Entah mengapa Brand Omega sangat merasuk di sumsum dan tulang (mengutip teman2 di Kaskus sih "meracuni")...
mungkin karena bentuknya yg indah, harganya istimewa (tak terlalu mahal) atau pula karna Dia (James Bond) nya yg buat ku tergila...
Gambar pertama dihaturkan : Omega Constellation Pie Pan Cal 564
Omega History (sumber Wikipedia)
Foundation
The workbench of Louis Brandt with a photograph of the founder.
Omega medical chronograph with outer pulsations track, ca. 1950
Omega Seamaster De Ville, an early "waterproof" watch, with automatic movement and date, in 14k gold
The forerunner of Omega was founded at
La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland in 1848 by 23-year-old
Louis Brandt, who assembled key-wound precision pocket watches from parts supplied by local craftsmen. He sold his watches from Italy to Scandinavia by way of
England, his chief market. After Louis Brandt's death in 1879, his two sons Louis-Paul and César, troubled by irregular deliveries of questionable quality, abandoned the unsatisfactory assembly workshop system in favour of in-house manufacturing and total production control.
[edit] Relocation
Due to the greater supply of manpower, communications and energy in
Biel/Bienne, the enterprise moved into a small factory in January 1880, then bought the entire building in December. Two years later the company moved into a converted spinning-factory in the Gurzelen area of Biel/Bienne, where its headquarters are still situated today.
Their first series-produced calibres, Labrador and Gurzelen, as well as the famous Omega calibre of 1894, would ensure the brand's marketing success.
[edit] Merger
Louis-Paul and César Brandt both died in 1903, leaving one of Switzerland's largest watch companies — with 240,000 watches produced annually and employing 800 people — in the hands of four young people, the oldest of whom,
Paul-Emile Brandt, was not yet 24.
Brandt was the great architect and builder of Omega.
[4] His influence would be felt over the next half-century. The economic difficulties brought on by the
First World War would lead him to work actively from 1925 toward the union of Omega and
Tissot, then to their merger in 1930 into the group
SSIH,
Geneva.
Under Brandt's leadership and
Joseph Reiser's from 1955, the SSIH Group continued to grow and multiply, absorbing or creating some fifty companies, including
Lemania, manufacturers of the most famous Omega
chronograph movements. By the seventies, SSIH had become Switzerland's number one producer of finished watches and number three in the world.
[citation needed].
Financial takeover
Weakened by the severe monetary crisis and recession of 1975 to 1980, SSIH was bailed out by the banks in 1981. During this period,
Seiko expressed interest in acquiring Omega, but nothing came out of the talks.
After drastic financial restructuring, the
R&D departments of ASUAG and SSIH merged production operations at the
ETA complex in Granges. The two companies completely merged forming ASUAG-SSIH, a holding company, in 1983.
[edit] Movements and the co-axial escapement
In
1999, with the successful own development of
Calibre 2500,
[6] Omega made history by introducing the first mass-produced watch incorporating the
co-axial escapement — invented by English watchmaker
George Daniels. Considered by many
[7] to be one of the more significant
horological advances since the invention of the lever escapement, the co-axial escapement functions with virtually no lubrication, thereby eliminating one of the shortcomings of the traditional lever escapement. Through using radial
friction instead of sliding friction at the impulse surfaces the co-axial escapement significantly reduces friction, theoretically resulting in longer service intervals and greater accuracy over time.
[8]On January 24, 2007 Omega unveiled its new Calibres 8500
[9] and 8501, two co-axial (25,200 bph) movements created exclusively from inception by Omega.
Omega watches in space exploration
The Omega Speedmaster, or "Moonwatch", selected by NASA for all the Apollo missions
The selection of the "
Omega Speedmaster Professional Chronograph" for American astronauts was the subject of a rivalry between Omega and
Bulova.
[10]All subsequent manned
NASA missions also used this handwound wristwatch. NASA started selecting the chronograph in the early 60s and automatic chronograph wristwatches were not available until 1969.
However all the instrument panel clocks and time-keeping mechanisms in the spacecraft on those space missions were Bulova Accutrons with tuning fork movements,
[citation needed] because at the time NASA did not know how well a mechanical movement would work in zero gravity.
[edit] First watch on the moon
The "Omega Speedmaster Professional Chronograph" was the first watch on the
Moon, worn by
"Buzz" Aldrin. This watch is now believed lost. Aldrin mentions in his book
Return to Earth that when donating several items to the Smithsonian Institution, his Omega was one of the few things that was stolen from his personal effects.
[11]In
2007, to mark the 50th anniversary of the Omega Speedmaster Professional Chronograph, the Omega company unveiled the commemorative
Speedmaster Professional Chronograph Moonwatch. The watch had the distinctive features of the first hand-winding Omega Speedmaster introduced in
1957. It was sold in an edition of 5,957.
[12]Copyright Lawsuit
Omega is currently in a lawsuit against wholesaler Costco over grey market imports of Omega watches that challenges the legality of the
first-sale doctrine with regards to international imports, Omega v. Costco.
[13] This lawsuit has been granted certiorari by the Supreme Court of the United States.
[14]Sponsorship, product placement, advertising, and sport
James Bond
The Omega Seamaster, a deep diving watch. The second crown (at 10 o'clock) is a
helium release valve to allow helium out of the watch after diving at great depth. The watch is similar to that shown in recent James Bond films, in which this valve is transformed into improbable hidden gadgets.
Omega has been associated with
James Bond movies since
1995. That year,
Pierce Brosnan took over the role of James Bond and began wearing the Omega Seamaster Quartz Professional (model 2541.80.00) in the movie
GoldenEye. In all later films, Brosnan wore an Omega Seamaster Professional Chronometer (model 2531.80.00). The producers wanted to update the image of the fictional "super-spy" to a more distinctly sophisticated "Euro" look.
[15]Another possible reason for the change from the
Rolex Submariner that Bond had previously worn was a change in the business environment surrounding modern high-profile films and product placement. Omega was eager to participate in high profile co-promotions/product placement opportunities, especially the James Bond franchise, to further its brand image/awareness. It accomplished this by supplying products and finance (something that the conservative
Rolex company avoids, presumably because it sees no benefit for itself).
[16]For the 40th anniversary of James Bond (
2002) a commemorative edition of the watch was made available model 2537.80.00 (10,007 units). The watch is identical to the model 2531.80.00 except the blue watch dial had a 007 logo inscribed across it and also machined into the caseback. The band also had 007 inscribed on the clasp.
[17]Daniel Craig, the current James Bond of
Casino Royale, and
Quantum of Solace also wears the Omega Seamaster: the Seamaster Planet Ocean (model 2900.50.91) in the first part
Casino Royale, and in the latter part (from travelling to Montenegro), and even goes so far as to mention Omega by name when questioned by
Vesper Lynd. In connection with the launch of the film, Omega released an 007-special of the Professional 300M, featuring the 007-gun logo on the second hand and the rifle pattern on the watch face, this being a stylized representation of the
gunbarrel sequence of Bond movies.
[18] Omega released a second James Bond limited edition watch in 2006. This was a
Seamaster Planet Ocean model with a limited production of 5007 units. The model is similar to what Craig wears earlier on in the film; however, it has a small orange colored 007 logo on the second hand, an engraved caseback signifying the Bond connection, and an engraved 007 on the clasp.
[19] In the newest movie, Quantum of Solace, Craig wears the Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean with a black face and steel braclet (42 mm version). Another limited edition was released featuring the checkered "PPK grip" face with the Quantum of Solace logo over it.
Providing support to
Emirates Team New Zealand and representing the team's official watch, in
2007 Omega introduced the Seamaster NZL-32 chronograph, with the name suggested by the name of the boat that won the
America's Cup in
1995. The watch was developed in cooperation with
Dean Barker, skipper of Team New Zealand and Omega Ambassador.
[21]Omega also sponsored a number of golf tournaments
