Our know-how

ethics

RALF TECH watches are imagined, designed and developed in France, then assembled in either Switzerland or France, depending on the model and its technical specifications.

Our workshops are located in Losone, a Swiss city in the canton of Ticino, in the Locarno district, and in Morteau, in the Doubs region, in the foothills of the French Jura.

For us, “Swiss Made” or “Fabriqué en France” is not simply a mark on a dial, but a reality inherent in compliance with the official standards governing the watchmaking industry.

Beyond these standards, we especially pay attention to civic values. We are particularly sensitive to the state of our planet and its oceans. That’s why we are very attentive to the quality and origin of all the materials we use to manufacture our watches. We also avoid all exotic sourcing to reduce our carbon footprint as much as possible.

With this in mind, all our leather straps are made from farmed animals that respect CITES standards. They are cut, assembled and sewn by hand in the purest respect for the tradition of French saddlers in Franois, Doubs (French Jura).

RALF TECH watches are therefore the fruit of a dual culture – French and Swiss – and global environmental awareness.

This complementarity makes them uncompromi- sing timepieces in both design and execution.

water resistance

One particular feature in RALF TECH watches is to indicate real depth readings and not theoretical measurements like most brands do. The “ISO 6425 Diving Watch” standard is not only respected, but now goes above and beyond thanks to comprehensive technical specifications and an exclusive testing process.

Our test tanks are able to simulate dives with the capability of altering their conditions: immersion time, water temperature, salinity, magnetism of the surroundings, etc… in order to get as close as possible to a real life diving situation, whether civil or military. All these “markers” allow us to work on our projects in complete serenity.

All these tests are of course supported by the feedback from our divers and various special forces units operators who use our watches on a daily basis.

In addition, it seems important for us to say a few words about the helium valves seen here and there on some diver’s watches. With less than 50 divers in France and less than 250 in the world, so-called “commercial” divers, i.e. those who work under oil platforms or repair cables and various connections that run through the ocean floor, may, under certain conditions, require a watch equipped with a helium valve. Our professional clients, combat swimmers, Navy divers, offshore divers, have no need for it. As for recreational divers, a helium valve is unnecessary and we think it could render the watch more fragile. That is why we do not equip our watches with helium valves.

Movements

Developed in Morteau by PEQUIGNET Atelier, this mechanical automatic movement is to date the only Manufacture movement really designed, developed and manufactured in France with machined parts… In France!

With its two-way winding, its frequency of 28,800 vibrations per hour and the efficiency of its escapement, its power reserve can reach up to 77 hours, a record for a French automatic watch.

Its “stop-second” system also allows for ultra-precise time setting.
RALF TECH automatic movements and automatic chronographs are either ETA or SEIKO movements that are original or have been internally modified.

Due to the significant size of our watches (47.5mm in diameter and weighing nearly 200 grams for a WRX Automatic Chronograph), the structure and mass of our rotors needed to be modified in order to compensate for the inertia generated by the weight of the case.

The WRX automatic chronographs use RTAC001 movement on a Valjoux 7750 base for an optimal power reserve of 44 hours.

The WRV automatic chronographs use the RTAC003 movement on a SEIKO 8R48 basis for an optimal power reserve of 50 hours.

The WRX and WRV automatics use RTA001 and RTA002 movements developed from ETA 2824-2 and 2836-2 for an optimal power reserve of 44 hours.

The ACADEMIE models use a RTA003 automatic mechanical winding movement built from a SEIKO NH35/NH36 for an optimal power reserve of 40 hours.
At the forefront of technology, the RALF TECH Hybrid RTH002 mechanism is at the crossroads of two different mechanisms and combines the best of them. The Hybrid is both a quartz energy system and a self-winding mechanism.

Here’s why: The Hybrid produces the necessary energy required for its power supply by absorbing wrist movement. This energy is then stored in an accumulator with a lifespan greater than 12 years. Working without batteries, this movement has a very low impact on the environment and can achieve extraordinary energy savings. 100 million watches equipped with the Hybrid movement system wouldn’t use more energy than a 100 Watt light bulb!

The Hybrid RTH002 is equipped, under its own weight, with an ultra high-speed rotor that can rotate up to 100,000 rpm, 5 times the maximum speed of a Formula 1 engine. This innovative system provides unparalleled precision. On average, our Hybrid RTH002 is 15 times more accurate than a traditional automatic movement.

When fully charged, a RALF TECH watch equipped with the RTH002 Hybrid mechanism can stay running up to 150 days after you last wearing it and will restart as soon as it is put back on.

RALF TECH has been using the Hybrid RTH001 movement since 2006 and the Hybrid RTH002 movement since 2013.
Developed in Switzerland for our house, this new movement works according to a system of micro hybridization. It combines precision, reliability and energy savings.

Built from the mecatronic base of the hybrid movement equipping the previous generations of WRX, the RTE001 movement reduces the number of moving parts and simplifies the quartz power supply as much as possible.

Its autonomy can reach 100,000 hours, i.e. almost 12 years, whereas most movements offer a power reserve of 40 hours for automatic movements and about 18 months for traditional quartz.

StrapS

RALF TECH has equipped itself with high-performance tools to optimize how it creates and manufactures “handmade” watch bracelets for every model in the collection.

This has allowed us to produce handcrafted watch bracelets in the French region of the Jura with a high standard of quality that matches our cases, aesthetics, durability, and wearing comfort.

Beyond the effort put into selecting the most suitable leathers and treating them according to tradition, RALF TECH is committed to respecting environmental standards. All our leather bracelets are made from farm-raised animals that comply with CITES regulations.

All our leather bracelets are cut, assembled, and hand-stitched with the utmost respect to traditions used by French saddlers in the city of Franois in the French region of the Doubs.