Elite time of the 'Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie', Geneva.

Montblanc Nicolas Rieussec Rising Hours

The hour display of this watch is made possible by Montblanc'€™s new Calibre MB R220, which has a patented mechanism consisting of two rotating discs positioned one atop the other, to show not only the individual 12 hours, but to also indicate whether its day or night. The Arabic numerals 1 to 12 are on the upper disc, which is situated above the bi-color day/night disc. The 12-hour disc rotates continually, while the day/night disc turns in intervals and at variable speeds to produce the desired color change (blue for the night, black for the day) in the cut-out numerals. This motion is controlled with the aid of a Maltese cross-shaped mechanism consisting of two cam-like wheels. In addition to this double-disc mechanism, four other disc displays rotate. The day of the week is shown in a window at the 9 o'clock€ and the date appears in an aperture at the 3 o'clock This is the latest version of the collection named after the inventor of the chronograph.

A. Lange & Sohne Grand Complication

The German watch brand has developed a timepiece with a host of complications that include chiming mechanism with grand and small strikes; minute repeater; a monopusher type split-seconds chronograph, with minute counter and rattrapante function and jumping seconds accurate to a fifth of a second; perpetual calendar with date, day of week, month in four-year cycle; and moon phases. The movement is a Lange manufacture Calibre L1902, manually wound. The white enamel dial reveals a railway-track minute scale and the four characteristic, symmetrically arranged subsidiary dials. This exclusive collectors' item is housed in a 50mm pink gold case comes. It is available in a limited edition of six watches.

                        Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Grand Complication

The mechanical heart of this 44mm timepiece is its three advanced functions, forming what is considered in the industry as the basis of a Grande Complication movement. Its traditional self-winding movement combines minute repeater, split-second chronograph and perpetual calendar functions. In addition to showing legal or civil time, it's also equipped with a minute repeater mechanism, enabling it to sound the hours, quarters and minutes on demand. And it houses a perpetual calendar complication which also displays lunar cycles. Last but not least, it affords the possibility of performing timing operations and reading off intermediate or "split" times due to the split-second complication, an authentic Audemars Piguet signature in its Grande Complication models since 1882. The self-winding Calibre 2885 has 648 parts. It is available in a Titanium case (pictured) or an 18K pink gold case. Both models are limited to three pieces each.

Richard Mille RM58-01 Tourbillon World Timer

The 12-year-old watch brand is an infant when it comes to the venerable world of the Swiss watch industry, but it has grown up at lightning speed with technical innovations and partnerships with athletes in sports ranging from track and field to soccer to auto racing. This manually winding movement has hours, minutes and a 10-day power reserve shown on an indicator at 2 o’clock. The caliber RM58-01, 34mm in diameter, is supported on a baseplate of grade 5 titanium, a material also utilized for the bridges. The tourbillon, positioned at 9 o’clock and oscillating at a frequency of 3Hz, is accommodated in a four-part case made from titanium and red gold. The shot-blasted, satin-brushed and polished rotating bezel bears the names of 24 world cities, symbols of the international 24 time zones on its brown upper flange. The RM 58-01 does not need any adjusting push-piece to change from one time zone to another. The time is set by rotating the bezel anticlockwise, making adjustment a quick operation. All the traveler needs to do is position the name of the city where he or she has just landed at 12 o’clock, which automatically sets local time and the time in the other 23 world cities due to the 24-hour scale engraved on the flange. The black and white disc distinguishes day from night for the user automatically, so there is no possibility of confusion. The timepiece, produced as a limited edition of 35 pieces, was made in partnership with Jean Todt, a French motor sport executive, who wanted a watch to travel the world with. Profits from the sale of this watch will be transferred to two key initiatives close to Todt'€™s charities: the Global Campaign for Road Safety and the ICM Brain and Spine Institute, which he co-founded.

Cartier Montre Rotonde Double Mystery Tourbillon

Cartier unveiled its new movement at SIHH: the 9454 MC Double Mystery Tourbillon, certified by the Geneva Seal. The flying tourbillon, which turns once on its own axis every 60 seconds, appears to be floating completely free in space, with no visible connection to any gear train. The illusion is complete when the same tourbillon cage performs a second rotation at a rate of one turn every five minutes. The slate-colored dial is made of galvanized, guilloche, silvered open-work grill. The watch hands are sword-shaped in blued steel. It's housed in a 45mm platinum case with the crown set with a sapphire cabochon.

Swiss decadence & luxury, Timepieces.

Louis Moinet Meteoris

It is a privilege to bring some of the most delicate art of Timepiece, which super exceeds the price tag alone.
The price tag suggests that only the very finest connoisseurs of Haute Horlogerie are likely to make it part of their collection. A delicately engineered planetarium creates the universe in miniature, while four Tourbillons add to the breathtaking complexity and appeal of this mechanical design wonder.
Price: around 3.37 million €.

   Excalibur double flying Tourbillon

The one and only prodigious double flying Tourbillon with differential also comes in a skeleton version. The epitome of contemporary Haute Horlogerie signed ROGER DUBUIS.

Skeleton - flange fully set with 48 baguette diamonds (approx. 4.3 carats).

28pcs, white gold adjustable folding buckle, genuine alligator hand-stitched Calibre 16, 45mm white gold, 28 jewels with a power reserve of 48hrs.

Graceful yet distinctly masculine, the case of the Roger Dubuis Excalibur Double Tourbillon luxury watch is fully paved with stunning baguette cut diamonds.
This marks it out as a discreetly ostentatious choice for those who seek some sparkle in their timepieces.The skeleton dial is also diamond-encrusted, while the engineering brilliance of Roger Dubuis is neatly showcased in the double flying tourbillon.
Price: around € 514’000.

                                                 H. Moser & Cie Perpetual Golden Edition

Described as a 'watch of superlatives', the Perpetual Golden Edition watch from Swiss luxury watch brand Moser is a stunning piece of craftsmanship.
In addition to these classic looks, this fabulous watch has an easily-accessed perpetual calendar movement that has been recognized the world over for innovation in engineering.
Housed in a three part rose gold designer case, it features solid gold hands, a dial that has a hand-crafted gold fumé surface and a solid gold movement.
It may be true that all that glitters is not gold, but you won't go wrong with this stunning luxury timepiece.

In essence, Time is priceless and so is the passion that strives forward for such excellence and the tradition that excels to cross all borders of imagination.
ref. premiumswitzerland.com

Swiss made watch, its prestige and challenges.

Richard Mille, 2013.

How much are the words "Made in Switzerland" worth to consumers increasingly vigilant about the provenance of everything from what they eat to what they wear? The answer, luxury watchmakers say, is "a lot."
Protecting the label is essential to the industry's image, profitability and future growth, many luxury watchmakers say, and studies by St. Gallen and Zurich universities do show the tag can almost double a luxury watch's price.

But as with so many other products in a globalized world, there is a gray area around what makes a watch Swiss, and that lack of clarity has consequences for quality - and revenues.
The issue is part of proposed new legislation before Switzerland's parliament to regulate the use of the label for foods, services and industrial products.

With politicians and lobbying groups fighting over designations on products as diverse as cheese, pocket knives and textile machines, the chances for passage this year are dimming, however, and many watchmakers are growing anxious at the delay in solving what they see as an urgent problem.

"This law is (like the debate over) the Loch Ness monster," said Richard Mille, whose ultra-light watches are worn by tennis player Rafael Nadal.
"I'm not sure if there ever will be a solution."

In the first discussions in the two houses of parliament, the lower house has argued that 60 percent of the value of an industrial product must originate in Switzerland for it to be labeled "Made in Switzerland", in line with the draft law proposed by the government, while the upper house holds that 50 percent is sufficient.

If no compromise is found over the percentages and a myriad other issues, two more sets of debates may be held in each house over the next half year. If no agreement is reached, the bill fails.

Both versions are stricter than the 40-year-old "directive" currently governing the use of the "Swiss Made" stamp used for watches, which says at least 50 percent of the value of only the watch movements must be made in Switzerland.

This means cost-conscious watchmakers in the lower-priced segment can import 100 percent of the cases, dials, hands and straps and still mark their watches "Swiss Made" as long as half of the parts of the watch movement are made at home.

The directive also has little-to-no heft in international trade disputes, making it a blunt sword in the fight to protect the reputation of "Swiss Made", luxury watchmakers say.

"Thanks to current weak Swiss laws, watches produced almost entirely in China can be sold legally under the "Swiss Made" label," Jean-Daniel Pasche, chairman of the Swiss watch federation (FH), said in a telephone interview.

"This is going to harm the label over time as consumers nowadays want to know what they are buying. Some complain their Swiss watches are not as Swiss as they should be," he said.

Stepping up pressure ahead of the next parliamentary debate on March 11, the Swiss watch federation announced last week it was leaving business lobby economiesuisse because of what it called its "lack of support" for the tighter rules, an unusual move in a country where consensus is the guiding principle of public life.

Economiesuisse decided only last year to back the 60-percent limit for the watch industry, which the federation said came too late to help them in their lobbying efforts.

The debate over how high to set the threshold is partly due to concerns that producing more in Switzerland, where salaries and prices are high, could hurt small and mid-sized firms' margins, already squeezed by a strong Swiss franc. Some watchmakers agree.

Ronnie Bernheim, head of the maker of Switzerland's railway clocks, Mondaine, said a threshold as high as 60 percent could compel makers of lower-priced watches to buy cheaper components abroad.
"If you import a lower price component, also of lower quality, the Swiss percentage goes up ... Lower-quality products would qualify for 'Swiss Made'. It is paradoxical," said Bernheim, on behalf of some 25 watchmakers opposing stricter rules.

The trend is likely to be accelerated by a move by watch industry major Swatch Group to get out of the business of selling movements and movement parts to other watchmakers, which will compel some players to source more parts from Asia, at least in the short-term.
LVMH's biggest watch brand TAG Heuer has been one of the few to publicly admit buying movement parts from Japan's Seiko while stressing this would not hurt its "Swiss Made" image.

Buying less crucial watch components such as cases, straps and dials from Asia, mainly China, has been common practice for decades. While luxury players and big groups can afford to make these parts in Switzerland at a higher cost, smaller and mid-sized firms in the lower-priced segment cannot, said one Swiss movement maker who asked not to be named.
"You can find these components in a very good quality in Asia," he said. "They are not better if you make them in Switzerland."

Mondaine's Bernheim said Switzerland would lose its competitiveness if it adopted rules that were too strict. But Pasche said the special reputation and value of Swiss watches justified tougher rules.
Italy voted tighter rules for applying the "Made in Italy" tag to clothes, footwear and leather goods in 2010, asking that two stages of manufacture should take place in Italy. But the new law is awaiting European regulation on the matter.
The European Commission has proposed origin labels for both EU-made and imported goods, defining the origin as the country in which the last major step in the production process occurred.

To better protect Swiss products abroad, the draft law proposes to extend an existing register for "geographical indications" for agricultural products to all goods.
Interested groups will be able to win certification that their products meet strict technical and aesthetic rules and have qualities unique to their location, for example "Geneva" for watches, and register a geographical trademark which will help defend its holder's rights abroad.

One of the first such geographical marking systems was France's "appellation d'origine controlee" (AOC) applied mostly to cheeses and wines.
"There are no such rules at the moment. This makes it very expensive and often impossible to take legal action against free riders abroad and have them punished," said Anja Herren of the Swiss federal institute of intellectual property (IGE).

Mondaine's Bernheim fears stricter rules will threaten his business and force him to cut jobs. But the watch federation says the rules will preserve jobs in the industry, which currently employs about 53,000 people, and make it impossible for foreign companies to buy watch firms for the "Swiss Made" label only to relocate production abroad.
Pasche says if parliament fails to pass the new laws, watchmakers will work on strengthening the industry directive, which it has held off doing while the legislation is debated.

Julien Marchenoir, brand equity and heritage director at Richemont's 260-year old Vacheron Constantin brand, said the "Swiss Made" label as well as the "Geneva hallmark" will help keep watchmaking know how in Switzerland.

"There are lots of different economic interests involved but people shouldn't be short-sighted."
ref: reuters.com