When eco-adventurer David de Rothschild and his crew board the Plastiki--a 60-foot catamaran made almost entirely from recycled bottles--their 10,000 mile journey from San Francisco to Sydney will be navigated with aid from a special edition IWC Ingenieur watch. IWC Schaffhausen created the timepiece specifically to commemorate the four-month Plastiki voyage--an event which will draw public attention to issues of man's footprint upon the oceans, and the considerable potential for sustainability.

The IWC Ingenieur Automatic Mission Earth watch is manufactured from stainless steel. Equipped with integral protective shoulders for the screw-down winding crown, the robust case is a full 46 millimeters in diameter, and 15 millimeters in height.  Matching the finely patterned blue rubber strap is the dial, which showcases distinctive indications that signify the association with the Plastiki expedition.  Another unique commemorative detail is the screw-locked caseback with its intricate engraving that displays the expedition logo of Adventure Ecology.  

Beneath the commemorative caseback of the IWC Ingenieur Automatic Mission Earth timepiece is a protective inner casing of soft-iron.  This feature, integral to the legendary magnetism-resistant properties of the Ingenieur, protects the integrity of the movement to fields of up to 80,000 A/m.  IWC's manufacture 80110 caliber operates with a power reserve of up to 44 hours, and features a smooth balance beating at a pace of 28,800 vibrations per hour.  The centrally mounted rotor is borne upon a bridge designed specifically to absorb shocks; it winds via the sophisticated and well-proven pawl-based mechanism originally conceived by Albert Pellaton, IWC's legendary technical director whose tenure began in 1944.

1,000 examples of the IWC Ingenieur Automatic Mission Earth watch will be produced.  The model is equipped with a flat anti-reflective sapphire crystal, and is water resistant to 120 meters.

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