Welcome back to the second episode in our Swiss SuperLuminova series, and if you missed the first episode, you could catch it HERE. We are here trying to answer all your questions about luminosity in general (do check out our previous blog post) but, more specifically, diving deep into SuperLuminova.
Albert and I aim that by the end of these six episodes, you have a full understanding of all things SuperLuminova. Then, if you see a watch with SuperLuminova on it, you will know the right questions to ask and identify which watch will provide the highest quality luminosity.
The Story So Far
In our first episode, we introduced SuperLuminova, discovered what Luminova is made from, and how dangerous it is. Here, in our second episode, Albert differentiates emission colors and daytime colors, discusses the quality of SuperLuminova, and how Luminova A.G. approaches their environmental responsibilities.
My name is Stephen Mansfield, and my guest today is Albert Zeller, the CEO of Luminova AG and is based in Switzerland. They are suppliers of luminous pigment to the whole Swiss watch industry.
Emission Colors & Daylight Colors
Steve: There are two different colors we need to talk about. There are emission colors and physical colors of the pigment, that is, the pigment’s color in daylight. Let us start with the first one. How many emission colors do you produce?
Albert: There are eight emission colors of Swiss SuperLuminova available. The most popular colors are green and blue emission. Both of those emission colors have existed for a long time now. However, in the last few years, we have launched more emission colors.
The recent additions to the list of emission colors are ultramarine blue, dark blue, violet, white, pink, and orange.
How Good Are You Really?
Steve: How good is SuperLuminova in comparison to its competition?
Albert: We are proud to say that we have the best performing luminous material in the market.
Steve: Why are you so confident in saying that?
Albert: We at Luminova Switzerland produce the finished material in-house. This means we do not depend on anyone else to produce any aspect of the materials. We choose from the finest base components. This allows us to control all the parameters while the components are fused in the furnace and afterward when creating the powder from the ceramic blocks.
My great grandfather founded the company back in 1934. We have been in this field for more than 80 years, so we have seen many problems and their solutions.
Staying Ahead Of The Competition
Steve: How do you stay ahead of your competition and ensure that you are always at the top of your field?
Albert: To make sure we stay on top, we do internal and external research. We partner with world-leading universities and research institutes to ensure we are at the vanguard of the industry. Our aim is to launch new higher quality luminous pigments every few years to have the best possible night-time visibility of their watch.
Quality Control Is Everything
Steve: How can people be sure they’re always receiving the highest quality material from Luminova?
Albert: To avoid quality problems, we operate a triple quality control method. As I mentioned in episode one, it is possible to produce a few hundred dials with one gram of SuperLuminova. It is, therefore, imperative that every customer receives exactly what they ordered. There is no room for mistakes.
We do not impose any minimum order for any of our products, so any customer can order from one gram of material and upwards. We will produce the material to your specification, and also pride ourselves on our short delivery times. If you order in Switzerland by four o’clock in the afternoon and we have it in stock, you will receive the material the next morning on your doorstep.
Another advantage is that the pigments can be stored indefinitely because it is a ceramic powder – so nothing need ever be wasted.
Light Without Carbon
Steve: Making the SuperLuminova powder sounds like a very energy-intensive process from the ceramic materials’ fusion and then creating the ceramic powder through grinding and milling. It does not sound too carbon friendly?
Albert: We are very proud to tell you that we have changed our complete energy policy, so we have been carbon neutral for the last two years. This means all the electricity we need to create the Swiss SuperLuminova pigments is generated with solar panels. We have been installing solar panels on top of all our buildings. Any heating we need for the buildings is provided by geothermal energy. This means that our luminous pigments not only glow green but are also produced green.
Steve: Thank you so much for joining us.
Next Time
Want to know all the details on how Luminova works? Don’t hang around; you can see how this ceramic power stores light and then emit it on demand? That is the big question we explore in episode #3.
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