Longines

Longines is a watch design and manufacturing company based in Saint-Imier, Switzerland. The company was founded in 1832 and is now established in over 150 countries.Matthew Breschan is the current CEO at Longines. Breschan has been part of Longines' parent organization The Swatch Group since 1996.

Though they are considered a luxury watch brand and produce watches for personal use with ascetic appeal, Longines is known for its developments in horology. The company has developed and patented numerous timekeeping technologies. Their technology is used by multiple competitions and has has resulted in partnerships with organizations such as the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities, International Equestrian Federation, International Federation of Gymnast, and Renault (F1 racing team).

The company was founded in 1832 by Auguste Agassiz in Saint-Imier. The company was originally called Agassiz & Co. In 1852, Ernest Francillon, Agassiz's nephew, joined and took over the company. In 1867, Ernest Francillon built a factory for watch production on a site known as Les Longines; it was at this time that the company took on the new name "Longines." The name was officially registered in 1880. Francillon patented the Longines trademark, a winged hourglass symbol, in 1889, although the symbol had been in use since as early as 1867.

Over the following years, the company developed new technologies in timekeeping and watch design and began forming a reputation as timekeepers for various competitions. Longines supplied watches for the Olympics in 1896. In 1916, The company began developing shaped watches. In 1919, Longines became the supplier for the International Aeronautical Foundation. Longines patented their Weems Second Setting Watch in 1935; the watch had been designed by the company in collaboration with Philip Von Horn Weems, for use by navigators in the Navy years prior. In 1945, Longines patented its first self-winding movement (calibre 22A). Over the years, Longines was designing watches for Observatory competitions, including their first Quartz Clock (1952) and the 360 (1959). They also developed a number of electronic and quartz technologies, and in 1967 launched their first cybernetic quartz calibre, in the Ultra-Quartz wrist watch. In 1972, the company produced it first digital watch, the Longines LCD. The company started creating their ultra thin watches in 1979.

Longines became the official timekeeper for the F1 races beginning in 1982, following their partnership with Renault. The company joined what is now called the The Swatch Group in 1983. The International Federation of Gymnast made Longines its official time keepers in 1985. The Longines Museum, located in Saint-Imier, opened in 1992. They became partners and official time keepers for the International Equestrian Federation in 2013, though prior to this they had been the time keepers for many horse races. Longines partnered with the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities the same year. In 2015, Longines launched new timekeeping technology for horse races with the Longines Positioning System (LPS).