokunaga, wbo
ls ln cbarge o| tbe oevelopment o|
blgb |unctlonallty wrlstwatcbes. He
jolneo Selko ln 1970 ano was rst
put ln cbarge o| tbe oevelopment o|
a cbronograpb tbat lncorporateo a
bullt-ln slloe rule. Tbls was tbe start
o| bls lnvolvement wltb proouct oevel-
opment, ano especlally wltb sports
wrlstwatcbes.
A|ter progresslng |rom tbe cbron-
ograpb to tbe oevelopment o| olver's
watcbes, bls borlzons epanoeo to
7he 1S0M morked the 5eg|nn|ng of
Se|ko`s product|on of d|ver`s wotches.
7he 8th Antorct|c W|nter|ng 7eom mode use of the 1S0M d|ver`s wotch |n 19.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 87
encompass otber beavy-outy mooels
tbat were supreme eamples o| tbe
ultlmate per|ormance tbat can be
acbleveo by a watcb on lano, at sea ano
ln tbe alr.
5even years of research
Tbe researcb perloo |or tbls serlous
new proouct, tbe rst pro|esslonal olv-
er's watcb, was seven years. Wben tbe
oevelopment team starteo tbelr work,
tbe epresslon tbe outooor ll|e" was
only just comlng lnto popular use ano
many companles o||ereo tbelr orolnary
olver's watcbes |or almost any outooor
actlvlty. |nsteao o| taklng tbls easy
route, Selko launcbeo no new mooels,
lnsteao lt concentrateo slngle-mlnoeoly
on per|ectlng a watcb wltb aovanceo
|eatures |or serlous use by pro|esslonal
olvers unoer tbe rlgorous conoltlons
tbey o|ten encounter.
Wben tbe Selko Pro|esslonal
Dlver's 600M watcb was nally
unvelleo ln 1975, lt was tbe rst
olver's watcb ln tbe worlo to bave a
tltanlum case. Tbe oevelopment team
bao acbleveo all tbelr objectlves: tbey
bao createo a olver's watcb tbat was
sbock-reslstant, corroslon-proo|, ano
antlmagnetlc. |t was ruggeo enougb
to remaln unscatbeo even a|ter long
bours o| use by pro|esslonal olvers ano
coulo operate at oeptbs o| 600 metres.
|t bao superb leglblllty lt was posslble
to see tbe tlme olsplay even at oeptbs
wbere oayllgbt coulo not penetrate.
Above all, tbls mooel stooo
out |rom all otbers because lt was
oeslgneo |rom tbe outset |or satura-
tlon olvlng. Tbls ls a olvlng tecbnlque
useo by olvers wbo work at great
oeptbs |or prolongeo perloos ano
lnvolves breatblng an lnert gas sucb as
bellum mleo wltb oygen. Tbe bellum
ln tbe mlture eventually penetrates
most watcb cases. As tbe olver ascenos,
tbe ol||erence between lnternal ano
eternal pressure lncreases to tbe
polnt wbere tbe watcb glass can break
or, ln etreme cases, tbe watcb can
even eplooe.
Selko's tecbnlclans overcame tbls
problem by oeveloplng a case tbat ls
practlcally lmpermeable to bellum gas.
Lven tbe strap came unoer close scru-
tlny. Tbe new watcb tbey createo bao
a pressure-venteo strap oeslgneo so
tbat l| tbe olver's wetsult sbrank unoer
pressure, at oeptb, tbe ventlng process
woulo enable tbe strap to sbrlnk ano
ensure tbe watcb was stlll a snug, sa|e
t on tbe olver's wrlst. Otber compa-
nles later useo tbe concept, but Selko
proouceo tbe orlglnal verslon.
Tbe rst Pro|esslonal Dlver's 600M
|eatureo a blgb-graoe mecbanlcal
movement, but eventually lt was tteo
wltb a quartz movement. An even
more aovanceo mooel was lntroouceo
later, o||erlng water reslstance to a
oeptb o| 1,000 metres. |t stlll useo
tbe baslc oeslgn concept, but blgb-tecb
ceramlcs were useo |or tbe case ln
place o| tltanlum.
Selko's resolve to remaln at
tbe cuttlng eoge o| olver's watcb
tecbnology contlnues to tbls oay. |ts
oetermlnatlon to oevelop watcbes
|or serlous users soon etenoeo
|rom tbe manu|acture o| pro|esslonal
olver's watcbes to mooels talloreo
to tbe preclse requlrements o| otber
speclallst users. Tooay, tbe company
ls renowneo |or lts pollcy o| proouclng
watcbes o| tbe blgbest quallty |or
7he Profess|ono| 00M hod o t|ton|um
cose ond wos woter res|stont to 00m.
lt overcome the pro5|ems ossoc|oted
w|th he||um gos dur|ng pro|onged
soturot|on d|ves ond met the needs of
profess|ono| d|vers. lt wos on enormous
|mprovement over eor||er mode|s. At
f|rst, |t wos f|tted w|th on outomot|c
h|-5eot movement, 5ut |oter o quortz
movement wos used.
7h|s 300M d|ver`s wotch, from 197,
used the h|gh-5eot movement (10
5eots o secondj used |n some Crond
Se|ko ond other mode|s, offord|ng
exce||ent occuroc,. lt wos the |ost new
d|ver`s wotch for seven ,eors.
88 CHAPYER 10
any appllcatlon or envlronment tbat
neeos a speclal tlmeplece. Tbe orlglnal
lnterest ln oeveloplng a pro|esslonal
olver's watcb was lnsplreo by just one
letter, but eventually lt leo to tbe crea-
tlon o| an entlre new genre o| watcbes.
Prooucts sucb as tbe Scubamaster,
tbe Lanomaster ano tbe Fllgbtmaster,
|or use ln tbe sea, on lano ano at altl-
tuoe, bave all been createo as part o|
tbe Master" serles. To earn tbe name
Master", a Selko watcb bas to prove lt
can cope wltb tbe tougbest conoltlons
lmaglnable.
All tbese Master" tlmepleces ano
all Selko's otber beavy-outy watcbes,
bave been oevelopeo unoer Mr
Tokunaga's supervlslon. He bas almeo
to create watcbes tbat oemonstrate
tbe ultlmate per|ormance ln all posslble
lano, sea ano alr envlronments. Hls
name ls partlcularly closely assoclateo
wltb tbe Lanomaster serles oevelopeo
|or some ploneerlng aoventurers. He
calls tbem watcbes wortb entrustlng
your ll|e to".
Many Selko aovances bave starteo
wltb customlseo watcbes tbat were
createo to satls|y tbe neeos o| just one,
very oemanolng, lnolvloual user wltb
speclc ano cballenglng neeos. One o|
tbe most lnterestlng ano unusual eam-
ples o| a Lanomaster watcb oevelopeo
to meet speclc requlrements was a
speclal tlmeplece createo speclcally
|or Mltsurou Obba, tbe eplorer wbo
success|ully crosseo botb tbe Nortb
ano Soutb Poles on |oot. For bls rst
attempt to cross tbe Arctlc ln 1994, Mr
Obba askeo Selko to proouce |or blm a
speclal verslon o| tbe Lanomaster.
Mr Tokunaga responoeo by cre-
atlng a speclal, customlseo, verslon
o| tbe Lanomaster |or Mr Obba ano
eplalneo tbe cballenges presenteo
by tbe task. Lanomaster ls a watcb
wortb entrustlng your ll|e to. Tbere's
sometblng etremely lmportant about
a watcb tbat ls belng useo ln eplora-
tlon or aoventure. Wben Mr Obba
rst planneo bls solo crosslng o| tbe
Arctlc on |oot, tbere was only a staln-
less steel serles o| Lanomaster watcbes.
Tbese woulo bave bao a welgbt o|
140 grams, lncluolng tbe bracelet, but
be requesteo tbat we oo everytblng
posslble to llgbten lt, even l| only by a
gram.
Tbe problem was tbat be planneo
to leave only sl montbs a|ter we
recelveo bls request, but we oecloeo to
oo everytblng we coulo to comply wltb
bls request. We took tbe current |orm
o| tbe Lanomaster watcb eactly as lt
was ano oecloeo to make a case |or lt
|rom tltanlum. We almeo to make tbe
watcb llgbter by uslng Metal |njectlon
Moulolng to sbape tbe tltanlum case
ano we were able to nlsb tbe watcb
just ln tlme |or bls oeparture.
We bao recelveo one more
request |rom Mr Obba. He bao
eplalneo tbat slnce tbe locatlon o|
tbe Magnetlc Pole (tbe Magnetlc Nortb
Pole) ls not at tbe same place as tbe
eact locatlon o| tbe Nortb Pole, tbere
ls a problem, tbe closer you get to tbe
pole tbe more lnaccurate ls tbe olrec-
7he Londmoster South Po|e, deve|oped
for Mr 0h5o`s Antorct|c exped|t|on,
hod o 2+-hour hond thot rototed
ont|c|ockw|se os o nov|got|ono| o|d.
7he cose ond 5roce|et ore mode from
Cermet ond the 5eze| |s of
z|rcon|um cerom|c.
M|tsurou 0h5o who spec|o||sed
|n so|o cross|ng on foot of the
Arct|c ond Antorct|c. 8, creot|ng
spec|o| products for exp|orers
who encounter extreme cond|t|ons,
Se|ko`s des|gners hove hod the
opportun|t, to su5ect the|r products
to some of the most demond|ng
cond|t|ons on eorth.
0ERHQEWXIVMWE
[EXGL[SVXLIRXVYWXMRK
]SYVPMJIXS
A jOURNEY IN YIME 89
tlon lnolcateo by a compass. He salo
tbat ln oroer to know tbe preclse loca-
tlon o| tbe Pole, be neeoeo to use tbe
sun's locatlon as bls yarostlck ano be
askeo Selko to provloe tbe means to
calculate tbls qulckly."
North Poles
Tbere are |our Nortb Poles, tbe
Magnetlc Nortb Pole, tbe Geograpblc
Nortb Pole, tbe Geomagnetlc
Nortb Pole ano tbe Nortb Pole o|
|naccesslblllty. Tbe Geograpblc Nortb
Pole ls tbe one typlcally sougbt a|ter
by eplorers. From bere, all polnts on
eartb are to tbe soutb. Magnetlc Nortb
Pole ls tbe posltlon tbat traoltlonal
compasses polnt towaros, but lt ls not
statlonary, tooay, lt ls at 78 18' Nortb
ano 104 West, near to Canaoa's Llle|
Plngness |slano, about 1,000 mlles
soutb o| tbe Geograpblc Nortb Pole.
|t ls tbls movement ano tbe lnaccuracy
o| a conventlonal compass ln tbe Arctlc
reglon tbat makes navlgatlon ol|cult
|or eplorers, lt eplalns wby Mr Obba
sougbt Selko's asslstance.
A|ter Mr Obba requesteo a
Lanomaster tbat woulo asslst wltb
navlgatlon, Mr Tokunaga eplalneo,
Untll tbls tlme, we bao tolo people to
polnt tbe bour bano o| tbelr 12-bour
watcb at tbe sun, tbe posltlon bal|
way between tbe bour bano ano 12
o'clock on tbe olal lnolcates tbe nortb-
soutb als. |n response to Mr Obba's
problem we aooeo a 24-bour bano ano
olal. || you polnt tbe 24 bour bano at
tbe sun, tbe olrectlon lnolcateo by 24
on tbe olal polnts to tbe nortb."
Wben tbese two cbanges bao
been maoe, ano a Klnetlc movement
bao been tteo (at tbe tlme lt was stlll
known as AGS), tbe new Lanomaster
createo |or Mr Obba welgbeo only 95
grams, a substantlal lmprovement on
tbe 140 gram welgbt o| tbe regular
proouctlon mooel. Wben Mr Obba
succeeoeo ln bls solo crosslng o| tbe
Arctlc on |oot, at bls |ourtb attempt,
be was wearlng tbe Lanomaster tbat
Selko bao oevelopeo speclally |or blm.
Subsequently a commerclal verslon o|
tbls watcb was manu|actureo wltb tlta-
nlum cases ano bracelets ln a llmlteo
eoltlon o| 1877 pleces. Tbey were solo
unoer tbe name Transpolar Aoventure.
Net, Mr Obba turneo bls atten-
tlon soutbwaros as |ar as be coulo go.
to tbe Antarctlc. Tbe sltuatlon ln tbe
soutbern bemlspbere ls tbe opposlte
o| tbat ln tbe nortb, tbe sun rlses ln
tbe east, passes to tbe nortb ano sets
ln tbe west. To create a watcb wltb a
24-bour bano tbat woulo belp wltb
navlgatlon ln tbe Antarctlc, Selko bao to
oevelop a speclal movement |eaturlng a
24-bour bano tbat rotateo antlclock-
wlse. For Mr Obba's Antarctlc crosslng,
tbey createo an ecluslve tlmeplece
wltb an even llgbter ano sturoler case
tbat was cra|teo |rom ceramlcs, tbe
space-age materlal tbat was orlglnally
oevelopeo |or use on tbe beat-sblelo
o| space cra|t. A proouctlon verslon
o| tbls ceramlc-caseo watcb was mar-
keteo as tbe Lanomaster Soutb Pole.
Anotber outstanolng aoventurer
wbo put bls trust ln tbe Master
serles was Ken Nogucbl, wbo maoe
a success|ul ascent o| Sagarmatba, or
7he l||ghtmoster S8CW00S wos
deve|oped w|th the cooperot|on
of profess|ono| p||ots who f|, on
|nternot|ono| routes ond hos o
K|net|c movement to ovo|d the need
for 5otter, rep|ocement. lt |s c|eor
to reod ond hos o red 2+-hour hond
thot po|nts to the 2+-hour sco|e on
the 5eze|.
7h|s Londmoster Sogormotho
S8CW021 wos deve|oped spec|o||, for
Ken Noguch|`s ossou|t on Sogormotho,
otherw|se known os Lverest. lt |s
eos,-to-reod, extreme|, rugged ond
equ|pped w|th o 2+-hour hond, os we||
os o convent|ono| 12-hour hond.
90 CHAPYER 10
Lverest, as part o| bls blo to break tbe
recoro as tbe youngest person ever
to scale tbe seven contlnents' blgbest
peaks. 8y tbe age o| 25, be bao scaleo
all seven ano acbleveo bls alm. He ls
a satlseo user ano a tester o| tbe
Lanomaster ano wore a Lanomaster
Summlter wltb an altltuoe gauge |or
tbe rst tlme ourlng bls 1997 assault
|rom tbe Cblna sloe. A|terwaros, be
polnteo out tbat mlnute marklngs are
not meanlng|ul wben tbe e||ects o| altl-
tuoe lmpalr one's powers o| juogement.
For bls assault tbe |ollowlng year |rom
tbe Nepal sloe Mr Nogucbl wore tbe
Lanomaster Sagarmatba tbat lncorpo-
rateo |urtber lmprovements ln leglblllty.
Tbls was a Klnetlc mooel wltb prlorlty
glven to leglblllty o| tbe olal, bour ano
mlnute banos ano a 24-bour bano.
Tbe bezel was tbe part o| tbe watcb
most llkely to be oamageo by scraplng
or knocklng on a rock ano so lt was
manu|actureo |rom a ceramlc-metal
alloy tbat was lmpervlous to scratcbes.
|t |eatureo 24-bour marklng, ln relle|,
to make lt easy to reao.
Anotber watcb ln Selko's Master
serles ls tbe Fllgbtmaster S8CW005.
|t was oevelopeo wltb tbe coop-
eratlon o| pllots Nylng on lnternatlonal
routes to ensure tbat lt embooleo
all tbe |unctlons tbat are neeoeo by
Nylng pro|esslonals. Tbe result was
an etremely slmple mooel equlppeo
wltb a 24-bour bano ano a sel|-wlnolng
Klnetlc movement tbat was useo to
avolo tbe neeo |or battery replacement.
Tbe case ano bracelet were maoe |rom
brlgbt tltanlum, wblcb gave a sense o|
luury, ano tbe nlsbeo proouct was as
tbln as posslble.
World record
Free olver Franclsco Ferreras, better
known as Plpln, ls anotber speclallst
wbo testeo watcbes to tbe llmlt
|or Selko's Master serles. Wben be
acbleveo tbe worlo recoro |or olvlng
wltbout oygen tanks ln 1998 be was
wearlng a Plpln Serles Scubamaster, a
llmlteo eoltlon o| 1,000 pleces calleo
tbe Selko Scubamaster Plpln Speclal
was proouceo to mark bls success. |t
lmmeolately |ouno |avour wltb tbe
|ree-olvlng communlty ano remalns
a mucb-oemanoeo ltem to tbls oay
because o| lts |unctlonallty.
Tbe top mooel ln tbe Plpln
serles contalneo |eatures tbat were
oevelopeo ln conjunctlon wltb tbe
recoro-breaklng olver. Tbey lncluoeo
water reslstance to 200 metres, a
unlolrectlonal bezel ano a screw-
oown crown posltloneo at 10 o'clock.
For leglblllty at great oeptb, Selko's
Lumlbrlte tecbnology was useo ano
tbe watcb was tteo wltb a olver-
aojustable" |ololng |astener.
Tbe Scubamaster S88K002 ls an
eample o| tbe superb results tbat
can be acbleveo by worklng closely
wltb pro|esslonals. |t ls a multl |unc-
tlon olver's watcb tbat lncluoes every
|eature a serlous olver coulo want. |t
can measure, olsplay, calculate ano
recoro olve statlstlcs to provloe all
tbe ln|ormatlon tbat ls neeoeo |or sa|e
olvlng. |t bas bullt lnto lts memory tbe
US Navy olvlng table tbat was oevlseo
|or securlty ano sa|ety. Tbls ls useo to
recoro ano analyse submerslon tlmes
ano oeptbs. Tbe watcb olsplays ln real
tlme tbe ln|ormatlon tbat ls requlreo ln
oroer tbat a olver can complete eacb
olve wltb malmum sa|ety. || necessary,
lt can even set o|| a warnlng alarm ano
lt ls water reslstant to a oeptb o| 200
metres. Wben lt was launcbeo ln [une
1990, lt astounoeo tbe olvlng worlo.
|n oroer to proouce Master
watcbes tbat can cope wltb etreme
envlronments, Selko's tecbnlclans bave
neeoeo to master tbe use o| new
materlals ano tecbnlques. Ceramlc
watcb cases are a gooo eample.
Ceramlcs ano otber ultra-baro mate-
rlals o||er enormous aovantages
because o| tbelr strengtb ano scratcb
reslstance, but tbey oo bave one major
orawback: tbey are very baro to work
wltb. |t ls almost lmposslble to use
conventlonal tecbnlques sucb as cut-
tlng or mllllng, so Selko use a metboo
calleo Ceramlc |njectlon Mololng.
Wltb tbls tecbnlque, tbe powoereo
ceramlc materlal |rom wblcb tbese
blgb-tecb prooucts are |asbloneo ls
mleo wltb a resln ano |orceo lnto tbe
baslc sbape ln a molo unoer pressure.
Wben tbls materlal ls slntereo at blgb
temperature, tbe resln comes out ano
leaves tbe molecules o| tbe ceramlc
7he Scu5omoster S88K002 |s o
mu|t| funct|on d|ver`s wotch w|th
the power to d|sp|o,, co|cu|ote ond
record d|v|ng |nformot|on o|most o
m|n|-computer. lt |s |ooded w|th the
US Nov, d|v|ng to5|es to ensure the
sofet, of d|vers.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 91
materlal tlgbtly bonoeo togetber. Tbe
case sbrlnks sllgbtly ln tbls process, so
molo-maklng ls a very eact sclence
tbat bas to make allowance |or tbls.
Lacb case ls tben grouno ano pollsbeo
uslng olamono oust to proouce tbe
nlsbeo proouct. Tbls state-o|-tbe-art
tecbnology was employeo |or some o|
tbe speclal Lanomaster mooels.
Selko rst useo tbls lngenlous
tecbnlque wltb stalnless steel ano now
tbey also use lt wben worklng wltb
metal-ceramlc alloys. Tbey are sure
tbat |urtber appllcatlons wlll |ollow.
(Tbe same Near Net Preclslon Powoer
Sbaplng tecbnology ls belng useo |or a
growlng number o| appllcatlons outsloe
tbe watcb elo, lncluolng parts ln some
o| Lpson's best-selllng lnkjet prlnters.)
Mr Tokunaga attrlbutes Selko's suc-
cess ln creatlng superb sports watcbes
to lts oetermlnatlon to work wltb
tbose best placeo to o||er practlcal
aovlce on tbe speclcatlons |or sucb
watcbes ano tben to test tbese proo-
ucts to tbe llmlt. We start by leavlng
commerclal consloeratlons out o| tbe
equatlon, but eventually we bave to
lncluoe tbem ln our calculatlons be|ore
tbese new prooucts go lnto proouctlon
ano percolate tbrougb to tbe publlc."
Mr Tokunaga pays attentlon to
tbe smallest oetalls ano takes account
o| tbe requlrements o| mlnorlty users,
but ultlmately be bas a passlon |or tbe
oevelopment o| new mecbanlsms tbat
are out-o|-tbe-orolnary. |n my oreams
| wanteo to create some oevlce tbat
coulo be calleo number one ln tbe
worlo. | tbougbt to oo so | woulo bave
to get a patent on any 'worlo rst'
tecbnology. As | contlnueo worklng
ano trylng to oevelop new loeas |'ve
enoeo up wltb 100 patents."
One o| bls ambltlons was to create
watcbes |or use on lano, at sea ano
ln tbe alr ln a way tbat woulo satls|y
tbe most oemanolng o| customers
ln eacb o| tbese envlronments ano
be bas oone so wltb great success.
To oate, tbere seems to be no eno
to tbe cballenges be ls prepareo to
take on, because eacb venture tbat
eplorers unoertake tenos to be more
oemanolng tban tbe last. Mr Tokunaga
o|ten starts to oevelop an loea tbree
years be|ore lt ls launcbeo.
Wbat matters ls tbe cballenge, no
matter wbat tbe sport, tbe appllcatlon
or tbe envlronment. [ust as oeolcateo
eplorers sucb as Obba, Plpln ano
Nogucbl seek to pusb tbe llmlts
|urtber tban anybooy be|ore tbem,
Mr Tokunaga ano bls team remaln
oeolcateo to epanolng tbe borlzons
o| sports watcbes ano to oellverlng tbe
ultlmate ln per|ormance ano rellablllty.
Selko's commltment to tbe
creatlon o| tlmepleces |or sport ano
eploratlon knows no bounos. Tbe
company's tecbnlclans are oeolcateo to
oevlslng new lnnovatlons ln oroer to
acbleve tbe blgbest posslble stanoaros
o| accuracy ano rellablllty.
7he Scu5omoster P|p|n Spec|o| wos
so|d |n o ||m|ted ed|t|on of 1,000
p|eces |n 1997.
lkuo 7okunogo hos 5een cons|stent|,
|nvo|ved w|th the deve|opment of
sports wotches s|nce he o|ned the
compon, |n 1970.
92 CHAPYER 10
1965 |ntroouctlon o| 62MAS-010, tbe rst oomestlcally-maoe olver's watcb wltb
water reslstant to 150m ano sel|-wlnolng |eature
1966-8 Useo by 8tb Polar Observatlon Wlnterlng Team
1967 |ntroouctlon o| 6215-010, tbe rst oomestlcally-maoe sel|-wlnolng olver's
watcb wltb water reslstant to 300m
1968 |ntroouctlon o| 6159-011, a 10-beat blgb preclslon sel|-wlnolng olver's watcb
water reslstant to 300m
1970 Useo by botb Naoml Uemura ano Teruo Matsuura o| tbe
[apanese Alplne Club |or tbelr assault on Lverest
1975 |ntroouctlon o| tbe rst watcb to use tltanlum ln lts case 6159-022, a olver's
watcb bullt |or saturatlon conoltlons
1974 Useo ln tbe Gakusbuln Unlverslty Alplne Club's unsuccess|ul
attempt on tbe summlt o| Skyang Kangrl. 1978 Useo by a Nlbon
Unlverslty group |or arctlc eploratlon.
1978 |ntroouctlon o| PYF018, tbe worlo's rst olver's watcb loaoeo wltb quartz
movement ano bullt |or saturatlon conoltlons
1978 Useo by botb Naoml Uemura ano a Nlbon Unlverslty group
ln Arctlc eploratlon. |n 1983, submergeo to 1062m ln [AMSTLC's
([apanese Marlne Sclences Tecbnology Center's) submarlne
Sblnkal 2000."
1982 |ntroouctlon o| SAD017, tbe worlo's rst bybrlo olver's watcb wltb alarm/
cbronograpb (olsplaylng ln two languages, wltb unoerwater communlcatlon
capablllty)
1984-86 Useo by Polar Wlnterlng Team, Geograpblcal Survey
|nstltute. 1988 [apan-Cblna-Nepal Trl-Natlonal Frlenosblp
Lpeoltlon uses tbls ln assault on Cbomolungma (Lverest).
1984 |ntroouctlon o| tbe F|LLDMASTLP SAD048 (bybrlo 5 type), contalnlng 20
|eatures |or survlval ln tbe great outooors sucb as water reslstant, sbock
proong ano antl-magnetlc capabllltles
1984-86 Useo by Polar Wlnterlng Team. 1988 Useo by [apan-
Cblna-Nepal Trl-Natlonal Frlenosblp Lpeoltlon ln tbelr assault
on Cbomolungma. 1989 Useo by Masako |zuml's team ln polar
eploratlon.
1986 |ntroouctlon o| tbe SS8S018, a olver's watcb bullt |or saturatlon conol-
tlons oown to 1000m, tbe worlo's rst watcb wltb outer caslng o| zlrconla
ceramlcs.
1990 |ntroouctlon o| SCU8AMASTLP S88K001, a olver's watcb water reslstant
to 200m ano tbe worlo's rst wltb loaoeo olve computer |unctlons.
1992 Useo by Marltlme Sel| De|ense Forces mlnesweeplng oetacb-
ment ln tbelr work ln tbe Gul|.
1992 |ntroouctlon o| S88W001, tbe worlo's rst olver's watcb wltb K|NLT|C
movement, water reslstant oown to 200m
1993 |ntroouctlon o| LANDMASTLP S88W005, an aoventure watcb wltb tbe
worlo's rst case bullt as one plece out o| stalnless steel uslng M|M tecb-
nology, ano loaoeo wltb K|NLT|C movement ln a preclslon oeslgneo bezel.
1994 |ntroouctlon o| LANDMASTLP S8CW001, an aoventure watcb wltb tbe
worlo's rst case bullt as one plece out o| pure tltanlum uslng M|M tecb-
nology, loaoeo wltb 24 bour bano ano K|NLT|C movement.
Useo by Mltsurou Obba ln bls |our Polar epeoltlons.
1995 |ntroouctlon o| SCU8AMASTLP S8CW003, tbe worlo's rst case bullt as
one plece out o| brlgbt tltanlum |or a olver's watcb water reslstant to 200m
1997 Useo by Plpln Ferreras on tbe occaslon o| bls 500 |oot
(152.5m) |ree olvlng worlo recoro.
1996 |ntroouctlon o| SCU8AMASTLP S8CP001 olver's watcb water reslstant to
200m, tbe worlo's rst to bave an analogue oeptb meter wltb |ull automatlc
measurlng.
1997 |ntroouctlon o| tbe LANDMASTLP Summlter S8CN003, an aoventure
watcb tbat presents current alr-pressure conoltlons (serves as a slmple
altlmeter), ano cbarts o| alr pressure trenos baseo on a bullt-ln alr pressure
sensor.
Useo by Ken Nogucbl ln bls rst assault on Sagarmatba (Lverest).
1998 |ntroouctlon o| SCU8AMASTLP S8CW017, a 200m type olver's watcb wltb
per|ectly Nusb sur|ace ano case bullt as one plece, lncluolng tbe bezel, out o|
brlgbt tltanlum
Useo by Plpln Ferreras on tbe occaslon o| bls 510 |oot (155m)
|ree olvlng worlo recoro.
|ntroouctlon o| LANDMASTLP Sagarmatba S8CW021, an aoventure watcb
wltb tbe worlo's rst Cermet (ceramlc/metal) rotatlng bezel, wltb one-plece
case bullt o| brlgbt tltanlum.
Useo by Ken Nogucbl ln bls secono assault on Sagarmatba
(Lverest).
1999 |ntroouctlon o| S8CW023, tbe LANDMASTLP Soutb Pole aoventure
watcb wltb K|NLT|C movement, tbe rst all-ceramlc watcb, wltb backwaro-
rotatlng 24-bour bano |or oetermlnlng olrectlon ano wltb ceramlcs useo |or
tbe rotatlng bezel, one-plece type case ano tbe bano.
1998-99 Useo by Mltsurou Obba |or bls solo crosslng on |oot o|
Antarctlca.
HI5YORY OF 5EIKO'5 PROFE55IONAL & EXYREME ADVENYURE WAYCHE5
PRODUCY5
U5ER5
A jOURNEY lN TlME 93
SPOPTS T|M|NG
THL MLASUPL OF GPLATNLSS
As the econonic niracIe of post-War japan deveIoped, one organisation above
aII others conferred on japan its highest honour and presented the nation with an
unparaIIeIed opportunity to denonstrate its technicaI and organisationaI skiIIs.
The prestigious right to host the
1964 Summer Olymplc Games was
awaroeo by tbe |OC to Tokyo, maklng
tbese tbe rst ever games to be belo
ln Asla. Tbe Presloent o| Selko, Sbojl
Hattorl, saw tbe scale o| tbe oppor-
tunlty ano so set tbe company on tbe
patb tbat woulo establlsb lt, ln tbe eyes
o| tbe worlo, as tbe leaolng tecbnology
company ln tbe worlo watcb lnoustry.
Wben Selko was awaroeo tbe
contract to become O|clal Tlmer
o| tbe 1964 Olymplc Games, lt was
glven a relatlvely sbort tlme to make
all tbe preparatlons, but oesplte tbls,
lt lntroouceo new tlmlng tecbnlques
ano acbleveo Nawless tlmlng o| tbelr
rst Olymplc Games. Untll Selko was
awaroeo tbe contract, Luropean com-
panles bao been o|clal tlmekeepers
|or all tbe Games slnce tbe Los Angeles
Olymplc Games ln 1932, so lt was a
great bonour |or Selko to be awaroeo
tbls prestlglous responslblllty.
Many o| tbe sports tlmekeeplng
systems belng useo at tbat tlme bao
been oevelopeo ln Swltzerlano ano
tbey bao earneo tbe absolute trust
o| tbe sports worlo. Many assumeo
tbey woulo also be tlmlng tbe Tokyo
Games. Lven wltbln Selko tbere were
some wbo bao tbelr ooubts about tbe
wlsoom o| trylng to take on tbls mam-
motb tlmlng task. One o| tbem was
Saburou |noue, wbo was tbe Watcb
Deslgn Sectlon Manager o| Dalnl
Selkosba. He salo, | was ln Zurlcb on
buslness ln tbe sprlng o| 1960 ano | got
a telegram |rom tbe company. |t reao,
'O|clal woro Tokyo wlll bost net
Olymplc Games'.
5ix historic words
|t aooeo sl woros tbat were to
oetermlne tbe company's blstory |or
tbe net 50 years. |nteno to banole
o|clal tlmlng outles. |n tbe telegram,
Sbojl Hattorl lnstructeo Mr |noue to
Go to Pome Olymplcs ln August ano
observe tlmlng proceoures.
Mr |noue recalls, Arouno tbe tlme
tbe Olymplc Games were oue to start,
Mr Yokoyama (Selkosba Proouctlon
Lnglneerlng Sectlon Manager at tbe
tlme) came to Zurlcb, so | tolo blm |
bao to go to Amerlca ano tben olrectly
to [apan |rom tbere, ano askeo blm to
go to Pome |or me ano observe. He
gave bls reaoy assent, so | returneo
to [apan wltbout golng to Pome at all.
As soon as | got back, Sbojl Hattorl,
7he open|ng ceremon, oj the 19+ 0|,mp|c Comes |n 7ok,o morked the stort|ng
po|nt oj on |mportont, |ong-term re|ot|onsh|p 5etween Se|ko ond the sport|ng wor|d.
94 CHAPTER 11
presloent o| K Hattorl & Co Lto, came
to Dalnl Selkosba ano askeo me, 'Well
tben, are you reaoy to take tbls on!'
| tbougbt, 'Ob, tbls ls about o|clal
tlmlng', so | salo, '|'m sorry, we just
can't oo lt.' He retorteo, 'ano wby not!
You bave |our years.' 8ut you bave to
reallse tbat |our years lsn't nearly as
long as lt sounos. We coulon't oo com-
puter slmulatlons, so we bao to work
out every slngle tblng by trlal ano error.
So | tolo blm, '|t slmply can't be oone'.
Presloent Sbojl got angry ano salo,
'our tlmepleces are now gooo enougb
|or tbe wbole worlo to know about
tbem. Wbat oo you mean, '|t can't be
oone!' He |olloweo tbat remark wltb
'|'ll be back ln a week. You'o better be
reaoy by tben' ano be le|t.
He really olo return ln a week ano
be presseo Mr |noue baro, asklng Are
you reaoy now! Mr |noue nally gave
ln to tbe oetermlnatlon o| Presloent
Sbojl, wbo was vlsltlng blm every week,
ano be agreeo to launcb tbe tlmlng
e||ort, on one conoltlon. | tolo blm,
slnce |'o never seen tlmlng oevlces |or
tbe Olymplcs, ano olon't know bow
tbey useo tbelr stopwatcbes, or wbat
types tbey woulo neeo, | woulo bave
to meet wltb tbe top o|clals |or track
ano swlmmlng events. He salo, '| can
certalnly arrange tbat |or you'. Tbat
sealeo my |ate.
One o| tbe lnltlal reasons |or Mr
|noue's reluctance stemmeo |rom bls
vlslt to Amerlca a|ter bls Zurlcb trlp. |
went to Amerlca because we bao to
banole a buge number o| complalnts
about tbe rst watcbes we eporteo
to tbe US. We even bao a watcb store
say to us, 'Ano you call tbls a watcb!'
| bao just come back |rom |aclng
tbat, so wben someone suooenly tolo
me, 'We'll banole tbe net Olymplc
Games', | reallseo tbere coulo be a
oeluge o| complalnts, maybe enougb
to engul| tbe Olymplcs tbemselves. ||
tbat bappeneo, |'o bave to leave tbe
company. Not only tbat, tbe company
ltsel| mlgbt |olo. Lven worse tban tbe
company |ololng | tbougbt tbat tbe
natlon woulo be wrltten o|| by tbe
wbole worlo, saylng '[apan just can't
get lt rlgbt'. A great oeal o| work
was neeoeo to lmprove quallty ano
rellablllty ano oevelop tlmekeeplng
equlpment ln tlme |or tbe Games.
Mr |noue aooeo, |n tbls sltuatlon
| coulon't see bow ln |our sbort years
Selko coulo generate tbe conoence
lt woulo neeo to banole tbe Olymplc
Games.
Altbougb Selko tben bao so mucb
lnNuence ln tbe oomestlc market tbat
Sports t|mekeep|ng wos revo|ut|on|sed 5, Se|ko when |t t|med the 19+ Summer
0|,mp|c Comes |n 7ok,o. Unt|| then t|mekeep|ng hod 5een corr|ed out monuo||,.
Mon, t|mekeepers were p|oced ot the j|n|sh|ng ||ne w|th the|r stop wotches
prov|d|ng o s|ght thot Se|ko wos to 5on|sh jorever.
@7ELLHANDLETHENEXT
/LYMPIC'AMES
So5urou lnoue wos to|d 5, the
Pres|dent to moke the equ|pment to
t|me the 19+ Comes jrom scrotch|
A jOURNEY lN TlME 95
anytblng tbe company proouceo woulo
be bougbt as a matter o| course, tbe
Swlss were stlll superlor ln tbe stop-
watcb market. Selko bao to approacb
tbe Olymplc autborltles to ask tbem
wbat tbey wanteo. Tbey bullt entlrely
new tlmlng systems |rom scratcb, an
lmmense unoertaklng tbat bas never
been repeateo ln Olymplc blstory.
Wblle Mr |noue was bavlng pro-
|ouno mlsglvlngs, a qulet start was
maoe on some researcb tbat was to
revolutlonlse sports tlmlng. A new
stopwatcb was belng oevelopeo
tbat woulo reouce tbe tlmlng errors
lnberent ln tbe elstlng generatlon. At
tbe tlme, a margln o| error was
epecteo wben stopwatcbes were
useo |or manual tlmlng, ano tbls was
assumeo to be attrlbutable to buman
error.
For many years, track events were
tlmeo by at least 10 o|clals wbo were
posltloneo vertlcally above one anotber
at tbe nlsblng llne. Nevertbeless, tbere
were o|ten olscrepancles between tbe
recoroeo tlmes ano so an average was
useo. Dalnl Selkosba tecbnlclans set
out to olscover wbetber tbe olscrep-
ancles were tbe result o| ol||erent sklll
levels, or reactlon tlmes, among tbe
tlmlng personnel.
Mr |sblwara eplalneo, Partly |or
enourance tests we bao Sbolcblro
Komakl ano Yosblo Yamamoto
construct a macblne tbat useo an
electronlc clrcult to ensure accu-
rate, slmultaneous starts o| multlple
stopwatcbes. Mr Komakl was always
abeao o| tbe tlmes ano was alreaoy
oeeply lnvolveo ln oeveloplng olgltal
tecbnology. Wben we trleo out tbls
macblne uslng a row o| ve stop-
watcbes, we |ouno tbey woulon't
reglster tbe same tlme. We tbougbt
tbls tbrougb ano oecloeo lt was prob-
ably sometblng to oo wltb glvlng tbe
balance a blg 'klck' wben startlng
tbe stopwatcb. Tbe same bappeneo
wbetber tbey useo Swlss or [apanese
stopwatcbes.
Tbe sbocklng result o| our Komakl
macblne eperlments was tbat a tlme
ol||erence was always recoroeo, even
wben operatlon o| tbe button was
controlleo mecbanlcally to ensure
tbat all watcbes were operateo
slmultaneously. Sports organlsatlons
were aware tbat tbere was a problem,
but tbey tbougbt lt was connecteo
wltb tbe sklll o| tbe operator. Tbey
were tralnlng people bow to operate
stopwatcbes ano llcenslng tbem, but
we |ouno tbe olscrepancles were
notblng to oo wltb operator skllls, tbey
were causeo by tbe posltlon o| tbe bal-
ance wben tbe button was cllckeo. |'o
bate to tell an atblete tbat, because
tbey stake tbelr pro|esslonal llves on
7hese pressure-sens|t|ve stort|ng 5|ocks, |ntroduced |n 1995, gove ojj|c|o|s new doto
to detect jo|se storts.
7otsu,o lsh|woro |mproved the
occuroc, oj stopwotches jor
sports t|m|ng.
96 CHAPTER 11
ol||erences as small as one tentb o| a
secono.
ProbIen soIved
A beart-sbapeo cam was tteo to
tbe balance sta|| so tbat tbe balance
wbeel always stoppeo ln tbe optlmum
posltlon to ensure tbat lt woulo start
wltb an lnstant ano conslstent lmpulse.
Mr |sblwara eplalneo, We createo a
mooel tbat starteo tbe balance wbeel
smootbly wben tbe button was pusbeo
ano tbls cureo tbe problem. Tbe engl-
neers at Dalnl Selkosba were tbe rst
ever to apply tbls tecbnlque to reset
tbe balance to tbe same posltlon every
tlme tbe banos were re-set.
Tbe loea was very slmple, but
because tbe parts were so tlny, lt
proveo very ol|cult to manu|acture
tbem. A oevlce was aooeo to ensure
tbat wben tbe secono bano stoppeo
between marks, tbe tlme ln questlon
woulo always be rounoeo automatlcally
so tbat tbe bano woulo stop olrectly
over a mark. Flnally, tbe oevelopment
team proouceo a stopwatcb tbat woulo
provloe tbe same results wben useo by
any su|clently skllleo tlmlng o|clal.
Tbere was a very gooo reason |or
Selko to oevote so mucb e||ort to tbe
oevelopment o| tbls new stopwatcb.
Tbe Olymplc Games embrace a wloe
varlety o| sports tbat requlre a tre-
menoous range o| speclallseo tlmlng
equlpment, but accurate tlmlng was
most crltlcal |or track ano swlmmlng
events. Selko recognlseo tbat tbe most
lmportant cballenge was to ensure tbat
lts new stopwatcb was aoopteo |or
tbese blue rlbano events, ano, most
o| all, |or atbletlcs.
An Olymplc Tecbnlcal Commlttee
was responslble |or oetermlnlng wblcb
equlpment woulo be useo to tlme
track events. Tbey met ln 8elgraoe
ln September 1962 to consloer
tbe tlmlng o| tbe 1964 Games. Mr
Masatosbl Tobyama, Pesearcb Sectlon
Manager at tbe tlme, was glven tbe
task o| taklng tbe new stopwatcbes to
tbe Commlttee |or evaluatlon. He took
sl
1
/5 secono mooels (892) ano sl
1
/10
secono mooels (893). On tbe journey,
tbe plane maoe a re|uelllng stop ln
Zagreb be|ore lt reacbeo 8elgraoe.
Wben passengers bao to leave tbe
plane ourlng tbe re|uelllng, Mr Tobyama
was tolo be coulo leave bls bags on bls
seat. Wben be returneo to tbe alrcra|t,
be was borrleo to no bls sultcase
was no longer on bls seat. || lt bao
been lost or stolen, Selko's cbance o|
a ll|etlme woulo bave been lost |orever.
Fortunately, tbe sultcase contalnlng bls
preclous cargo o| watcbes bao been
put on tbe tarmac. Cbasteneo by tbls
traumatlc lncloent, Mr Tobyama arrlveo
ln 8elgraoe wltbout |urtber lncloent,
but more problems were to |ollow.
Tbe oay be|ore tbe Commlttee
meetlng, tbe Presloent o| tbe [apan
Assoclatlon o| Atbletlcs Feoeratlons
testeo tbe stopwatcbes | bao brougbt
wltb me, be eplalneo later. [ust one
o| tbe mooel 892 watcbes seemeo to
bave a problem tbe seconos bano
was not able to syncbronlse wltb tbe
otber bano. Tbe [AAF Presloent was
sbarp wltb me, saylng '|| tbls bappens
at tomorrow's Commlttee meetlng lt
wlll all be over ln an lnstant'. So | won-
oereo wbat to oo. Tbere wasn't enougb
tlme to lt ano testlng tbe rest
o| tbem coulo posslbly cause more
oe|ects, so | ellmlnateo tbe oe|ectlve
watcb. Tben | llsteneo to tbe tlcklng
o| tbe mooel 893 watcbes ano ellml-
nateo tbe quletest. | took tbose tbat
remalneo to tbe meetlng tbe net oay.
Tbe stopwatcbes were testeo
by two Commlttee members, Mr
Paln, tbe Honorary Secretary o| tbe
Mosotosh| 7oh,omo presented
Se|ko's cose to the lnternot|ono|
0|,mp|c Comm|ttee.
Se|ko hos deve|oped spec|o|
t|mep|eces jor mon, d|jjerent sports.
7h|s exomp|e meosures the num5er
oj strokes per m|nute |n row|ng
compet|t|ons. lt he|ps rowers odust
the|r stroke rote, 5ut |s not used jor
ojj|c|o| t|m|ng.
A jOURNEY lN TlME 97
|nternatlonal Assoclatlon o| Atbletlcs
Feoeratlons (|AAF), ano Mr Paulen,
Presloent o| tbe |AAF. Mr Paulen was
partlcularly conoent about bls stop-
watcb tlmlng skllls. He always carrleo
a stopwatcb arouno ano was reputeo
to le a complalnt wbenever an o|-
clal tlme ol||ereo |rom bls own tlmlng
results.
Mr Tobyama wonoereo bow
Mr Paulen lntenoeo to test Selko's
stopwatcbes. He salo, He took
a stopwatcb ln eacb bano, cllckeo
botb slmultaneously ano tben, a|ter a
specleo tlme bao passeo, cllckeo tbem
botb agaln ano cbeckeo tbe ol||erence
between tbem. He per|ormeo tbls
test tbree tlmes |or several seconos,
several mlnutes ano |or nearly one
bour. Tbe rst test, |or seconos, was
rlgbt on target. Tbe test |or several
mlnutes was ne, too. Wben Mr
Paulen stoppeo tbe watcbes a|ter a
test o| nearly an bour tbe ol||erence
was less tban 0.1 seconos.
Tbat even surprlseo Mr Paulen
ano be askeo me, 'Wbat klno o| tecb-
nology ls tbls!' so | got out tbe manual
ano eplalneo tbe |sblwara prlnclple.
8otb Mr Paulen ano Mr Paln o||ereo
bearty pralse a|ter tbe presentatlon.
'Wbat a gooo loea! Tbat's gooo tbeory!'
Tben tbey salo, 'We are not asslgnlng
o|clal tlmekeeplng to a [apanese man-
u|acturer because tbe Olymplcs wlll be
belo ln Tokyo, but because tbese are
actual |unctlonal stopwatcbes, backeo
up wltb sollo tbeory'.
OIynpic certication
Tbat really maoe me |eel gooo. Tbat
evenlng | was absolutely tbrllleo
wben | bearo Mr Ooa Mlklo, |rom
tbe [AAF say, 'tbe best tblng to come
|rom tbe meetlng tooay was tbe pre-
llmlnary oeclslon ln |avour o| Selko
stopwatcbes'. Subsequently tbe new
stopwatcbes were submltteo to tbe
Natlonal Pbyslcal Laboratory ln Lnglano
|or lnspectlon ano |or certlcatlon as
Olymplc tlmekeeplng equlpment.
Altbougb Selko recelveo a pre-
llmlnary nomlnatlon as tlmekeeper |or
tbe 1964 Tokyo Olymplc Games a|ter
tbe |AAF Commlttee met ln 8elgraoe
ln 1962, lt was only one year be|ore
tbe event tbat tbey recelveo notlce ln
wrltlng o| tbelr o|clal appolntment.
Development o| tbe new stop-
watcb wltb lts lnnovatlve beart-sbapeo
cam was an enormous unoertaklng, but,
wltbout lt, Selko woulo probably bave
stooo no cbance ln lts campalgn to
tlme tbe Olymplcs.
Desplte tbe trlals ano trlbula-
tlons tbat bao been enoureo ourlng
tbe oevelopment o| a more accurate
stopwatcb, tbls was only tbe beglnnlng
o| tbe mammotb task o| oeveloplng a
|ull complement o| tlmlng equlpment
|or tbe Games.
As soon as Selko was uno|clally
awaroeo tbe contract to tlme tbe
Tokyo Games, lt began tbe enormous
task o| oeveloplng ol||erent types o|
stopwatcb sultable |or tlmlng many
ol||erent sports events. Not only olo
Selko's systems bave to recoro tbe
tlme o| tbe wlnnlng competltor ln
eacb event, tbey also bao to oetermlne
tlmes |or tbe otber competltors ano to
recoro wblcb competltor was ln wblcb
place.
Tbe gargantuan task o| preparlng
|or tbe Games olo not stop wltb tbe
oevelopment o| new tlmlng equlp-
ment. |t was also necessary to proouce
many otber ltems, sucb as glant clocks
|or tbe staolums, as well as olsplays
7he Se|ko s||t-v|deo photo-j|n|sh comero prov|des the |moge jrom wh|ch ojj|c|o|s
dec|de 5oth the resu|t ond the t|me, to on occuroc, oj
1
l
1
1000 oj o second.
98 CHAPTER 11
to enable spectators to see tlmes. A
project on tbls scale was an entlrely
new eperlence |or Selko. |t ls to
tbelr eternal creolt tbat ourlng tbe
entlre Olymplc Games, tbelr very rst,
tbere were no tlmekeeplng errors
at all, altbougb tbey bao no prevlous
eperlence ano bao only bao two years
to oeslgn ano make all tbe new equlp-
ment tbat was requlreo, bavlng alreaoy
lmproveo stopwatcb per|ormance.
Havlng been granteo tbe pres-
tlglous contract to tlme tbe Olymplc
Games |or tbe rst tlme, Selko were
oetermlneo to ensure tbat, ln tbelr
banos, tlmekeeplng sboulo reacb blgber
stanoaros tban ever be|ore.
An OIynpic rst
Tbey |ullleo tbelr oream by oeveloplng
a quartz crystal cbronometer clock
tbat was useo to tlme tbe maratbon
events ano lt was accurate to
wltbln 0.2 seconos a oay. |t was tbe
rst tlme tbat quartz tlmekeeplng
system bao ever been useo at an
lnternatlonal sportlng event. Sprlng-
wouno mecbanlcal tlmepleces, wblcb
bao set tbe stanoaros |or tlmekeeplng
|or tbe preceolng 60 years, were
mostly only able to acbleve accuracy
o| plus or mlnus 20 seconos a
oay. Tbe appearance o| tbe Crystal
Cbronometer clock clearly slgnalleo
to tbe worlo tbat Selko bao been
oeveloplng quartz tecbnology ano tbat
tbey were well placeo ln tbe race to
oevelop quartz wrlstwatcbes.
Tbe rst step along tbe way |or
Selko came ln 1959, wben Selkosba
createo a practlcal quartz tlmeplece |or
a raolo statlon, but lt was not portable.
|n tbe |ollowlng year, Suwa Selkosba
oevelopeo a marlne cbronometer. |t
was soon marketeo as a commerclal
clock, tbe Crystal Cbronometer
QC-951, costlng 129,000 yen. Tbls
revolutlonary proouct was useo to
tlme some events at tbe 1964 Olymplc
Games ln Tokyo, lntroouclng quartz
accuracy to sports tlmekeeplng system
|or tbe rst tlme.
Tbe opportunlty to act as tbe o|-
clal tlmekeeper o| tbe Tokyo Olymplcs
openeo up a wbole new worlo o|
sports tlmlng opportunltles |or Selko.
Tlmlng tbe event was a mammotb
unoertaklng, but tbe oeclslon to take
on tbe cballenge proveo to be one o|
tbe most momentous lanomarks ln
tbe company's blstory ano lt bas never
lookeo back slnce. Tbe company took
lts responslblllty so serlously tbat lt
embarkeo on a |our-year oevelopment
programme, wltb no llmlt on oevelop-
ment costs or tbe resources tbat coulo
be useo. |t was a |ar-slgbteo project
tbat must be unlque ln Olymplc
blstory. 8ut was all tbe epense ano
e||ort wortbwblle! Selko tlmeo tbe
Se|ko's j|rst commerc|o|, porto5|e
quortz c|ock, the Cr,sto|
Chronometer QC-951, mode h|stor,
when |t wos used to t|me some
events ot the 19+ Comes |n 7ok,o.
U|troson|c w|nd gouges meosure the
w|nd speed. A reod|ng oj more thon
two metres o second |nvo||dotes o
wor|d trock record.
u|stonce meosurement |s prov|ded
jor o|| j|e|d events.
A jOURNEY lN TlME 99
games Nawlessly ano tbe resultlng
publlclty all over tbe worlo belpeo tbe
company to galn tbe lnternatlonal rec-
ognltlon ano creolblllty lt bao neeoeo
so baoly.
At last, Selko was able to compete
wltb tbe Swlss on equal terms |or tbe
tlmlng o| worlo class sports events.
Slnce tbat rst major sportlng event,
tbe company bas tlrelessly oevlseo new
ano lmproveo speclallst tlmlng systems
ano now lt bas one o| tbe worlo's
most comprebenslve tlmekeeplng
systems |or sports events. |t ls useo
to satls|y tbe ever-more oemanolng
requlrements o| major sports events
tbe worlo over. Slnce 1964, Selko
bave tlmeo ve more Olymplc Games,
but tbelr lnvolvement ln sports bas
grown well beyono Olymplc events
ano tbey bave provloeo tlmlng |acllltles
at many lnternatlonal multl-olsclpllne
sports events, |rom tbe Aslan ano
Commonwealtb Games to Worlo
Cbamplonsblps ln over 20 sports.
Desplte tbe Nawless tlmlng o| tbe
1964 Olymplc Games, tbe early years
tbat |olloweo were not wltbout tbelr
oramatlc moments, but tbese gave
Selko's englneers ano tecbnlclans an
opportunlty to bone tbelr speclallst
tlmlng skllls untll tbey were as sbarp
as a legenoary [apanese sworo. |n
1966, |or eample, Selko were tbe
o|clal tlmekeepers |or tbe Fl|tb Aslan
Games, belo ln Tballano. Accorolng
to Yasuakl Asabara, a senlor member
o| tbe sports tlmlng team, tbe tlmlng
equlpment tbat was taken to Tballano
was mucb tbe same as bao been useo
|or tbe Olymplc Games. Tbls |alleo
to take lnto account tbe oramatlc
ol||erence ln temperatures between
Tokyo ano 8angkok, ano resulteo ln
some equlpment |allures.
FooIproof back-ups
Quartz osclllators are partlcularly
sensltlve to temperature cbanges ano
tbe newly-oevelopeo small electronlc
prlnters bao been oevelopeo |or tbe
[apanese cllmate ln October. On a
December oay ln Tballano, wben oay-
tlme temperatures were o|ten well
over 30 C, tbe temperature lnsloe tbe
boes contalnlng some o| tbe tlmlng
equlpment rose to arouno 50 C. Tbe
temporary solutlon was a bano-belo
|an. Desplte tbe |allure o| some ltems
o| equlpment, Selko stlll manageo to
tlme every event wltbout mlsslng a
slngle tlme.
Se|ko hos served os 0jj|c|o| 7|mer jor ever, lAAl Wor|d Chomp|onsh|ps s|nce 1987.
osuok| Asohoro mosterm|nded Se|ko's
sports t|m|ng jor over 20 ,eors.
7he |otest tronsponder techno|og,
|s now used to g|ve |nstont t|mes
ond pos|t|ons |n morothons, cross-
countr, ond sk| roces.
100 CHAPTER 11
Tbe lesson tbat was learnt |rom
tbls unepecteo lnterluoe was tbat tbe
tlmekeeplng team bao to oevelop ol|-
|erent equlpment |or events ln autumn,
summer ano wlnter. Mr Asabara salo,
Tbey bao to bave |oolproo| back-up
systems. Mr Asabara eplalneo, || a
plece o| tlmekeeplng equlpment were
to |all, lt really woulo only be a |allure
l| tbe tlmekeepers olon't get a tlme
ano bao to ask tbe atbletes to run tbe
same race |or us agaln. Mr Asabara, a
keen sports entbuslast, aooeo, Tbere's
no way tbey coulo bave salo, '|'m sorry,
Carl Lewls, coulo you run tbat agaln!'.
He aooeo, A watcb ls a macblne ano
can break oown. We baven't |alleo so
|ar, but yes, our watcbes bave broken
oown. Tbat's wbere back-ups come ln.
Flrst, we make two loentlcal systems,
completely separate but llnkeo to tbe
same electrlc llnes. For gooo measure,
ln case botb systems break oown, we
bave a tblro system tbat can recoro
tbe tlme just as well as tbe otber two.
|n aooltlon to tbls, tbere ls a |ourtb
system to ensure tbat we never mlss
recorolng tbe tlme. |t's all rlgbt l| you
bave to use a calculator to compute
tbe results.
|t ls also lmportant to remember
tbat tbe atbletes wbo come ln last
bave also glven lt tbelr best sbot ano
so we oon't want to mlss tbelr tlmes,
eltber. Tbe baroest tblng ln tlmekeeplng
ls to recoro tbe tlme o| tbe last person
to nlsb. At tbe moment tbe leaolng
runner reacbes tbe nlsblng llne,
o|clals ano cameramen are waltlng
eagerly ln tbelr asslgneo posltlons. 8y
tbe tlme tbe last competltor gets to
tbe nlsblng llne, tbey're all over tbe
place, partlcularly wltb tbe 10,000
metre race.
8y tbe tlme o| tbe Sapporo
Olymplcs, ln 1972, Selko's sports
tlmlng speclallsts bao oevelopeo a
system tbat coulo tlme several sklers
slmultaneously, between tbree ano ve
at a tlme, ano tbe results were
calculateo wltbout tbe use o| com-
puters.
Skllng events present tlmekeepers
wltb more cballenges, ln aooltlon
to tbat o| tbe weatber. Mr Asabara,
wbo retlreo at tbe eno o| tbe 1990s,
eplalns Alplne skllng bas to rely on
electronlc tlmlng because you can't
see tbe start posltlon |rom tbe base
A|| resu|ts ore de||vered on-||ne ond,
jor the ojj|c|o| record, |n pr|nt.
7he Se|ko sw|mm|ng touch pods ore
port oj o ju||, outomoted s,stem,
occurote to
1
l
1
1000 oj o second.
Photo-j|n|sh |moges ore produced |nstont|, jor ojj|c|o|s to reod on-screen.
A jOURNEY lN TlME 101
o| tbe blll. Manual tlmekeeplng woulo
be lmposslble. |n tbe oownblll events
you bave two or tbree atbletes comlng
oown tbe course at tbe same tlme, but
you neeo to tlme eacb skler separately.
So now tbe operator neeos two or
tbree systems, too. Ano slnce tbere
coulo be operator mlstakes you bave
to be prepareo |or tbat, as well. Tbat's
bow |ar you bave to go be|ore you can
epect complete success.
New chaIIenges
Over tbe 40 years o| Selko's sports
tlmlng blstory, slnce tbe Tokyo Olymplc
Games ln 1964, tbe oemanos o| sport
bave lncreaseo oramatlcally ano new
tecbnologles bave become avallable.
Tbese bave createo new cballenges ano
Selko's oeolcateo sports tlmlng speclal-
lsts bave responoeo lmpresslvely.
Wltbln tbe Group, tbe computer
skllls o| Lpson bave been utlllseo ano
resulteo ln |ully on-llne systems |or tbe
1991 Worlo Cbamplonsblps ln Atbletlcs.
Swlmmlng events are anotber gooo
eample o| tbe progress tbat bas been
maoe.
At tbe Tokyo Olymplcs ln 1964,
Selko useo two ol||erent tlmekeeplng
systems |or swlmmlng events, tbey
utlllseo ol||erent tlmlng metboos, toucb
paos ano grlp swltcbes. Tbe system
ln use tooay, wltb two complete
oupllcate systems, backeo up wltb
a tblro, was lntroouceo mucb later.
Otber |unctlons bave to be provloeo
by current systems, too. Tbey are no
longer mere tlmlng systems. Tbey are
comprebenslve unlts tbat tlme eacb
event ano eacb competltor ano tben
analyse ano store tbls ln|ormatlon, ano
provloe real-tlme ln|ormatlon servlces
|or raolo ano televlslon commentators,
|or journallsts ano |or many mllllons
o| televlslon ano raolo vlewers ano
llsteners arouno tbe globe.
More than just tining
Sports tlmlng tooay, |or Selko, ls mucb
more tban just tlmlng Selko provloes
eno-to-eno solutlons oeslgneo to sat-
ls|y tbe neeos o| varles users o| tlmes
ano measurements. Tbese lncluoe tbe
atbletes, coacbes, televlslon vlewers
ano lncreaslng numbers o| lnternet
users.
|t ls etremely epenslve to pro-
vloe all tbe equlpment ano manpower
tbat are requlreo to tlme worlo-class
sports events ano tbe companles wbo
per|orm tbls lnvaluable servlce recelve
no payment |or tbelr work, so ls lt
really wortbwblle!
Sports tlmlng ooes not olrectly
make money, but lt greatly enbances
tbe reputatlon o| tbe company tbat
wlns a tlmekeeplng contract. A|ter
1972, only two organlsatlons bave
uownh||| sk||ng |s one oj the most
comp|ex oj o|| A|p|ne sports.
7he photo-j|n|sh |moges ore 5u||t jrom p|ctures token oj the j|n|sh ||ne 5,000 t|mes o
second, 7h|s |moge |s o p|cture oj t|me, not spoce|
102 CHAPTER 11
tlmeo worlo-class multl-olsclpllne
sports events, Selko ano a consortlum
o| Swlss companles.
Slnce tbe very early oays o| lts
lnvolvement wltb sports tlmlng, Selko
bas appreclateo tbat altbougb tbe
company recelves no payment |or
tlmlng top lnternatlonal events ln most
cases, lts lnvolvement palo enormous
olvloenos, ln terms o| publlclty ano
lncreaseo sales. Tbe publlc's purcbaslng
oeclslons are clearly lnNuenceo by
seelng tbe name o| tbe watcb company
tbat ls tlmlng top events, wbetber tbey
are present at tbe event or see lt on
televlslon. Above all, tbe most valuable
return on tbe buge lnvestment ln
sports tlmlng comes ln tbe lntanglble
|orm o| trust.
Anotber reason |or Selko's
passlon |or sport lles ln tbe tecbnlcal
cballenge lt presents, partlclpatlon ln
sports tlmlng stlmulates tbe company
to oevelop new tecbnology tbe
ploneerlng use o| quartz tecbnology at
tbe Tokyo Olymplc Games ln 1964 ls a
gooo eample. Sports tlmlng generates
publlclty |or Selko arouno tbe worlo
ln plctures ln tbe press, on televlslon
ano now on tbe lnternet, too. At tbe
Salt Lake Clty Wlnter Olymplc Games,
Selko was tbe only name vlslble ln
televlslon plctures ln well over 900
bours o| broaocastlng transmltteo to
160 countrles.
Tbe responslblllty o| tlmlng
Olymplc ano otber worlo-class multl-
olsclpllne sports events ls awe-lnsplrlng,
but tbe value o| tbe resultlng publlclty
ls almost lncalculable. Tbe company bas
never counteo tbe cost o| lts sports
tlmlng operatlons, lt oeslgns systems
to satls|y tlmlng neeos ano not to a
buoget. |t sees lts lnvestment as gooo
cltlzensblp.
Tbe Selko name was maoe
|amous tbrougb lts tlmlng o| tbe 1964
Olymplc Games ln Tokyo, ano provlolng
tlmekeeplng |acllltles at lnternatlonal
sports events ls Selko's way o| paylng tbe
worlo back |or tbe opportunlty lt was
o||ereo ano selzeo ln Tokyo ln 1964.
Slnce 1964, Selko's commltment to
tbe oevelopment o| worlo sport bas
leo to lts appolntment as O|clal Tlmer
o| many o| tbe worlo most lmportant
sports events.
Loudspeokers conve, the storter's s|gno| to eoch |one |nd|v|duo||,, to counteroct the de|o, oj sound trove|||ng though the o|r.
A jOURNEY lN TlME 103
1966 Tbe 5tb Aslan Games (Tballano)
1967 Summer Unlverslaoe ([apan)
1970 Tbe 6tb Aslan Games (Tballano)
1974 X Commonwealtb Games (New
Zealano)
Tbe 7tb Aslan Games (|ran)
1978 Tbe 8tb Aslan Games (Tballano)
1982 Tbe 9tb Aslan Games (|nola)
1985 Summer Unlverslaoe ([apan)
1986 1st Wlnter Aslan Games ([apan)
1987 2no |AAF Worlo Cbamplonsblps ln
Atbletlcs (|taly)
1990 X|v Commonwealtb Games (New
Zealano)
2no Wlnter Aslan Games ([apan)
1991 Wlnter Unlverslaoe ([apan)
3ro |AAF Worlo Cbamplonsblps ln
Atbletlcs ([apan)
1993 Alplne Skl Worlo Cbamplonsblps
([apan)
Worlo Sprlnt Speeo Skatlng
Cbamplonsblps ([apan)
4tb |AAF Worlo Cbamplonsblps ln
Atbletlcs (Germany)
1994 Tbe 12tb Aslan Games ([apan)
Xv Commonwealtb Games
(Canaoa)
1995 5tb |AAF Worlo Cbamplonsblps ln
Atbletlcs (Sweoen)
Summer Unlverslaoe ([apan)
1997 Worlo Sprlnt Speeo Skatlng
Cbamplonsblps ([apan)
1997 6tb |AAF Worlo Cbamplonsblps ln
Atbletlcs (Greece)
Worlo [uoo Cbamplonsblps (France)
1998 Luropean Atbletlcs Cbamplonsblps
(Hungary)
|AAF Worlo Cup o| Atbletlcs (Soutb
A|rlca)
1999 7tb |AAF Worlo Cbamplonsblps ln
Atbletlcs (Spaln)
2000 Worlo [unlor Atbletlcs
Cbamplonsblps (Cblle)
2001 Worlo Swlmmlng Cbamplonsblps
([apan)
8tb |AAF Worlo Cbamplonsblps ln
Atbletlcs (Canaoa)
2002 Luropean |nooor Atbletlcs
Cbamplonsblps (Austrla)
Luropean Atbletlcs Cbamplonsblps
(Germany)
Worlo Cup o| Atbletlcs (Spaln)
2003 |AAF Worlo |nooor Atbletlcs
Cbamplonsblps (UK)
9tb |AAF Worlo Cbamplonsblps ln
Atbletlcs (France)
2004 |AAF Worlo |nooor Atbletlcs
Cbamplonsblps (Hungary)
2005 Luropean |nooor Atbletlcs
Cbamplonsblps (Spaln)
10tb |AAF Worlo Cbamplonsblps ln
Atbletlcs (Flnlano)
2006 Luropean Atbletlcs Cbamplonsblps
(Sweoen)
5ELECTED OTHER MAjOR lNTERNATlONAL EVENT5
MAjOR EVENT5 TlMED BY 5ElKO
OLYMPlC GAME5
1964 Games o| tbe Xv||| Olymplao (Tokyo)
1972 Tbe X| Olymplc Wlnter Games (Sapporo)
1992 Games o| tbe XXv Olymplao (8arcelona)
1994 Tbe Xv|| Olymplc Wlnter Games (Llllebammer)
1998 Tbe Xv||| Olymplc Wlnter Games (Nagano)
2002 Tbe X|X Olymplc Wlnter Games (Salt Lake Clty)
104 CHAPTER 11
5ElKO Hl5TORY OF TlMEKEEPlNG TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT
1964 Developeo electronlc tlmekeeplng system, rst lntroouceo at tbe Tokyo Olymplc Games.
1972 Developeo an electronlc tlmekeeplng system |or wlnter sports (tbe Sapporo Wlnter Olymplc
Games)
1991 Developeo on-llne tlmlng system |or track events, baseo on tbe Selko sllt-vloeo pboto-nlsb
system. (3ro |AAF Worlo Cbamplonsblps ln Atbletlcs ln Tokyo)
1992 Developeo wlno gauge |or track ano elo events. (8arcelona Olymplc Games)
1994 Developeo bobslelgb ano luge tlmekeeplng system. (Llllebammer Wlnter Olymplc Games)
Developeo a track ano elo startlng system, coorolnateo wltb a |alse-start oetector tbat plcks
up tbe pressure eerteo by atbletes ln tbelr startlng blocks. (Hlrosblma Aslan Games)
1997 Developeo a color sllt vloeo pboto-nlsb system |or track competltlons. (|AAF Worlo |nooor
Cbamplonsblps)
1998 Developeo a Nlgbt olstance measurement system |or Skl jumplng events baseo on computer
lmage processlng. (Nagano Wlnter Olymplc Games)
2000 Fully on-llne ano lntegrateo transponoer system lntroouceo |or Poao ano Cross-Country
events
A jOURNEY IN YIME 105
THL |NNOvAT|ON GOLS ON
Innovation and ReBnement' is the guiding vision for 5eiko's development teams. On
three platforms, quartz, Kinetic and 5pring Drive, 5eiko continues to eplore new
possibilities in functions, forms and design - the future is only just beginning.
After its triumphant introduction
o| quartz watcb tecbnology, Selko was
not content to let tlme pass lt by,
lnsteao, lt contlnueo to move |orwaro
by eplorlng all tbe creatlve posslblll-
tles lnberent ln wrlstwatcb proouctlon.
Havlng establlsbeo quartz tecbnology
as a base, tbe company bas ceaselessly
|ocuseo lts researcb on tbe quest |or
greater accuracy, smaller movements,
ever-better rellablllty, more |unctlons
ano, above all, alternatlve solutlons
to tbe provlslon o| power to orlve
quartz watcbes ano now, mecbanlcal
watcbes tbat bave tbe accuracy o|
quartz.
Quartz
From 1969 untll tbe present oay, quartz
bas provloeo Selko wltb a strong plat-
|orm |or lnnovatlve new prooucts tbat
bave |ouno |avour worlowloe, eamples
lncluoe tbe rst woman's quartz watcb
ln 1972 ano tbe rst analogue quartz
cbronograpb ln 1983.
Tbe Perpetual Calenoar watcb bas
been launcbeo more recently. Tbls
|uture-proo| tlmeplece bas set new
stanoaros |or analogue quartz watcbes
ano ls a sbowcase |or tbe company's
epertlse ln mlcroelectronlcs. Tbe
oeslgners set tbemselves tbe cballenge
o| oeveloplng a perpetual calenoar
movement tbat woulo be small,
etremely accurate ano woulo o||er
tbe owner unlnterrupteo ano worry-
|ree operatlon |or tbe longest posslble
tlme. Tbey acbleveo tbelr goal by lncor-
poratlng tbe worlo's smallest ultrasonlc
motor, a new blgb-|requency osclllator
ano a new generatlon o| lltblum bat-
terles. Tbe Perpetual Calenoar watcb
aojusts tbe oate to take lnto account
tbe lengtb o| eacb montb, as well as
leap years, untll February 2100, ano lt
|eatures a crown-operateo calenoar
cbeck. Tbls moves tbe seconos bano
to sbow tbe number o| years slnce tbe
last leap year. One year ls lnolcateo by
eacb ve-secono lnterval tbat tbe sec-
onos bano moves |orwaro wben tbls
|eature ls lnvokeo. Tbe oate cbange
on tbls aovanceo watcb ls lnstant. At
tbe same tlme, tbe montb ano tben
tbe oate are olsplayeo ln tbe calenoar
wlnoow. Lvery mooel ls water reslstant
to a pressure o| 10 bars.
Tbe nlsbeo proouct ls practlcal,
reasonably prlceo ano neeos a new
battery only once every 10 years
ln tbe man's verslon ano every ve
years ln tbe women's mooel. 8y uslng
new components tbat bave |acllltateo
tbe creatlon o| a smaller movement,
tbe oeslgners openeo tbe way to tbe
7he Perpetuo| Co|endor 5, Se|ko tokes
|eop ,eors |nto occount ond w||| show
the correct dote unt|| 2100.
106 CHAPYER 12
lntroouctlon o| a matcblng palr o|
Perpetual Calenoar watcbes. A new
quartz osclllator bas been useo ln tbls
aovanceo callbre, uslng a |requency sl
tlmes |aster tban tbat ln a conventlonal
quartz movement. Tbls bas maoe pos-
slble accuracy o| 20 seconos a year.
Tbe Selko Perpetual Calenoar bas
tbe potentlal |or truly perpetual accu-
racy, but a qulrk o| blstory prevents
lt |ullllng lts |ull potentlal wltbout
|urtber programmlng a|ter 2100. All
perpetual calenoar watcbes wlll
requlre aojustment ln 2100, because lt
wlll not be a leap year. |n 1582, Pope
Gregory lntroouceo tbe Gregorlan cal-
enoar tbat we stlll use tooay, altbougb
lt was only aoopteo ln Great 8rltaln
ln 1752 ano ln Pussla ln 1917. 8ecause
tbere ls not an eact number o| solar
oays ln a troplcal year, lt ls necessary to
lnsert" an etra oay every |our years,
a leap year. |n tbe Gregorlan calenoar,
every year tbat ls eactly olvlslble by 4
ls a leap year, ecept |or years tbat are
olvlslble by 100, tbese centurlal years
are leap years only l| tbey are eactly
olvlslble by 400. Tbus 2000 was a leap
year, but 2100 wlll not be.
Selko's vlslon o| tbe |uture com-
blnes lnnovatlon ano renement, an
ecellent eample o| tbe response o|
Selko's oeslgners to tbe call |or even
more renement ln tbelr creatlons ls
tbe vlvace collectlon. Tbls embraces
clarlty ano slmpllclty o| oeslgn, creatlng
a look tbat bas enjoyeo great success
ln Lurope ano otber major markets,
but wblcb also bas |unctlonallty tbat
belles lts beauty. Lacb vlvace watcb ls
3 bar water reslstant.
Aooltlonal |unctlonallty baseo on
quartz tecbnology was tbe lnsplratlon
|or tbe Sportura Worlo Tlmer watcb,
launcbeo ln 2002. |t lncluoes a oual
analogue ano olgltal olal tbat can
olsplay tbe tlme, oay ano oate ln any
one o| 28 cltles worlowloe. |ts otber
|eatures lncluoe a |ully automatlc
calenoar to 2050, oayllgbt savlng
aojustment, cbronograpb |unctlon ano
worlo tlme alarm. Tbese aovanceo
tecbnlcal |eatures are complementeo
by a stalnless steel case tbat ls water
reslstant to 100 metres, ano a vlrtually
unscratcbable sappblre glass.
Kinetic
Lven as quartz tecbnology was stlll
belng eplolteo, Selko's englneers, as
early as tbe mlo-1970s, bao lmaglneo
tbe posslblllty o| llnklng tbe accuracy
o| quartz to tbe energy-e|clency o|
mecbanlcal ano automatlc watcbes. As
tbe company's overall commltment
to ecologlcal lssues grew ln tbe early
1980s, tbls oream began to take sbape
ln tbe |orm o| Klnetlc tbe ultlmate
manl|estatlon o| bow Selko coulo
|use lts envlronmental concerns
ano lts mlcroelectronlcs skllls to
create an entlrely new generatlon o|
tlmepleces. At tbe same tlme, alterna-
tlve battery-|ree solutlons were also
trleo. |n tbe early 1980s, solar watcbes
were oevelopeo as one o| Selko's solu-
tlons to tbe energy problem. Tbey
were powereo by llgbt ano requlreo
S|nce |ts |ntroduct|on, the Sporturo
ronge hos |ed the wo, forword |n
des|gn ond techno|og,. ln 2002, th|s
versot||e Wor|d 7|mer vers|on wos
odded to the co||ect|on.
ef|nement |s the ho||mork of the
|otest \|voce co||ect|ons.
ln 1972, Se|ko |ntroduced the f|rst
|od|es` quortz wotch.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 107
no battery cbange, but Selko oroppeo
oevelopment o| tbls ln|erlor tecb-
nology ln |avour o| Klnetlc, wblcb uses
tbe natural movement o| tbe wearer's
wrlst, wbereas a solar powereo wrlst-
watcb may not always recelve su|clent
llgbt, especlally l| lt ls covereo |or most
o| tbe oay by a sleeve tbat sblelos lt
|rom llgbt.
All Selko's energles became
|ocuseo on Klnetlc ano, by 1999, tbere
were alreaoy ve ol||erent Klnetlc
movements, eacb oeslgneo |or ol||erent
slzes o| case ano appllcatlons. Klnetlc
bao been establlsbeo lt was tlme to
move abeao.
Selko tben surprlseo tbe watcb
worlo by lntroouclng tbe Klnetlc Auto
Pelay, a tlmeplece tbat ls capable o|
golng to sleep" ano waklng up" agaln
at any tlme ln tbe |ollowlng |our years.
|t was as tbougb tbls watcb coulo tblnk
|or ltsel|. Llke all Klnetlc watcbes, lt ls powereo by movement o| tbe wear-
er's arm ano tbus ellmlnates tbe neeo
|or battery cbanges, but lt also bas
one very speclal aooltlonal |eature. |t
bas tbe ablllty to malntaln accurate
tlmekeeplng over long perloos, even
l| lt ls not worn, by enterlng a state
o| suspenoeo anlmatlon l| lt senses
lnactlvlty |or tbree oays. Llke tbe braln
o| a sleeplng person, lt tben contlnues
to malntaln preclse tlmekeeplng wltbln
lts electronlc clrcults, but ceases to
orlve tbe stepplng motor ano banos,
tbe components tbat requlre most
power. Wben lt ls eventually moveo
agaln, tbe banos reset to olsplay tbe
correct tlme.
Klnetlc bas not been tbe only
tecbnology tbat Selko bas oevelopeo
wltb tbe ecology ln mlno. Tbe Tbermlc
watcb, launcbeo ln 1998, ls anotber
gooo eample. |nsteao o| uslng Klnetlc
tecbnology to generate lts source o|
power, tbe Tbermlc watcb generates
electrlclty by barnesslng tbe ol||erence
ln temperature between tbe watcb
case ano tbe skln o| tbe wearer. Al-
tbougb tbe Tbermlc watcb o||ers
many benets, Klnetlc tecbnology bas
proveo to be tbe clear wlnner ln tbe
eyes o| tbe watcb-buylng publlc, ano
tbe most recent lnnovatlve symbol o|
lts success ls tbe Klnetlc Cbronograpb,
launcbeo ln 2000. |ts unlque move-
ment was oevelopeo to o||er not only
cbronograpb |unctlons, but also ease
o| operatlon, aoolng a new level o|
tecbnlcal sopblstlcatlon. Unusually ln
movement oeslgn, |orm came be|ore
|unctlon lt was oevelopeo to create
a style. |t |eatures |our eyes" |or lts
|our |unctlons, wltb no overlap tbe
|our separate olals o| tbls cbronograpb
are eacb vlslble tbrougb a separate
aperture ln tbe case. At tbe sl o'clock
posltlon ls a tlme-o|-oay olal, tbe otber
Se|ko`s Auto e|o, s,stem eno5|es o
K|net|c wotch to go to s|eep when
|t |s not moved for three do,s ond
to woke up ond reset |tse|f to the
correct t|me os soon os |t |s moved
ogo|n, up to four ,eors |oter.
7he 7herm|c wotch |s onother
exomp|e of Se|ko`s determ|not|on to
odopt on env|ronmento||, fr|end|,
opprooch. lt creotes e|ectr|c|t,
5, horness|ng d|fferences |n
temperoture 5etween the cose 5ock
ond the weorer`s wr|st.
lorm come 5efore funct|on |n the
des|gn of the K|net|c Chronogroph
movement |n order to creote the
four e,es.
108 CHAPYER 12
tbree olals sbow cbronograpb ln|orma-
tlon, bours ano mlnutes, seconos, ano
tentbs o| a secono.
Pesponslve banos tbat return to
tbelr startlng polnt lnstantaneously
wben tbe button ls presseo are one
cbronograpb |eature tbat never |alls to
satls|y tbe user. Tbls bas always been
a |eature o| mecbanlcal cbronograpbs
ano now Selko bas lncorporateo lt ln
tbe Klnetlc Cbronograpb, uslng a beart-
cam snap-to-zero system. To ensure
tbat movement o| tbe banos ls smootb
ano tbe oate cbange ls lnstantaneous,
38 ruby bearlngs bave been useo ln tbe
movement. To orlve tbe |ast-movlng
banos on tbls cbronograpb tbe move-
ment requlres a great oeal o| energy,
so tbe power generatlon system ln tbls
speclal mooel proouces tbree tlmes
more electrlclty tban any otber Klnetlc
watcb.
Tbls lmportant tlmeplece com-
blnes tbe rellablllty ano blgb accuracy
o| Selko Klnetlc tecbnology wltb tbe
traoltlonal attrlbutes o| tbe mecbanlcal
cbronograpb. Wltb a |ull cbarge |rom
lts Klnetlc generatlng system, tbls
watcb wlll run |or approlmately one
montb, assumlng tbe cbronograpb ls
useo |or tbree bours eacb oay. Tbe
case ls 10 bar water reslstant ano |ea-
tures a see-tbrougb back to rouno o||
tbe unlque appeal o| tbls remarkable
tlmeplece ano to o||er a clear vlew o|
lts etraorolnary tecbnology.
Untll now, Selko bas proouceo
movements rst ano oeslgneo cases
later. Tooay, ano ln tbe |uture, Selko
movements are belng oevelopeo as
oeslgns tbey bave become an lntegral
part o| tbe overall oeslgn process.
Lnergy-savlng prooucts are central
to Selko's pollcy o| lnnovatlon ano con-
cern |or tbe envlronment ano Klnetlc
tecbnology was tbe rst manl|estatlon
o| tbe company's long-oeclareo mls-
slon to care |or tbe envlronment by
Spr|ng ur|ve |s the most |mportont deve|opment |n t|mekeep|ng s|nce K|net|c. lt morr|es the 5est of quortz to the 5est of outomot|c.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 109
searcblng |or ways to reouce or ellml-
nate tbe neeo |or tbe batterles tbat
cause pollutlon to our planet.
Selko's contlnulng orlve |or
ecellence bas always |ocuseo on
|unctlons as mucb as on power-savlng
ano, ln tbe 1980s ano 90s, mucb
attentlon was palo to tbe neeos
o| pro|esslonal olvers. |n 1990, tbe
company launcbeo tbe worlo's rst
olver's watcb tbat lncorporateo olvlng
tables ano a oeptb gauge.
Tbe lntroouctlon o| Klnetlc totally
revolutlonlseo tbe olver's watcb. |t was
ln 1992 tbat tbe worlo's rst quartz
olvlng watcb wltb a Klnetlc movement
was launcbeo. Tbls ellmlnateo tbe neeo
|or regular battery cbanges ano |or tbe
costly but vltal cbanglng o| tbe seals
tbat malntaln water reslstance. Above
all, tbe Klnetlc verslon o| tbe olvlng
watcb ensureo tbat a olver woulo
never agaln run tbe rlsk o| a watcb
stopplng ourlng a olve.
5pring Drive
[ust as work on Klnetlc bao progresseo
at even tbe early stages o| tbe quartz
watcb revolutlon, so Selko starteo
to oevelop an entlrely new watcb
concept ln tbe ln|ancy o| tbe Klnetlc
age. |n 1999, Selko lntroouceo wbat
bas been oescrlbeo as tbe watcb o|
tbe |uture. Calleo Sprlng Drlve, lt
bolos out tbe promlse o| tbe per|ect
syntbesls o| tbe buman ano tbe
electronlc, tbe olo ano tbe new, tbe
comple ano tbe slmple. Armbano
Ubren, a blgbly respecteo watcb
publlcatlon, bas remarkeo tbat Selko
ls too mooest about tbls slgnlcant
acblevement. |ts revolutlonary mlcro-
mecbantronlc tecbnology retalns
tbe best o| mecbanlcal ano quartz
tecbnology ano olspenses wltb
tbe weakest component o| eacb. |t
bas a malnsprlng tbat ls wouno by
bano. As lt unwlnos, lt not only orlves
tbe smootb sweeplng actlon o| tbe
large banos, but also powers a rotor
wbose tlny electrlcal output lnouces
a quartz crystal to emlt a re|erence
slgnal. An lntegrateo clrcult calculates
tbe ol||erence between tbls slgnal ano
tbe rate at wblcb tbe malnsprlng ls
unwlnolng ano tben uses an electro-
magnetlc braklng system to regulate
tbe speeo at wblcb tbe sprlng unwlnos.
Selko's lngenlous oeslgners bave
ellmlnateo tbe escapement, tbe most
troublesome part o| a mecbanlcal
movement, ano also tbe battery, tbe
part o| a quartz watcb tbat neeos to be
replaceo ecept ln Klnetlc watcbes.
Unllke a traoltlonal mecbanlcal watcb,
tbe Sprlng Drlve movement runs wltb
tbe accuracy o| a quartz tlmeplece, but
unllke a quartz watcb, lt bas a seconos
bano tbat sweeps smootbly arouno tbe
Se|ko`s un|que Spr|ng ur|ve techno|og, com5|nes the 5est feotures of mechon|co|
ond quortz wotches. 7h|s st,||sh exomp|e feotures o power reserve |nd|cotor on the
d|o| to show how much |onger |t w||| run 5efore |t needs w|nd|ng.
110 CHAPYER 12
olal.
Tbe lntegrateo clrult ln a Sprlng
Drlve watcb runs on only 25 nanowatts,
bal| tbe power tbat ls requlreo by a
conventlonal cblp. Tbls remarkable
ultra low-power, low-voltage |C ls
one o| tbe unlque Selko tecbnologles
tbat bave maoe Selko Sprlng Drlve
posslble. Wben |ully wouno, tbe watcb
runs |or 48 bours wltb an accuracy
o| 15 seconos a montb. Wltb tbese
grouno-breaklng approacbes to tbe
tecbnology o| tlme, Selko bas earneo
lts reputatlon as tbe worlo's most
lnnovatlve watcb manu|acturer.
'|nnovatlon ano Penement' con-
tlnue to be central to Selko's vlslon |or
tbe |uture ano tbe searcb |or lt ls belng
conoucteo on tbree |ronts, quartz,
Klnetlc ano Sprlng Drlve.
On all tbree plat|orms, Selko
epects to lntroouce new |unctlons
ano new oeslgn posslbllltles |or many
years to come.
7he |nnovot|ve movement of the
Spr|ng ur|ve |s reveo|ed 5, |ts
see-through cose 5ock.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 111
THL GUAPD|ANS OF T|ML
Yo mark the centenary of the founding of K Hattori, 5eiko set up a new institution
that might not have pleased Kintaro Hattori, the founder of the company, but is
certain to please future generations. In 1981, the 5eiko Institute of Horology was
established in Yokyo.
Kintaro Hattori, according to
bls granoson Peljlro, always wanteo
to look |orwaros ano consloereo lt a
waste o| tlme to look over bls sbouloer.
Peljlro Hattorl recalls, Now, our com-
pany bas an |nstltute o| Horology, but
l| Grano|atber bao been arouno wben
lt was belng set up, tbere's no ques-
tlon tbat be woulo bave salo, 'How
preposterous. [ust stop lt!' You see,
wben | was a klo ano people vlslteo
Grano|atber, saylng '| bave a Mooel
Number One oatlng |rom tbe tlme
wben Selkosba was |ormeo' or 'Here's
one o| your olo catalogues', be woulo
really get ln a bao mooo.
On tbese occaslons be woulo
always say '| coulo unoerstano lt l| tbey
bao gone to some |orelgn country ano
were telllng me to look at a new watcb
tbey bao come across, but brlnglng
sometblng because lt was one o| my
olo prooucts, tbat's preposterous!' My
|atber woulo tell me tbese storles ano
laugb, aoolng, 'Well, tbat's tbe nature
o| tbe |ounoer o| a buslness, tbey're
always keen on new tblngs'." Wben tbe
company reacbeo lts centenary, tbere
coulo be llttle ooubt tbat tbe many
great acblevements were wortby o|
belng preserveo ano catalogueo |or
posterlty ano so tbe Selko |nstltute o|
Horology was establlsbeo ln Tokyo.
Tbe |nstltute was establlsbeo
not to glorl|y Selko but to malntaln
a recoro o| tbe oevelopment o|
watcbmaklng, lncluolng Selko's blstory.
Tbe |nstltute's curators look a|ter
16,000 watcbes, clocks ano relateo
ltems tbat go back as |ar as tbe oawn
o| tbe borologlcal lnoustry ln [apan.
Tbe |nstltute also bas a reaolng room
ano etenslve llterature about tlme
ano tlmepleces, botb |rom [apan ano
overseas, lnoustry blstory, borologlcal
tecbnology, antlque oocuments ano
mucb more.
Tbere ls a permanent eblbltlon
ano altbougb most o| tbe ltems on
sbow relate to Selko, otbers lllustrate
eacb stage ln tbe oevelopment o| tbe
blstory o| watcbes ano clocks.
Koujl Kubota ls tbe |nstltute's
bonorary olrector ano |ew people
coulo bave been better qualleo to
beao sucb an lmportant museum:
be was one o| tbe key members o|
tbe Selko team tbat oevelopeo ano
launcbeo tbe worlo's rst quartz
wrlstwatcb. He bas a remarkable
memory |or oetall ano coulo be
llkeneo to a borologlcal blstory book
ano olctlonary, able to recall even
obscure ltems o| ln|ormatlon. At tbe
|nstltute be consloereo blmsel| to be
a conservatlonlst o| worlo tlmepleces,
ano not just tbose maoe ln [apan.
Tbe |nstltute bouses some o| tbe
earllest orlental tlmepleces, lncluolng
lncense clocks ano early [apanese
7h|s wo|| c|ock wos mode 5,
Se|kosho |n 1892, the ,eor when
K|ntoro Hottor| set up h|s f|rst c|ock
foctor,.
112 CHAPYER 13
clocks wltb twln verge ano |ollot
escapements, oeslgneo to sbow tlme
accorolng to tbe olo [apanese system
wltb eacb oay olvloeo lnto two perloos,
oayllgbt ano oarkness ano wltb eacb o|
tbese subolvloeo.
|n lts permanent olsplays tbe
museum bas eamples o| some o| tbe
early Amerlcan wall clocks tbat were
lmporteo by K Hattorl, as well as some
o| tbe early clocks maoe by Klntaro
Hattorl's rst |actory ln Tokyo. |n
aooltlon to tbe clocks ano watcbes tbat
sbow tbe oevelopment o| Selko tbere
are some verltable treasures, sucb as
tbe watcbes tbat acbleveo remarkable
success ln tbe Swlss Cbronometer
trlals ano tbe treasureo prototypes o|
some o| Selko's rst quartz clocks ano
watcbes.
One sectlon o| tbe |nstltute ls
oevoteo to wbat bas been calleo
borologlcal pre-blstory ln [apan. Tbls
covers tbe perloo up to 1890 ano
tells tbe story o| tbe blstory o| tlme
|rom several tbousano years ago, wben
people rst began to tblnk about tlme,
ano tbe rst sunolals createo ln Lgypt
arouno 4,000 8C.
From the beginning
Tbe subsequent eblblts ln tbe |nstltute
are presenteo ln cbronologlcal
oroer. Tbe rst sectlon covers tbe
establlsbment o| K Hattorl ano
tbe Selkosba |actory, |rom 1881 to
1912. Tbere are superb black ano wblte
plctures o| pocket watcb proouctlon ano
clock assembly at tbe Selkosba plant ln
1903, as well as lmposlng vlews o| tbe
o|ce bullolng ano tbe |actory ln 1909.
Tbe |nstltute's secono sectlon
covers tbe Talsbo Lra, |rom 1913
to 1926. At tbe beglnnlng o| tbls
perloo Selkosba proouceo [apan's rst
wrlstwatcb, tbe Laurel, wblcb can be
|ouno ln tbe museum. |n 1924, tbe rst
wrlstwatcb was proouceo bearlng tbe
Selko name ano an eample o| one
o| tbese ls also on sbow. |n 1923, tbe
Great Kanto Lartbquake oestroyeo
tbe company's stocks ano |actorles.
Tbe rst wrlstwatcb bearlng tbe name
Selko" was proouceo just one year
later.
|n tbe rst perloo o| tbe Sbowa
Lra, |rom 1927 to 1934, restoratlon
|ollowlng tbe Great Lartbquake
contlnueo. Tbe Selkosba |actory was
rebullt by 1930 ano tbe K Hattorl
Glnza bullolng two years later. Tbe
new art oeco Glnza bullolng ls stlll
ln elstence tooay ano, as tbe Wako
store, ls one o| tbe most |amous
symbols o| [apan's most ecluslve
ano worlo renowneo sbopplng area.
Tbe |nstltute lncluoes lllustratlons o|
tbe company's early bullolngs, as well
as many eamples o| prooucts maoe
by Selkosba ln tbe early years. |t also
contalns some o| tbe Amerlcan clocks
tbat provloeo tbe lnsplratlon |or many
o| Selkosba's early mooels.
Durlng tbe secono perloo o|
tbe Sbowa Lra, |rom 1935 to 1945,
Selkosba createo a separate watcb
company calleo Dalnl Selkosba, wblcb
llterally means Secono Selkosba".
|n tbe early Sbowa Lra, ourlng tbe
Pusso-[apanese War, tbe company was
olrecteo by tbe mllltary autborltles to
proouce artlllery |uses.
|t was obllgeo to proouce mllltary
ltems agaln ourlng tbe Slno-[apanese
War o| 1937 ano tbe Secono Worlo
7h|s |s on exomp|e of one of the eor||est o|orm c|ocks mode 5, Se|kosho. lt wos
produced |n 7ok,o |n 1899.
A jOURNEY IN YIME 113
War. For tbe ouratlon o| tbls war,
botb Selkosba |actorles bao to be
turneo over to |ull mllltary-orl-
enteo proouctlon, maklng ltems
sucb as marlne cbronometers ano
mllltary cbronograpbs. Mllltary output
accounteo |or as mucb as 94 o|
proouctlon wben bostllltles enoeo
ln 1945. Manu|acturlng o| con-
sumer watcbes bao oecllneo year by
year to almost notblng. Durlng tbls
tlme, Selko's tecbnlcal team createo
cbronometers, at tbe request o| tbe
[apanese Navy, tbat were consloereo
superlor to Swlss maoe counterparts
ano tbls eperlence maoe a major con-
trlbutlon to tbe post-war oevelopment
o| Selko.
An 11 llgne watcb was proouceo
arouno 1941 |eaturlng [apanese cbar-
acters on tbe olal, ln response to
problbltlon o| tbe use o| tbe western
alpbabet Lngllsb was oecreeo to be
an enemy language". Untll tben, tbe
name on tbe olal was Selko, ln western
cbaracters, but |or a perloo ourlng tbe
war tbe equlvalent [apanese pbonetlc
letters were useo. Unoer government
olrectlon, tbe olals also bao 24-bour
marklng.
More devastation
A|ter tbe war, major rebullolng work
commenceo |or tbe secono tlme ln
tbe company's blstory ano lt ooml-
nateo tbe rst bal| o| tbe tblro perloo
o| tbe Sbowa Lra, |rom 1946 to 1954.
Durlng tbe War, tbe Dalnl Selkosba
|actory ln Tokyo was oevastateo as a
result o| bomblng ralos, but wlsely tbe
company bao spreao lts operatlons
among otber |actorles outsloe Tokyo.
8y tbe eno o| 1949, all but one o| tbe
|actorles ln Suwa bao been closeo ano
tbe Kameloo plant ln Tokyo became
tbe |ocus o| attentlon. |t restarteo
proouctlon, but because o| oeterlo-
ratlng equlpment ano tbe poor quallty
o| raw materlals ln tbe post-war years,
lt eperlenceo many quallty problems.
Speclal procurements |or tbe Korean
War, startlng ln 1950, belpeo to revl-
tallse tbe [apanese economy ano, as
oemano lncreaseo ln tbe watcb market,
proouctlvlty lncreaseo ano quallty was
stablllseo. Tbe |nstltute o| Horology
7he lnst|tute |nc|udes not on|,
t|mep|eces record|ng Se|ko`s own
h|stor,, 5ut o|so other c|ocks thot
|||ustrote the h|stor, of t|mekeep|ng
|n jopon. 7h|s |s o c|ock w|th o tw|n
verge ond fo||ot (v|s|5|e 5e|ow the
5e||j, from the ero when jopon used
the |unor s,stem of t|mekeep|ng.
0ne of the Amer|con c|ocks thot
prov|ded some of the |nsp|rot|on for
Se|kosho`s eor|, products.
A wo|| c|ock w|th o second d|o| thot
shows the do,, month, ond dote,
mode |n the USA 5, Seth 7homos ot
the end of the 19th centur,.
114 CHAPYER 13
wants to stuoy tbe oevelopment o|
tlmekeeplng, especlally tbe [apanese
contrlbutlon. |t ls open to anybooy, |ree
o| cbarge, but by appolntment only.
Lnqulrles sboulo be aooresseo to:
Tbe Selko |nstltute o| Horology
3-9-7 Hlgasbl-Mukoujlma
Sumloa-Ku
Tokyo 131-0032
[apan
Telepbone: +81 3-3610-6248
Fa: +81 3-3610-6256
contalns lllustratlons ano olo tlme-
pleces tbat oocument Selko's growtb
ano tbe oevelopment o| lts prooucts.
|n post-war [apan, tbe proouctlon
o| all types o| consumer gooos was
glven top prlorlty ano as part o| a
general pollcy almeo at boostlng
eports, speclal empbasls was glven
to tbe borologlcal lnoustry. Publlc
ano acaoemlc resources were maoe
avallable ln a blo to enbance tbe quallty
o| [apanese watcbes. |n 1948, tbe
Mlnlstry o| |nternatlonal Traoe ano
|noustry starteo a oomestlc watcb
competltlon tbat was part o| tbls e||ort
ano gave a substantlal boost to quallty
ln tbe lnoustry.
A distinctive identity
Tbe eblblts ln tbe museum coverlng
tbe |ourtb perloo o| tbe Sbowa Lra,
|rom 1955 to 1964, are lmportant
because tbls was tbe age ln wblcb
Selko movements ano complete
watcbes began to acqulre a olstlnctlve
loentlty o| tbelr own. |t was tbe tlme
wben Selko's oeslgners lntroouceo
tbelr own solutlons to tecbnlcal
problems ano lntroouceo conveyor
belt systems |or tbe proouctlon o|
watcbes ano clocks. |n tbls era, many
lmportant new mecbanlcal watcbes
were lntroouceo, lncluolng tbe Super,
tbe Marvel ano Cronos llnes, as well
as tbe enourlng Grano Selko llne. |n
1959, Selko launcbeo lts rst quartz
master clock ano oevelopment bao
alreaoy starteo on Selko's rst quartz
wrlstwatcb. Tbe |nstltute oocuments
Selko at tbe belgbt o| lts mecbanlcal
proouctlon, as well as tbe all-lmportant
quartz oevelopment years.
Tbe |nstltute o| Horology provloes
an lnvaluable resource |or anyone wbo
Mon, eor|, t|mep|eces ore on d|sp|o,
|n the Se|ko lnst|tute of Horo|og, |n
7ok,o, os we|| os mon, of the wotches
feotured |n th|s 5ook. 7h|s museum
exh|5|t |s on unusuo| 5e|t wotch for
go|fers, mode |n 190.
Moch|ner, to outomote product|on
processes hove 5een o ke, feoture
of Se|ko`s success stor,. 7h|s
|||ustrot|on |n the Se|ko lnst|tute of
Horo|og, shows o moch|ne thot wos
|n use oround 1908.
Tbe autbor grate|ully acknowleoges tbe lnvaluable asslstance o| Selko Lpson Corporatlon, Selko
|nstruments |nc ano Tbe Selko |nstltute o| Horology, as well as tbe management ano sta|| o| Selko
Watcb Corporatlon, wblle tbls book was belng researcbeo.
Lvo|ut|on of Se|ko, 1892 - 1923, by Hosblml Ucbloa, eolteo by tbe Selko |nstltute o| Horology ano
publlsbeo ln 2000 by Selko Corporatlon was an essentlal source o| re|erence ourlng tbe wrltlng o|
tbls book. |t ls tbe tblro o| a trlo o| publlcatlons about tbe Hlstory o| tbe [apanese Clock ano Watcb
|noustry.
Wltb tbe klno permlsslon o| tbe publlsbers, some quotatlons, lllustratlons ano otber ln|ormatlon
lncluoeo ln tbls book bave also been etracteo |rom tbe [apanese publlcatlon:
7HL SLlK0 800K. 7he eo| H|stor, of SLlK0 Wotches
8, 7okumo Shoten Pu5||sh|ng Co, Ltd, 7ok,o
7ext 5, NA8A7A Mosohoru
Photogrophs 5, KlMUA 7osh|m|, 7AKAHASHl Kozu,uk| ond 0KUuA 7okofum|.
0r|g|no| text cop,r|ght 7okumo Shoten 1999 Pr|nted |n jopon.