NORQAIN INTRODUCES THE INDEPENDENCE SKELETON CHRONO POWERED BY THE NEW NORQAIN 8K MANUFACTURE CALIBRE, A HIGH-PERFORMANCE SKELETONISED FLYBACK CHRONOGRAPH MOVEMENT INSPIRED BY THE WORLD’S HIGHEST MOUNTAINS
NORQAIN, the family-owned independent Swiss watch company founded in 2018, is defined by its great sense of adventure. The disruptive young company’s double-N mountain peak logo is a reminder that its second home is in the Swiss Alpine resort of Zermatt. NORQAIN’s innovative, high-performance mechanical watches are designed to fuel the adventurous lifestyles of passionate, forward-thinking people looking to squeeze everything they can out of life on this beautiful planet.
INTRODUCING A NEW FLYBACK CHRONOGRAPH CALIBRE
Today, the company is ready to take the next big step in its own watchmaking adventure with a new mechanical milestone and the introduction of an exclusive new high-performance manufacture flyback chronograph movement, the NORQAIN 8K Manufacture Calibre (NK24/1), developed in partnership between NORQAIN and Manufacture AMT under the guidance of NORQAIN founder and CEO Ben Küffer and NORQAIN Advisor to the Board Jean-Claude Biver.
The “8K” picks up on the company’s daring spirit, taking its name from the world’s highest mountains.
There are 14 peaks over 8,000 meters (26,247 feet), often referred to by mountaineers and explorers as the “Eight-Thousanders”. Only the bravest and most experienced climbers have summited all 14.
The NORQAIN 8K Manufacture Calibre is a bold, graphic expression of the company’s love of the mountains and unflinching attitude to watchmaking mechanics. Its headline function is its flyback chronograph, a chronograph that can be reset and restarted with a single push of a button. This complex mechanical device was invented almost a century ago as a tool for pilots, but today has many use cases, particularly in sports where fast-paced repeat training exercises are used to build speed, strength and stamina.
Additional quality signifiers include a column wheel, a highly regarded device only featured in high-end chronographs that delivers precise activation of the chronograph function. The watch also offers an impressive 62-hour power reserve and independent chronometer certification, denoting the accuracy of the NORQAIN 8K Manufacture Calibre.
AND A PAIR OF EXCLUSIVE NEW WATCHES
There’s a further twist. The NORQAIN 8K Manufacture Calibre will be extremely limited in production, in part as testament to the complexity of its construction and finishing, and in part to honor the exclusive club of 14 that makes up the world’s highest peaks.
The NORQAIN 8K Manufacture Calibre will appear in just two watches at launch, the Independence Skeleton Chrono 42mm Titanium DLC and the Independence Skeleton Chrono 42mm Steel, based on NORQAIN’s audacious Independence sports watch model. Both watches – the first chronographs in the Independence collection – feature a prominent central chronograph seconds hand and a twin counter layout with a 30-minute counter at 12 o’clock and a running seconds counter at 6 o’clock.
Both watches share the same dynamic architecture, fusing the visual theatre of the skeletonized dial with the superlative mechanics of the movement and wrapping them in the Independence’s elegant, sporty case, which is further enhanced by its satin-finished, polished and sandblasted surfaces.
The three-dimensional effect continues on the watch’s reverse, thanks to a transparent sapphire crystal case back defined by its wide aperture, a detail that encourages wearers to lose themselves in the intricacies of the 8K’s complex construction. As well as integrating a mountain shape into its form, it’s also colored to match what remains of the dial after the skeletonization process is complete.
