Hublot’s newly released five watches with the revamped Unico calibre movement. From left: Big Bang Unico orange Ceramic, Big Bang Unico Dark Green Ceramic, Big Bang Unico Pink Sapphire, Square Bang Unico with microblasted black ceramic and a gold bezel, and the Square Bang Unico with an 18K gold bezel and case.
LIVING up to their prestigious identity since 1980, Swiss luxury watch brand Hublot has introduced a new range of creations with their cutting-edge renewal to Unico calibre.
Known as Hublot’s watch movement, the Unico calibre serves as the engine of a watch, akin to a human heart.
The Unico calibre is the internal mechanism that powers the watch, ensuring precise movement and accurate timekeeping.
Initially designed to strengthen Hublot’s reputation, Unico has become the distinctive edge and driving force for Hublot among its peers.
The Unico movement stemmed from Hublot’s aspiration to be recognised as one of the reference brands in the Swiss Watch Industry.
As Hublot chief executive officer Ricardo Guadalupe explains, “For Hublot, if we want to be part of the reference brands of our industry, we have to do things differently.
“That’s why the Art of Fusion – our main message – is to make watches that always connect tradition and innovation.”
Unico was launched in 2010 for Hublot to showcase their commitment to innovation and exquisite craftsmanship of their luxury watches.
In 2018, the second series of Unico was unveiled, known as Unico HUB1280.
Ricardo explains that they decided to create a second version of the Unico calibre because they wanted to focus on the details and overall qualitative improvements.
The new iteration offers enhanced accuracy that elevates the overall design of the watch.
Unico’s engineering innovation, where lies the ‘heart and soul’ of the watch, includes a visible column wheel and a flyback chronograph that enables easy reset and restart on the stopwatch function – all with a single press.
There were five key improvements that were made to the Unico calibre, allowing Hublot to create stunningly beautiful watches that exemplify detailed craftsmanship and innovation.
Ricardo notes that making improvements to the movement is particularly challenging as it involves over 300 components that must connect together mechanically and physically.
Silence speaks luxury
Hublot takes unwavering pride in ensuring its watch owners get an exemplary attention to their wrist at all times.
This includes improving small defects that could take the attention off the exclusive timepiece.
The previous Unico calibre version consisted of a ratchet wheel click that interlocks with the winding system component, which provides a clicking sound.
The intricate craftsmanship of the Unico calibre is a testament to the brand’s dedication to innovation and precision.
A wheel click is a small component that ensures the watch’s energy is securely stored in the spring. This helps the watch run smoothly and maintain accurate time.
Despite the manual watch mechanism, Hublot saw this opportunity for improvement.
A gentler winding mechanism has been installed to replace the ratchet wheel click.
This new mechanism is not only quieter to divert the attention towards the face of the watch, but also leads to more operational efficiency during servicing.
Time for a gear switch
A timeless watch mechanism is a chronograph that appears as an added complication due to its extra features compared to basic analogue watches.
These watches can consist of up to three chronographs that function as a stopwatch to measure minutes and seconds, with the help of a ‘clutch’.
Similar to a manual car principle, drivers need to ensure that the clutch and gear come in contact – to control the movement of the car.
For a watch, a clutch controls the connection between the chronograph hand and the watch’s movement.
A possible defect is when the stopwatch hand ‘quivers’ during wearers’ extensive motions.
The uniquely designed Unico clutch prevents the defects with a simple system to easily recognise the chronographs, and ensure the accuracy of time shown in this piece.
Never be late again
Besides manufacturing and incorporating the art of fusion into watchmaking, Hublot’s flagship movement – the Unico calibre – highlights that their timepieces do not let their wearers miss a cherished moment.
This lies within the function of the chronograph.
Now, Hublot’s chronograph is with an improved friction control. In the Unico calibre, there are two clutches – the first drives the chronograph hand, and the second, the minute counter to ensure a more stable and accurate time-keeping.
The mechanism refines the controlled motion of the stopwatch with the help of a ceramic ball bearing. It then pushes the chronograph wheel against a jewel – a small stone to reduce friction for internal components, thus minimising energy consumption that will result in a more precise watch.
The second series of the Unico calibre also ensures retained robustness of the watches, with a 72-hour power reserve.
This meant that once the watch is fully wound, it will run for approximately three days without needing to be rewound.
It is a noticeable improvement compared to many other traditional movements that have a reserve power between 42 and 46 hours.
Main support system
Hublot has standardised their watch mechanics to an index-assembly system for adjusted accuracy. This patented fine-tuning system affects the functions of another watch component, the balance spring. This component keeps the watch running at the right speed.
Such improvements to Unico calibre will prevent unwanted movements to disrupt time precision. The index-assembly system is enhanced with an elastic geometry designed material, for other components to adapt and function optimally in their operations.
Putting the quality in style
Beyond style, quality matters for the Swiss luxury watch brand too. In the hustle of a busy day, you may be navigating through a bustling environment with Hublot’s watch around your wrist.The patented Unico calibre is improved with shock resistance to protect the time display on watches from high impact events.
Unico is the first to benefit from this innovation that generates a high friction torque, which is a strong friction force on the cannon pinion gear.
This upgrade ensures the other parts stay in place, even after being hit or jolted. The Unico 2 is 1.3mm flatter (6.75mm thick), fitting unisex 42mm cases instead of the original 45mm.
Bringing their artwork to life, Hublot produced five new variants featuring the latest changes.
The ceramic duo – Big Bang Unico Orange Ceramic and Big Bang Unico Dark Green Ceramic; Big Bang Unico Pink Sapphire and two variants of Square Bang Unico. The latest range is a testament that reflects their efficiency in watchmaking and their philosophy of ‘Be the first, be unique and be different’.
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