Luxury watchmaker Panerai enters into a collaboration with high-end tech-luxury brand BRABUS. To celebrate the start of the partnership, Panerai debuts its first-ever skeletonized automatic movement in daring, high-end watches inspired by the design of the BRABUS “Shadow Black Ops” series of boats.
Panerai, a global high-end watch brand rooted in Swiss watchmaking know-how and Italian design excellence, joins forces with Brabus, a German luxury engineering brand focused on high-performance vehicles, in a collaboration that will bring together the brands’ design DNAs and identities in a series of exclusive watch products and expand the reach and visibility of both brands in the worlds of watchmaking and boating.
Panerai and Brabus, both unconventional forces in their respective fields, share a passion for and connection to the marine environment. The origin and history of Panerai is inseparably linked to the development of diving watches the character and design of which perfectly fits the Brabus “Black Ops” line of luxury day boats.
Each bringing decades of experience to the table the two brands will work to create innovative products fitting the marine segment of each and to maximize the potential for new ideas, new technologies, and new materials used in those products
“When we speak about the partnership, it’s not just about a logo, it extends to the highest levels and smallest details. We offer each other complementary skill sets and synergies in terms of products, sales, and key markets. The ideas, materials, and technologies of our brands will be a vehicle for developing concepts that are both disruptive and spectacular. All of these elements will come together to create results and added value to the benefit of our clients, in terms of service, retail concepts, and calibers.” said Panerai CEO, Jean-Marc Pontroué.
The natural and fitting first result of this creative, marine-based collaboration between Panerai and Brabus is the “Panerai Submersible S Brabus Black Ops Edition (PAM01240)”, a limited edition of Panerai’s longstanding diving instrument, that – as a testimony to both brands’ roots in technology and craftsmanship – is at the same time the first-ever Panerai watch with a skeleton automatic caliber.
The P.4001/s features a one-piece off-centered oscillating weight that allows for bi-directional winding, whereby the two spring barrels efficiently wind up while the watch is worn. The oscillating rotor – made of tungsten, a shiny, high-density metal – enables the movement and therefore the watch itself to be much thinner and lighter while the stop balance wheel and seconds reset devices enable the time to be synchronized with a reference time signal. The new movement was developed starting from the P.4000 caliber and entirely designed and created at the Panerai Manufacture in Neuchatel.
Available in a limited run of only 100 pieces, the Panerai Submersible S Brabus Black Ops Edition (PAM01240) is the product of 3 years of development, which resulted in features like a patented polarized date display, allowing a view of the date indication only through the opening at 3 o’clock, without covering the mechanics of the skeletonized movement.
The 47mm watch features a unidirectional rotating bezel for the calculation of the immersion time, GMT function, AM/PM indicator, and three-day power reserve whose sapphire crystal disk indicator is filled in Super-LumiNova™.
“When put side by side, the similarities in regard to design language and overall character of the Panerai Submersible and the BRABUS Marine line of day boats are obvious and striking. Both are made to be functional and stylish tools for life in the marine environment and therefore this combination just makes sense” said Constantin Buschmann, CEO, and owner of Brabus.
In the Panerai Submersible S BRABUS Black Ops Edition (PAM01240), the adaptation of the signature gunmetal grey, black and red color palette of BRABUS further enhances those similarities and brings both product lines closer together.
As a logical tribute to both brands’ frequent uses of innovative and high-end composite materials a modern, dark grey Carbotech watchcase was chosen. Minute, hour, and small seconds hands are accented in BRABUS-red; and BRABUS brand emblems are engraved on Panerai’s signature crown guard lever, the watch-strap, the movement, and the case back.
Through the case back the off-center oscillating weight in tungsten bearing the Officine Panerai logo is visible. Given the absence of a dial, the Panerai Submersible logo is silkscreened onto the sapphire crystal. Gray Super-LumiNova™ fills indices and hands.
Water-resistant to 300 meters (30 bar), the Panerai Submersible S Brabus Black Ops Edition (PAM01240) features two straps, a bi-material version, and a second, Panerai Sportech strap with a velcro closure. Also included is a tool to allow interchangeability of the straps and a screwdriver for removing the buckle
Panerai Submersible S Brabus Black OPS Edition
PAM01240
MOVEMENT: Automatic mechanical, P.4001/S caliber, 13¾ lignes, 7.36 mm thick, 31 jewels, Glucydur™ balance, 28,800 alternations/hour. KIF Parechoc™ anti-shock device. Two barrels. 341 components. Off-centered oscillating weight in tungsten
FUNCTIONS: Hours, minutes, seconds, Polarized date, GMT, am/pm indicator, power reserve indicator on the back, seconds reset, calculation of immersion time
POWER RESERVE: 3 days
CASE: Diameter 47mm. Carbotech™ case and bezel. See-through sapphire crystal case back.
Carbotech™ Safety Lock crown protection device (protected by trademark).
Sapphire crystal formed of corondum
STRAP: Bi-material with grey fabric, T/T stitching, STD, 26/22, BA. Trapezoidal titanium with DLC coating buckle
WATERPROOF: 30 bar (~300 meters)
