Friends who are familiar with watches know that common watchmaking materials are various metals. For example, watchcases are often made of fine steel, 18K gold or 950 platinum, and a few use new materials such as ceramics, carbon fiber and titanium alloy, while movements and dials are often made of copper. These watchmaking materials are also very common industrial raw materials in contemporary times. It can be said that the development of the watch industry today is inseparable from the developed industrial system in the world.
Since these metals or quasi-metals are easy to obtain and the processing technology is mature, why do some brands choose garbage to make watches? Before answering this question, we might as well look at a set of shocking figures.
Relevant information shows that about 350 million tons of plastics are produced every year in the world, and about 9 million tons of plastic waste are discharged into the ocean. These wastes include plastic bottles, plastic buckets and plastic bags. About 640,000 tons of fishing nets are lost or abandoned in the ocean. Every year, nearly 654.38 million whales, dolphins, sea lions, seals and turtles die because of abandoned fishing nets!
I'm sure everyone has seen that worrying video. A turtle inhaled a straw thrown by tourists in its nostrils, and the rescuers had a great effort to pull out the straw which was more than ten centimeters long. While the viewers are happy, who would have thought that this lucky turtle was just one of thousands of unfortunate marine creatures before being rescued?
The above is just the ocean, and the amount of plastic waste on land is amazing. These man-made garbage has seriously threatened our living environment, so it is urgent to control garbage and protect the earth! Today, many organizations and individuals have taken action. In addition to various non-profit organizations, more and more watch brands have joined this activity.
Athens
For example, its watch positioning, Kaiyun's Athens watch is also the leader of this project. June 5438 +20201October, Athens Watch launched a brand-new R-STRAP strap, marking the first milestone of Athens Watch on the road of marine circular economy. This strap is made of recycled fishing nets, and is suitable for some watches in the diving series and ocean navigation series of Athens watches, as well as FREAK X watches in the whimsy series. Fishing nets selected in Athens are one of the main sources of marine plastic pollution.
Since then, Athens has introduced a special concept watch called DIVER NET. The middle layer, back and bezel of the watch case are all reprocessed from marine garbage. The main source is also discarded fishing nets, which are then processed into polyamide plastic particles. This raw material has excellent wear resistance.
In addition to the case, the mirror surface of this concept watch has been changed from traditional sapphire to transparent ceramic glass, which can reduce the energy consumption in the production process and thus reduce the impact on the environment. The new watch mirror may be applied to more styles of Athens watches in the future.
Breitling
Some cousins like to buy watches with watch boxes, even if they are second-hand watches, and some cousins don't. No matter how beautifully designed the watch case is, it is heavy in his eyes. In fact, many brands of watch boxes really make people love and hate, but they have a sense of design. Unfortunately, they are huge, so they are neither left nor thrown away.
Breitling introduced a specially designed case last year, which has two remarkable features: reusability and small size. From fabric to buckle opening, this watch box 100% is upgraded from recycled plastic bottles. Polyester (PET) material for plastic bottles is one of the most common recyclable plastics. If it is no longer needed, it can be recycled in a special facility. This kind of sustainable packaging was awarded the "Efficient Solution Label" by the Sunshine Power Foundation, aiming at recognizing solutions that have a positive impact on the environment and economy.
Breitling reduced the size of the new watch box to half that of the existing brand watch box, and reduced the packaging accessories from an average of 12 to three boxes, watch pillows and quick start guides.
Haolishi
When it comes to environmental protection, we have to mention Hollysys, a small and beautiful Swiss watch brand, which cooperated with non-profit organizations to protect the water environment long ago.
Two years ago, Hollysys launched a heavy product, CLEAN OCEAN Clean Ocean Limited Edition Watch. This special bottom cover is inlaid with a special badge made of recycled plastic. Don't underestimate this simple badge, it is the symbol of the brand-holloway spares no effort to invest in and call for environmental protection.
Some people say that the badge is not convincing enough at this point, but I don't know that this limited edition watch of clean ocean is just one of Hollysy's "Marine Protection Trident Suit". The other two are blue whale limited edition watches, inspired by blue whale and the third generation Great Barrier Reef limited edition III. Limited to 200 sets, specially equipped with recycling watch boxes made of discarded plastic bottles.
In addition to these three, many other watch brands have also started their actions on the journey of "embracing garbage". Bao Zilai once introduced a special model of black devil fish, Bora diving watch. 100% of the strap rubber material comes from plastic bottles recycled in the ocean. Panerai has just released a special edition of the Lumino watch Guillaume Neri, with a 70-year warranty period and a case made of recycled plastic. This series of Shi Ming Watch has also released several ocean limited watches, and the case material is also plastic picked up from the ocean.
To become a great brand, it is essential to have a strong sense of social responsibility in addition to making popular products and devoting to public welfare undertakings. Many brands are top watches, which can make expensive and exquisite watches and earn a lot of money, but they can't be called great brands. If they can make more contributions to public welfare undertakings, I believe they will go further from "greatness".
I hope more watch brands can join the ranks of making watches with "garbage".