IWC Schaffhausen | Schaffhausen

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Economic Promotion Canton of Schaffhausen

Innovation, precision and exquisite engineering are the key ingredients of the luxury IWC watches made in Schaffhausen. The company was founded in Schaffhausen in 1868 by American watchmaker Florentine Ariosto Jones from Boston, Massachusetts. The aim was to create luxury pocket-watches for the American market. Today, IWC is one of the most famous luxury watch brands in the world – with the potential for further growth, according to CEO Christoph Grainger-Herr. Space at the company’s site in the city centre was limited and there was little scope to expand at the downtown location.

"A modern manufacturing operation shouldn’t be split up across several buildings and storeys", Christoph Grainger-Herr, CEO at IWC Schaffhausen sets out. Instead, the company decided to spend CHF 42m on building a brand new manufacturing facility in which the production of watch cases, watch movements and the assembly process are all on the same storey. Around 240 of the total of 770 IWC staff in Schaffhausen work in the modern, light-filled building. The site can accommodate up to 400 staff. "We had the opportunity to build our brand new facility from scratch in the greenbelt on the outskirts of Schaffhausen", Grainger-Herr is delighted to report. The former architecture student had the opportunity to incorporate his vision into the building’s design.

For Grainger-Herr it was clear that IWC would expand its operation in Schaffhausen rather than move away from the area or offshore the manufacturing operation. "We are a part of Schaffhausen’s industrial history and we are totally committed to this location", he underlines, adding that the location has the key features IWC needs. "We see ourselves as an advanced manufacturing business rather than part of a tradition of artisan watchmaking which defines watchmaking in Western Switzerland", the IWC CEO continues. Schaffhausen’s industrial history features great engineering companies such as SIG and Georg Fischer and the close proximity to Southern Germany, with its automotive engineering companies, means the area offers lots of highly-skilled potential recruits. "We benefit from the expertise developed in the precision engineering sector and in automotive manufacturing which is located in and around Schaffhausen and we can apply that to our production processes", Grainger-Herr explains. The result is masterpieces of the watchmaker’s art – haute horlogerie – which combine engineering, precision and exclusive design.

Schaffhausen is also recognised as a great place to live. Grainger-Herr now lives in the Canton of Schaffhausen, having previously commuted daily from Lake Zurich. "Schaffhausen is great for families and offers a brilliant environment for my children to grow up in", says the father of three. He loves being able to switch off at the weekend and spending quality time with the family in the local area. "In Schaffhausen, a Sunday can simply be a Sunday and not just work, work, work", he emphasises. Where he lived previously, he felt the need to get out of the city in order to be able to switch off. In Schaffhausen, that’s not necessary: "The people here in Schaffhausen are lovely, there’s a great vibe, so relaxed", he concludes.