HYT Watches - Time redefined

Walking in the well-worn tracks of others accords a high degree of safety. Conversely, exploring undiscovered territories, while riskier, can result in wonderful discoveries. And this is the path that HYT Watches has chosen to follow…

The Swiss watch company, founded in 2012, embarked on an avant-garde crusade. It encountered numerous technical obstacles along the way but, with perseverance, ultimately delivered a new interpretation of luxury watchmaking.    Thousands of primary school children have been taught that the long hand on the clock shows minutes while the shorter hand indicates hours. However, HYT Watches eschewed this comparatively prosaic means of displaying time.    Encircling the dial of most HYT timepieces is a fine glass capillary containing two liquids. One liquid is aqueous and suffused with colour, while a second liquid, clear and non-miscible in character, sits adjacent. The crescent-shaped device, which forms between the two liquids, corresponds with markings presented next to the capillary, denoting the prevailing hour.    This groundbreaking means of displaying time is remarkable considering the liquids are moved using a combination of bellows pumps and mechanical watchmaking know-how. Indeed, there is a distinct absence of batteries, making the technical prowess of each HYT timepiece even more impressive.THE FIRST DESIGN. The initial model released by HYT was the H1 and it remains a staple of the brand to this day. Its hand-wound movement transmits energy to a pump located in the southeasterly area of the dial. This pump transfers a coloured liquid from a dedicated reservoir beneath and propels it around the circumference of the dial. Simultaneously, a second bellows pump, positioned adjacent the first, receives the clear liquid and resettles the fluid within a second reservoir.

    When the coloured liquid reaches 0600 hours and 1800 hours, it moves counter-clockwise, enters its exclusive reservoir and recommences its journey from the 6 o'clock position. In order to prevent any bubbles forming or the coloured liquid splitting, an ingenious brake system inhibits the anti-clockwise motion of the coloured liquid.    As soon as the HYT H1 was unveiled, it wowed the world's watch press and astounded observers with its technical brilliance. Moreover, the virtuosity of this timepiece led to the Swiss watch company receiving the highly prestigious Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève Innovation Prize in 2012.    The concept of two liquids collaborating together to impart time is based on the notion that oil and water do not mix. However, HYT has expended much energy ensuring that should the watch be subjected to a significant shock, the two liquids remain discrete.    HYT released its inaugural timepiece with a bright green aqueous liquid. However, it soon experimented with other eye-catching hues. Red, blue and, most recently, black have all found service within the clear glass capillaries of HYT's models. The introduction of new shades only occurs after protracted research and development. A newly developed water-based coloured liquid must not be affected by UV-light and needs to remain distinct from its pigment-free neighbour.

SWISS CRAFTMANSHIP. HYT has not abandoned traditional watchmaking. The HYT Calibre 101 is the manually wound movement found within the H1. It is similar to the mechanical heart found in many fine historical timepieces. Winding the crown imparts energy to the mainspring, which powers the aforementioned bellows pumps. As well as displaying hours, the H1 indicates minutes and seconds. A power reserve indicator displays the amount of available energy stored within the spring barrel, effectively the fuel tank of the watch.    An indication of fine watchmaking is the finishing, applied to movement components. In the case of the HYT Calibre 101, the design is flawless. Indeed, the Swiss company upholds the no-compromise craftsmanship found on traditional exemplars of haute horlogerie. Movement components are imbued with gloriously gleaming bevels, executed with the deft use of hand tools. The 'bridges' are adorned with a series of parallel lines, termed 'Côtes de Genève' motif and the wheels feature 'circular graining', a series of concentric fine rings.

 A NEW ADDITION. In 2013, after the resounding success of the HYT H1, the company released the H2 model. This timepiece presents the bellows pumps in a V-arrangement, resembling the appearance of cylinders found within a high-powered engine.

    The prestigious movement specialist, Audemars Piguet Renaud Papi, exclusively produces the movement within the H2 for HYT. It incorporates two spring barrels, effectively two fuel tanks, delivering an impressive power reserve of 192 hours.    Pulling the crown from the case in a series of stages, allows the wearer to adjust the hands (H) and wind the watch (R). The H2, usefully includes a 'crown position' indicator, displaying (N) for neutral, similar to a car, or 'H' or 'R' when applicable.

GROWING FAMILY. The inextricable link between time and mortality has historically been referenced with so-called 'skull watches'. This genre of timepiece reminds the wearer that time is precious and should never be squandered. Once again, HYT's creative design team brought out the brand's chemistry set and penned a highly individual skull watch of its own.    When the rectangular-shaped H3 broke cover, it used bellows pumps to drive liquids in a horizontal plane from left to right, depicting time against a series of revolving hour markers in a breathtakingly ingenious, linear fashion.    At first glance, the H4 Alinghi shares a passing resemblance with its older sibling the H1. However, this timepiece, which references the brand's association with the Swiss-based sailing team, features a push-piece on its left flank, adjacent 4:30. Should the wearer choose to read the dial in darkness, pressing the push-piece bathes the display in light. Once more, HYT rejects battery power in favour of a dynamo, creating energy purely with the motion of pressing the push-piece.

A NEW CHAPTER. Innovation does not always yield progress; sometimes new products deliver creativity at the expense of function or practicality. Despite some inventive timepieces proving meritorious they may still struggle to achieve commercial success purely because of the conservative purchasing habits of the watch-buying public.    However, the courage of HYT and its investors has been vindicated with continued sales growth. The brand from Neuchâtel, situated deep in the watchmaking heartland of Switzerland, has drawn on traditional know-how, melded it with a futuristic vision of tomorrow and, in so doing, delivers unique timepieces for today's horological connoisseurs.