Our Take

Urwerk returns to one of its classic, most iconic timepieces – the EMC. For this year’s Geneva Watch Days, Martin Frei and Felix Baumgartner present the EMC SR-71.

As we covered recently in our article on the EMC, this is one of the most exceptionally innovative timepieces in modern independent watchmaking. Lauded by two GPHG Awards for innovation and mechanical exception in 2014, it fits perfectly in line with Urwerk’s core principle – explore novel ways for collectors to interact with the brand’s timepieces. The EMC (standing for Electro-Mechanical Control) was the first timepiece to enable its wearer to measure the performance of their watch in real time. And that’s not all, it also allows the wearer to adjust the length of the hairspring to suit the owner’s lifestyle best. The general concept behind the EMC remains, a decade later, simply spectacular. Urwerk aimed to create a timepiece with three objectives – to show the influence on external parameters in timekeeping, to provide a solution to correct inefficiencies in timekeeping, and encourage a new means of interacting with a watch in daily life.

Fast forward to 2020, an unlikely duo of watch designer, Jason Sarkoyan, and aerospace engineer, Dr. Roman Sperl, leveraged their shared love of the world’s fastest stealth aircraft, the SR-71 Blackbird, to create Dreamland, an aerospace lifestyle brand working across specialized clothing and furniture to design in watchmaking. Together, they pitched Urwerk the idea of revisiting the EMC for its 10-year anniversary by adding something spectacular in Dreamland’s possession – pieces of a SR-71 Blackbird’s fuselage. Made from titanium and an alloy with an unknown exact composition, Martin and Felix were immediately infatuated with the idea and spent the last few years working with the Dreamland team to craft this new release.

Limited to 10 pieces, the SR-71’s fuselage was melted down and reincarnated in the EMC’s screw-on bezel and charging crank. Something about the overlap between the ultra-engineered, new-age EMC and a stealth aircraft works perfectly. In large part, this is due to the timepiece’s dial layout – it has such a strong resemblance to cockpit instruments.

Another great contribution to Urwerk’s extensive catalog of avant-garde timepieces, the EMC SR-71 is innovative to its core.

The Details

Case Material: Titanium and steel

Crank handle in SR-71 alloy (titanium; aluminium; vanadium; silicon; iron and molybdenum)

Dimensions: Width 47.55mm; length: 49.57mm; thickness: 17.58mm

Crystal: Crystal sapphire

Water resistance: Pressure tested to 30m / 3ATM

Finishing: Shot-blasting

Calibre: UR-EMC; in-house URWERK movement

Escapement: Swiss lever escapement

Balance: ARCAP P40; URWERK balance coupled with optical sensor

**Frequency:**28,800 vph – 4 Hz

Balance spring: Flat

Energy source: Vertically mounted series-coupled double mainspring barrels

Power reserve: 80 hours

Winding: Manual winding

Finishing: Côtes de Genève; snailing; micro bead-blasting; chamfered screw heads

Artificial intelligence

Generator: Manual-winding Maxon® generator

Monitoring organ: Optical sensor linked to the mechanical balance; 16,000,000 Hz electronic oscillator

Indications Hours; minutes; seconds; δ performance indicator (patented); power reserve; timing adjustment screw.

Strap: NATO strap (nylon, leather) inspired by aeronautical safety straps. Velcro fastening.