Q&AThe Engineers Of Time: IWC’s Creative Director On The New Ingenieur And The Brand’s Outlook

Lately, the focus has been on the Pilot’s Watch and even the Portugieser, and even before that, we’ve seen Portofinos and Da Vincis. It’s been a while, though, for the Ingenieur line. How was it decided that 2023 was the right time?

The Ingenieur is a very important part of IWC’s portfolio. It’s related to what we are as a brand. Because it’s not only the name Ingenieur, the entire watch represents what we stand for—we see ourselves as engineers, and we have an affinity towards pure and forward-looking design. All that is an Ingenieur. It’s the only collection that has been in continuous production since 1955. So, it has its own place in the portfolio.

But if you look at the Pilot’s, Portugieser and Portofino, they are all very important, from a collection point of view—collections that are predominantly strap watches. Ingenieur watches are the only ones that are bracelet-only watches. The others have bracelets as alternatives, but none of them are 40mm integrated-bracelet watches. So, it’s really complimentary to our collections.

Has the growing trend of archetypal integrated watches driven your return to this collection as one of those designed by Genta, who could, arguably, be called the inventor of this archetype?

They all come from a similar era. But Gérald Genta was able to formulate a design language that would really stand the test of time. It’s a recognisable design with a string-case silhouette. It has a very identifiable bezel with a strong dial design. It has survived many design tweaks over the last decades. It was also the inspiration for us with the creation of the 21st-century Ingenieur.

The first Ingenieur, which dates back to 1955

The 1976 Ingenieur SL, designed by the legendary Gérald Genta, who also designed Audemars Piguet's Royal Oak and Patek Philippe Nautilus. This watch has directly inspired the 2023 edition

Was there any discussion about including the feature of easy interchangeability with the integrated bracelet?

We did think about it. We have a fantastic easy-exchange system, which exists in our Pilot’s collection. But the Ingenieur is meant to be on a metal bracelet, and it complements the other collections. I personally don’t believe that people want to change between a metal bracelet and a soft strap—you might switch between leather and rubber, but I don’t think people like to switch between leather and metal as much.

Could you ever feature high-end complications like your signature perpetual calendar in a line like the Ingenieur?

It’s very possible. We have a lot of perpetual calendars in the other three collections, so we don’t think we need a perpetual calendar in this collection too. Essentially, we were aiming for a straightforward three-hand automatic, which we believe is the essence of the watch, and we want to maintain that.

“We have a lot of perpetual calendars in the other three collections, so we don’t think we need a perpetual calendar in this collection too.” Seen here is a Big Pilot's Perpetual Calendar. This calendar complication is a signature of IWC's, first created for the brand by legendary watchmaker Kurt Klaus

What were the thoughts behind the dial design?

We said we needed a dial treatment that could be on the same level as that of the sculptural case. The design of the case is very three-dimensional, so we wanted a dial that would complement that. And the original dial from 1976 already had a grid texture. Now, we have reworked it in terms of layout, size, dimensionality, etc, but we also needed to consider a treatment that was not possible back then. It’s a brushing treatment that goes over the surface and sharpens the edges of the grid structure, and also results in a very subtle sunray-reflection finish that you find on the dial. It’s a combination of embossing and the brushing treatment that brings forward the beauty of the piece.

The aqua dial is very fresh and not something we’ve really seen from IWC. How did that come about?

When we said we wanted to go with four references, it was very clear that one had to be black, one silver, and for the titanium version, we wanted a monochromatic look, so it had to be grey. Then we decided that we needed a dash of colour as well. We prototyped a full colour palette, and we chose the aqua for the Ingenieur. We were also influenced by the special edition that we created last year for our Mercedes-Benz watch. That was more of a teal, but the bluish-green space is similar to that of the aqua.

How has IWC’s foray into the metaverse been with last year’s Pilot’s Watches in ceramic? What kind of a role do you see Web 3.0 playing for IWC in the long term? How important is it for luxury watch brands to have a presence in the metaverse?

Last year, it was new and fresh—a lot of luxury companies were creating a metaverse presence. And for us, it was a perfect platform to create a kind of virtual extension of the very strong spatial environment that we had to create for the Top Gun colours. We created a club which was inspired by the metaverse culture, and offered an opportunity to bundle watches to tokens and services and experiences.

It’s very hard to guess the future of the metaverse. At the moment, we are still expanding our presence. There will be a virtual Ingenieur space also, but I can’t predict the future of the metaverse and how it will be for the industry.

Which collection do you personally enjoy working on, or working towards most with the team?

I can’t say that I have a favourite collection to work on, but I must say that working on this Ingenieur collection has been very close to my heart. This collection says so much about the brand—being an engineer brand and a design brand. It also reflects my personality as a creative person with this very technical, forward-looking design. I’m very proud to have the Genta-inspired Ingenieur back.

In a world where gender labels are becoming increasingly irrelevant, has it been a conscious decision to not categorise watches as meant for ‘men’ and ‘women’ on your website?

Since 2014, we have expanded our product offering, with smaller sizes, such as the Portiofino mid-size. We’ve become a brand that makes watches from 34mm to 46mm. It’s a part of our culture now. We don’t separate men’s and women’s watches. Even with the 40mm Ingenieurs, we’ve had a very positive reaction from both men and women.

What are the most consistent trends you’ve observed in fine watchmaking over the last two years?

What was clear over the last few years is that there is trend toward sports watches, reinforced by the pandemic, with people requiring more casual watches for sport, and street watches. There as an incredible development towards colour, technical materials. The variety of creative expressions has also been enormous. And the number of new products coming out is also very exciting, so things have really accelerated in the market—everything is possible, and everything is happening at the same time.

What can you tell us about IWC’s initiatives towards sustainability?

It’s important to note that a mechanical watch is a very sustainable product. It’s a small product, made to last for generations. Mechanical technology can be repaired—we get a lot of watches for repairs that go back 50 or 100 years even. This is already the spirit of sustainability. Beyond that, we really make sustainability an incremental part of our thinking as a brand. For us, it’s less about putting one piece on the table and saying it’s a sustainable product. Our aim is to be a sustainable company—in the way we work with our people, the infrastructure of our building, the use of hydroelectric power, and we’re also located near a river. We put a lot of emphasis on sustainability when it comes to architecture and so on. There’s also sustainability with our entire chain of packaging—primary, secondary, etc. We have a packaging that is designed to reduce weight, but will also be good enough to last and store your watch. We have introduced vegan leather strap alternatives and organic materials that are compostable. We have increased the use of recycled materials in terms of steel, titanium and gold. There are so many initiatives! We really think of sustainability as a holistic topic that affects all parts of the company, beyond just the product—or product and beyond.