Characterized by a classic design aesthetic, Baume & Mercier's new Clifton 1830, with its hand-wound mechanical movement and 18K red gold case, is actually a concentrate of innovation. Its brand-new Baume & Mercier manufacture movement (calibre BM12-1975M) integrates for the first time in the world the exclusive TwinSpir technology, which enables greater precision. The new calibre was developed in close collaboration with Manufacture Horlogère ValFleurier, also belonging to the Richemont Group. This new winding Manufacture calibre has been specially designed to meet Baume & Mercier's precise requirements and incorporates a number of unique technical features and design elements typical of Baume & Mercier: in particular, the TwinSpir technology is applied to an unprecedented balance-spring comprising a composite structure of 2 silicon layers, alternately oriented and bonded together by a layer of silicon dioxide. This additional layer also acts as a thermoregulatory element. The TwinSpir spiral, combined with a variable-inertia balance, thus increases the precision of the movement in the various positions and over the long term, while limiting sensitivity to surrounding magnetism and ensuring greater resistance to small shocks and repeated vibrations. Monocrystalline silicon, a non-magnetic, lightweight and corrosion-resistant material, is endowed with elastic and thermo-elastic properties that affect the various crystalline layers of the material differently. This variation in response is known as elastic anisotropy. When the spiral of a watch - the element to which the precision of the timepiece is entrusted - expands and contracts as it oscillates, the elastic anisotropy tends to affect the constancy of the oscillations and consequently the chronometric accuracy. This limitation is successfully overcome thanks to the TwinSpir technology, which alternates two layers of silicon whose crystals are oriented in different directions so that the deviations of its 'elastic modulus' are combined, thus reducing the effects of this natural material property. The silicon dioxide layer further bonds the silicon parts of the TwinSpir spiral, and acts as the spiral's temperature regulating element. This layer, working together with another outermost layer, also made of silicon, allows stable performance whatever the external temperature. The new balance of the Baume & Mercier calibre is of the variable-inertia type, as opposed to traditional balances where oscillations are transmitted via a regulating pointer (raquette) that allows the frequency to be corrected by modifying the active length of the balance-spring. This model, on the other hand, provides the fundamental advantage of vibration-proof rate regulation, as the variable-inertia balancing masses, which guarantee perfect adjustment of the watch's rate, are firmly attached to the balance - in fact, they are placed between its arms and special supports. Baume & Mercier is also the first Maison in the Richemont Group to integrate a technology developed by the Richemont Research & Innovation department. This innovation went hand in hand with the development of Calibre BM12-1975M by Manufacture Horlogère ValFleurier.
