Omega and Swiss government announce new watch certification

by eyetee | December 10, 2014 2:31 pm

[1]The Swiss Federal Institute of Metrology (METAS) and Swiss watch brand Omega have announced a new watch certification process it will begin using in 2015 to test each of its Master Co-Axial watches.

At a press conference in Geneva announcing the new certification, Omega president Stephen Urquhart explained the increasing number of magnets in our daily lives affects the performance of watches. To counteract that, Omega developed Master Co-Axial, an anti-magnetic movement.

METAS—which is the branch of the Swiss government responsible for all matters involving measurement and measuring procedures—will test watches for their precision during and after exposure to magnetic fields greater than 15,000 gauss. To receive the certification, they must perform within a tolerance of 0 and +5 seconds per day for autonomy (functioning without winding, measured in hours) and water resistance.

According to Swatch Group chief executive officer (CEO) Nick Hayek, the Contrôle Officiel Suisse des Chronomètres— the office responsible for certifying the accuracy and precision of watches produced in Switzerland—has been lagging in recent years.

Rather than testing the movement as COSC does, the new certification will test the finished watch.

METAS director Christian Bock said the new certification is open to all Swiss watch manufacturers and allows them the opportunity to demonstrate the quality and timekeeping performance of their watches to a greater extent than previously been possible.

Owners of Omega watches that are Master Co-Axial-officially certified will be able to access the results and test parameters of their timepieces online.

 

 

Source URL: https://www.jewellerybusiness.com/news/omega-and-swiss-government-announce-new-watch-certification/

---