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Good
fortune and Leschot's many talents had thus turned the
company's hopes into reality. Having been the first to
mechanize production, it enjoyed a head start over its
competitors. Machine made parts were so accurately fashioned
as to be interchangeable and output far outstripped any
watchmaker's.
Vacheron
was elated, exclaiming: "What we have achieved is admirable
in term of speed and quality production".
The
rest of Switzerland's watchmakers soon followed suit.
Despite apprehensions, the new machines were in no way
capable of replacing man's creative genius; they could
only carry out predetermined operations. The watchmaker's
mind, eye and hand remained crucial. Watchmakers did
indeed continue to ensure that the quality of Vacheron
Constantin timepieces remained unsurpassed. So universally
admired were they that the company's name was copied.
As Vacheron himself wrote to a jeweler in Amsterdam:
"There is no manufacturer styled Vacheron Freres. Many
watches are made under this name but they are second
rate imitations; rather than making a name for themselves,
many people find it expedient to make use of someone
else's".
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