BASELNEWS 2010Hublot presents its new in-house movement: the UNICO is born!
Just one year after incorporating the new Hublot manufacture, the company's CEO, Jean-Claude Biver, is proud to present the first of the brand's movements to be produced entirely in-house: a column-wheel chronograph named the UNICO. The UNICO movement comes to life inside the King Power case. Featuring the first chronograph movement produced entirely in-house by Hublot, the King Power UNICO is symbolic of the brand's progress towards verticalisation.
The King Power is the very latest Hublot model, pushing the design limits of the Big Bang and infusing it with an expression of power and luxury-inspired emotion. The impact of this timepiece lies in both its respect for tradition and the forms of the Big Bang, and its avant garde spirit expressed through its sharp angles and straight sides, its relief screws and its ceramic bezel with rubber moulding.
UNICO movement
The incorporation of the various production stages into the manufacture since spring 2009 has enabled Hublot to produce the UNICO chronograph, which was developed exclusively by its own Research & Development Department. The machining workshop produces bridges, main plates and various steel components, which are assembled by watchmakers specially assigned to this task. A special feature of this flyback chronograph is the position of its mechanism and the famous "column wheel" on the side of the dial. However, one of its main innovations is the retractable platform escapement, on which the watch owner's initials can be engraved by special request!
This subtle and ingenious feature facilitates servicing and maintenance of the movement while allowing the timepiece to be personalised. The escapement (escape wheel and pallet fork) is made from silicon, a light, durable and technologically advanced material which resists wear and guarantees more accurate operation.