The company is announcing an out-of-this-world collaboration. Image credit: IWC Schaffhausen/Vast
Swiss watchmaker IWC Schaffhausen is looking to the stars with its latest collaboration.
The horology label has signed on as the official timekeeper of California-based space habitation technology company Vast. Through this strategic collaboration, IWC Schaffhausen will support the American start-up as it develops the world’s first commercial space station, Haven-1.
“Our collaboration with Vast is a natural evolution of our heritage in aviation, which began almost a century ago,” said Chris Grainger-Herr, CEO of IWC Schaffhausen, in a statement.
“We are excited to continue this journey as Vast’s Official Timekeeper and look forward to exploring new frontiers together,” Mr. Grainger-Herr said. “This collaboration will enable IWC Schaffhausen to intensify its research and development efforts for watches that are tested for spaceflight.
“During future, long-duration space missions, a mechanical watch showing Earth time can also be the object that emotionally connects the astronauts to their home.”
The final frontier
As Vast’s official timekeeping partner, the luxury brand will create spaceflight-ready timepieces.
Before the launch of Haven-1, IWC Schaffhausen will test material compatibility and hardware capabilities through various on-ground tests and commercial space missions. In turn, the durability of the watchmaker’s chronograph collections is expected to improve across the board.
The horology label views the partnership as an extension of its heritage in aviation. Image credit: IWC Schaffhausen/Vast
“Vast and IWC Schaffhausen both share a passion for innovation driven by scientific progress,” said Max Haot, CEO of Vast, in a statement.
“With our mutual passion for bold invention in our respective industries, this collaboration will be a historic milestone in the evolution of spaceflight-ready timepieces,” Mr. Haot said. “As Vast advances humanity’s presence in low-Earth orbit and unlocks a new era of scientific progress in space, we’re excited to collaborate with IWC on timepieces that capture this ethos of exploration and discovery.”
Other luxury names are looking to push the industry forward in different ways, with French jewelry maison Cartier recently unveiling the theme of its 28th-edition watchmaking prize (see story).