The Watch Club returned to visit Bulgari's production sites on 9th and 10th July, in particular the one in Le Sentier, where the complications are assembled and where the Finissimo movements and the basic solotempo calibre are made, and the headquarters in Neuchâtel, where the final stage of the case-making process for most of the movements is located. At Le Sentier, the production cycle is overseen by engineers, CAD operators, master watchmakers, technicians, as well as prototype makers, milling machines, and CNC (Computerised Numerical Control) lathe operators. The finishing of the movements is taken care of to the highest level, with decorations also carried out by hand with great precision. One of the most eagerly awaited moments was a visit to the workshop dedicated to minute repeaters, a type that only a few master: this is also where the Grand Sonnerie was born, an improved, updated and evolved legacy of the famous watch created in the 1990s by Gérald Genta. Members were fortunate enough to enjoy the different sounds produced by models with two, three or four hammers (it is the only workshop to produce three different gauges with chimes). All the watch components (cases, movements, bracelets) are assembled in Neuchâtel, except for the tourbillons and minute repeaters, which are made entirely in Le Sentier. It follows three main stages: the laying of the dial, that of the hands and then the encasing. Once everything is done, both technical and aesthetic checks are carried out, including the water-resistance test. This is followed by the testing of the watches on the wrist with pieces such as the Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater in carbon, with a case just 6.85 millimetres thick and weighing a mere 47 grams, which really makes one realise the capabilities of a brand that only a few years ago entered the restricted world of Haute Horlogerie. "Bulgari is a brand capable of creating and developing original technical solutions consistent with Haute Horlogerie. A manufacture where creativity and inventiveness have begun to evolve rapidly, bridging the gap with the other big companies in the Haute Horlogerie sector' (Domenico Sposato). "I was struck by the level of technique and research they have reached in just a few years. I appreciated the Italian design and the ability to create elegant and beautiful products as only in our country we know how to do' (Giancarlo Befera). 'Bulgari is a brand that produces watches of the highest quality in terms of technical content and design. I discovered the constructive accuracy and mechanical complexity of its manufacture movements' (Massimo Follari). "I was impressed by the chime atelier, for the variety of types, but also by the Finissimo models for the balance between technical mastery and aesthetic originality. Far from homologated constructive criteria and the pure repetition of what has already worked in the past' (Giuliano Tiberio).
