OFFICINE PANERAI ITALIAN DESIGN, SWISS TECHNOLOGY

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1 OFFICINE PANERAI ITALIAN DESIGN, SWISS TECHNOLOGY Each Panerai watch is as unique as the history it tells. A history that has its beginnings in Florence, where Giovanni Panerai, a businessman, craftsman and innovator, opened the city s first watchmaker s shop in A history that links every single detail of a watch to the purpose for which it was designed and made, when Panerai watches were supplied to the commandos of the Italian Navy. A history which has always looked to the future, through the ongoing search for technical excellence which distinguishes every new Officine Panerai collection. Combining Italian design and Swiss watchmaking perfection, Officine Panerai part of the Richemont Group since 1997 year by year re-interprets its passion which for more than 150 years has been the creation of highprecision instruments for measuring time with a strong distinctive, aesthetic and functional identity. 1

2 PANERAI HISTORIA 1860 Giovanni Panerai opens a watch shop in Florence: a store which is also a workshop, as well as the city s first watchmaking school. Initially located on the Ponte alle Grazie, Orologeria Svizzera, as it was called, later moves to its current premises in the Archbishop s Palace in Piazza San Giovanni Guido Panerai registers the first of the patents which mark Panerai s long history of innovation. To meet the military requirements of the Royal Italian Navy, which it has already been supplying instruments for several years, Panerai creates Radiomir, a radium-based powder for making the dials of instruments and weapon sights luminous On the eve of the Second World War, the instruments developed by Panerai for the Royal Italian Navy take on an even more strategic role. The prototype of the Radiomir watch is created for the underwater exploits of the commandos of the First Submarine Group, with many of the features which still distinguish it today: a large steel cushion-shaped case (47 mm), luminous numerals and markers delivering an unprecedented level of visibility underwater, wire loop strap attachments welded to the case, a hand-wound mechanical movement, and a wide water-resistant strap, long enough to be fastened over the diving suit. The prototype of the Radiomir goes into production in The design of the Radiomir watch is gradually transformed the better to meet the requirements of the Italian Navy: the proportions become at the same time simpler and more massive, with the strap attachements no longer wire but formed from the block of steel of the case, so as to resist external shocks better. So is born the watch which is known as the Radiomir 1940 in the current collections. 2

3 1943 Officine Panerai presents the prototype of the first Panerai chronograph, the Mare Nostrum, designed for deck officers With the adoption of the iconic bridge device with the clamping lever which presses on the winding crown and protects it, the transformation of the Radiomir into the Luminor is finally achieved. Solidity, strength and visibility underwater reach levels unprecedented in the hisory of watchmaking. The name Luminor comes from the luminous substance which replaces Radiomir: tritium, an isotope of hydrogen, patented in Italy in Today the models with this case are part of the Luminor 1950 collection Panerai develops an underwater Radiomir watch of exceptional size and ruggedness for the Egyptian Navy, known as the Egyptian and fitted with a marked bezel for calculating the time of immersion. The same year sees the registration of the patent for the bridge protecting the winding crown which becomes the distinctive mark of the Luminor models Giuseppe Panerai, son of Guido, dies, and the management of the family business, with its long-established position as supplier to the Italian Navy still covered by military secrecy, is handed over to the engineer Dino Zei, who creates the Officine Panerai brand Panerai develops an underwater Radiomir watch of The first collection sold to the public by Officine Panerai: three limited edition models inspired by those created for the naval commandos of the Second World War. The watches made from 1993 to 1997 are known as pre-vendôme by collectors Acquisition of Officine Panerai by part of the Richemont Group (then Vendôme), and the consequent establishment of a network of selected distributors in Italy, followed a year later by the opening of international markets Opening of the first Officine Panerai Manufacture in Neuchâtel, Switzerland International launch of the first Officine Panerai movement, the P.2002: a hand-wound calibre with GMT function and 8-day power reserve, inspired by the Angelus movements of the 1940s. 3

4 2007 Officine Panerai presents three new calibres entirely designed and developed in the manufacture in Neuchâtel: the P.2003 calibre with a power reserve of ten days, the P.2004 single-button chronograph and the innovative P.2005 calibre with a tourbillon escapement Launch of the P.9000 automatic movement with a power reserve of three days and of the P.2006 split-seconds chronograph movement Return to sea of Eilean, the Bermudian ketch of 1936 built in the legendary Fife boatyard, acquired and restored by Officine Panerai to celebrate its own historic links with the world of the sea As a tribute to the 400th anniversary of the first celestial observations made by Galileo Galilei with his telescope, Officine Panerai creates the three timepieces Tribute to Galileo Galilei, which include the Jupiterium planetarium clock Launch of the P.3000 movement, hand-wound with a power reserve of three days, and the first watch in bronze, the Luminor Submersible Days Automatic More than seventy years after its first appearance, the 1940 Radiomir case is revived for the first time with two prestigious Special Editions Officine Panerai presents the new P.9100 calibre, and the P.9100/R with the innovative Regatta Countdown function. Launch of the hand-wound P.5000 calibre with an eightday power reserve Inauguration of the new Officine Panerai manufacture in Neuchâtel, where all the activities of development, production, assembly and quality control of Panerai watches and movements are brought together under one roof. Launch of the automatic P.4000 calibre with a decentralized oscillating weight Presentation of the first watch in Carbotech, the composite material based on carbon fiber which is used for the case of the Luminor Submersible 1950 Carbotech TM 3 Days Automatic. 4

5 OFFICINE PANERAI TODAY The Panerai trademark is a unique combination of the brand s tradition, Italian design and fine Swiss craftsmanship. Each new model expresses authenticity, creativity and passion: values renewed year after year in the new Panerai collections and deep-rooted in Florence and in the world of sea. Each Panerai watch is produced at the company s Manufacturing Facility in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. Officine Panerai produces, designs and develops the movements and cases for its watches inhouse, with assembly carried out at the factory which is also responsible for the quality control of each and every stage of production. The company headquarters in Milan is where communication activities and product development control take place. Panerai watches are sold exclusively through an International network of specialised authorised retailers and in Panerai boutiques that not only carry all the brand s luxury watch collections, but also offer their clientele the exclusive chance to buy limited edition products. 5