That was demonstrated recently when Baume & Mercier, owned by luxury conglomerate Richemont, had to end its use of silicon hairsprings after being threatened with a lawsuit. Thanks to the patents filed by its backers, the consortium has a monopoly on the use of silicon hairsprings in Swiss watchmaking, helped by its willingness to defend its territory. Silicon hairsprings are now the domain of a consortium led by CSEM and backed by three watchmaking giants: Rolex, Patek Philippe, and the Swatch Group. Thanks to Ulysse Nardin’s collaboration with Centre Suisse d’Electronique et Microtechnique (CSEM), the Swiss research institute responsible for developing silicon movement parts, the Freak was equipped with both its hairspring and escape wheels in silicon. Ulysse Nardin introduced the first wristwatch with silicon components in 2001, when the Freak made its debut. It was the Swiss, however, who pioneered the use of silicon in watch movements. In fact, the players outside of Switzerland are just two: Master Dynamic is the only company in Asia making silicon hairsprings, with Firehouse Horology in New York City being the only one in the United States. The silicon hairspring was Master Dynamic’s first major invention in watchmaking, making them one of the few companies anywhere able to develop a silicon hairspring from scratch.
The patent covers the design of the hairspring, as well as the specific type of silicon used, which differs from the type used for Swiss silicon hairsprings.įounded in 2010, the company employs over 130 engineers, whose work encompasses diverse fields, ranging from nano-engraving on diamonds to material analysis, and also production of micro-components in metal and silicon. Master Dynamic, a Hong Kong-based engineering outfit, developed the hairspring and received a patent for it in 2017 – United States patent US9658598B2. While the material in itself isn’t new, keen observers will notice the shape of the hairspring it is silicon but features an overcoil. To start with, the hairspring is made of silicon. There’s a lot more than meets the eye in the hairspring pictured above.Īt a glance it looks like just another ordinary hairspring, which makes up half of the regulating organ that keeps time in a mechanical watch, but this hairspring is the result of multiple innovations over the past decade – and it’s made in Hong Kong. Share Facebook Linkedin Twitter Weibo Mail Instagram
0 kommentar(er)
