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WATCHES & WONDERS 2020: Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept
Two years after it was presented as a concept, Piaget’s proposal for the thinnest mechanical watch in the world becomes reality.
Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept is now officially the thinnest mechanical watch in the world with a case of only 2 mm thick and a power reserve of 40 hours. The watch was developed and produced entirely in-house by Piaget and the project took 6 years from the drawing phase until today.
Altiplano Ultimate Concept case had to be made from a new, cobalt- based alloy that is highly resistant, 2.3 times stronger than gold and, therefore, much more difficult to machine. Other parts were entirely re-engineered and re-sized, with wheels, for example, being reduced from a conventional 0.20 mm thick to 0.12 mm and the sapphire crystal, normally 1 mm thick in a standard watch, being pared-down by 80 per cent to a scarcely believable 0.2 mm.
The dial’s off-centre position meant that a conventional, straight winding stem could not be used – a problem Piaget solved by creating a patented ‘staggered’ stem. In order for the system to function perfectly, the conventional hour hand is replaced with a revolving indicator disc while the minute hand works in the usual way.
Although the watch measures just 2 mm thick, it contains 167 individual parts, many of which have had to be produced to microscopically small dimensions in order for the goal of ultimate thinness to be met.
When ordering this special piece, clients may specify the color of the bridge and dial, the finish of the hands and the main plate and select straps that match or contrast – a range of options that will allow the Altiplano Ultimate Concept to be created in more than 10,000 permutations.
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