BARRELS COMPLETE

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The reason why we still use
a 50-year-old machine today.

The barrel complete houses the coiled
mainspring that drives the watch.
The barrel complete needs to be highly durable
because the mainspring is wound and unwound repeatedly.

At MIYOTA, we use a single mainspring-processing machine to coil,
weld and cut all our mainsprings.
Although—or perhaps because—this particular machine was
designed and built roughly half a century ago,
it is the repository of the cumulative wisdom and know-how of
previous generations of MIYOTA engineers.
The machine is regularly overhauled.

This enables to us to implement a best-in-class production system,
in which areas that require upgrading are continuously upgraded
while the old methods that do not need changing are
scrupulously maintained and passed down.
This hybrid approach, melding old and new,
is not only one of the great charms of the watchmaking process,
it also explains why MIYOTA maintains such elevated quality levels.

Achieving the right mainspring thickness
and the right temperature for heat treatment are both crucial
for attaining good spring performance.
We use a range of techniques to ensure
that the heat treatment is uniform and consistent.
For instance, we have optimized the layout of the heaters in the furnace
so the temperature is the same regardless of placement.
The wisdom, know-how and meticulous attention
to detail of our predecessors at MIYOTA is a precious legacy
which we have inherited—and which we continue to refine upon.