Where no watch has gone before… This could be the byword for Haute Horlogerie as it ventures into increasingly high-tech ground. Putting a tourbillon inside a platinum case is no longer enough to send connoisseurs into a litany of praise. The stars of the show today are the brains at R&D. This year’s most successful launches confirm what has become a major trend, beginning with the Master Compressor Extreme LAB by Jaeger-LeCoultre. Not just the name sounds like something from a science-fiction movie. The components that make up its 988C calibre are equally space-age. No less than 13 practical and revolutionary materials were selected to build this movement, including carbon, titanium, ceramic, magnesium and polyurethane… not to mention Easium™ carbonitride, silicon carbonitride, black crystalline diamond, iridium platinum and Ticalium®!

Innovation at the heart of the watch

Only a chemist or a physicist can fully understand the advantages of these different materials. And while the layman might be easily impressed by a watch’s exterior, the specialist will be taken aback by what lies inside. Take the example of the Master Compressor Extreme LAB’s balance. The Jaeger-LeCoultre Manufacture in Le Sentier discovered that the entire surface plays a vital role in the balance’s aerodynamic performance. After several years’ research, its engineers perfected an entirely new balance with optimal geometry. They coupled this with an extremely dense material - iridium platinum - to reduce the overall mass while maintaining the determined inertia. The shape of the arms, openings and the geometry also gain several points in the mass/inertia ratio, which directly influences the precision of the watch.

The 988C calibre also does away with the traditional red pallet stones. These have been replaced by black diamond, a synthetic material that is as hard as natural diamond. Grease is also conspicuous by its absence, as graphite powder helps the mainspring smoothly unwind. And the list of innovations goes on! Suffice to say that Jaeger-LeCoultre has developed a watch whose qualities will go on undiminished without a drop of lubricant in its movement.

Faster, higher, stronger

In a word, the most reputable brands want to take their watches’ performances to their ultimate limit. Which is all to their credit: in today’s fast-moving, hard-living world we want to be sure that our watch’s "engine" can rival those of satellites or racing cars. This is why the watch industry openly takes its cue from other branches such as micro-electronics, micro-technology and aerospace. Think of Audemars Piguet, which in spring this year launched its Royal Oak Offshore Alinghi Team Chronograph in honour of the America’s Cup. "Making an entire case out of forged carbon was a journey into the unknown," recalls Bruno Moutarlier, industrial director for the brand. "Rather than throwing ourselves in at the deep end, we preferred to call on outside expertise, in particular in aeronautics, and use their knowledge of forged carbon."

Thanks to this collaboration, and after two years’ research, Audemars Piguet was able to adapt this material to its watches. A visit to a "secret" workshop tucked away inside the Le Brassus Manufacture, where the Royal Oak Offshore cases are forged, is well worth the detour. You’ll be greeted by the sight of two skilled technicians carefully packing carbon fibre strands into a mould. They are then compressed at high temperature (over 200°C) under pressures of more than 300 kg/cm2. The finished watch is unbelievably light - a mere 100 grams - while the shimmering black effect gives it a unique appearance.

The dawn of a new technological era

Of all the technology-mad brands, one of the first and most daring remains Richard Mille. Building on his experience in the field of luxury, as well as the automotive industry, this Frenchman has succeeded in getting other "innovation freaks" onboard. And so with the RM009, Richard Mille has been crowned king of alusic, an aluminum-silicon carbide alloy. "Alusic is an extremely light, hard-wearing and innovative material, used also in Airbuses, which requires radically different treatment and machining to what is standard in watchmaking," explains Theodore Diehl, press officer for Richard Mille. "For example, the three components must be spun inside a centrifuge to ensure the carbon particles are evenly spread."

Another unique characteristic is that the case cannot be stamped using standard tools. Instead, a special tool with a diamond tip had to be developed to cut out the very specific shapes designed by Richard Mille. Despite the many precautions, and the hardness of this stone, huge quantities are lost. Hence the exceptionally high price of the RM009, launched in 2005 in conjunction with Formula 1 racing driver Felipe Massa as a limited edition of 25 and which is still as revolutionary now, in 2007, as it was then. The team at Richard Mille is more convinced than ever that we are entering a new technological era. Who knows what lies ahead? ■

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