Schlagwort-Archive: Urwerk

Urwerk presents the EMC TimeHunter Stormtrooper

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For the new Urwerk EMC TimeHunter White Ceramic the nickname „Stormtrooper“ was chosen. Everyone who knows Baumgartner & Frei is not surprised by this choice because of their love of science fiction and the heavy influence of the Star Wars universe on their own designs over the years. The signature armour of the Stormtrooper was an instant icon ever since it appeared on screen in 1977. The Stormtrooper was designed to intimidate but also to look super cool and super clean.
The EMC Stormtrooper evokes the same characteristics. The whole watch belongs like it belongs in a sci-fi movie, and for this limited edition the white ceramic case set it apart from the previous models, indeed all previous Urwerk watches. Because gone is the trademark black look, as the manufacture embraces white for the first time in its history.

The EMC TimeHunter Stormtrooper belongs to the Ur-Chronometry family, which encompasses Urwerk watchmaking concepts dedicated to outstanding precision. An EMC TimeHunter is essentially a dual measuring instrument. Its appearance and even its surface all signal its nature. The EMC Stormtrooper is crafted from steel and its caseback from titanium. Its aesthetic is not round, square or cushion-like, nor indeed any of Urwerk’s signature indefinable shapes. This hyper-technical machine hugs the contours of the movement inside and submits to the constraints of its various organs. It is not symmetrical, regular, flat or curved, yet remains aesthetically pleasing and distinctive, embodying a truly unique personality.
Moreover, its stainless steel „hood“ is micro-beadblasted and then given a hard, matt ceramic lacquer-type treatment. As a result, the surface of the EMC TimeHunter „Stormtrooper“ has a grainy finish reminiscent of military equipment. The case measures 43 mm in diameter and 51 mm in length and is water-resistant up to 3 atm.

The same functionalism reigns on the dial with its matt black surfaces. Each indication zone has its own clearly marked space. Each unit is painted with fluorescent green Super-LumiNova to perfect the contrasts. In addition to the main dial with its chequered hand grenade pattern, which displays the hours and minutes, the EMC TimeHunter features a smal disc-type seconds hand at 1 o’clock, graduated in five-second increments. It is complemented by a power-reserve indicator at 7 o’clock.
The indications linked to the chronometric monitoring function are concentrated at 11 o’clock and indicated by the „EM Control“ marking on the screw-down bezel.

At the very heart of the EMC concept lies an electronic/mechanical system that makes each of these timepieces one-of-a-kind, bestriding two worlds. It is an entirely mechanical watch, optimised with the help of an electro-optical circuit. Designed exclusively for the EMC collections, the UR-EMC2 calibre is entirely crafted, finished, assembled and adjusted by Urwerk.
It incorporates an electronic module whose function it is to measure the rate of the mechanical part. It has its own power source, separate from the rest of the movement. On one side the engine, on the other, the control unit. These two integrated units make the EMC TimeHunter a truly wearer-adjustable watch.
The hand-wound movement works at a frequency of 4 Hz and offers a power reserve of a maximum of 80 hours.

The EMC TimeHunter Stormtrooper is a very limited edition of only 5 pieces.

Urwerk Ur-100 Gold Edition

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This new creation is the fourt episode in the UR-100 intergalactic saga, recounting the adventures of an atypical time instrument written, produced, and directed by the horological studio Urwerk. Approaching light speed, the UR-100 pushes the boundaries of technology, design, indications and functionality. Like other Urwerk models, this latest UR-100 clearly shows that science fiction has been an inexhaustible source of inspiration for Baumgartner and Frei. Why else would this newest model be named after the popular Star Wars droid C-3PO.

First and foremost, the UR-100 is slim – extra-flat for a satellite-geared watch – with angular contours; it’s an elongated octagon with three notched sides. The form uses subtle asymmetry, taking clues from Han Solo’s Millennium Falcon. The UR-100 is cutfrom a solid block of yellow gold, its surface satin-finished to the same pale shine as the Star Wars droid. It measures 41 x 49.7 x 14 mm and is pressure tested to 3 bar.
Topping the case is a sapphire crystal bubble reminiscent of the shape of the first Urwerk models, the dome housing the control center of this intergalactic visitor.

The UR-100’s astrophysics govern the Urwerk universe with rotating satellites displaying the hours and minutes. Isochronal revolutions create a miniature cosmic ballet, the hour satellites also displaying minutes as they traverse 120 degrees across the bright green scale. A bold red arrowhead marks the confluence of hours and minutes, offering a unique, highly legible, and intuitive time display.
At last, but certainly not least, are the discreet spacetime indications on each side of the top of the dome’s periphery. After each of the three red minute arrowheads pass the numeral 60 they disappear and then reappear again on two separate kilometer scales. The first display at 9 o’clock marks the 555 km traveled along the equator during 20 minutes of the earth’s rotation, the second display at 3 o’clock indicates the distance – 35,740 kilometres – traveled by the earth as it orbits the around the sun over 20 minutes.

The UR-100 is powered by the calibre UR 12.01. The automatic winding system is equipped with the legendary „Windfänger“. This planetary gear limits the speed of rotation of the rotor, minimizing both excessive winding and wear and maximizing reliability and lifespan.
This automatic movement operates at a frequency of 4 Hz and provides a power reserve of at least 48 hours.

The UR-100 C-3PO is a special edition limited to 25 pieces.

Retrograde Shock Waves in the UR-210 Black Platinum

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Urwerk, widely known for its unusual watches and exciting time displays just introduced a new version of its UR-210. Nobody can the deny the appeal – and the success – of this model.
Urwerk presents this masterpiece in a black platinum version, in keeping with a tradition held since its foundation. May we introduce: the UR-210 Black Platinum.

You have to keep your eyes glued to the dial as the minute hand approaches the end of its hour. Don’t blink our you’ll miss a display of controlled energy in the lighting return of the retrograde hand as it snaps back to the start of the next hour. The action is too swift for the eye but you hear the sharp click that announces the arrival of the hand on exactly zero. Raw power, masterful restrained and controlled.
The combination of the revolving satellite complication and retrograde minutes is seen nowhere as in the UR-210. The prominent three-dimensional minute hand acts as a high-tech cowling that encloses the hours and carries them in turn smoothly across the minute scale.

The speed of the flyback depends on three key factors: The central hub ensures that the mechanism remains stable and constitutes the rock on which the entire complication rests. A cylindrical spring along the shaft accumulates the power for the retrograde function. The unusual minute hand that acts as a cowling to transport the hours has equally uncommon dimensions. Machined in aluminium, it is perfectly balanced by a brass counterweight. A double co-axial cam in the shape of a star governs the retrograde action. Its gearing and its rotation determine the trajectory of the minute hand.

The dial of the UR-210 Black Platinum also features a power reserve indicator at 1 o’clock and opposite at 11 o’clock there seems to be a second one. But it is, in fact, a similar indication which is also very different. It shows the winding efficiency during the last two hours. This feature is the world’s first! It calculates the energy flow, the ratio between the energy generated and consumed. If you’re sitting comfortably in a chair, not moving much, you’ll see the hand of the winding efficiency indicator move slowly towards the red sector. Then it’s time to adjust the winding rate. The adjuster for this feature is on the back of the watch. If it’s switched to „Full“ the rotor becomes sensitive to the slightest motion, on „reduced“ it absorbs some of the energy created by the rotor. In the „Stop“ position, the UR-210 becomes a manually wound watch.
The calibre UR-7.10 works at a frequency of 4 Hz.

The case is designed in a way that it appears to have reacted to the force of the flyback minutes, developing a series of regular shock waves radiating from the dial. The deep furrowed arcs also accentuate the beautiful hexagonal design of the case which is water resistant up to 3 atm.

The UR-210 Black Platinum is a limited edition of 25 watches.

Always Different: Urwerk

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UR-T8_bicolor_front

The watchmaking company Urwerk celebrates its 20th birthday in 2017 – in style of course. Frei & Baumgartner, the founders of Urwerk, presented their new company and their first watch at the Baselworld 1997, causing quite a stir. And even two centuries later, it doesn’t get boring with Urwerk. The new UR-T8 which marks the companies 20th birthday was presented at the SIHH. This watch proves the enormous creativity and the aspiration of Frei & Baumgartner to revolutionize how we think about wristwatches. The way in which the time is displayed as well as the shape of the case is once more unique – and a novelty.

The UR-T8 is Urwerk’s first transformable watch – inspired by the iconic Jaeger-LeCoultre „Reverso“. A Series of precise actions unlocks the case from its cradle, flips it over and returns it with a satisfying click. It then becomes a mysterious object on the wrist. There are two pushers on the bezel which, when pushed simultaneously, lift the watch vertically. It then can be rotated about its axis before clicked back into its cradle to return to the present time. From one side, the UR-T8 is watch, from the other one is a futuristic design piece which resembles a watch only partly since the time display is completely gone.

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UR-T8_bicolor_back

Urwerk has a new version of its trademark wandering-hour indication in the UR-T8. This intuitive display arranges the twelve hours in groups of four on a three-armed carousel. These successively sweep across the scale of 60 minutes to show the time both digitally and analogically. It is the biggest and most elaborate carousel configuration yet applied by Urwerk, with each arm supporting a satellite carousel bearing the four numerals. A complex planetary gearing transforms a tangle of wheels, screws and jewels bearings into a meticulously orchestrated ballet.

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The Urwerk UR-T8 features a unique pneumatic control of the self-winding system. A spinning vane connected to the winding rotor absorbs any sudden and violet movements of the rotor without compromising its winding efficiency.
The watch is powered by the calibre UR 8.01. It works at a frequency of 4 Hz and provides a power-reserve of 50 hours.
The case is made from titanium with a black PVD-coating and it measures 60.23 x 48.35 x 20.02 mm.
Of the UR-T8 will only be 60 pieces available.