Posts Tagged ‘Tourbillon’
How To Move Forwards While Looking Backwards – Innovation In The Watch Industry Part.4
In Part.3 we looked at how young watch-maker Romain Jerome is attempting to turn a concept into an icon, with the on-going development of their DNA of Famous Legends series. Today, we turn our attention to another, far more established brand who has already achieved all that and so much more. The challenges they face are somewhat different yet overcoming them are just as integral to the brands continued success.
The question is, how can you be innovative and forward-looking when so much of your brand’s identity is so inherently linked to one particular series ?
The Icon
It’s fair to say that when most people (well watch people anyway) think of Audemars-Piguet, they think of the Royal Oak series. To such an extent some might argue, that it almost seems like the other references live in the shadow of their famous big brother. Rest assured though that these other magnificent pieces, such as the Jules Audemars or the Millenary, are alive and well, and continue to reflect the sublime expertise of this highly respected Manufacture.
Nonetheless though, is it possible that the Royal Oak in someway inhibits the brand’s ability to grow, its ability to create and attract new interest? Arnaud Vidal, General Manager of Audemars Piguet France certainly doesn’t think so:
“Without any hesitation, no. The Royal Oak is for us and for our clients an iconic product and it’s important to remember, from a market perspective, that some brands struggle all their life to be associated with an iconic product. We, we have it, and our clients are very attached to it.”
Developing Not Just Creating
Certainly no arguments here, but what impact does this have on innovation? Especially when you consider that more than 50% of the brand’s revenue comes from one single model, what incentive is there to be developing new models? However, as Vidal rightly points out, innovation isn’t just about developing new models. It also involves developing the models you already have:
“Even at the unique scale of the Royal Oak and its declensions Royal Oak Offshore, we are in constant innovation, following three different axis : materials, finishing, and complications.”
Indeed Audemars Piguet owns one of the most powerful and productive R&D departments in the industry (Renaud et Papi) and it utilizes this facility to great effect. A perfect example of what Mr. Vidal is talking about is the Millenary Carbon, which features a case made from a combination of aluminium, steel, nickel, and forged carbon (the last of which is the equivalent of more than 100 kilometres of compressed carbon fibers!)
On the complications side, Audemars-Piguet also demonstrates their know-how, for instance with a superb tourbillon and a double cylinder which ensures 12 days of regulated autonomy.
Still though, this Millenary Carbon is a limited edition, a tactic which is becoming increasingly common in the industry and in this context makes us question whether the brand is relying on the Royal Oak for its core business and then creating limited editions to generate buzz for the brand?
Although many would consider this a commercially sensitive topic Vidal does not shy away and answers us without any ambiguity:
“No, and for four reasons. The first one is that we don’t need limited editions in our product range, as we unveil around thirty new items per year, amongst which limited editions are just a part.
The second reason is that our limited editions are designed as a special attention, a thanks for our closest customers. As a proof, each limited edition is almost completely sold out even before we produce it.
The third reason is that we don’t markup our limited editions, except, of course, with the potential additions we made to the standard version and that could impact the final price.
Last but not least, the fourth reason is that the limited edition concept, often seen as a sales booster, is on the contrary, for us, a constraint; we are a traditional manufacture with limited production (editor’s note: 25.000 units / year), and each limited edition that we make requires the use of our production tools and consequently slows down the production of our standard models.”
The Final Word
It seems that unlike some of the other brands we have looked at so far, Audemars-Piguet invests in innovation (at least in part) as a way of rewarding its loyal customers. Arguably a key difference here is that AP is a very established and well-respected brand and therefore isn’t as concerned with proving its merit as a watch-maker.
Regardless though, the knowledge and expertise gained from these special editions still flows down to the standard range, ensuring the company continues to produce innovative timepieces of the highest quality.
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Richard Mille RM 027 Tourbillon – Coming To A Court Near You
In their quest to take watch-making to new levels (courts?) super high-end watch maker Richard Mille, in conjunction with tennis superstar Rafael Nadal, have created the all new RM 027 Tourbillon. A watch that is so light (just 20 grams with the strap on!) that Mr Nadal will actually be wearing it when he plays on court!
Now if you know anything about tennis you’ll instantly realize what a big deal this is as any slight shift in weight on a player can dramatically change their game. Therefore, if this partnership was ever going to succeed it was imperative that the company produce a piece that satisfied Rafa’s strict requirements.
And so they did.
Proving A Point
It’s important to realize that making a watch lighter, especially one as complicated as the RM 027 Tourbillon, is not just a matter of using lighter weight materials. It still needs to be accurate and reliable, as well as be able to withstand the shocks and impacts of everyday use, which in this case are greatly magnified given that the piece is strapped to one of the strongest, most active wrists in the world.
However, Richard Mille was sure it could be done. After all, they had already achieved similar success with the RM 006 (42 g without strap) and the RM 009 (29 g without strap) so this next step was simply the logical progression in the process. That didn’t mean it would be easy though.
Then again, it wasn’t like the brand was new to this area of watchmaking.
Richard Mille has been experimenting with the concept of weight reduction in haute horology since the very conception of the brand, although this adventurous spirit was not always embraced by the wider watch community. Mr. Mille himself acknowledges this,saying;
“When I first produced tourbillons with titanium and ALUSIC cases and carbon baseplates, I was fighting against perceived value. A titanium watch could not be a luxurious timepiece as it did not weigh enough. However mentalities rapidly changed and gradually with time amateurs soon appreciated the extreme lightness of my watches whilst being associated with the best technology.”
As you can see, this way of thinking has not changed much since he first set out to make lighter, better timepieces.
The RM Tourbillion – Spartan Style
It was this enduring fascination with the combination of technology, performance and practical aspects in a wristwatch, that drove him to prove once more that an extreme reduction in weight could be achieved with total efficiency and accuracy.
The movement baseplate of the RM 027 Tourbillon is made from Titanium and LITAL® alloy, a high lithium content alloy containing aluminum, copper, magnesium and zirconium, possessing a density of 2.55. The addition of Lithium, one of the lightest elements, to the alloy mixture, provides great strength without adding unnecessary weight. It is for this same reason that this particular alloy is also used in the aerospace industry in the construction of the Airbus A380, helicopters, rockets and satellites, as well as in F1 racing cars.
The result is one of the world’s lightest mechanical tourbillon wristwatches with a movement weight of just a mere 3.83 grams.
The RM 027 watchcase, composed of a composite containing large amounts of carbon, provides a tough and resilient enclosure for the tourbillon movement at its center. The back bezel and caseband are monobloc to ensure total lightness. The glass; the bezel and the flange in carbon have remarkable properties of stiffness and torsional rigidity.
However, the biggest endorsement of all is that this piece has been tried and tested by a man renowned for refusing to compromise when it comes to his sport and his performance. The fact that Rafael Nadal has agreed to wear this piece in all of his matches says far more than any technical specifications ever could.
The RM 027 Tourbillon will be produced in a limited edition of 50 pieces with an ultra light strap in polycarbonate and is expected to be priced upwards of $500,000, meaning you will need to be a superstar also if you ever hope to own one.
The Final Word
Whilst this piece may not rank at the top of my list for the super expensive, high-end luxury watches, I can certainly admire and respect the technical achievements that it represents. Sure it probably cost ten times more than Roger Federer’s Rolex (and then some) but at least Rafa can use the hypnotic effect of the rotating tourbillion to calm him down during intense matches with his watch-less archrival.
Basel World 2010: Getting Acquainted With DeWitt
The second week of Baselworld is much more relaxed than the first, there are less people and the staff feel less under pressure. This usually means more time spent with the watches and the chance to ask more questions.
DeWitt is of course not a an entirely new name in the market, but having been founded in the last five years they have come a long way. Their products are not always widely distributed so you might struggle to find a shop near to you, but if you have a supplier I would recommend looking them up.
Previously my major interaction with the brand has been that their factory is on my way to work at the radio station; it’s a largely anonymous grey/blue building in an industrial estate, but with the wonderful DeWitt branding of wheels and cogs on the side of it.
For my money the new Twenty-8-eight (shown above), so-called because it was designed on August 28th, is the highlight of this year’s new offerings. The proportions seem right, the ratio of height to diameter is good, the weight is excellent, not too heavy and dial’s just fantastic.
The guilloche is of the finest quality having been created by the in-house team on 18th and 19th century tools. I think these give a far superior finish compared to modern machines, deeper and crisper. This is finished off with a black gold which brings out the ridges and valleys into higher relief. You have a choice between a tourbillon or a straight automatic, and personally I would go with the automatic. DeWitt calls it an “urban classic” and I would have to agree with that, it’s a very classy timepiece.
Whilst still highly attractive the tourbillon is just a little less appealing in my eyes and the bump in price certainly makes it seem not as good value for money. A nice touch though is the tribute to the founder with the guilloche in a beautiful “W” pattern.
DeWitt’s superb Academia Tourbillon Force Constante A Chain
One of the more unique aspects of the brand’s approach to manufacturing is that each watch is assembled by one watchmaker from start to finish, and to mark this, each watch sports a plate with the engraved signature of the maker. So if you are the owner of one of DeWitt’s fine watches you can even go and meet the person who made it and perhaps shake their hand.
A trend that has to be taken seriously over the next few years is the use of constant force. The tourbillon isn’t quite ready to step down as the high complication of choice, but most constant force movements are considerably cheaper to manufacture if a little less flashy. The other big development at this year’s Baselworld is the use of the chain and as a technical “tour de force” DeWitt have put all three into one watch; the Academia Tourbillon Force Constante A Chaine.
The in-house built tourbillon passes power to the constant force mechanism from where the force is provided to the movement at the same level regardless of the amount of winding. The chain, made from 192 individual parts, is assembled by machine; this is a very difficult thing to accomplish as the force used to bind the chain must remain constant for each link otherwise the chain will buckle and stick during operation. The chain operates an intermediate wheel which, when the watch is wound, moves the power reserve indicator which slides against an enameled scale.
The Final Word
The future looks good for DeWitt, the new models appear to feature the right functions coming to the market at the right time. I hope sometime in the near future to take a trip around the factory, maybe on my way home from work one summer’s evening.
Basel World 2010: Some Highlights From The First Week
There is always a great deal of excitement in the air during Basel World and with good reason. Some of the world’s most well-respected luxury watch Marques formally unveil their latest creations dazzling show goers with a delicious array of stunning new pieces. In celebration of this we’ve put together our own little list with some of the pieces that have truly taken our breaths away during this first week of Basel World 2010.
Hublot King Power Tourbillon Manufacture (pictured above)
Highly limited to just 30 superb pieces, the new King Power Tourbillon from Swiss watch-maker Hublot is powered by Calibre Hublot HUB6002 tourbillon movement manufactured completely in-house by the recently acquired Confrérie Horlogère Hublot. Presented in a 48mm black ceramic case complete with hand polished black nickel hour and minute hands coated in black SuperLuminova, the movement is hand wound and features off-centre hour and minute indicators at 12 o’clock and seconds via the tourbillon cage at 6 o’clock. Rounding all this is out is a very impressive Power Reserve of 120 hours.
Glashütte Original Senator Diary
For the Classicists among you we have this exceptional new piece from German watch-maker Glashütte Original. Simple and elegant in its design, the new Senator Diary has all the makings of the perfect dress watch. But don’t let its good looks fool you though as this piece is far more than just a pretty face. In a world first this new timepiece features a mechanical alarm function that can be set up to 30 days in advance, staggering when you consider that this is a mechanical movement! Available in your choice of a rose gold case with matching rose gold hands and applied rose gold hour markers on a galvanized silver dial or in a stainless steel with a black dial.
Perrelet Diamond Flower Ceramic
For the ladies we have this highly sophisticated and attractive new piece from luxury watch-maker Perrelet, which features the company’s unique “double rotor” system. In this specific creation the top-side rotor is in the shape of diamond-lined flower petals, as shown in the video below. Finishing off this superb piece is a black mother-of-pearl dial surrounded by diamond-set bezel and housed within a silky smooth black and white ceramic case and bracelet. Gentlemen take note, this is a watch that is sure to please even the fussiest of ladies.
Urwerk Mexican Fireleg (UR-103T)
It wouldn’t be The Watch Lounge if we didn’t include an independent watch-maker in our highlight reel. Although not officially unveiled at Basel World, this visually stunning limited edition of the UR-103T from Urwerk, more commonly known as the Mexican Fireleg, simply is too bold to ignore. Created to mark the end of the UR-103T era later this year, the Mexican Fireleg will be available in a limited edition of just 60 (very aggressive looking) pieces. Presented in either a stainless steel or 18k gold case treated with AlTiN (Aluminium, Titanium, Nitride) the orbital cross, hours and minutes have been re-imagined with a very distinctive orange Super-Luminova, making this one mean looking timepiece.
TAG Heuer Pendulum Watch
Rounding out our list is this highly impressive new concept watch from Tag Heuer, which is seeking to claim the title of being the first ever mechanical movement without a hairspring. And judging by the video it looks like they might have just done it! Essentially the issue at hand is that the hairspring will always be susceptible to the negative influences of temperature and gravity. Whilst some advancement in designs and the use of new materials have had some success in overcoming these limitations, they still exist which according to the guys at Tag simply wasn’t good enough. The solution? Replace the hairspring of course! And that’s exactly what they did, replacing it with a highly original pendulum “spring” that is regulated by magnets and beats at the very high frequency of 43,200/hour (6 Hertz). It doesn’t look half bad either!
Stay tuned for more great coverage of Basel World 2010 on The Watch Lounge this week!
Basel World 2010 – Up Close and Personal With Ateliers deMonaco
Some people might consider starting any new business, especially a watch company, in the middle of a financial crisis just a little bit nuts. The upfront costs associated with watchmaking are formidable, cases, movements, hands all cost money; straps, boxes, literature and wages, the costs mount up. Worst still your suppliers want money upfront, your retailers don’t want to pay for the watches until they’ve sold them, who’d want to be a watchmaker?
Well despite all those barriers actually quite a few people, and one of them is Pim Koeslag, Master Horloger and co-founder of Ateliers deMonaco. As the name suggests they are unusually based in the tiny Principality nestled away on the Southern French coast. Given the weather in the Swiss Jura mountains between November and March and the corresponding climate in Monaco the attraction seems clear.
Monaco might be well known for it’s climate but it isn’t known for being a cheap place to live, even if you can get permission from the government to actually live there in the first place and given that finding skilled workers is hard enough in Switzerland persuading people to come to Monaco can’t be easy, but you can’t fault them for having a market to sell to right on their doorstep.
So far so good, but what about the watches? There are currently two models available, and a third on the way. Firstly an in-house designed one minute tourbillion housed in either a square or round case, and secondly their tourbillon minute repeater. We’ll get to the potential third offering later.
The standard minute tourbillon is quite an impressive looking watch, with the round case being at little bit more successful than the square case. This isn’t the fault of the case per se, rather that it looks perhaps a little too much like some models Roger Dubuis, not a favourite of mine, than is perhaps good for it. Both models have a severe cut away to the bottom third of the dial which exposes the tourbillon and the rotor weight, which we’ll touch on more later.
On a more subtle note the dials, commonly in a very stylish grey-green colour, are engraved with a deep sunray pattern. This not only gives them a very attractive finish, but each beam also indicates one minute on the dial, a nice touch.
The cases are large as you might expect but not as heavy as they might appear. This is due to the composite nature of the case, being made up of 33 individual pieces with an inner case made of titanium and an outer case in gold. This not only limits the overall weight of the watch but allows each part to be decorated differently and this gives the case a very interesting mixture of brushed and polished gold curves and faces.
One innovation that doesn’t stand out, purposefully, is the tourbillon bridge. Rather than try to deal with the intricacies of a metal supporting bridge Ateliiers deMonaco have instead designed a bridge made out of sapphire. While not the most obvious of materials for the job, it is stiff and light and its transparent nature seems to make the tourbillon float in mid-air, a surprisingly effective move.
New for the Baselworld show the movement has been expanded to include a Repeater into the case. A notoriously difficult complication to get right, it is vital to get the tone of the gong loud and sonorous, a weak and feeble sound and you won’t sell a single one. So a brave thing to try and limited to only eight pieces.
Now about that rotor. I’ve seen some very impressive automatic rotors over the last few years. Speake-Marin has a mystery rotor that seems entirely symmetrical; The basket weave pattern on Maitres du Temps is beautiful in it’s execution, but the rotor fitted to Ateliers deMonaco is in a different league. Engraved with the Monaco coat of arms, the figure is cut deep and crisp and even sounds like Christmas!! The cut-away face of the watches allows you to see the rotor swinging freely from the front of the watch.
At beginning I alluded to a third model. Only finished just before the show and not yet released it is what I think will be their most successfully finished watch, a Perpetual Calendar. Now with the complications needed for a perpetual calendar pretty fixed there is only limited scope for how the information can be displayed. The balance between the need to show all the data and ensuring that the dial remains readable is crucial, but I think they have got it just about right. If you have ever wanted to own this particular complication then this might be your chance. Unfortunately there is still work to do, so no pictures yet, hopefully very soon.
Independent watchmaking is a competitive, cut-throat business, but having good watches and support helps the process along. Ateliers deMonaco looks to be off to a flying start, here’s wishing them the best of luck.
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