BLANCPAIN Supports the Gombessa V Planet Mediterranean Expedition

BLANCPAIN Supports the Gombessa V "Planet Mediterranean" Expedition - 2019

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Continuing its partnership with Laurent Ballesta, Blancpain is backing the fifth Gombessa expedition, a new exploration mission taking place in the Mediterranean off the French coast throughout July.

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 BLANCPAIN – X Fathoms Diving Depth Gauge Chronograph (Ref. 5018-1230-64A)
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For the first time ever, the expedition combines saturation diving with scuba using closed circuit rebreathers. The objective is to reveal the still well-kept secrets of a Mediterranean that we believe we know well, but which remains full of mysteries.

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Laurent Ballesta is a marine naturalist, renowned underwater photographer and pioneer in the use of innovative diving equipment. Since 2012, Blancpain's support has enabled him to put his talents to good use within the framework of the Gombessa Expeditions project, designed to promote a better understanding of deep ecosystems, until now inaccessible and unknown.

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The project has already resulted in four major expeditions, as well as additional missions to Reunion Island, the Philippines and Polynesia. Laurent Ballesta thus contributes significantly to the activities of the Blancpain Ocean Commitment (BOC) around the world.

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Each Gombessa expedition is characterized by a scientific mystery, a diving challenge and the promise of unprecedented images. Gombessa V is no exception to this rule. In order to allow the time to perform a whole series of scientific protocols commissioned by research centers and to illustrate these deep ecosystems, the Gombessa team has developed a world first: the combination of saturation diving with scuba using closed circuit rebreathers.

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Saturation diving enables professional divers to work on underwater construction sites by connecting them to the surface with an umbilical that both provides them with respiratory gas and allows them to communicate.

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The length of time they spend underwater is theoretically unlimited, but they can only move a few meters around the area in which they are working. Scuba diving, as its name suggests, allows free movement, but is characterized by strict time constraints. Indeed, for a few minutes spent at great depth, it is necessary to undergo several hours of decompression in order to avoid any risk of accident.

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The combination of these two techniques makes it possible for the first time ever to avoid any need for decompression during the expedition and to conduct a single four-day session at the end of the mission. Laurent Ballesta and his three companions will thus be able to perform explorations lasting up to eight hours a day in order to achieve their ambitious objectives.

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As with previous expeditions, Gombessa V will be the subject of a feature-length documentary film, an exhibition and a book, which in 2020 will reveal the discoveries made by Laurent Ballesta's team to audiences all over the world. At a time when there is indisputable evidence of climate change and the process of extinction of species, the discovery of new rich and unspoiled territories offers a resounding message of hope.

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Blancpain invites you to follow the daily video blog of the expedition on: 🔻🔵🔻
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www.blancpain-ocean-commitment.com
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Press release - 2019
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Blancpain S.A.
Le Rocher 12
1348 Le Brassus
Suisse
International PR: Aude Rosati
Tel.  (+41) 21 796 3636
Fax (+41) 21 796 3637
E-mail: pr@blancpain.com
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HUBLOT – Classic Fusion 45 WILD CUSTOMS Edition

HUBLOT – Classic Fusion Bronze & Titanium 45 WILD CUSTOMS Edition

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HUBLOT x WILD CUSTOMS x LAURENT PICCIOTTO POWER TRIO

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Classic Fusion Wild Customs

Wild Customs. Hublot. Rock, guitars and watches – fused together by Laurent Picciotto. Their joint creation: the Classic Fusion Wild Customs. A watch that uses iconography to tell the story of rock'n'roll, and symbolises the revolution the independent guitar maker is about to unleash on the music world with the Gyrock – an innovative mechanism designed by Laurent Picciotto.

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In aged titanium or bronze, the Classic Fusion Wild Customs is the very embodiment of chutzpah and innovation. A love affair between watchmaking and music.

To keep updated, follow: @Hublot #ClassicFusionWildCustoms

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Everybody knows Laurent and his passion for exquisite machines – watches, electric guitars, motorbikes... Ardent, original, innovative and surprising, he is a key player in the watchmaking world. Often the first to see the magic in off-the-wall projects, he is unique and different.

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It was with him that we opened the world's first Hublot boutique at 271, Rue Saint-Honoré 75001, Paris. By coincidence, Wild Customs and Hublot Saint-Honoré, of which he is the owner, both came into being in 2008. So when we were designing a watch for Hublot Paris Saint-Honoré, we were immediately taken with his idea to create a watch as Wild as his guitars.

Ricardo Guadalupe - CEO of HUBLOT

Hublot and Wild Customs – two adventures I have been following since they began, and that share the same depth of passion and rock'n'roll attitude. Their passions run parallel in many ways: expertise, mechanical brilliance, emotion and fearless innovation, time and time again.

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Laurent Picciotto - FOUNDER OF CHRONOPASSION AND BOUTIQUE HUBLOT PARIS SAINT-HONORÉ, OWNER OF WILD CUSTOMS

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As the world's first Hublot boutique opened at 271, Rue Saint-Honoré in Paris, the City of Light was awakening to the sound of Wild Customs electric guitars – instruments conceived at the place where the boldest expressions of craftsmanship, jewellery making and industrial design come together.

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The point of fusion of these two worlds is Laurent Picciotto, a passionate, adventurous collector and lover of fine watches and electric guitars. His pioneering spirit awakened an affinity with Hublot from the moment the Big Bang was conceived, and also propelled him into the Wild Customs adventure, where his goal is to revolutionise the electric guitar industry.

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Together, they have created the Classic Fusion Wild Customs, a watch that showcases the distinctive design and creative force that drives them. A wild, rock'n'roll spirit that inspires them to innovate ever further by designing brand new materials and revolutionary mechanisms.

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The Swiss watch brand has obtained several patents for its products: scratch-resistant Magic Gold, coloured ceramics and sapphire crystals and its Unico, Meca-10 and Tourbillon manufacture movements. Wild Customs will unveil the Gyrock, its patented mechanism designed to revolutionise the use of pickups on an electric guitar, in Nashville this July.

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ROCK'N'ROLL, INNOVATION AND THE AVANT GARDE

The body of its 45-mm case is cut from blackened bronze or aged titanium in tribute to the "relic" technique employed by luthiers. Engraved on the bezel, stylised skulls – a classic emblem of rock music – alternate with an Art Deco pattern that adorns the watch from case to dial.

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An homage to the avant-garde spirit and the industrialisation of the early twentieth century, inspired by the famous Empire State Building and its magnificent hall. Exuding the energy of rock music, the lightning seconds hand in surf green celebrates the pioneering spirit of the 1950s and 1960s – the golden age of the electric guitar – and its unrivalled creativity.

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The watch is driven by a self-winding mechanical movement. Featuring a strap in brown vintage leather or black leather stitched onto rubber, the Classic Fusion Wild Customs is available in a limited edition of 2x100 numbered pieces, accompanied by a plectrum in blackened bronze and aged titanium and an exclusive presentation case inspired by the two brands.

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The Classic Fusion Wild Customs is available exclusively from the Hublot Boutique at 271 Rue Saint-Honoré, 75001 Paris until the end of July, and from other partner boutiques from August.
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Technical Specifications

Model: Classic Fusion 45mm Edition “WILD CUSTOMS”

Reference: 511.NX.1110.VR.PIC19 - Titanium
Reference: 511.BZ.1110.VR.PIC19 - Bronze
Limitation: Special Edition XXX/100

Case
Engraved and black brushed
Titanium or Bronze
Diameter: 45 mm
Thickness: 10.95 mm
Crystal: sapphire with antireflective treatment
Crown: Polished Titanium 
Bezel: Engraved and black brushed Titanium or Bronze; 6 H-shaped titanium screws
Water resistance: 5 ATM (50 m)
Case back: Engraved and black brushed Titanium and engraved with “SPECIAL EDITION” + “XX/100”
Dial
Engraved mat black
Hands: Polished Rhodium (Titanium) or
18K yellow Gold (Bronze) plated hands
Movement
Calibre HUB1100: Self-winding movement
Frequency: 4 Hz (28,800 Vib/h)
Power reserve: 42 hours
No. of components: 63
Jewels: 21
Strap
Brown or black vintage calf with brown or black stitching with black rubber
Black brushed stainless steel or Bronze and black-plated stainless steel deployant buckle clasp

Limited to - Only 100-Pieces

New Model - 2019

PRICE

• Titanium:

13’900 CHF
14’400 EUR
14’600 USD
12’100 GBP

• Bronze:

15’900 CHF
16’500 EUR
16’700 USD
13’900 GBP


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Press releases - 2019
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HUBLOT SA – Switzerland
T +41 (0)22 990 90 00
F +41(0)22 990 90 29
International Press Contact: 
Annabelle Galley – a.galley@hublot.ch
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