A few weeks ago I presented in detail to you (click here ) what Greubel Forsey calls Episode 2 of their Mechanicial Nano research programme - a programme executed by the firm's EWT (Experimental Watch Technology) Laboratory with the aim to optimise the use of both energy and space towards the ultimate aim of developing a mechanical wristwatch with a staggering 180 days (!) of autonomy.

Episode 2 also has a different name: the Greubel Forsey Nano Foudroyante EWT, which I finally had the immense pleasure of strapping on my own wrist:



The watch is remarkable on many accounts, more so on the conceptional meta-level than on the face-value of this particular watch.



By using novel state-of-the-art production techniques and a new conceptual approach to the mechanism a miniaturised and considerable streamlined foudroyante geartrain could be realised, which is extremely energy-efficient:



The total loss of amplitude caused by addition of the Nano Foudroyante EWT is only 6°, while the total additional energy consumed by the system is just 16 nanojules (nJ) per jump. By way of comparison, a classical foudroyant seconds system consumes 30 microjoules (μJ) per jump.

In other words, the Nano Foudroyante EWT requires 1800x less energy and 96% less space!

For those of you who want to delve deeper into the solutions and their benefits I recommend you to take a look into my previous article on this watch (click here ). For now, I would like to share with you a few real-world images I was able to take during this year's SIHH:



The design is - for GF's standards that is - completely utilitarian, because the watch is a ticking research experiment and - unfortunately - not intended for sale. The dial is for the most part of its area a simple, but beautifully finished mainplate, with an eccentric time display and the opening for the foudroyante:



The foudroyante mechanism itself almost needs a loupe to the identified (and certainly, to be read: the foudroyante hand is just 1.4mm long!), and consists of only two 'visible' parts, both located beneath the escapement wheel:



You notice the two-rim foudroyante wheel which is mounted on the escapement wheel axis, and a perpendecularly positioned axis leading to the foudroyante hand. The latter, for example, is only 1.4mm long. Greubel Forsey thus embedded a 23x loupe on the side of the case to allow appreciating it...a (bit!) easier:



You practically still need a loupe to see the hand, and to my complete surprise it was much easier to photograph it on an 'Loupesystem'-turbocharged iPhone (first) than on my main camera with powerful macro lens (second image):



On the 'real' camera you can notice the precise jumps even at 1/60s exposure and flash:



The backside mirrors the face, with marvellously finished plates, large, sensual jewels and an engraving on the bezel that I think it ironic, but on the other hand spot on: 'art piece 1' (that is where the case has been requisitioned from):



What follows now was for me absolute eclispe of this year's SIHH, to put this unique piece on my wrist: feel the groundbreaking progress ticking on my arm - this is pure magic! I was so captivated in this moment that I took only very few images, but I can really tell you this human artifact has a very special meaning to me:





Can excellence be so unassuming yet so exciting? On the contrary, I think, it just needs be!



Why am I so excited about this watch?

Well, it is not because it is a Greubel Forsey (than any of their masterpieces would qualify), it is also not because I like Foudroyante complication so much (no, I don't), and finally I just take the immediately recognisable GF - at their level of excellence - aesthetics and finish just for granted.

No, I appreciate and admire this piece because it is so much more - it is one intermediate stepping stone upwards on the horological ladder towards a much larger goal: I prefer to focus on the results which prove that GF indeed is on a very promising path towards their aim (i.e. creating a mechanical watch with 180 days power reserve).

To fully appreciate the importance of this watch we need to note the following very well: The foudroyante complication was simply chosen because it is a very instructive use case to test the practical utility of the Mechanical Nano concept and the progress acheived so far: it is comparatively simple to implement yet there is much gain to be expected from the reduction of inertia, exactly as above results prove. If such a mechanims can be realised with 1800x less energy and 96% less space compared to a conventional one, how much savings and how much miniaturisation can be achieved if the Mechanica Nano concept can be applied to an entire watch movement?

Again, while the primary goal might appear to lie in minaturisation, I firmly believe this is just a means to a much more ambitious end: sure, movements can be made smaller with longer autonomy at the same time. But one just cannot shrink a watch case accordingly, so there is enormous space left to be filled: just imagine what other complications can be implemented (especially if also conceived according to the Mechanical Nano concept!), how much more space would there be for decorative finishings, what additional complications could be achieved which today cannot due to their energy requirements?

Off the record and not to be photographed, Robert Greubel, Stephen Forsey and CEO Fabrice Deschanel also showed me the next iteration of this concept: a second, further advanced Foudroyante that now displays the Foudroyante seconds on the dial plane and and achieved a further 30x reduction in energy requirements! The watch ran beautfully and steadily along. This piece BTW also demonstrated that the Mechanical Nano delivers very practical results without the user compromises we have seen above (smallness, sideways display).

Stay tuned - I have been promised to be kept in the loop to report more on the so important Mechanical Nano project at GF's Experimental Watch Technology laboratory!

At this moment, I would like to express my sincere thanks to Stephen Forsey and Fabrice Deschanel for the impromptu meeting at SIHH and your confidence in sharing pieces still classified, and to Michel Nydegger as well as Florian Brossard for organising my last minute access to SIHH.

Cheers,
Magnus