180 YEARS OF

HISTORY | 180 Years of Longines
Jacques David
(1845–1912)
66 | WatchTime LONGINES SPECIAL
o help him in his pursuit of industrialization, Francillon
found the perfect partner in Jacques David. David was
born in Lausanne in 1845 but grew up in northern France.
He was the son of a director of a textile mill that was completely
mechanized and was familiar with industrial
manufacturing processes since childhood. He studied
engineering and completed his education at a watchmaking
factory in Le Locle. In 1867, Francillon assigned him
the organization of the new factory. David was responsible
for the equipment and the functioning of the mechanical
systems, which were powered by two turbines.
Francillon’s re-structuring of watch production
brought signicant changes to Saint-Imier as well as to
the entire region. In 1867, Longines employed 40 workers;
by 1875, this number increased to 120. e workers
and crasmen who had previously worked in their own
homes to produce watches now faced many changes. In
the factory they worked specic hours and their work was
inspected more closely. e division of labor was already a
part of watch production for comptoirs, and these practices
remained. However, work on a conveyor belt was rejected
by Longines. Qualied young workers were important
for the future of the watch factory, and Francillon and
David were among the supporters of the watchmaking
school that was founded in Saint-Imier in 1866.
America was important at this time both as a target
marketplace and as a model for mechanized production
methods. In 1873 and 1874, about 80 percent of all
watches sold by Longines were sent to the United States.
e company formed a partnership with the Wittnauer
family who ran the New York branch until the mid-20th T
century.
e World’s Fair was held in Philadelphia in 1876.
David headed a Swiss delegation, the “Société intercantonale
des industries du Jura,” and what he saw in
Philadelphia made a deep impression
on him. In the Machinery Hall
he was introduced to the way American
watch factories set up their mass
production processes. David recognized
that the Swiss watch industry
with its current methods would not
be able to remain competitive internationally.
He admired the organization
of the processes, the quality of
the machines and the work ethic –
but he did not intend to transfer the
American model directly to Switzerland.
David wrote to Francillon: “We
need a combined system that links
the advantages of the Swiss workforce
with the advantages of American
machines.”
It was against this background
that the production processes at
Longines began to be modernized in
the 1880s and 1890s. David became a
partner at Longines in 1880 and was
responsible for these changes. Factory
buildings were expanded to accommodate
the growing number of
employees. In the mid-1880s there
were 400 employees and by 1900
there were 657. e two turbines that
powered the modern industrial facility
were no longer adequate, so
Longines connected its operations to
the community’s new electricity network
in 1896.
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