The latest addition to the ever growing Richard Mille women’s collection is a new interpretation of its RM 037 model that combines, for the first time, white ceramic, mother-of-pearl and white gold.
White ceramic is used for the bezel and the caseback. In particular, Richard Mille uses ATZ white ceramic, where ATZ stands for Alumina Toughened Zirconia. This material is based on aluminium oxide powder tubes injected at a pressure of 2,000 bar. This high-pressure injection increases rigidity by 20-30% and reduces the material’s porosity to an absolute minimum.
Hypo-allergenic and one of the hardest materials in the world after diamond, ATZ ceramic is valued for its remarkable resistance to scratches, shocks and abrasion, as well as for its whiteness that does not change over time.The manufacturing of complex shapes like bezel and caseback of the RM 037 is very challenging and requires a lengthy, delicate machining and diamond grinding process.The resulting highly polished surfaces well highlight the distinctive tonneau shape of the case. The caseband is crafted from white gold, with satin finished surfaces that alternate to polished pillars.
Assembled with 20 spline screws in grade 5 titanium, the tripartite case of the Replica RM 037 White Ceramic measures 52.63 x 34.40 x 13.00 mm and offers water resistance up to 50 metres / 165 feet, ensured by 2 Nitrile O-ring seals.
Protected by a sapphire crystal with anti-glare treatment on both sides, the dial is embellished by mother-of-pearl and diamonds. It reveals details of its in-house CRMA1 skeletonized movement, including the two skeletonised calendar discs used to display the oversize date over a white field placed under 12 o’clock. A push-button located at 4 o’clock allows one to select the winding, neutral and hand setting functions with a simple push in a manner similar to a car’s gearbox. An aperture located at 4 o’clock shows the function selected: W (Winding) – N (Neutral) – H (Hand Setting). The other push button at 10 o’clock corrects the date.Beating at 4 Hz (28,800 vibrations per hour) and visible through the sapphire crystal on the caseback, the movement offers a power reserve of 50 hours (± 10%). It has baseplate and bridges in black PVD-treated grade 5 titanium and is equipped with a variable-geometry rotor in 18-carat 5N red gold.A patented stem-crown construction allows the integrity of the movement to be fully guaranteed and protected from external influences, since it does not use a classical crown attachment going into the depth of the movement’s heart. In fact, the stem-crown assembly is not connected to the watch movement, instead it is part of the case.
Long known for robust, avant-garde and often colourful watches, Richard Mille focuses on the purity of design with its new watch for women, the RM 037 Automatic White Ceramic.
While this new model includes all of the Swiss watchmaker’s signature elements – a tonneau-shaped case, a skeletonised, automatic-winding in-house movement, technical innovations and high-performance materials – they are contained in a brilliant-white case that immediately sets it apart from other Richard Mille timepieces.
The sleek case made of white ceramic is combined with accents of mother-of-pearl, diamonds and white gold to bring an extra-feminine touch to the sporty RM 037 collection.
Behind the pristine look of this watch is a complex and time-intensive production process. The white ceramic is actually a hi-tech material called alumina toughened zirconia, or ATZ ceramic, one of the hardest materials in the world besides diamond.
The ATZ white ceramic is created by injecting aluminium oxide powder at a high pressure of 2,000 bar, which increases rigidity while reducing porosity. The resulting material is hypoallergenic and able to withstand scratches, shocks and abrasions while remaining perfectly white.
The ceramic then undergoes extensive machining and diamond-grinding work to shape the bezel and caseback, and also give the pieces a matt finish. The tripartite case is assembled with a satin-finished white gold caseband and polished pillars, fastened by screws in Grade 5 titanium and sealed to be water-resistant up to 50 metres.
It frames a dial made of mother-of-pearl embellished with diamonds, which includes an oversized date display placed at 12 o’clock. It also has a function selector positioned at 4 o’clock that is used to switch between setting the time and winding the movement without having to touch the crown. Two push buttons in polished white gold provide access to the date and function features.
The timepiece is powered by Richard Mille’s in-house CRMA1 calibre with a variable-geometry rotor made of red gold, which can be observed through the sapphire glass on the caseback. The movement is set on a baseplate and bridges made of black PVD-treated Grade 5 titanium, and has a power reserve of around 50 hours.With the RM 037 Automatic White Ceramic, Richard Mille infuses elegance into its cutting-edge engineering and design to provide a signature piece for the brand’s range of women’s watches.
