Thursday, October 29, 2020

THE LEICA PLANT IN PORTUGAL

 



By Heinz Richter

When Leica still operated their North American Plant in Midland, Ontario, I constantly ran across individuals that questioned the quality of the items produced there.  The question always was if a product made in Canada could possibly be of the same quality as if it were made in Germany.

The facility in Canada has long been sold, but I see the same questions being asked about the Leica Famalicão operation in Portugal.  If anything, the doubts about the quality of the Portuguese made items is even greater than they were during the ELCAN days.

Being German myself, I should feel honored that some people think that German craftsmanship is superior to anyone else’s.  I have said it in the past, and I am writing this article to say so again, such opinions are total nonsense.

Virtually all Leica equipment is at the technical and performance front of what is possible today.  The reason for that is that Leica sets performance standards which are higher than most of their competition.  Mechanical and optical tolerances are tighter, and adhered to more stringently than with other companies.  That is what sets Leica apart and it does not make any difference where or by whom these standards are being adhered to.



The Famalicão plant is divided into an optics, a mechanical and an assembly section 



Many sub assembly steps like milling, anodisation, and chrome plating are done in Famalicão

Most of the Leica binoculars and telescopes are made in Portugal, but I did see binoculars being worked on in Wetzlar during my last visit there as well.  Without going too deeply into what is made where, the two facilities work closely together.  Many subassemblies are made in the Portugal plant and then shipped to Wetzlar for final assembly.  Add items which are not made in house, like sensors for instance, and the question of where a camera, a lens or a pair of binoculars is being made becomes difficult to answer at best.

   


Milling, grinding and polishing of optical binocular components are all made in Famalicão

However, it is my understanding that a lot of the final assembly steps are done in Wetzlar, as is the final testing before packaging and shipping. 

Leica is the world’s leading manufacturer of aspherical lens elements and, as far as I know, these are all made in Wetzlar. 


International trade rules allow a company to state as the final country of origin, where an item is assembled and deemed ready for shipment.  Therefore most Leica items are labelled “Made in Germany.”  Some consider this as being misleading, but would it be helpful to have a whole list of countries of origin based on the various parts that are used to make an item? 

Be assured that buying a piece of Leica equipment will always give the assurance that it is of the highest level of quality and subsequent performance.


For complete information on the Famalicão operation in Portugal go here
Related topic: "ELCAN - ERNST LEITZ CANADA LIMITED" go here
Related topic: "MAKING CAMERAS AND LENSES THE LEICA WAY" go here


For other articles on this blog please click on Blog Archive in the column to the right

To comment or to read comments please scroll past the ads below.

All ads present items of interest to Leica owners.

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The next Tamarkin Camera auction is
November 14, 2020 

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Wednesday, October 28, 2020

LEICA MONOCULAR FOR NASA’S APOLLO 11


as11-40-5903~orig


By Heinz Richter

The Apollo 11 moon landing 51 years ago wasn’t just a giant leap for mankind – it was also a historical event for the Ernst Leitz optical factory in Wetzlar, Germany. NASA, based in Houston (Texas), had ordered a special Leitz Trinovid from Ernst Leitz GmbH for the lunar mission in July 1969. The original Leitz Trinovid manufactured for the Apollo 11 mission can be found in the Leica Camera AG archive.

20190624-M1000699

Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon 51 years ago: on July 20, 1969. The Leitz Trinovid specially developed for the Apollo missions is a monocular, consisting of one tube focused over the central bar. Mainly for weight reasons, the NASA scientists had decided on a customized version – the special monocular known to this day as the “Eye of Apollo”. In addition to the monocular, NASA also used other products from the Ernst Leitz company: Leitz microscopes were employed in their laboratories to examine the moon’s rocks, and the launches of Saturn V rockets with Apollo spacecraft were documented using Leica and Leicaflex cameras.

IMG_0547      national 


“Our monocular TRINOVID 10 x 40 already flew with the Apollo 8 and Apollo 10 missions and was an important navigation aid for the crew of Apollo 11 and the lunar module ‘Eagle’. According to NASA research, it proved to be the best of our many glasses offered for this mission,” noted Jerry Rzeznik, a Leitz employee at the time, in the September 1969 issue of the Leitz employee magazine Objektiv. Jerry Rzeznik also provided detailed information on where the Leitz Trinovid monocular was used: “We all know that the moon can only be reached with multi-stage rockets. There are separations of the individual stages, disconnections and couplings of spacecraft. These difficult maneuvers require precise preparation and timely detection of the arriving and departing parts. (…) At the speeds the spacecraft were traveling at, it was necessary to locate them from a distance of about 300 km.”

IMG_0555
telegram

                                                                           to our friends

                                                                           astronauts used binocular trinovid 10 x 10
                                                                           in Apollo 11 +  was already on board of
                                                                           Apollo 8 and 10 + trinovid obviously selected
                                                                           by nasa because with optimum performance
                                                                           small light handy and atmospherically independent +
                                                                           are proud of this proof of quality +

                                                                           7. 21, 1969                     ernst leitz gmbh wetzlar 

In a telegram dated July 21, 1969, the company writes: “astronauts use monocular trinovid 10 x 40 in apollo 11 + was already on board apollo 8 and 10 + trinovid obviously chosen by NASA for highest performance plus small lightweight handy and atmospherically independent + are proud of this proof of quality.”

Photos: NASA Archive/Leica Camera Archive

For more information on other Leica products and cameras used by NASA go here.


For other articles on this blog please click on Blog Archive in the column to the right

To comment or to read comments please scroll past the ads below.

All ads present items of interest to Leica owners.

_______________________________________________________________________

Woman wears brown elk-leather camera strap around her shoulders.
      www.eddycam.com        

      



The next Tamarkin Camera auction is
November 14, 2020 

Buy vintage Leica cameras from 
America's premier Leica specialist 
www.tamarkin.com

 http://www.tamarkin.com/leicagallery/upcoming-show



Click on image to enlar
Please make payment via PayPal to GMP Photography

Click on image to enlarge
Please make payment via PayPal to GMP Photography
Click on image to enlarge
Please make payment via PayPal to GMP Photography

 

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