In horology, a manufacture d'horlogerie is a term reserved for the manufacturers which conceive and make all or most of the parts required for their movements in their own production facilities as opposed to assembling watches using parts purchased from other firms.
If a few parts such as the hairspring, screws or jewel settings are made by an outside supplier, that movement is still considered a Manufacture because the majority of the mechanism is an exclusive design.
Until the 1970s most of the Swiss watch brands made their own mechanisms, but when the "quartz crisis" happened, some firms disappeared and many started to fit their watches with movements made by specialized companies rather than manufacture them, to save costs.
With the revival of the mechanical watch, the rise of a more informed and demanding consumer and the emerging concept of "in-house movement", the Manufactures use this status as a sign of prestige, distinction and know-how to stand out of the non-manufactures watch houses.
Notes: A company only needs to produce at least one movement in-house to be considered a Manufacture, hence some watch companies make all their mechanisms while others only do so for certain models of their range.
When it comes to the Swiss watch industry, an in-house manufactured watch movement is not necessarily better than the one that uses out sourced parts.
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