With in-house mastery and precision finishing, Hublot elevates the art of contemporary watchmaking
Swiss-based manufacturer, Hublot, is recognized for its exceptional ability to combine traditional watchmaking with modern innovation, materials, and design. Founded in 1980, Hublot sets itself apart through its unique manufacturing philosophy, known as the ‘art of fusion’.
Bringing together unexpected mediums and bold aesthetics, Hublot respects the fundamentals of high watchmaking while pushing the industry forward. Over time, the company has continuously strengthened its development and production, as well as creating its own signature in-house automatic chronograph movement called Hublot UNICO. Described as Hublot’s ‘mechanical heart’, UNICO is a fusion of innovative engineering and distinctive design that defines many of its high-end sports watches.
Since its genesis, the core of Hublot’s business has been to design, develop, and build high-end mechanical watches. The company keeps its products fresh and exciting through a fine balance of special projects and time-honored classics. As Chief Manufacturing Officer, Samuel Morel, begins: “Our watches are organized into iconic families, such as Big Bang and Classic Fusion. In addition, we frequently release limited-run special editions. This approach allows us to push the boundaries of creativity and engineering while still offering our clients a stable and refined core collection.”
From a manufacturing perspective, Hublot covers full watch assembly and regulation, and boasts in-house movement capability – particularly around the UNICO movement. It also handles complications and high watchmaking developments, including advanced chronograph architecture and other model-specific technical executions.
The company’s diverse portfolio demands an innovative approach to manufacturing and customer service, as Samuel discusses: “As a manufacturer, we specialize in materials engineering and finishing, especially in ceramic, carbon-based composites, proprietary alloys like Magic Gold, and sapphire.
“On the service side, Hublot maintains a comprehensive after-sales ecosystem, providing maintenance, repairs, restoration support, and quality follow-up across its distribution network.”
Having been a watchmaking pioneer for nearly five decades, Hublot has not only witnessed the industry transform, but has also driven cutting-edge breakthroughs in the process. As Samuel observes: “The most significant evolution in traditional watchmaking processes since 1980 has been the deepening of achievable industrial precision, while simultaneously preserving the watchmaking craft.
“Traditional processes such as finishing, assembly, adjustment, and quality control remain essential, but they are now supported by far more advanced measurement and traceability, improved process stability for repeatability, and enhanced development cycles from prototyping to serialization.
“At Hublot, ‘modern’ doesn’t replace ‘traditional’ – rather, it amplifies it, allowing watchmakers to perform tasks that only skilled hands can achieve, while engineering and manufacturing tools help deliver consistent excellence, particularly at higher complexity and when working with hard, high-performance materials.”
Smart technology is transforming the manufacturing industry, enhancing efficiency across the board. Samuel explains how he and Hublot embrace these advancements while remaining true to the brand’s heritage. “We adopt ‘smart factory’ principles where they genuinely improve quality, reliability, and lead time. In watchmaking, automation must be used with care.
“These technologies are most beneficial in metrology and digital quality control, providing more measurement points, higher precision, and faster feedback loops. They also aid in process monitoring and traceability across components and assemblies, offer advanced machining support for difficult materials like ceramic and composites, and optimize planning and flow to reduce bottlenecks and ensure on-time delivery. The result is better control of tolerances, reduced rework, improved consistency, and ultimately more capacity for teams to focus on watchmaking execution and finishing.”
Renowned for its use of high-performance materials such as ceramic and carbon fiber, Hublot collaborates closely with partners across the supply chain to ensure only the finest resources are used to build its timepieces. Samuel elaborates on how the company maintains this exceptional standard of quality: “Hublot is known for using demanding materials, and so our supply chain is built around strong partnerships, qualification, and control.
“This involves working with specialized suppliers for high-performance raw materials and semi-finished inputs. We also apply strict incoming inspection and multi-step quality validation, maintaining rigorous specification discipline concerning chemistry, density, homogeneity, and cosmetic criteria.
“For ceramic and carbon-based composites in particular, quality is achieved through process mastery, which the supplier ensures on our behalf. We only partner with operations that hold the correct qualification and up-to-date audits.
“There are also clearly defined critical parameters that ensure transparency and traceability. The final stop for any incoming materials is Hublot’s own in-house expertise in machining, finishing, and inspection. Ultimately, these materials are treated as an integral part of our identity, as a watch cannot be perfect if its material is not.”
As a product-led operation, Hublot has invested in the expansion of its central campus in Nyon, Switzerland. Samuel explains more about the motivations behind this strategic maneuver: “We’re growing Hublot’s Nyon campus to support long-term growth while simultaneously increasing industrial autonomy and enhancing the ability to deliver more high-value, manufacture-driven content.
“Our focus is specifically on in-house movements and complex products. This expansion is driven to improve workflow and capabilities throughout the business, providing more space for efficient process organization, strengthening quality control, and investing in the appropriate equipment and environments.
“Hublot aims to achieve an even more coherent end-to-end campus, from development to manufacturing to assembly, allowing the company to continue raising the bar on precision, finishing, and innovation while remaining agile,” he asserts.
Expanding its core facility will also allow Hublot to implement more sustainable processes. This is a core value for the business, as Samuel confirms: “Hublot views sustainability as a long-term discipline, not merely a marketing slogan. We focus our approach on what can be genuinely controlled within manufacturing – this includes energy efficiency in production environments, and equipment process optimization to reduce scrap and rework, which is particularly important with high-performance materials.
“We also prioritize responsible sourcing and implementing stronger supplier requirements on traceability and compliance. Additionally, Hublot emphasizes longevity by design, recognizing that a mechanical watch is built to last, to be serviced, and to be passed on.
“While packaging, logistics, and operational footprint are also considered, the most significant lever for most manufacturers is often how products are produced, the stability of processes, and the effective management of resources across the full value chain.
“We believe that done properly, growth and sustainable action can improve quality by strengthening processes, controls, and learning loops. We think and plan in the long-term, and in doing so we protect the future of our industry,” he concludes.