Industrial pride
The gradual disappearance of industry marked the beginning of an economic, symbolic and political decline, giving rise to a feeling of disintegration. In the late 1960s, Northern Vaud was among the world’s capitals of precision micromechanics. Its flagship products were exported across the globe : Hermes typewriters, Bolex cameras and Thorens record players are all representative of the “Swiss made” label. This pride applies as much to the quality of the products as to the specialized skills required to manufacture them. It also reflected the cutting edge skills acquired within the companies. This is borne out by the attachment of some employees to their training tools, which they sometimes keep throughout their careers. Such as the case of Alfred Beney, a ceramist and turner at Céramique d’Yverdon S.A. This feeling of professional pride strengthens their sense of belonging to the company and to the region. It was also the subject of carefully orchestrated communication campaigns to promote an exceptional model.