Swiss luxury watch manufacturer Audemars Piguet has unveiled a new 43mm Royal Oak Concept Split-Seconds Chronograph GMT Large Date model, premiering the use of a brand-new, coloured forged carbon.
Created in Audemars Piguet’s R&D workshops using Chroma Forged Technology (CFT), this innovative deep black material offers a new aesthetic with subtle touches of colour. The non-porous CFT carbon also provides unprecedented resistance to humidity, heat and shocks.
The ultra-light forged carbon case middle of this new Royal Oak Concept, which features blue luminescent pigments, is complemented by a black ceramic bezel, crown, push-pieces and caseback. The two-tone timepiece is enhanced by a dark architectural dial with electric blue accents.
Combining watchmaking complexity with ultra-contemporary design, this timepiece embodies the constant quest for innovation that has driven the Le Brassus Manufacture since its inception.
High-Tech Material
After an absence of eight years, forged carbon is making its grand return at Audemars Piguet in the new Royal Oak Concept Split-Seconds Chronograph GMT Large Date model.
The new CFT carbon, which combines lightness with resistance to shocks, heat and humidity, was developed in-house by the R&D teams over a period of five years. Its manufacturing process is now protected by a patent.
Unlike previous generations of carbon, Audemars Piguet’s Chroma Forged Technology (CFT) makes it possible to colour the carbon fibres directly instead of the resin and arrange them as desired in the component produced, opening up new creative possibilities. Its lower resin content compared to traditional forged carbon makes it less susceptible to scratches.
The manufacturing process involves numerous steps and great expertise. The carbon fibres are first cut into small pieces and coloured with pigments. A multitude of colours is possible, allowing for a wide range of creative developments.
The coloured carbon pieces are then manually placed in a mould according to the intended design and completed with resin. This process is repeated to build several layers like a mille-feuille pastry.
The content of the mould is then compressed to obtain a block free of air bubbles. Finally, the mixture is placed in an autoclave to be cured under pressure for about ten hours to reveal the properties of the resin and produce a carbon block that is then machined for six to eight hours to create the final component.
As the blending stages are carried out by hand, each case middle produced has a slightly different motif, making it a unique piece that seamlessly combines cutting-edge technology and the expertise of the Le Brassus artisans.
A Futuristic Aesthetic
The new 43 mm Royal Oak Concept Split-Seconds Chronograph GMT Large Date model combines watchmaking complexity, innovative materials, ergonomics and bold aesthetic in a two-tone design pairing the dark tones of the openworked dial with electric blue touches for a trendy look.
The ultra-light CFT carbon case middle, adorned with blue glow-in-the-dark fibres to enhance the watch’s playful aesthetic, is complemented by a black ceramic bezel decorated with satin-brushing and polishing. These meticulous finishes are also visible on the black ceramic crown, caseback and push-pieces.
The case and crown are slightly curved to follow the natural shape of the wrist. The push-piece guards at 2, 4 and 9 o’clock are contrastingly honed in titanium in an echo to some of the lighter components of the openworked dial.
Conceived like the bridge of a movement, the openworked dial is the result of very precise machining. Circular apertures have been cut into a single sandblasted nickel silver plate, finished with black PVD and decorated with diamond-polished rhodium-toned bevels, to reveal part of the micro-mechanics ticking within.
The two-tone design adds depth and play of light to this edgy timepiece, which is further emphasised by the absence of a logo on the dial. In keeping with the blue highlights of the case middle, the inner bezel and the external zones of the three counters are finished in an electric blue hue, which contrasts with the grey and black tones of the movement while enhancing legibility.
The futuristic look is accentuated by white gold hour-markers and hands, which, like the hands on the counters, are filled with luminescent material that appears white during the day but turns blue in the dark.
Lastly, the tachymeter scale on the inner bezel and the gradations on the counters are transferred in white for optimum readability. The timepiece is mounted on a blue rubber strap with black accents for a sporty touch.
Fitted with the interchangeability system introduced in the 43mm Royal Oak Concept collection in 2023, the watch also comes with a second black and blue rubber strap.
High-Tech Movement
This timepiece houses the selfwinding Calibre 4407, a feat of mechanical and industrial engineering that combines flyback chronograph, split-seconds, GMT and a large date.
Launched in 2023, it is based on the Manufacture’s latest generation integrated flyback chronograph, Calibre 4401, released in 2019 in the Code 11.59 by Audemars Piguet collection.
Despite its horological complexity, this movement has been designed to marry ergonomics and simplicity of use. Unlike a regular chronograph, the flyback function allows the wearer to reset and restart the chronograph without having to stop it first.
The column wheel works with a vertical clutch system. When starting or stopping the chronograph, the hands respond accordingly without any hint of jumping. Furthermore, a patented zero resetting mechanism ensures that both chronograph and split-seconds hands instantaneously reset to zero.
The split-seconds mechanism enables measuring intermediate time intervals thanks to the addition of a split-seconds hand that can be stopped independently of the chronograph hand when the dedicated pusher is activated.
When the latter is pressed again, it catches up to the running hand to continue their journey together around the dial, in perfect synchrony. The action can be repeated at will.
Located at 9 o’clock, the push-piece subtly nods to the Royal Oak Concept Laptimer (2015) – the first mechanical watch capable of measuring consecutive lap times on the racetrack developed in collaboration with Michael Schumacher. To reduce the movement’s height, the split-seconds mechanism has been integrated within the thickness of the semi-peripheral rotor’s ball bearing and is now visible through the sapphire caseback like in pocket watches and hand-wound wristwatches.
Usually hidden from view in selfwinding watches, the split-seconds wheel and two actuating clamps can be admired at the centre of the platinum oscillating weight, under the X-shaped bridge holding the mechanism in place.
The timepiece also has a GMT function. The day/night display located at 3 o’clock shows the time in a second time zone. It is adjusted using the crown’s coaxial push-piece at 3 o’clock (one press advances the time by one hour).
The GMT system is based on a disc and a hand that rotate at different speeds: the hour hand completes one revolution in 12 hours, while the day/night disc makes a full rotation in 24 hours. Two coloured surfaces facilitate reading: white for daytime and black for night time.
Lastly, the large date at 12 o’clock enhances legibility with its digital look, while providing perfect symmetry with the small seconds counter at 6 o’clock. Equipped with ultra-contemporary functions and a non-magnetic balance spring with Breguet overcoil, the Calibre 4407 upholds fine watchmaking tradition with its elegant Haute Horlogerie decorations, including sandblasting, circular satin, circular graining and polished chamfers, all visible through the sapphire caseback.
A Pioneer In The Field Of Carbon
For half a century, the Swiss watch industry has explored a wide range of materials, including titanium, plastics, ceramics, wood and rubber. Audemars Piguet has been at the forefront of this quest, ennobling steel in 1972, and introducing tantalum in 1988; alacrite in 2002; forged carbon in 2007; cermet in 2010 and the first form of precious BMG in 2021.
Used in watchmaking since 1998, the first version of carbon, borrowed from the automotive industry, resembles fabric. Long fibres are woven together to form a highly resistant surface.
Audemars Piguet first used this technique in 2004 to cover the bezel of the Royal Oak Offshore Juan Pablo Montoya (26030RO). In 2007, the Manufacture introduced forged carbon to the watchmaking world, a material previously used for helicopter rotor blades.
Forged carbon differs from conventional carbon in that shorter strands of carbon are randomly placed in the resin, giving optimum torsional strength in all directions. This material was first used by Audemars Piguet in the 44 mm Royal Oak Offshore Alinghi Team Chronograph (26062FS), dedicated to the Swiss sailing team.
Following the success of this 1,300-piece watch, numerous forged carbon models were created, including the Millenary Carbon One (26152AU), which weighed just 70 grammes thanks to its forged carbon and titanium case, launched in 2009 in a limited edition of 120 pieces.
The following year, the Royal Oak Offshore collection brought forged carbon to the fore with the Royal Oak Offshore Grand Prix (26290IO). Inspired by motor racing circuits, this 44 mm Selfwinding Chronograph sported a case combining forged carbon, titanium and ceramic, bringing together many of the Manufacture’s skills.
In 2015, Audemars Piguet unveiled the Royal Oak Concept Laptimer (26221FT) in collaboration with racing driver champion Michael Schumacher. This revolutionary chronograph, which was the first mechanical watch to introduce the Laptimer function for measuring consecutive laps on the racetrack, was housed in a 44 mm case, combining forged carbon, titanium, ceramic and pink gold.
Forged carbon made its last appearance at Audemars Piguet in 2016 on the Royal Oak Offshore Chronograph QE II Cup (26406FR).
And now, Audemars Piguet introduces a new high-tech CFT carbon, whose resistance and creative possibilities open up new horizons for years to come.
For more information, please visit www.audemarspiguet.com.