ReviewPresenting Nomos Glashütte’s Autobahn—A Mean Machine That Will Get Your Pulse Racing

Nomos Glashütte is among the few non-Swiss watch manufacturers that have given Swiss watchmaking stiff competition. The German brand, based in Glashütte—arguably the German capital of watchmaking—is known for its avant-garde designs that still have a classical charm, and hence appeal to a wide range of aesthetic tastes. At the same time, the watches they produce aren’t lacking on the technical front either. Housing some of the most accurate and reliable in-house mechanical movements, the timepieces even house components that are made by the brand themselves. So much so that certain components in their watches—such as the escapement, which even most Swiss watch brands outsource—are often made in-house at the Nomos manufactory.

Nestled in the picturesque Free State of Saxony in Germany, Glashütte is home to the state-of-the-art Nomos factory. A German watch brand that would be considered a newcomer, compared with a myriad of watch brands that have celebrated a century or more in the business, Nomos has ruffled quite a few feathers in the watch world since its inception, for all the right reasons. Nomos Glashütte was founded by Roland Schwertner, an entrepreneur of varied interests and businesses. The brand made an entry into the luxury segment of watches two months after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1990. Schwertner was keen on an opportunity to build a German watch brand and hence acquired a German watchmaking establishment from the early 1900s, called Nomos, meaning ‘law’ in Greek.

Picking Up Speed

Nomos began their journey at a rented flat with just four watchmakers. Today, Nomos Glashütte has 300 employees out of which 260 are deployed in Glashütte and the rest work out of their design office back in Berlin. Their first four models were developed within four years after extensive research, but their biggest breakthrough came in 2005 when Nomos developed their first in-house calibre. Currently, they have almost 10 in-house calibres powering all their watches, and all have achieved chronometer level accuracy.

With a striking repertoire of mechanical watches, Nomos pulled off the unthinkable, something that no other watchmaker in the world has ever managed to do. All their in-house movements are built from scratch by Nomos without a single part being outsourced. The balance spring, escapement, even the screws are made entirely in their factory in Glashütte.

The Nomos Glashütte escapement technology, called the Nomos Swing System was made in 2014, in cooperation with Technische Universität Dresden. The system took almost seven years of research and over EUR 12 million in investment; the result of which was a path-breaking innovation never attempted before by an independent watchmaker. Today, all the brand’s movements are equipped with the Nomos Swing System that is tested rigorously and promises accuracy to chronometer levels on every watch.

Nomos was the first to break away from the Swiss monopoly with their very own Swing System. Nomos achieved complete technological independence from any Swiss supplier of essential parts and relied on no one for external know-how while developing their escapement. It’s a feat no other watchmaker in the world has achieved so far.

Racing Ahead Of The Pack

Embodying idiosyncrasy and minimalist design, Nomos launched the Autobahn Neomatik 41 Date at Baselworld 2018. In collaboration with German designer Werner Aisslinger, this relatively young brand unveiled the Autobahn collection, named after the German highway system that is devoid of a mandated speed limit. Available in three dial colours—white silver-plated, sports grey and midnight blue—it is hugely inspired by race tracks and automotive analogue dash counters, as is indicated by the curved rehaut in the centre of the watch.

Retaining their emblematic aesthetics while introducing a sense of motion and bold curves, this new collection is equipped with a new in-house built date calibre DUW 6101. Featuring a three-lane date window that is reminiscent of an odometer, the well-proportioned dial, with a recessed small seconds sub-dial at six o’clock, is housed in a 41mm robust stainless-steel case. The date, positioned along the edge of the dial, can be set forward or backward.

Another discernible driving-related element on the dial is a large arc from eight o’clock to four o’clock that neatly symbolises a speedometer. The luminous ring of large SuperLuminova fields on its dial is another racy feature of this dramatic collection. All Autobahn timepieces have a textile strap with stainless steel pin buckle.

This sporty automatic model has already bagged the Red Dot Design Award 2018, which recognises global excellence and innovative products with outstanding form, function, aesthetics and quality. With accolades and attention pouring in from every corner of the world, the Nomos Autobahn can be declared as a one-of-a-kind novelty.

Explore all Nomos Glashütte collections here