Is your watch at risk of magnetisation? The IWC Ingenieur 40 will not be affected by such fields unless you want to scan it with an MRI scanner to find out how it works.
The magnetic fields that are at work in this device will destroy hard drives without a sweat. The first Ingenieur watch was introduced in 1955 to address the new challenge of magnetic fields. The first Ingenieur watch had an automatic movement, and an inner soft-iron shell that would act as a Faraday enclosure. Even back then, watchmakers believed that the digital age was going to pose a hidden threat to mechanical movements.
Gerald Genta’s Ingenieur SL design of 1976 is a throwback in the new Ingenieur model of 2023. IWC experimented in the past 10 years with different designs to be conservative before settling on what they hope will be the best one for this year. We trust that you will understand what we mean by ‘right one’ but yes this is of course a reference to the ideal luxury sports watch. The Ingenieur 40 looks like it should be a no-brainer, but the fact is that we’re late to the party when it comes to sports watches. It is not enough to simply reissue the watch. IWC decided to improve the quality of the watch and change the screws used to secure the bezel. The five screws now connect with the case, where the original SL’s bezel screwed into the case, with the five pins being more or less decorative. As with the original from 1955, the message is still about anti-magnetism. Hence the name Ingenieur which means engineer in French or German.
Functionality is very important, both because of the name and nature of the timepiece. The crown guards are present, as is the design stamped on the soft metal dial. These elements serve to visually indicate the soft steel inner case. The inner case makes the watch thicker. A heftier timepiece feels more functional, so this may be a positive for the Ingenieur. This automatic calibre has a 120-hour power reserve, which is class leading. While this calibre is quite capable, it could use other class-leading features. For example, a completely magnetic escapement would allow the Faraday to be retired and allow an exhibition caseback. We look forward to further developments here…
MOVEMENT Automatic 32111 with 120-hour Power Reserve
CASE 40mm in Titanium and Steel; Water-resistant up to 100m
STRAP Integrated bracelet
PRICE As low as US$17.300
Click here for more information on the latest luxury watch models.