Ingenieur Automatic Mission Earth Edition “Plastiki”

 IWC Press Release:

Schaffhausen, 20 July 2011

As the official partner of the “Plastiki” expedition, IWC Schaffhausen is commemorating the successful mission with an addition to the Ingenieur watch family: a limited special edition of the Ingenieur Automatic Mission Earth Edition “Plastiki”. This watch is the Schaffhausen watchmaker’s homage to the feat of the British adventurer David de Rothschild and his crew, who sailed across the Pacific in 2010 in their pioneering and one-of-a-kind catamaran, the “Plastiki”.

The “Plastiki” expedition made environmental history. Weighing 12 tons and held afloat by 12,500 reclaimed plastic bottles, the catamaran sailed from San Francisco to Sydney on a mis- sion to draw global attention to the health of our oceans, in particular the colossal amounts of plastic waste choking the waves. x x x

You can read the rest of the IWC statement at this link.

During the four month expedition David and his crew were IWC Ingenieur watches. In commemoration of their partnership IWC has issued Ingenieur Automatic Mission Earth Edition “Plastiki”, Reference 3236, which is limited to 1,000 timepieces.

The Mission Earth Edition is a large wristwatch, with a case measuring 46mm in diameter. The stainless-steel case is water-resistant to 120 meters and crown is protected by protective shoulders. Inside is the IWC-manufactured 80110 calibre with self-winding movement, which is fitted with a soft-iron inner case for protection against magnetic fields up to 80,000 A / m and by an integrated shock-absorption system against impacts. 

The back engraving commemorates the “Plastiki” expedition and depicts the catamaran and its sea route from San Francisco to Sydney. This timepiece is supplied with a blue rubber strap. 

About IWC. IWC or the the "International Watch Co. Schaffhausen" was founded by an American engineer from Boston, Florentine Ariosto Jones, in Schaffhausen, Switzerland in the year 1868. IWC Schaffhausen is notable for being the only major Swiss watch factory located in eastern Switzerland, as the majority of the well-known Swiss watch manufacturers are located in western Switzerland.