Horological Meandering

MÉMOIRE 1 –

AN INGENIOUS IDEA AND ITS REALIZATION

No Witchcraft! An intensive and creative Process!

It all began one day in January 2006 with the question: Which development potential is there for new manufacture movements as well as for the Maurice Lacroix brand? The goal was to further pursue the vision of the brand and to have Maurice Lacroix take its rightful place in the ranks of the recognized and renowned Swiss watch manufacturers. What means were available to achieve this ambitious objective?

Soon it was absolutely clear: The path of innovation should be taken and through this, new milestones in the history of watchmaking should be established. For this, a team of internal and external specialists – engineers, constructors, watchmakers, designers –were pulled together. All these specialists gain its drive from one and the same dream: Break through the limits in order to make the impossible possible. The “Atelier de Maurice Lacroix” was born.

«L’Atelier de Maurice Lacroix» (from left to right): Nicolas Barth Nussbaumer and Manuel Romero, White SA; Sandro Reginelli, Product Director, Maurice Lacroix; Manuel Spöde, Les Artisans Horlogers; Damien Sourice, Head Atelier, Maurice Lacroix; Laurent Besse, Les Artisans Horlogers.

Two external partners were integrated into this new team right from the beginning with whom Maurice Lacroix had already worked successfully for many years: Les Artisans Horlogers, specializing in the creation and development of movements and complications, and White SA, known for its outstanding watch designs.

Creative brainstorming sessions on current Grandes Complications in the watchmaker’s art followed. The result was that watchmaking innovations are always more expressive and are often combining several complications in one model, which means that different indications are necessary. The members of the Atelier, however, wanted to take a different approach. Several indications or complications should be combined with each other in a way that the desired clear appearance of the watch is not lost in the process. This principle was omnipresent throughout the entire subsequent creative processes. Until that day, when one team member formulated the underlying idea for the Mémoire 1: “Chronographs are a specialty of Maurice Lacroix. Therefore, we should concentrate on creating a stopwatch with only three hands.” In other words, to achieve mechanically that had only previously been possible with a quartz watch. This idea fell completely outside what the members of the Atelier knew about traditional watchmaking and what they had acquired in the way of experience and expertise over many years in the watch industry.

It took them several days for this idea to mature and for them to understand the impact such a development would have on the watch industry. An innovation like this would establish Maurice Lacroix as a reference within the watchmaking industry. The idea for an exceptional, previously unknown manufacture movement was born.

Before everyone got down to work, they agreed on the central guiding themes of the project: personality, purity and clarity. The philosophy that accompanied the entire development process was the perfect melding of technology and aesthetics. In the minds of those in charge, this watch had a strong and yet elegant and purist presence. Each individual part should be conceived in a technical – while respecting its role in the ensemble – as well as aesthetic regard. Not least, they wanted to achieve the highest objective: The complication should simplify the live of the wearer and provide him with new pleasure every day. Because the Atelier wanted to offer watch connoisseurs not only a watch that meets their high technical expectations but moreover also provides playful enjoyment at the highest level.

Live photos of the Memoire 1 courtesy of Dr Thomas Mao

This is how the Mémoire 1 came about. A brand does not become a reference in the watch industry with one sweep of a magic wand, and an exceptional watch does not just appear on the table one morning. Maurice Lacroix had to overcome many hurdles during the development of the Mémoire 1. Without a doubt, the most important point was bringing together specialists from different backgrounds who shared the same values and dreams. By founding the Atelier, Maurice Lacroix has achieved something outstanding. The Mémoire 1 is the first Grande Complication to emerge from this creative and innovative cell.

INTERVIEW WITH THE MEMBERS OF«L’ATELIER DE MAURICE LACROIX»

After having come up with the idea for a chronograph with 3 hands, where did you get the concept for the Mémoire 1? Was it the only possible way to create a mechanical memory? Did you check any other ideas? Were there any doubts that this idea is feasible?

Damien Sourice, Head Atelier, Maurice Lacroix: First of all, it has to be said that the chronograph function with only three hands has existed for decades, in the form of the old single push-piece “Counter” chronograph. Our idea in fact was to find an ideal solution whereby we could obtain the display of chronograph and a watch with three hands. Hence the idea to combine the chronograph function with the time function.

What were your first steps after the idea was born?

Manuel Spöde, Laurent Besse, Les Artisans: We had to find the perfect technical solution to achieve the required display.

The “Atelier de Maurice Lacroix” brings together internal and external specialists. How does the cooperation within this highly experienced team function?

Sandro Reginelli, Product Director, Maurice Lacroix: Product development changes are monitored daily, whether carried out in-house by Maurice Lacroix in Saignelégier or by our outside partners.

Where did you get the idea to use several chronograph hearts for the memory system in the Mémoire 1? Were you already sure, that this was the right concept at the beginning?

Laurent Besse: The use of several hearts is inherent in the choice of operating principles of the complication we wanted to make.

What kind of hurdles did you have to cross during the development process?

Sandro Reginelli: The time available was very short. That’s why we organized ourselves from day one along the lines of a task force. Our project was successful mainly as a result of our very strong team spirit.

What was the personal challenge for you when working on the Mémoire 1 project?

Manuel Spöde, Laurent Besse: Simple really – finishing the development of this product which represents a genuine innovation in watchmaking!

Did the design follow the mechanism?

Manuel Romero, White SA: For the first time it’s been possible to design a watch in its entirety, since the project was completely new – from the movement to the case, including the dial! It’s this that made it possible to create many links between the movement and the watch’s exterior parts. You could say that each component has been designed to fit perfectly with the whole. The same applies also to the innovative aesthetic solutions used in creating the calibre, and to the design of the case and the dial. For the dial itself – if we can call it a dial any more; in fact we prefer to talk of an original display system – we used existing systems such as discs or hands but gave them a new interpretation, a new language of expression.

What was the challenging principle concept behind the exceptional design of this watch?

Manuel Romero: The principal concept was being bold enough to think outside the box in watchmaking terms. It’s a project which from the outset was meant to be limitless, which might seem paradoxical for a watch where the operating principle – a chronograph with memory – is perfectly easy to grasp and understand. And that’s where the strength of the project lies: starting with a simple idea that is nonetheless extremely complex in terms of its technical realisation, and making it look as beautiful and as simple as possible. Because it shouldn’t be forgotten that the design of a product must first and foremost be aesthetically pleasing and balanced, while at the same time highlighting its functions and complexity.

The real starting point of the project, once the concept of the memory movement was confirmed, was the inclined date disc which immediately conditioned the different levels of reading the display of the date, the mode selector and the floating bezel allowing lateral display of the seconds.

What distinguishes the finished design from other watches on the market?

Sandro Reginelli: Everything about this watch creates an impression of modernity, simplicity and purity. That’s where its strength lies. Although it’s an extremely complicated watch, it appears very simple at first glance. Its visual aesthetic, its display, everything is refined. It’s not extravagant, but it is extraordinary. It is not interesting or attractive by dint of its size or the use of coloured materials or the addition of unnecessary technical or cosmetic decorations. Its whole essence revolves around the extreme “simplicity” of its memory function. A Grande Complication does not necessarily have to look complicated.

Are there still any Maurice Lacroix features in the Mémoire 1 design?

Sandro Reginelli: Given the approach of Maurice Lacroix in recent years, you could say that Mémoire 1 is a distillation of what the company is doing both as regards the manufacture and the development of movements, and also in terms of its approach to the design and aesthetic of new products. Mémoire 1 and Maurice Lacroix are the representatives of a resolutely modern vision of watchmaking and a contemporary approach to design. Maurice Lacroix is building its future, the Future. We’re all extremely focused on what lies ahead.

For the story behind the Memoire1, please CLICK HERE

What a great idea for a watch.  I'm just not sure if it's wearable...

Thanks for the pics and interview!

Can't wait to see one of these Memorie1's in person so I can push the crown button and switch back and forth between time and chronograph.  Must be cool to see the hands move back to its memory position.

Cheers,
Anthony

how durable it is

Cheers,
Anthony

The Wristshot is amazing...

I have to see one in the flesh, to understand this watch...

Thanks for sharing!

Nicolas

Hi SJX,

Looking at the coutesy picture by TM,just one question,is the watch wearable?Look at the height?It must be pretty heavy,i assume?

Thanks for bring it up to us...

BHK9

because the AP watch he's wearing in the comparison picture is the thinnest tourbillon in existance so the comparison picture will definitely exagerate the thickness and look of the Memorie1 on the wrist.

Cheers,
Anthony