Anchor of a New Era: Ulysse Nardin Marine Chronometer Manufacture Limited Edition

The Marine Chronometer Manufacture Limited Edition represents a watershed release for Le Locle, Switzerland-based Ulysse Nardin. As the vessel for the company’s first volume in-house movement, the watch is both a landmark and showcase. While the style represents a smart refinement of the Marine line’s widely admired aesthetic, the movement inside embodies a complete break with UN’s past practice of modifying customer calibers from Swatch Group’s ETA.

Sometimes, a name says it all: Marine Chronometer Manufacture. The Caliber UN-118, which debuted in this model in 2012, represents UN’s bid to insulate itself against future ETA supply constriction and blur the historically stark line between the firm’s haute horlogerie and volume models. Whereas past UN product lines created a sharp distinction between mechanical marvels like the “Trilogy of Time” triplets and bedrock pieces like the Marines, the new in-house UN-118 marks the dawn of a more integrated UN product catalog. With the Marine Chronometer Manufacture, buyers receive a piece of the flagship technologies at an attainable price.

The Chronometer Manufacture movement is a stunning showcase for materials technology. Five years ago, silicon-based hairsprings and diamond-based escapement components were the domain of concept watches with six-figure price tags. For many brands, this technology remains unobtainable, but for UN, which debuted silicon escapement tech in the landmark 2001 “Freak,” alternative materials have become a core competency.

The UN-118 manufacture movement starts with the signature silicium hairspring. It is amagnetic, shock resistant, and practically immune to temperature fluctuations. As the anchor (pun intended) to the Marine Chronometer’s engine, the silicium hairspring offers the best possible foundation for a watch designed to meet and exceed COSC Chronometer timing standards. But we’ve seen this tech before from UN; the UN-118 adds a proprietary technology called DIAMonSIL to the equation. Silicon escapement components are coated in deposited layers of synthetic diamond in order to fortify them against wear, friction loss, and shock damage.

The material is so resilient that the UN-118’s escapement assembly operates without lubricant – a colossal advantage that extends service intervals and reduces the cost of ownership. UN’s technological advantage is an exclusive one. At the moment, Ulysse Nardin is one of only four watchmakers (Swatch, Rolex, and Patek Philippe are other three) with proprietary silicon hairspring technology; only UN wields the rights to DIAMonSIL. With no fewer than three major components – escapement wheel, pallet lever, and hairspring – rendered in exotic materials, the Marine Chronometer Manufacture brings mainstream mechanical watchmaking into step the the 21st century. And the benefits are real; in an age when powerful speakers, computer assemblies, and static magnets are present in almost every office and domestic setting, the UN-118 laughs at the magnetic menace that has vexed watchmakers since before A.L. Breguet learned to tell time…

Beyond the revolutionary escapement, the UN-118 movement is a study in tasteful, thoughtful, and traditional Swiss “Watch Valley” finishing traditions. The rose gold winding rotor – which is exclusive to this limited edition UN-118 Marine Chronometer Manufacture – features engraved UN anchor icons and a PVD engraving of the DIAMonSIL insignia. The bridges are finished in circular Côtes de Genève; beveling of bridges and levers reflects the company’s determination to make a strong first-impression with this historic movement. While dark platinum-family physical vapor deposit mutes the play of light upon the main assembly, all wheels are grained and finished in a blazing coat of protective rhodium for dramatic contrast. The effect is powerful; UN’s combination of matte gunmetal toned bridges, dazzling white rhodium, rose gold, and chemically blued screws is the very image of beauty rendered in metal.

Technical details of the new movement are commensurate to its status as a standard-bearer for Ulysse Nardin’s savoir faire. A superior power reserve of 60 hours exceeds the industry standard of 42-48, and a circular power reserve indicator at 12 on the dial charts the discharge of the mainspring energy. UN, which has been an industry leader in user-friendly setting systems, here borrows an element from their perpetual calendars and endows the Marine Chronometer Manufacture with a quick-set date that can be adjusted forward and backward without damaging the movement. Automatic winding via bi-directional rotor supplies a continuous power flow to the 28,800 v/h escapement. The 248-component movement meets COSC chronometer standards and has earned the right to bear the inscription “Certified Chronometer” on its dial.

And it’s impossible to overlook that dial. Ulysse Nardin is one of a bare handful of watchmakers – worldwide – that perform in-house enamel dial production. Almost as uncommon as silicon hairspring technology, the art of enameling involves multiple exposures of an enamel-painted base metal cadran to 1,500 degree furnace heat. At any point in the process, the enameled surface can warp, crack, char, or explode, and even the best enameling specialists must endure a stratospheric rejection rate. In short, this is old-world artisan fare, and it should have no place in the modern world of mass-production. Fortunately, like the mechanical wristwatch itself, enameling endures thanks to the emotions it inspires and the enduring beauty of the end product. While metal, lacquered, and synthetic dials age, fade, corrode, and warp, a finished enamel dial will retain its porcelain sheen indefinitely.

The depth, luster, and vivid colors of the enamel dial on the Marine Chronometer Manufacture are beyond attractive; they’re arresting. Black Roman numeral hour indexes combine with a “railroad” minute track to evoke imagery of the vintage Ulysse Nardin marine chronometers that inspired this model line. Modified cathedral hands with deposited luminova and black shafts futrther distinguish this limited production variant from the series-produced Marines. A power reserve indicator at 12, small seconds “sector track” subdial at 6, and the date window at the foot of the subdial lend a pronounced bilateral and vertical symmetry to the composition. Small accents of crimson red explode from the otherwise two-tone enamel and animate the watch as a whole.

While the dial is this watch’s undisputed aesthetic standout, the case, crown, and strap system reflect the holistic effort that Ulysse Nardin invests in every timepiece. The case is an evolution of the distinctive and well-received first generation of the Marine Chronometer. UN continues to employ a fixed bezel with lateral coining and a narrow cross section. Although the case is 45 mm, the combination of large dial and minimal bezel width creates the impression of a very imposing timepiece; it’s easily a visual match for serious heavy metal like the Hublot Big Bang King Power and the 44mm Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshores. As a true marine instrument, the Marine Chronometer Manufacture boasts a 100-meter(330-foot) water resistance rating.

Attention to detail abounds. Large rectangular shoulders protect the screw-down crown and extend the visual span of the case. The crown itself is large, and thoughtful foresight on the part of UN’s design team sees the crown coated with soft rubber for ease of use when working with gloved or wet hands. The lugs are solid, full-width units that impart additional presence to this imposing timepiece. Extra care on the part of the designers is evident in the screw-link lug interface for the strap; while spring bars are more convenient, retention screws improve the security of the watch under adverse conditions, and the large flathead screws compliment the retro design ethic of the Marine Chronometer.

This Ulysse Nardin Marine Chronometer Manufacture features a dark brown alligator leather strap that pairs well with the rose gold case, but the watch is compatible with a range of rubber, leather, and metal bracelets produced by Ulysse Nardin. An excellent double-deployant clasp with friction fold retention assures ease of use. While many competitors continue to ship single deployant clasps that pinch wrist hair and complicate fit on smaller wrists, UN’s system of two click-to-close extensions makes donning and removing this watch a “snap.” On the wrist, the Marine Chronometer Manufacture imparts the physical impression of a smaller timepiece while retaining the presence of a large one. The keys to this ergonomic trick are the short, arched lugs that keep the case centered on the flat of the forearm.

As one of only 350 units of a special edition produced for the launch of the UN-118 movement in the Marine series, this watch is a unique piece with lasting relevance to horology in general and Ulysse Nardin history in particular. Connoisseurs of the brand and enthusiasts of technology will find this Marine Chronometer to be equally appealing as piece watchmaking history and a paragon of contemporary men’s style. Equally at home in the office or offshore, the Marine Chronometer embodies state-of-the-art technology and the arts of traditional premium watchmaking.