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All French heritage classified by regions, departments and cities

  2. Patrimoine
  3. Bourgogne-Franche-Comté
  4. Doubs
  5. 25000 Besançon

  6. Dodane watch factory in Besançon

 Dodane watch factory in Besançon dans le Doubs

Patrimoine classé
Patrimoine industriel
Usine
Maison d'architecte
Doubs

Dodane watch factory in Besançon

    7 Avenue de Montrapon
    25000 Besançon
Photo de Dodane watch factory in Besançon
Crédit photo : Toufik-de-planoise - Sous licence Creative Commons

Timeline

XIXe siècle
Époque contemporaine
1900
2000
1939-1943
Factory construction
20 juin 1986
Historical monument classification
1994
Final closure
1998
Conversion into offices
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui

Heritage classified

Factory, including interior decoration and the garden (Box HX 58): inscription by order of 20 June 1986

Key figures

Auguste Perret - Architect Manufacturer of the reinforced concrete building.
Raymond Dodane - Sponsor and industrial Heir watchmaker, founder of the factory.
André Boucton - Operation Architect Supervised the construction site for Perret.
Claude Dodane - Raymond's artist and brother Author of the tapestry *Le Temps* (1945).
Michel et Laurent Dodane - Officers (1980-1994) Son of Raymond, last manager of the factory.

Origin and history

The Dodane watch factory, located in Besançon, was commissioned in 1939 by Raymond Dodane, heir of a watchmaking dynasty, to architect Auguste Perret. The latter designed a reinforced concrete building (1939-1943) combining workshops, offices and an employer apartment, according to an L-plan. The project, supervised by local architect André Boucton, also included a private garden with swimming pool and tennis court, reflecting a modern view of the watch industry.

The building, which was listed as a historical monument in 1986, illustrates Perret's technical innovation: visible pole-post structure, prefabricated washed concrete panels, and sound/thermal insulation for workshops. Dodane produced military chronographs (types E 21/E 23) and civilian chronographs, notably for the French Air Force and NATO. Disused in 1994 after the liquidation of the company, the factory was transformed into offices in the 2000s, maintaining its original interior decoration (marble, woodwork, frescoes).

The Dodane family, which had been based in Besançon since 1929, embodied the tradition of the franc-comtoise watchmaking industry. Raymond Dodane (1905-1984), president of the Besançon watchmaking company, modernized production with technical models such as the "return to flight" chronographs for aeronautics. His brother Claude contributed to the decor (Tapisserie Le Temps, 1945), while his sons Michel and Laurent led the company until its closure in 1995, the victim of the economic crisis and the loss of military markets.

Architecturally, the Dodane factory is distinguished by its stylistic homogeneity, combining industrial functionalism and residential elegance. Perret applied avant-garde principles: roof terrace, facades rhythmic by regular spans, and local materials (Gravillons de l'Ognon). The site, including the appendices (garages) and the landscape park, remains a unique testimony of the golden age of bisontine watchmaking, now protected and partially rehabilitated.

External links

Page Wikipedia
Page Monumentum