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In
1839, the firm hired a mechanical genius called Georges-Auguste
Leschot, then 39, to turn their dreams into reality.
He assured them that he could indeed build machines capable
of mechanically turning out watch parts. Neither Vacheron
Constantin nor the watch industry were ever to be the
same ...
Ever
inventive and supremely skilled, Leschot was to devote
his entire life to the advancement of watchmaking. When
he joined Vacheron Constantin, he had already devised
repeated improvements to the free lever escapement of
pocket watches, greatly ameliorating their resistance,
along with the machines to make the part.
In
less then two years, Leschot conceived and built a range
of machines for Vacheron Constantin that were able to
turn out , with unheard-of precision, watch parts of
every description. Even the three associates themselves
were amazed at the results, which later won Leschot
the Societe des Arts prize, awarded every five years,
for the most significant industrial discovery. The "cabinotier"
system of production was now history.
Together
with Vacheron Constantin, Leschot's name had earned
its place alongside such illustrious figures in the
history of watchmaking as Huygens, Tompion, Graham,
Lepine or Breguet.
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