Thursday, May 21, 2015

AUDEMARS PIGUET – Royal Oak Concept LAPTIMER Michael Schumacher


AUDEMARS PIGUETROYAL OAK Concept Laptimer Michael Schumacher Flyback Chronograph Limited Edition NEW

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In 2010, F1 legend and Audemars Piguet ambassador Michael Schumacher posed an apparently simple question to the engineers at Audemars Piguet: would it be possible to create a mechanical wrist watch designed specifically for use in motorsport which would make it possible to measure and record an extended series of consecutive lap times?

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It was a horological challenge that had never before been met in a mechanical watch, and one that was inspired by motor racing's very specific requirement to be able to time and compare multiple, consecutive laps - a task which has traditionally been carried out using a bank of two or more stop watches arranged in series.

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Now, after almost five years of development, Audemars Piguet can claim to have conquered that challenge. It is the first motorsport-specific watch to feature a complication imagined by the celebrated driver, with two angular indexing systems on a single chronograph, each with an independent memory.  It is also the first time that a movement has been developed from scratch at the behest of an ambassador by Audemars Piguet – an indication of the strength of the long-standing relationship which the Manufacture has enjoyed with Michael Schumacher since 2010.

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The timepiece features a single chronograph driving two central hands which can be controlled independently via three pushpieces - the first sited at the conventional two o’clock position to start and stop the chronograph; the second sited at the four o’clock position to re-set the chronograph, and the all-important third pushpiece sited at the nine o’clock position.

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This third pushpiece makes it possible to simultaneously stop either of the two chronograph hands, while returning the other hand to zero and restarting it - meaning that, while the time of the most recent lap is being noted down, timing of the next lap is already underway.

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The watch therefore negates the need for two or more hand-held timing devices, streamlining the operation within a single wrist chronograph.

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Alternatively, the watch can keep a certain lap time as reference, stopping one hand with the laptimer button, and using the flyback function on the other chronograph hand with the pusher at 4 o’clock to restart the measurement of each new lap.

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Finally, the timepiece can be used as a “standard” flyback chronograph with both hands running together in parallel.

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The Royal Oak Concept Laptimer Michael Schumacher is the world’s first mechanical chronograph with alternating consecutive lap timing and flyback function, specifically designed and engineered for continuous action and relentless precision in timing laps on the racetrack.

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It will be the second Audemars Piguet chronograph to carry the name of the celebrated driver, and in honour of his extraordinary career, the Royal Oak Concept Laptimer Michael Schumacher will be made available in a strictly limited edition of 221 examples in recognition of the number of F1 World Championship point-winning races in which he competed.

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"Michael has always been a watch lover and connoisseur. Like any engineer who is driven by details and by discovering tailor-made solutions to specific problems, he is fascinated by the technology and craftsmanship that goes into all Audemars Piguet watches," says Sabine Kehm, Michael Schumacher's agent.

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Michael is rightly famous for his sense of meticulousness, both in his work with the engineers and also in his determination and ability to race against every second. Thus, a mechanical watch which is not only beautiful but also an accurate instrument for timing motorsport does perfectly correspond to the high technology and precision which are so dear to him. 

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It reflects the same spirit of determination and innovation on which he built his career as a F1 driver.” says Jean Todt, close friend of Michael Schumacher and President of the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile)

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AUDEMARS PIGUET – Hand-wound Manufacture Caliber 2923

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TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Model:  Royal Oak Concept Laptimer Michael Schumacher 
Laptimer and Flyback Chronograph / Consecutive lap timing and flyback
Limited edition of 221 pieces

Reference: 26221FT.OO.D002CA.01

MOVEMENT
Hand-wound Manufacture Caliber 2923
Laptimer Chronograph  
Total diameter: 34.60mm (15 ¼ lines)
Total thickness: 12.70mm
Number of jewels: 34
Number of parts: 413
Minimum guaranteed power reserve: > 80 h
Frequency of balance wheel: 4 Hz, 28'800 vibrations/hour
CASE
Forged carbon case
Curved glareproofed sapphire crystal
Titanium caseback with glareproofed sapphire crystal Titanium bezel
Black ceramic and 18-carat pink gold screw-locked crown
Black ceramic and 18-carat pink gold pushpieces
Black ceramic Laptimer pushpiece with MS logo
Titanium pushpiece guards
Diameter: 44 mm
Thickness:  20.95 mm
DIAL
Openworked black dial
30 minutes counter at 3 o’clock
Small seconds at 9 o’clock
White gold Royal Oak hands with luminescent coating
Black inner bezel
STRAP
Black rubber strap with titanium AP folding clasp
Water-resistant to 50 meters
FUNCTIONS
Laptimer chronograph with double central second hands,
Flyback, 30 minutes counter, small seconds, hours and minutes
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Audemars Piguet (Marketing) SA
Route de France 16 - Case postale 16
1348 Le Brassus - Switzerland
Phone : + 41 21 642 39 00
Fax : + 41 21 642 34 02
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LONGINES – CONQUEST 1/100th Roland Garros













LONGINESCONQUEST 1/100th Roland Garros Chronograph Special Edition NEW

Official Partner and Timekeeper of the French Open at Roland-Garros since 2007, Swiss watchmaking company Longines presents a new chronograph keeping time to one hundredth of a second to add to its Conquest collection: the Conquest 1/100th Roland Garros. This special edition, created as a tribute to the greatest tennis tournament on clay courts, houses a unique movement using the latest-generation technologies.

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Longines, timekeeper for sporting performances since 1878, is launching a new line of watches that have been specially created for sports which require high precision timing. The Conquest 1/100th series responds to the needs of athletes, professionals and sports fans, besides many others, since it measures multiple intermediary times and has an intuitive analogue display that shows the time to one hundredth of a second using a separate hand. All of this is possible thanks to the latest generation of quartz movement developed exclusively for Longines by ETA.

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As a tribute to the strong relationship that it has developed with the Parisian tournament, the winged hourglass brand is launching an exclusive edition: the Conquest 1/100th Roland Garros. Touches of orange on the hands, the dial or the flange indexes subtly hint at the iconic clay of the French Open courts, while the case back is engraved with the logo of Roland Garros.

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The demands required for Longines to reach such an extreme level of precision have led to the development of a new unique quartz movement, the L440. This new model includes a microcontroller with a flash memory that allows the watch to be reset instantly and allows intermediary times to be recorded.

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With a diameter of 41 mm, this steel model has an anthracite face that displays hours, minutes, small seconds at 6 o'clock, the date and other chronographic functions: a central seconds hand, a 30-minute stopwatch at 2 o'clock and a 12-hour stopwatch at 10 o'clock.

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The hand in orange displays time to one hundredth of a second and is the watch's crowning glory at the centre. The model is also fitted with a steel bracelet and a butterfly clasp.

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Technical Specifications

Model:  CONQUEST 1/100th Roland Garros Special Edition

Reference numbers: L3.700.4.79.6

Movement
Quartz Chronograph movement L440
Functions
Hours, minutes, seconds and date
Chronograph
  • Central second hand
  • Central 1/100th of second hand (in orange)
  • 30-minute counter at 2 o’clock
  • 12-hour counter at 10 o’clock
Case
Round, 41 mm, stainless steel
Screw-in case back
Screw-in crown with protective shoulder
Commemorative engraving “Roland Garros Paris” on the back
Water-resistant 30 bar (300 meters)
Glass: Sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating
Dial
Anthracite dial with 1 applied Arabic numeral and 11 applied indices with Super-LumiNova©
  • 1/100th inscription in orange
  • Small seconds at 6 o’clock
  • Date aperture at 4 o’clock
  • 30-minute counter at 2 o’clock
  • 12-hour counter at 10 o’clock
Rhodium-plated flange
Hands
Rhodium-plated with Super-LumiNova© (hour and minute hands)
Orange (1/100th of seconds’, 30-minute counter and 12-hour counter hands)
Bracelet
Stainless steel with triple safety folding clasp and push-piece opening mechanism
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Press release
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 For further information please contact:
Longines International Public Relations
2610 Saint-Imier, Switzerland
publicrelations@longines.com
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