Metalor Technologies International SA history

The company, which employs five people, is bought by Banque du Locle in 1864.

Established in 1885, Tanaka employs 3,500 people and is also a world leader in precious metals refining and manufacturing.

In 1896 a new apprentice, Charles Pfister, begins his career in the banking field.

In 1918, after Banque du Locle is taken over by Société de Banque Suisse (SBS), the factory (whose workforce increased to 30 employees) becomes a subsidiary of SBS and expands into the production of bullion for the banking sector.

The refinery initially produces 999.9‰ gold, then also 999‰ silver and 995‰ platinum. It opens in 1924, two kilometers from the main factory, and employs a chemist and four workers.

The company invests in innovation: in 1926 it develops an alloy of white gold and nickel as an alternative to platinum for luxury watches.

With the closing of the borders due to the war, the silver business develops significantly, first with silver nitrate, obtained with a higher purity, and in 1943 with the construction of a production line for the manufacturing of fine silver rivets.

The company needs room to expand, and in 1947 opens new headquarters and a new factory in Neuchâtel.

The current Metalor hallmark, an ‘MP’ in an inverted triangle, dates from this period (1952).

In 1987 a brand-new factory is built in Marin (five kilometers from Neuchâtel), in the archaeologically rich area of La Tène.

A laboratory building is added to the Neuchâtel site in 1992.

After 134 years as a bank subsidiary, Metalor becomes an independent company in 1998, majority-owned by a group of private investors led by Ernst Thomke.