Zeiss Brand - Down the Drain

[4th_point]

Rumor has it that some of the highly skilled techs in the optics world said to hell with it, and retired during COVID. I can't confirm that regarding Zeiss, Leica, and Swaro, but I saw it in other industries. And it continues to be a problem today.

Where it took one really seasoned tech to get a job done, it now takes 2. Maybe 3 and there might be rework needed.

Some of the techs that leveled up are getting paid what the seasoned personnel were getting so there was no cost reduction for the business. A whole bunch of less skilled people got bumped up the food chain and some companies are still dealing with it. They can't find competent people to fill those special roles, and tribal knowledge was lost.

I'm all for people getting paid what they are worth, but customers are suffering with poor designs and poor build quality with various product. And companies don't seem willing to trim the fat at the top!

 

[Spiral Horn]

Anyone thinking the Zeiss brand of Sport Optics is finished really hasn’t been paying close attention. They’ve had great recent success with increased focus on mid-grade and entry-level premium offerings such as the Conquest HDX and SFL lines of optics. IMO that trend will continue under the new ownership. Like many optics companies, less and less of the actual manufacturing was being done in Wetzlar and more components and assemblies being outsourced. Although often not widely publicized, most high-end optics companies do this to varying degrees. In the final analysis, it doesn’t seem to have negatively impacted their latest offerings - I own a newer SFL and think it is superb.

As far as CS is concerned, I’ve personally had both wonderful and disastrous experiences with each of the Big 3. Overall, Zeiss has been very good to me. A few years back I sent in an ancient Diavari Classic whose main hinge was collapsing. Got it back several months later, completely rebuilt, with a note of apology for taking so long as it had to be sent back to Germany for repair.

To be fair to optics company CS, complaints related to products out of warranty, items purchased 3rd hand, or abused items, or just worn out from a lifetime of use is really a bit unfair. If companies repair those items without charge that is completely out of goodwill.

My money is on Zeiss remaining a major player in Sports Optics for the foreseeable future.