The Swiss manufacturer launches the first collection of diving models made from fishing nets
ALICANTE, 17 May. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Swiss manufacturer Ulysse Nardin has presented this Tuesday the Diver The Ocean Race, a limited series of 200 pieces of a diving watch made from recycled fishing nets and within its agreement as official timekeeper of the ocean sailing regatta that will start on January 15, 2023 from Alicante.
With the collaboration of ‘start-ups’ such as the French FIL&FAB, Ulysse Nardin has rescued part of the 640,000 tons of fishing nets that are lost or abandoned every year in the seas, where 5,000 million float, to make this watch. of plastic fragments ingested by turtles or seabirds.
“How to turn part of that plastic into a luxury item? We have managed to manufacture and market watches made from recycled fishing nets,” celebrated Patrick Pruniaux, CEO of Ulysse Nardin, at the presentation of the ‘Diver The Ocean Race’ watch before the specialized press, together with the president of The Ocean Race, Richard Brisius.
The CEO of Ulysse Nardin recalled the origin of the Swiss manufacturer, closely linked to the sea since its foundation and manufacturer of marine chronometers since 1846, as well as the company’s commitment to curb plastic pollution in the oceans. “Our way of raising awareness is through recycling. In this process, the search for suppliers was key,” Pruniaux pointed out.
In September 2020, Ulysse Nardin took the first step in its commitment to the circular economy at the service of the sea with the launch of the R-Strap strap, adaptable to Marine, Diver and Freak X watches, and made entirely from nets. of fishing that had been recycled.
At the end of the same year, the Swiss watchmaker introduced the Diver Net, an experimental model in which each element was designed with durability in mind to be as environmentally friendly as possible. The commitment was to go from concept to marketing, and for this reason it has launched this limited edition of 200 pieces of the Diver The Ocean Race, the first sustainable luxury watch that will be available for 10,400 euros from next June.
BETWEEN TRADITION AND INNOVATION
The Diver The Ocean Race is a water-resistant model to 300 meters, with touches of bright green in allusion to nature and a color that is found from the stitching of the velcro strap to the indices and the bezel, passing through the ‘double X ‘ on the dial, power reserve counter at 12 o’clock, small seconds at 6 o’clock and Ulysse Nardin logo engraved on the crown, crown guards and on the individual plate.
White, gray and black tones complete the color palette of the watch. 95 percent of the components of the manufacture’s iconic movement, the UN-118, with silicon technology are sourced within 30 kilometers of the factory, and half of them come from recycling channels.
The Diver The Ocean Race is the result of innovation and tradition, the caliber works with the impulse of the wrist and the initials U and N in white capitals disappear in favor of a more neutral textured anthracite surface treatment. On the reverse, the sapphire crystal is adorned with The Ocean Race logo in white tracing.
The unidirectional bezel decoration is made entirely of Carbonium, made from the same fibers used for the fuselage and wings of aircraft and which has a 40 per cent lower environmental impact than other carbon composites.
In addition, the 44mm case side and back of the Diver The Ocean Race are the result of combining 40 percent Carbonium and the remaining 60 percent polyamide recycled from fishing nets. And the steel that covers it 80 to 85 percent comes from a steel recycling chain in the automotive industry.
As of June 2022, the Diver The Ocean Race will be marketed in an original case, a waterproof R-Pet bag, recycled from the sea by Helly Hansen, a brand that also collaborates in nautical regattas as an official clothing supplier.