UR-110
History of the line
The UR-110 line debuted at SIHH in January 2011 with the "Torpedo" model, presented as heir to the UR-103 and, at the time, as the entry-level model of the Urwerk catalogue (despite a list price of around 80,000 Swiss francs). The name comes from the elongated, contoured shape of the case, with side extensions recalling the fins of an underwater device — a sculptural aesthetic typical of the collaborations between Felix Baumgartner and Martin Frei.
Technically, the UR-110 keeps the three orbiting satellites layout already seen on the UR-103, but replaces the hour discs with four-sided rotating cubes, adding three-dimensional depth to the reading of time. The UR 9.01 calibre also integrates a system of turbines visible through the caseback, first introduced on the UR-202 (2008), which regulate the rotor's rotation speed, protecting the movement from shocks during automatic winding.
In the first months after launch the line expanded with titanium variants with AlTiN treatment and the ZrN "Champagne Supernova" version, both presented during 2011, followed in later years by further editions in red gold and other finishes. The line closed in 2022 with the UR-110 Bakelite, a limited model with phenolic resin inserts conceived as a farewell to the collection.
Technical specifications (Torpedo, 2011)
Key milestones of the line
At the time of its 2011 launch, the UR-110 Torpedo was presented by Urwerk as the "entry level" model of its range, despite a list price of around 80,000 Swiss francs: a description that shows how far the Geneva manufacture operates from the price brackets of most Swiss watchmaking.