Urwerk has successfully continued its tradition of producing high-end ultra-modern watches. But, unlike some watchmakers who are focused on only producing style statement watches, Urwerk has made a name for itself by producing some of the most technically daunting super cool watches. At SIHH this year, Urwerk has come up with two brand new watches to tickle your futuristic fantasies. The first one is the Urwerk EMC Time Hunter which monitors both the amplitude of the watch and its precision with the help of electronically enhanced indications. The second one is a new addition to the UR-105 family called the T-Rex which is a satellite hours watch.
News Points
- Urwerk launches two brand new watches at SIHH 2016: EMC Time-Hunter and UR-105 T-Rex.
- EMC Time-Hunter watch stays precise irrespective of user’s usage style and environment.
- EMC Time-Hunter uses LED lights on the dial to indicate the accuracy and health of the watch.
- UR-105 T-Rex displays time with only a single pointer that travels from east to west.
- Case of UR-105 T-Rex is made of bronze ribbed pattern that depicts a skin of a reptile
Urwerk SIHH 2016 Watches: EMC Time-Hunter
Urwerk EMC Time-Hunter is a fully mechanical watch that supervises both the health (amplitude) of the watch and its precision. The movement of the watch is constructed in such a way that it always stays precise irrespective of the owner’s unique activities and environment. By easily adjusting and testing the precision with help of EMC, the user always gets optimal chronometric performance.
In real world scenario, factors like variations in temperature, the time a watch spends in a particular position, wearer’s daily activity, etc. all affect the watch accuracy. The combined effect can make the watch lose 15 more or seconds daily. This is where the EMC comes in picture, where it measures the number of seconds lost and gained by the watch in a week or month. It adjusts the precision accordingly and the wearer can confirm the precision by using the EMC functionality. In short, the correctness of the watch evolves according to different users and even through evolving lifestyle. The amplitude of the watch is related to the balance wheel which is very light in weight and oscillates at a high frequency. However, smallest amount of degradation in the lubricating oil of the axel can be concerning as it may affect the angle and frequency at which the balance wheel oscillates. Thus, with the help of a LED light the EMC Time-Hunter also indicates if the watch needs any servicing.
The easy to read dial of the Time-Hunter shows the local hours and minutes on the central dial. Running seconds counter is seen in the corner at 1’o clock and diagonally opposite to it is the power reserve indicator. At 10’o clock, a unique feature of the timepiece is seen with two electronic indications for precision and amplitude. When LED is green that means it is “all okay” and red signifies that one of the two parameters need to be checked.
The mechanical movement seen from rear is conceived and developed at Urwerk. The manual winding caliber UR-EMC2 carries 80 hours of power reserve when fully wound. An electronic circuit can also be seen beside the vertically mounted double-barrel system of the Urwerk SIHH 2016 new watch. The generator for the system can be charged manually and it has an optical sensor connected to an integrated circuit board. The EMC Time-Hunter is available in limited edition of only 30 pieces. The natural titanium/steel case is available in 15 pieces and other 15 pieces in military green ceramic coated titanium/steel case.
Urwerk SIHH 2016 Watches: Urwerk UR-105 T-Rex
UR-105 T-Rex is a futuristic watch in real sense. The time is displayed on the ribbed pattern watch in the most minimalistic fashion as possible with the help of a single hour pointer that travels from right side to the left. With 39.50 mm in width and 53 mm in length, the T-Rex case is a work of art. The oyster-shaped case with the hand patinated work is made of bronze whereas the caseback in constructed of black PVD titanium. Bronze hand-worked patina looks like some cool advanced armor for the special double-turbine movement under it.
The un-characterisable case of Urwerk T-Rex has a ribbed pattern as seen on the skin of certain reptiles or even a T-Rex dinosaur for that matter. To achieve atypical finishing, the case has undergone number of processes several times. From decoration to beadblasting, to micro-sandblasting and oxidation with a brush. It seems like Urwerk literally made this case undergo every possible chemical and physical process to achieve this unique glaze. Under this bronze protective covering, the four satellites each consisting of three hour numerals rotate and move along the minute rail.
To let the user see only the time and not let him get distracted by the background, the satellites and the movement are covered with a special material made up of polyetheretherketone (PEEK). The material is decorated with a striking guilloche pattern.
Back of the wristwatch displays the double-turbine system which is adjusted with help of a lever. The lever in “Full Mode” becomes a self-winding system whereas in “Stop” mode, the self-winding system is rendered inoperative and can be only be hand-wound with the help of the crown. Interestingly, Urwerk has added a third mode called “Red”. This mode controls the winding in such a way that the tension on the mainspring is balanced out. The 5.02 UR caliber is a satin-finished movement that provides power reserve up to 48 hours. And although, the Urwerk UR-105 T-Rex displays only the hours and the minute, this modern timepiece needs to be appreciated for its technical prowess and utter time-reading simplicity.
*Words by Yogen Bobde
