"It
embodies the values and standards of our family watch company". You may
have already read this sentence that is the introduction to the Patek Philippe
Seal launched this year.
Now that the
passion seen at the launch of this Patek Philippe Seal is quietly getting
softer, I think it's time for me to try to explain why it is in my
opinion a good move operated by Patek Philippe and a quite possible and
probable positive outcome for the owners and collectors of those watches we
love.
I want to
immediately take into account, accept and also soften the too often expressed
by some accusation of sin of arrogance by Patek Philippe that this new Seal
initiated. Patek Philippe has as far as I know never criticized its
competitors, neither rejected or denied the importance of the Geneva Seal for
Patek Philippe and in general.
As I see it
Patek Philippe's wish with this Seal is only to formalize, make its
manufacture and "bienfacture"s heritage secure, while keeping its
innovative spirit in the balance. It's certainly hard to talk of his own
work, to explain his own worry of excellence in all quality aspects, without
appearing arrogant to those who don't want to recognize or even admit the
work done and level reached.
Some may want
to share their own experience of quality problems to counter the content of the
Seal, but the Seal takes into account problems of reliability that
watches can encounter, or needs of servicing. The Seal doesn't state that
Patek Philippe's watches are perfect as nothing is perfect. Perfection is
a goal and the Seal is a mean to reach a more advanced stage towards
perfection. Please remember Henry Royce's saying: "perfection
is made of small things but perfection is no small thing!"
But let's
try to see deeper in the content of this Seal and specially see what its
commitments are.
All Geneva
Seal's fans can take a rest! The Geneva Seal requirements deal strictly
and only with calibre's aspects. You may have read already the 12 Geneva
Seal requirements you can find in some older Patek Philippe
"Prestige" catalogs. By the way did you notice that the Patek
Philippe catalogs don't mention the Geneva Seal anymore since the
2007/2008 catalog issued in 2007? So this year's catalog is the third
that does not mention anymore the Geneva Seal. Did you notice a lesser level of
finish in the watches issued at the same time? No dare I answer.
In fact the
Patek Philippe Seal requirements regarding the calibre finish are in my opinion
stricter than the Geneva
seal requirements. Half of the twelve Geneva Seal requirements, i.e. the first
six requirements, those in my opinion more linked to the
"perceived" finish (even if they of course have also technical
reasons) and the regulation can be found nearly literally back in the Patek
Philippe Seal, as it is shown in the little book Patek Philippe has issued to
present the Patek Philippe Seal.
The last six
requirements of the Geneva Seal are the more purely technical ones (less
related to visual finish) and those linked to the shock resistance. They are to
some extent now so commonly spread in the Swiss watchmaking industry that three
of them (points 8, 9 and 10) may well be nearly universally respected in swiss
calibres (ETA calibres included). The point 7 may well be too largely respected ("pinion
shanks and faces must be polished").
Point 12
forbids wire springs and as springs are easily visible on a calibre I guess
that you can be assured that Patek Philippe springs will remain what they have
always been, also for aesthetical reasons. If you find a wire spring in a Patek
Philippe calibre call me anytime!
Let's
finish with point 11! The little Patek Philippe Seal book also states that the
ratchet and transmission wheels must be finished with care, while the Geneva
Seal states that they must be finished "in conformity with prescribed
models". Is that a different shade of quality?
You may want to
have a look at the "movement" section of the "Patek Philippe
Seal" section of the Patek Philippe website to see by yourselves the confirmation
of what I wrote just before about the first six points of the Geneva Seal, as
the websites shows the same texts and pictures as the one of the Patek Philippe
Seal book.
Then if we can
conclude that the Patek Philippe Seal is in no way less strict than the Geneva
Seal regarding the calibre finish and technical aspects, can we consider that
everything else contained in the Patek Philippe Seal is added as the Geneva
Seal is strictly limited to these 12 calibre points?
Don't
worry about the picture above, Patek Philippe is not going to innovate with
flashy bracelets. The colours are just the colours of the tape applied on the
brushed parts of the Nautilus bracelet to end the polishing of the polished
ones.
The first
novelty of the Patek Philippe Seal is the fact that it is not limited to the
watch calibre but looks at the entire watch (the calibre, but also the case in
and out, the glass, the dial and hands, the crown(s) and pushers, the strap or
bracelet). Also it is not limited to the watch but also to the services linked
to the watch and particularly the servicing.
When saying the
"entire watch" that means also that Patek Philippe has formalized
principles that influence the creation and development of a new watch. It must
take into account the tradition of Patek Philippe, the best tradition of
watchmaking and the spirit of innovation of the company.
The rate
accuracy is another aspect of the Patek Philippe Seal. You may remember that in
1997 the COSC and the Geneva Seal board created a common certificate for some
Patek Philippe watches created to celebrate the opening of the new (and
current) Patek Philippe manufacture. Those watches were the ref 5500 Pagoda
fitted with calibre 215PS and the ref 5029 fitted with calibre R27PS, a minute
repeater in an officer case. This certificate's requirements were just
that the watch calibre was compliant with the Geneva Seal requirements and that
it was respecting the standard COSC requirements. All tourbillon Patek Philippe
watches have also since that time been delivered with a COSC certificate and
I've not been able to check if that was already the case or not before
1997.
The new Patek
Philipe Seal has even more stringent requirements than the COSC. When the COSC
daily tolerance is -4 +6 the PP Seal accepts -3 + 2 for calibres above 20mm of
diameter (-5 +4 for calibres below 20 MM of diameter). The Patek Philippe Seal
also tolerates only -2 +1 variations for tourbillon watches!
Isn't that an obvious improvement, or at least a precious commitment?
I should add
that the Patek Philippe watches must pass the test fully assembled, while the
COSC requirements apply as you may know only to calibres before assembly.
In fact what we
must understand about this Patek Philippe Seal is that it is aimed at
perpetuating the best of Patek Philippe, the spirit of the glorious company.
How many watch companies have lost their soul due to marketing erring ways? How
many watch companies have lost their soul while diluting their qualities to
follow trends and profit from them?
At a time when
Mr Philippe Stern is transmitting the helm of the family company to his son
Thierry, isn't it a wise move to state what the strengths and virtues of
Patek Philippe are, to in some way write them in the marble?
Patek Philippe
has already proved with the Advanced Research series that it can be at the
forefront of the innovation while keeping its core values and avoiding passing
trends. Innovation leads to progress only if it's useful. Difference is
in no way innovation in itself. A Calatrava 5196 is not really different from a
reference 96, except that it is more reliable, more precise, and has
progressively got larger to answer the lasting market demand. The Patek
Philippe Seal is here to make the coming versions respect the heritage while
they will be indisputably new.
Obviously
that's a positioning statement. Those looking for permanent change, what
is fully respectable, may not find their objects of desire in the Patek
Philippe range. Patek Philippe probably does not intend to please every one.
But who does?
I should also
address those who think that Patek Philippe didn't need to create a
"seal" for that. I too think that it was not necessary to create a
"seal" to do well, but I'm 100% sure that it was necessary to
create a Patek Philippe Seal to clearly share with the public (and I
don't think we are here exactly the public), with its potential or
already customers the true significance of all that is embodied by the Patek
Philippe Seal.
I also truly
believe that nature and humans don't stand emptiness. The simple
withdrawal of the Geneva Seal, no longer sufficient to express what had to be
expressed, would have left a negative impression, had it not been replaced by a
more stringent commitment!
Keeping the
Geneva Seal was probably not a solution either as more and more brands are seemingly
now respecting the Geneva seal requirements for the sake of it as a marketing
tool, or as a way to try to compare itself to Patek Philippe on a ground that
it too limited in itself to be a fair comparison criteria, even if the Geneva Seal requirements are quite respectable.
So coming back
to the opening point of the potential arrogance of such a private seal, I want
to hope that this reading has convinced you that Patek Philippe is only trying
to improve itself and stay at its best, and not just pretend!
I've
always thought that a Seal in history was a commitment, a signature, and
definitely not a simple quality control based on some limited requirements.
Let's the
future come now. I've heard that it comes early, as soon as in the
beginning of next month! Let us some time to see the promises in the light of
day.
Thank you for
reading.
Cheers
Dje