SARPANEVA

These watches are not created for everyone. They are exceptional timepieces intended for exceptional people.

All Sarpaneva watches are designed by Stepan Sarpaneva himself. His ambition is to create unique design, fusing timeless elegance with unorthodox boldness. Sarpaneva Watches manufactures mechanical timepieces of outstanding quality, created in the spirit of the traditional watchmaker's art.

Stepan Sarpaneva was born in 1970 to a Finnish family with a long heritage of craftmanship. Son of jewellery designer Pentti Sarpaneva, Stepan was brought up to be a talented designer and craftsman.

Sarpaneva first graduated from the Finnish School of Watchmaking and then moved to Switzerland to further
his studies at WOSTEP. In 1994, he began work for several prestigious watchmakers including Piaget, Parmigiani, Vianney Halter and Christophe Claret. During those ten years in Switzerland, Sarpaneva specialised in the crafting of complicated timepieces.

Perfectionism, enthusiasm and an infinite passion for watchmaking inspired Sarpaneva to create watches of
his own. In 2003 he founded his own company in Helsinki, Finland where he individually handcrafts each watch at
the workshop.

High quality combined with unique design ensures that every Sarpaneva watch will last a lifetime.

KORONA K0

An executive class sports watch in which the timer ring is directly integrated into the movement. This unique feature allows all functions to be set by using only one crown.

KORONA MOONSHINE

The spirit of the Moon. Captured in gloomy woods during the darkest hours, in palest moonlight. Nurtured by noble artisans, distilled to perfection. A top note of northern melancholy, seasoned with lunacy. To be served only to the chosen few.

SARPANEVA WOODOO

When the sun is absent,the moon becomes the master.  and when the moon is wicked, a vicious watch is born. 

A bizarre timepiece with a twist of magic

ROLEX

 

 

ROLEX

It doesn't just tell time, it tells history.
Rolex and icons commercial - http://www.rolex.com/magazine/icons.html

In praise of the invisible

Hidden away in its waterproof case, the Perpetual movement remains invisible to the wearer of the watch. Only Rolex-certified watchmakers are able to access it with their special tools. Yet, when it has the honour of being seen, this exquisite mechanism known the world over for its chronometric performance can truly be admired for what it is:
a work of art, a magnificent miniature universe, a myriad of shapes, forms, volumes, colours and surfaces, some polished, some satin-finished, others circular-grained, always with loving care.

A COMMON ARCHITECTURE

Precision, robustness, reliability

The Perpetual movements that equip the Oyster models play an
integral part in the reputation for excellence of Rolex watches.
These mechanical self-winding movements, all rigorously certified
as chronometers by the Swiss Official Chronometer Testing Institute (COSC), are entirely designed and manufactured by Rolex based
on a common architecture and characteristics that ensure high performance and adherence to the uncompromising requirements
of precision, reliability, shock-resistance, efficient self-winding and ease
of maintenance.

Balance wheel with variable inertia

Equipped with gold Microstella nuts, this balance wheel allows high-precision regulating and great stability.

Hairspring with Breguet Overcoil

The outermost coil of the hairspring, which is attached to the balance bridge, is curled towards the centre of gravity. This allows perfectly balanced and concentric (isochronous) oscillations of the balance wheel-hairspring mechanism and contributes to greater chronometric precision whatever the position of the watch.

High-frequency oscillation

A frequency of 28,800 beats per hour (8 per second) allows optimal conciliation of the oscillator’s precision and peerless reliability.

Traversing balance bridge

The traversing balance bridge allows stable and precise positioning of the oscillator in order to improve chronometric performance. The bridge’s rigidity greatly improves shock resistance. The Perpetual movements’ traversing bridge is height-adjustable to provide for optimal free movement of the balance wheel: a supreme refinement.

Self-winding via perpetual rotor

Invented by Rolex in 1931, this ingenious mechanism consists of a half-moon-shaped oscillating weight rotating freely in both directions on its axle under the impetus of the wearer’s wrist. It keeps the mainspring under continuous tension and thus provides the watch with a constant and stable source of energy.

High-performance lubricants

The quality of the lubricants is of prime importance for the proper functioning of a mechanical movement. Rolex has developed exclusive new lubricants, synthesised in-house, whose useful life and stability over time have been considerably improved.

Extremely fine finishing

Although the Perpetual movements are accessible only to Rolex-certified watchmakers using specific tools, they are decorated in the finest watchmaking tradition. The plates and gear trains are circular-grained, the bridges satin-finished, circular-grained or snailed, the screw heads are mirror-polished and all edges are bevelled.

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COSC CERTIFICATION

A history of precision

The four simple words Superlative Chronometer Officially Certified engraved on the timepiece's dial mean that the movement of this watch
has endured 15 days and nights of testing by the COSC (Contrôle
Officiel Suisse des Chronomètres), an independent not-for-profit association. To receive COSC certification, a watch must demonstrate extreme precision in a variety of positions and temperatures –
the standard level of quality for every Rolex Chronometer.

Chronometer vs chronograph

A “chronometer” is a high-precision watch, tested for 15 days and 15 nights in different positions and at varying temperatures, and whose performance has been certified by an independent official entity such
as COSC.

A chronograph is a watch equipped with an additional mechanism that makes it possible to measure short periods of time with start, stop
and reset functions. And a chronograph can also be certified as a “chronometer”, which is the case of the Cosmograph Daytona.

The red seal

In 1951, the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry (FH) decided to enhance the “chronometer” designation by reserving its use exclusively for timepieces having obtained (and no longer “having the capacity to obtain”) a certificate issued by one of the Swiss Official Watch Rating Centres. Abuse of the term was no longer possible. Rolex created a red seal to accompany each watch, with the inscription “Officially Certified Chronometer”.

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OSCILLATOR

The guardian of time

In a mechanical watch, the oscillator is the guardian of time. Comprising a hairspring and a balance wheel, this regulating organ determines the precision of the watch by the regularity of its oscillations. Rolex deploys exceptional know-how and resources to master the design and production of this inseparable and strategic couple. Conventional oscillator hairsprings are made of ferromagnetic alloys, leaving them vulnerable to magnetic fields and shocks.

After five years of research, Rolex created the blue Parachrom hairspring. Crafted from a paramagnetic alloy, it is unaffected by magnetic fields and up to 10 times more resistant to shocks. Historically, the unique blue colour of the hairspring has been a sign of prestige reserved for only the most accurate timepieces. Today, it guarantees the accuracy of your Rolex.

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PARAFLEX

Enhanced robustness and reliability

To increase the resistance of its movements to shocks - especially if the watch is dropped - Rolex developed and patented an exclusive and highly efficient shock absorber: Paraflex. First invented in the 1930s, anti-shock devices protect the delicate workings of a watch movement. But although perfected over the years, these tiny shock absorbers have their limits.

In an effort to optimise protection, Rolex engineers, working hand in hand with its watchmakers, developed a system that would increase the shock absorber’s resistance by 50 per cent while preserving the chronometric properties of the balance wheel. Following extensive shock testing and laboratory measurements, the Paraflex was introduced in 2005, and the new geometry of the shock absorber springs is now an exclusive signature of Rolex movements.

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ESCAPEMENT

The key to time

Have you ever wondered why a mechanical watch goes “tick-tock”? The ticking is produced by the escapement, a strategic part that plays a key role in
the movement’s measurement of time.  “Tick”: a tooth of the escape wheel locks against one of the pallets. Then, released by the sweep of the oscillator, the pallet fork lets the wheel “escape”. The wheel continues to rotate and locks against the second pallet: “tock”.

The pallet fork is synchronised by the alternating movement of the oscillator. It continues its infinite pendular beat against the oblique teeth of the escape wheel precisely 28,800 times every hour – 14,400 “ticks” and 14,400 “tocks”. That's 250 million times
a year. We are at the very heart of the Rolex Perpetual movement, where its pace is distilled with chronometric precision.

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THE ORIGIN
OF THE PHRASE

Did you know?

"Superlative chronometer officially certified"

Historically, a chronometer could be certified by its own manufacturer,
a process which obviously carried a risk of fraudulent abuse.
To guarantee the quality of its chronometers, Rolex made the choice
to have them officially certified, in spite of the costs and extra time required.

Today, everyone knows that 100 per cent of Oyster Perpetual watches are chronometers. That is what the phrase “Superlative Chronometer Officially Certified" attests to first and foremost.
This inscription can even be considered the symbol of the brand’s tireless pursuit of chronometric excellence.

OMEGA

Omega SA is a Swiss luxury watchmaker based in Biel/Bienne, Switzerland. Britain's Royal Flying Corps chose Omega watches in 1917 as its official timekeepers for its combat units, as did the American army in 1918. Omega watches were the choice of NASA and the first watch on the Moon in 1969. Omega has been the official timekeeping device of the Olympic Games since 1932. James Bond has worn it in films since 1995; other famous Omega wearers, past and present, include John F. Kennedy,Prince William and Buzz Aldrin. Omega is owned by the Swatch Group.

The forerunner of Omega was founded at La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland in 1848 by 23-year-old Louis Brandt, who assembled key-wound precision pocket watches from parts supplied by local craftsmen. He sold his watches from Italy to Scandinavia by way of England, his chief market. After Louis Brandt's death in 1879, his two sons Louis-Paul and César, troubled by irregular deliveries of questionable quality, abandoned the unsatisfactory assembly workshop system in favour of in-house manufacturing and total production control.

Due to the greater supply of manpower, communications and energy in Biel/Bienne, the enterprise moved into a small factory in January 1880, then bought the entire building in December. Two years later the company moved into a converted spinning-factory in the Gurzelen area of Biel/Bienne, where its headquarters are still situated today.

In 1947, Omega created the first tourbillon wristwatch calibre in the world with the 30I. Twelve of these movements were made, intended for inclusion in the observatory trials in Geneva, Neuchâtel and Kew-Teddington, and they were known as the Omega Observatory Tourbillons. Unlike conventional Tourbillion movement’s whose cages rotate once per minute, the 30I’s cage rotated one time each seven and a half minutes. In 1949, one of these delivered the best results ever recorded by a wristwatch up to that time. A year later, Omega broke its own record, in the Geneva Observatory Trials of 1950.

In 1999, with the successful own development of Calibre 2500, Omega made history by introducing the first mass-produced watch incorporating the co-axial escapement — invented by English watchmaker George Daniels. Considered by many to be one of the more significant horological advances since the invention of the lever escapement, the co-axial escapement functions with virtually no lubrication, thereby eliminating one of the shortcomings of the traditional lever escapement. Through using radial friction instead of sliding friction at the impulse surfaces the co-axial escapement significantly reduces friction, theoretically resulting in longer service intervals and greater accuracy over time.

The "Omega Speedmaster Professional Chronograph" was the first watch on the Moon, worn by Buzz Aldrin. Although Apollo 11 commander Neil Armstrong was first to set foot on the moon, he left his 105.012 Speedmaster inside the Lunar Module as a backup because the LM's electronic timer had malfunctioned. Buzz Aldrin elected to wear his and so his Speedmaster became the first watch to be worn on the moon. Armstrong's watch is now displayed at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. Aldrin's is lost. He mentions in his book, Return to Earth, that when donating several items to the Smithsonian Institution, his Omega was one of the few things that was stolen from his personal effects.

Astronaut Dr. Buzz Aldrin

                                                                

In 2007, to mark the 50th anniversary of the Omega Speedmaster Professional Chronograph, the Omega company unveiled the commemorative Speedmaster Professional Chronograph Moonwatch. The watch had the distinctive features of the first hand-winding Omega Speedmaster introduced in 1957. It was sold in an edition of 5,957.

OMEGA AMBASSADORS

                                                                Actress Nicole Kidman

Actor George Clooney

Secret Agent James Bond

Fashion Model Cindy Crawford

Swimmer Michael Phelps

TISSOT

Tissot is a luxury Swiss watchmaker company founded in 1853 by Charles-Felicien Tissot and his son Charles-Emile Tissot who established the Tissot factory in the Swiss city of Le Locle, in the Neuchatel area of the Jura Mountains.
Tissot should not be confused with Mathey-Tissot, a separate Swiss watchmaking firm established by Edmond Mathey-Tissot in 1886.

Tissot introduced the first mass-produced pocket watch and the first pocket watch with two time zones in 1853 and the first anti-magnetic watch in 1929-30. Charles-Emile Tissot left for Russia in 1858 and succeeded in selling their savonnette pocket watches across the Russian Empire. The Tissot company was also the first to make watches out of plastic (IDEA 2001 in 1971), stone (the Alpine granite Rock watch in 1985), mother of pearl (the Pearl watch in 1987), and wood (the Wood watch in 1988). Tissot merged with the Omega watch making family in 1930 and Tissot-Omega watches from this era are sought after by collectors. Tissot's parent company The Swatch Group define Tissot as a "mid-range" brand.
Still based in Le Locle, Switzerland and present in more than 150 countries around the world, Tissot has been a member of The Swatch Group Ltd., the largest watch producer and distributor in the world, since 1983.

Tissot is an official timekeeper for the world championships in cycling, motorcycling, fencing and ice hockey, and was used for the Davis Cup in 1957 and Downhill Skiing in Switzerland in 1938. Tissot was also a key Sponsor for the Formula one teams Lotus, Renault and Sauber. Tissot's first engagement as an official timekeeper was in 1938 where they timed a series of Ski races in Villar, near the company's home town in the Jura mountains.
For early events, handheld stop watches were sufficient to provide official timings. Today Tissot works with various sporting bodies to develop systems to produce ever more accurate timings for specific events. In competitive cycling for instance, sensors are placed on the bikes and track which are then linked by computers to provide track timings and performance data.

Tissot has become known in recent years for its tactile, or "T-Touch," technology; several new watches have touch-sensitive sapphire glasses and include compasses, barometers, altimeters and thermometers. T-Touch watches have been recently featured on Angelina Jolie's wrist in the movies Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life and Mr. & Mrs. Smith.

Famous people who have worn Tissot watches include the actress Sarah Bernhardt, singer Carmen Miranda, Elvis Presley, Grace Kelly, Banassim Kassim and Nelson Mandela. James Stewart also wears a Tissot watch in the movie "Rear Window". Indian actor Kamal Hassan also wears a Tissot watch in the Tamil Movie "Dasavatharam".India's famous actress Deepika Padukone is brand ambassador in India since 2007.

Tissot has been the Official Timekeeper for a multitude of major sports, including MotoGP, Ice Hockey, Cycling, the International Basketball Association (FIBA) the Fencing World Championships, and others, for many years, and being the Official Timekeeper means that Tissot has the privilege and the responsibility of actually timing each of these sports.

• IIHF Official Timekeeper

Tissot has been an official sponsor of the IIHF Ice hockey World Championship since 1996. The prolonged agreement provides the company with a comprehensive package of rights, including perimeter board advertising in prime camera view, hospitality and promotional opportunities in and around the arenas. Tissot will be part of a strong sponsor line-up for the annual championship, including official main sponsor Škoda, which also recently prolonged its involvement through to 2017.

• FIE Official Timekeeper

Tissot is the Official Timekeeper and producer of the Official Watch of the International Fencing Federation (FIE) and the Fencing World Championships. The partnership between the FIE and Tissot dates back to 1996 and and, since then, continues to the present day.

• FIBA Official Timekeeper

FIBA, the International Basketball Federation and Tissot have extended their global partnership for the 2013-2016 period. Tissot’s initial co-operation with FIBA started in 2008 and has since added French star Tony Parker as one of its main brand ambassadors.

• WSBK Official Timekeeper

Tissot is Official Timekeeper and Sponsor of the FIM Superbike World Championship. Tissot’s long-term commitment to the FIM Superbike World Championship is a considerable extension of its existing sponsorship portfolio and acknowledges the strong international scope and fan appeal of the leading road racing series for production-based motorcycles. Tissot's first appearance was at Superbike round in Assen, Netherlands 15-17 April 2011.

• Moto GP Official Timekeeper

Tissot has been the Official Timekeeper of MotoGP since 2001.

• NASCAR Official Timekeeper

In 2006 Tissot was appointed the role of the official timekeeper of NASCAR and Official Watch of NASCAR. Tissot introduced an entire collection of watches aptly named "NASCAR". These watches embody NASCAR with their sporty dials and bold colors.

• Asian Games Official Timekeeper

Tissot has been named Official Timekeeper of the 17th Asian Games Incheon, which will take place from September 19 to the October 4, 2014, in and around Incheon Metropolitan City in the Republic of Korea. Tissot has already been the Official Timekeeper of the Asian Games in 1998, 2002 as well as 2006. For Tissot, it is a perfect platform for demonstrating its dedication to precision in action.

• AFL Official Timekeeper

Tissot is the Official Timekeeper and Official Watch for the Australian Football League (AFL). Tissot may be relatively new to this exciting sport, but the AFL is an established league and wildly popular in Australia, with the largest average attendance, greatest exposure on TV and biggest sponsors.

• CBA Official Timekeeper

Tissot has partnered with the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) as the Official Timekeeper and Official Watch.

• UCI Official Timekeeper

Tissot has been a partner of the International Cycling Union (UCI) since 1995. Tissot renewed 2011 its sponsorship of the UCI for a further six years. As official timekeeper of the UCI, Tissot will receive significant on-site and on-screen exposure at UCI events such as the UCI Road World Championships, UCI Track World Championships, UCI MTB and Trial World Championships, UCI Track Cycling World Cup, UCI Mountain Bike World Cup, and, in a new addition, the UCI BMX World Championships from 2012. The company will also provide an evolving suite of real time information, statistics and results at all these events.

• Commonwealth Games