Aerobility, the UK’s leading aviation charity offering disabled people, without exception, the opportunity to fly, is celebrating the arrival of its new aircraft type, the Grob G109B Able. Its first public appearance, at the Private Flyer GA show, this Friday 6th August at Leeds East Airport provides a relevant showcase for prospective buyers to view this newly available aircraft type. Aerobility will be both operating the aircraft within its fleet, as well as marketing and selling this enhanced model commercially, in collaboration Grob Aircraft SE and Southern Sailplanes in the UK.
With a complete airframe overhaul, state-of-the-art Garmin avionics, new Rotax engine and MT Propeller, the ‘Able’s’ performance and handling is hugely enhanced, whilst the fuel consumption is significantly reduced. “This updated and re-certified variant of the tried, tested and much loved Grob G109B and its military derivative The Vigilant makes for an exciting and environmentally friendly way to take to the skies,” says Aerobility CEO, Mike Miller-Smith.
Guy Westgate, veteran motor-glider pilot, who gave his time to fly the ‘Able’ from Germany to Leeds describes it as “A fantastic upgrade to a popular, soundly built aircraft.”
Supporting the aircraft’s debut at the show, Mike adds: “Aerobility exists to change lives through the magic of flight. We are very proud to present this new aircraft type which will deliver magic to its owners whilst the proceeds will support disabled aviation. We only have a fixed amount of these aircraft to sell and we hope interest will be high.”
The aircraft flew from Aerobility’s HQ in Blackbushe, Surrey on 4th August before positioning on the static display, following its arrival from Grob Aircraft SE in Tussenhausen-Mattsies, Germany on 3rd August.
Red Hat, the world’s leading provider of enterprise open source solutions, and Nutanix (NASDAQ: NTNX), a leader in hybrid multicloud computing, today announced a strategic partnership to enable a powerful solution for building, scaling and managing cloud-native applications on-premises and in hybrid clouds. The collaboration brings together industry-leading technologies, enabling installation, interoperability and management of Red Hat OpenShift and Red Hat Enterprise Linux with Nutanix Cloud Platform, including Nutanix AOS and AHV.
Key elements of the partnership include:
Red Hat OpenShift as the preferred choice for enterprise full stack Kubernetes on Nutanix Cloud Platform. Customers looking to run Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Red Hat OpenShift on hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) will be able to use an industry-leading cloud platform from Nutanix, which includes both Nutanix AOS and AHV.
Nutanix Cloud Platform is now a preferred choice for HCI for Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Red Hat OpenShift. This will enable customers to deploy virtualized and containerized workloads on a hyperconverged infrastructure, building on the combined benefits of Red Hat’s open hybrid cloud technologies and Nutanix’s hyperconverged offerings.
Nutanix AHV is now a Red Hat certified hypervisor enabling full support for Red Hat Enterprise Linux and OpenShift on Nutanix Cloud Platform. The certification of the Nutanix built-in hypervisor, AHV, for Red Hat Enterprise Linux and OpenShift offers enterprise customers a simplified full stack solution for their containerized and virtualized cloud-native applications. This certification delivers Red Hat customers additional choice in hypervisor deployments, especially as many organizations explore innovative, modern virtualization technologies.
Joint engineering roadmap providing robust interoperability. Red Hat and Nutanix will focus on delivering continuous testing of Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Red Hat OpenShift with Nutanix AHV to provide robust interoperability. The companies will also collaborate to deliver more timely support by aligning product roadmaps.
More seamless support experience providing faster resolution times for joint customers. Customers will be able to contact either company with support issues. The two companies are collaborating to deliver a best-in-class support experience for the interoperability of the certified products.
Because of its distributed architecture, Nutanix Cloud Platform delivers an IT environment that is highly scalable and resilient, and well-suited for enterprise deployments of Red Hat OpenShift at scale. The platform also includes fully integrated unified storage, addressing many tough challenges operators routinely face in configuring and managing storage for stateful containers.
More information on the partnership is available here.
Fortinet® (NASDAQ: FTNT), a global leader in broad, integrated and automated cybersecurity solutions, today announced the FortiGate 3500F Next-Generation Firewall (NGFW) to protect organizations with hybrid data centers against the ever-growing threat landscape and ransomware attacks. FortiGate 3500F offers some of the industry’s highest performance numbers, including TLS1.3, with automated threat protection post decryption. Additionally, FortiGate 3500F is built with zero trust network access (ZTNA) capabilities, further delivering consistent security and seamless user experience to any user at any location with its security-driven networking approach.
John Maddison, EVP of Products and CMO at Fortinet
“Adding to our industry-leading NGFW portfolio, FortiGate 3500F offers high performance and integrated networking and security at hyperscale for hybrid data centers. With the FortiGate 3500F, Fortinet is the only vendor that natively integrates access proxy capabilities in its NGFWs to turn on zero trust network access. Additionally, FortiGate 3500F further enables organizations to protect against evolving threats and rising ransomware attacks, delivering the industry’s highest security compute rating of 6x for performance compared to competitors – including TLS1.3 – to deliver consistent end-to-end security.”
Evolving Threat Landscape Poses Security Risks Across Hybrid Data Centers
With the shift to work from anywhere, organizations are adopting hybrid data centers to increase operational agility by deploying some resources across multiple clouds while keeping other business critical applications and data in on-premises data centers for compliance and control. As the data center infrastructure becomes more distributed, however, the attack surface expands and more blind spots emerge, reducing visibility and increasing the potential for breaches and attacks. It’s critical for organizations to inspect encrypted flows to detect all type of attacks, especially malware that hides in secure channels, to prevent ransomware and the disruption of command and control attacks from stealing customer and corporate data.
Organizations also need a strategy to manage excessive implicit trust and provide inspection into the growing volume of encrypted traffic which is increasingly used by cyber adversaries to mask malicious traffic. Otherwise, organizations struggle to securely grow and accelerate digital transformation as their traditional security strategy and solutions can’t keep up with escalating business demands.
Securing Users, Data and Applications Everywhere
To address these challenges, FortiGate 3500F NGFW helps organizations ensure business continuity and advanced security for hybrid data centers. With the industry’s highest Security Compute Rating (SCR) of 6x IPsec, FortiGate 3500F NGFW secures the data center edge, core and interconnect by providing ultra-fast secure data center to data center paths to build disaster recovery sites. It also enables organizations to secure data center to cloud paths for cloud on-ramps with full compliance and controls. Other key highlights of the FortiGate 3500F include:
FortiGuard Security Services and Fortinet ASIC SPUs enable hyperscale protection for ransomware and advanced threats: FortiGate 3500F is powered by Fortinet’s purpose-built ASIC Security Processing Units (SPUs), like the NP7 and CP9. FortiGate 3500F offers the industry’s highest security compute rating of 6x for performance compared to competitors – including support of TLS1.3 – to detect attacks, like ZEUS, Trickbot, Dridex, and protect organizations from network, application and file-based attacks and many other sophisticated threats. FortiGate 3500F also natively integrates with FortiGuard Security Services. This further helps organizations protect themselves against network anti-virus, mail security, anti-DDoS, and similar functions, like IPS and anti-malware solutions.
Natively integrates access proxy capabilities, such as zero trust network access (ZTNA): FortiGate 3500F is the only NGFW in the industry that natively integrates access proxy capabilities to enable zero trust network access (ZTNA). This allows organizations to host applications anywhere with consistent policy controls to enable and secure hybrid workforce models with seamless and superior user experience.
Seamless user experience through consolidation: Fortinet further delivers a security-driven networking approach withFortiGate 3500F, which combines security and networking capabilities, including Secure SD-WAN and Zero Trust Network Access. An industry first, only Fortinet offers Secure SD-WAN, SD-Branch and ZTNA in one single offering.
Scaling Business with Superior Performance and Advanced Security
Powered by Fortinet’s ASIC SPUs, FortiGate 3500F offers some of the highest performance numbers for NGFW with 12x higher speeds than leading competitors. As a result, FortiGate 3500F delivers unparalleled performance levels and hyperscale to inspect, segment and secure locally hosted data and workloads at network speeds. Organizations are able to host business critical applications and provide secure access to corporate users, customers and partners.
Below is a comparison of the FortiGate 3500F compared against top firewalls on the market.
Sun Tan, clogged pores, breakouts – the summer months can be quite daunting for the skin. But let not your skincare woes dampen the spirit of your summer outdoor fun. What you need is a good face mask that treats your skin and rejuvenates it too!
Your skin does need a little extra pampering during the summer considering the harsh and extreme weather conditions it has to deal with. While getting a professional facial done may not always be convenient or feasible, you can use a peel-off mask for basically any skin concern you may be struggling with. Herbal experts Himalaya, has a range of peel-off masks that are infused with herbal actives to ensure your summer skin issues are kept at bay.
Himalaya’s Tan Removal Orange Peel-Off Mask helps reduce skin tan from the very first use as it is an effective blend of natural skin lightening extracts of Orange Peel and Honey. Orange Peel combined with the peeling action helps to remove skin tan and lighten the skin tone while Honey soothes and moisturizes making the skin look healthy and radiant.
Prolonged exposure to air conditioning too can result in dry, itchy skin. Himalaya’s Moisturizing Cucumber & Almond Peel-Off Mask helps to peel away dead skin cells to reveal moisturized and bright skin. Enriched with Cucumber that tones the skin, its antioxidants rejuvenate the skin making it soft and supple. Almond helps to moisturize and cleanse the skin to leave behind well-cared and super soft skin.
Himalaya’s Purifying Neem Peel-Off Mask is power packed with Neem and Turmeric, a tried and tested herbal combination, well-known for its antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties. This peel off mask reduces oiliness, helps prevent pimples, and lightens pimple marks, leaving you with clear and healthy skin.
Conveniently packaged in 150 g tubes, the range is available across all supermarkets and hypermarkets in the region and online on https://himalayawellness.ae/
Boeing [NYSE: BA] today released its first Sustainability Report. In the report, the company shares its vision for the future of sustainable aerospace, establishes broad sustainability goals and highlights environment, social and governance (ESG) progress in alignment with global sustainability standards.
“In September 2020, amidst a global pandemic, Boeing formed a Sustainability organization dedicated to advancing our ESG efforts across the enterprise. As we continue on this journey, we are pleased to publish our first comprehensive report, focused on stakeholder responsiveness and data transparency,” said Boeing Chief Sustainability Officer Chris Raymond. “We know there’s still work to do and are committed to communicating our progress and holding ourselves accountable to ensure the aerospace industry is safe and sustainable for generations to come.”
Boeing’s sustainability efforts are organized around four key pillars: people, products and services, operations and communities. In 2020, highlights across these four pillars included:
Establishing six broad new sustainability goals in alignment with our key sustainability priorities and stakeholder interests.
Defining the company’s vision for the future of sustainable aerospace through fleet renewal, network operational efficiency, renewable energy and advanced technology.
Partnering with Etihad Airways on the 2020 ecoDemonstrator program, which tested sustainable technologies on one of the airline’s new 787-10 Dreamliners.
Implementing digital engineering tools on the T-7A Red Hawk program, achieving a 75% increase in first-time engineering quality and an 80% reduction in assembly hours.
Advancing flight tests for Cora, an all-electric, self-flying air taxi developed by Boeing and Kitty Hawk joint venture Wisk.
Responding to COVID-19 by executing airlift missions to transport supplies, providing community vaccination sites and minimizing air travel health risks through the Confident Travel Initiative.
Establishing a 20-member Racial Equity Task Force to represent diverse viewpoints and amplify all voices at Boeing.
Setting 2030 environmental performance goals to reduce emissions, waste, water use and energy consumption.
Achieving net-zero carbon emissions at work sites, while reducing energy consumption by 12%, water use by 23%, solid waste by 44% and hazardous waste by 34%.
Contributing $234 million in community giving, working with 13,400 community partners and volunteering 250,000 hours.
More information on these and other sustainability accomplishments can be found in the full report.
As a leading global aerospace company, Boeing develops, manufactures and services commercial airplanes, defense products and space systems for customers in more than 150 countries. As a top U.S. exporter, the company leverages the talents of a global supplier base to advance economic opportunity, sustainability and community impact. Boeing’s diverse team is committed to innovating for the future and living the company’s core values of safety, quality and integrity. Learn more at www.boeing.com.
The most advanced data protection solution for Cloud, Virtual, Physical, SaaS and Kubernetes workloads drives consistent double-digit growth across all Veeam regions
Veeam® Software, the leader in backup, recovery and data management solutions that deliver Modern Data Protection, today announced another quarter of double-digit growth with an annual recurring revenue (ARR) increase of 26% year-over-year (YoY) for Q2’21. Veeam delivered more than 20 new product releases including significant enterprise-grade feature updates over the last 18 months and several major releases in 1H’21 – Veeam Backup for Google Cloud Platform and Veeam Backup & Replication™ v11. With no plans of slowing down its momentum, Veeam is preparing to release key innovations of cloud-native solutions for AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, Microsoft Office 365 and the first integration of Kasten K10 for Kubernetes into the Veeam Platform in the second half of 2021.
“Now, more than ever, especially as ransomware attacks increase, data is the lifeblood of organizations. The need for Modern Data Protection to achieve operational objectives and business continuity is fueling the demand for Veeam’s industry-leading solutions,” said William H. Largent, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Chairman of the Board at Veeam. “Q2’21 isn’t just another quarter of growth for Veeam; as our fourteenth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth, it represents unrivaled results, especially during such an unstable global environment. Veeam is continuing to thrive and grow, and our commitment to deliver simple, flexible, reliable and powerful data management and protection solutions to our 400,000+ customers is unwavering.”
“Achieving two quarters of consecutive double-digit growth in 2021 and 29% year-over-year increase in annual recurring revenue (ARR) in Q2’21 in EMEA is an achievement any company would be proud of. This is a testimony to the talent, personality and resilience of our team, as well as our industry-leading technology.” said Daniel Fried, General Manager & Senior Vice President, EMEA, and Worldwide Channels at Veeam. “We will continue to be guided by our culture of agility, discipline, and fighting spirit in Q3 and beyond, working with our unrivalled partner ecosystem to find new ways of helping customers push ahead with digital transformations that are based on the solid foundations of Modern Data Protection.”
Q2 2021 Highlights
he most advanced data protection solution for Cloud, Virtual, Physical, SaaS and Kubernetes workloads, Veeam Backup & Replication v11 and has been downloaded by more than 220,000 users since its launch in Q1. V11 provides robust ransomware protection with multiple immutable storage options, policy-driven data lifecycle management, as well as Continuous Data Protection (CDP), further reducing downtime and data loss for all workloads on premises and in the cloud with AWS, Azure and Google.
Veeam Backup for Microsoft Office 365 reported 58% growth YoY in Q2’21, with the product being downloaded 189,000 times with 6.6 million users under paid contract.
AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud) continues to accelerate.
(HPE), Cisco, NetApp, and Lenovo reported 27% growth YoY.
In June, Veeam announced the launch of its new, federal government-focused subsidiary, Veeam Government Solutions, Inc. (VGS). Headquartered in Washington D.C. and 100% U.S.-owned and managed, VGS brings a comprehensive portfolio of trusted data protection software solutions that are independently verified and validated by U.S. federal government-trusted, U.S.-based third-party agencies.
In the recently released 2021 Magic Quadrant for Enterprise Backup and Recovery Solutions[1], Gartner named Veeam as an industry Leader for the fifth consecutive time and positioned the company highest overall in ability to execute two years in a row.
Zakeer Hussain popularly known as ‘Zak Zorro’ released his latest album ‘Baby Dil Dena on July 25th 2021. An album with 11 diverse Musical tracks with flavor of Jazz, Flamenco, Pop, HipHop, RNB, Rap, Afro, Spanish, Punjabi, Latin and Arabic Influenced. The Songs namely ‘Baby Dil Dena’, ‘Bumpe Yolo Yolo’, ‘Ishara’, ‘Kali Raat’, ‘Dil Tujhpe Dhardke’, ‘Dhoka’, ‘Faasla’, ‘Marjaavan’, ‘Halka Halka Nasha’, ‘Haye Mera Dil’ ‘and Kabhi Kabhi’
Zak Zorro released his 4th Music Album “Baby Dil Dena” with unique Music. As a leading Music Producer and Singer, he has produced over 15+ Styles of Music and Sang in 7 Languages.
Speaking on the release, Zak said “Music is my life and has become part of my daily routine with creating music, studying, experimenting, and working with different styles of music and languages. Music is Like a meditation to me, and whenever I work on a new genre or language, it’s a completely new experience from zero, as if it is my First Song production. I have a great team who understands my vision and works in my direction, and we accomplish every time unique songs and produce great album. Music is an explosive expression of love, passion, and we are all touched by it, no matter what culture, race or country we come from.”
Further expanding on his fascination for creating new styles and trends of Music Fusion in particular, he said “The thing about “Baby Dil Dena” Album is that it will take you in a trance and you can reconnect with all your beautiful moments of life and re-live them in your mind. It just uplifts your mood from the very 1st Song and makes you enjoy different melodies, and It will be a treat to Music Lovers around the world.”
The listeners have an opportunity to enjoy over 52 Songs in different genres, The Previous 13 Singles and Music Albums named “SOUL“, “Eternal Love “, “Afrolina”, and latest “Baby Dil Dena”. Zak Zorro known for his versatile vocal abilities will be bringing his unique fusion of songs to music lovers around the world in different genres, Pop, Rock, Electro-Rock. Hip-hop, Rap, Trap, RNB, Blues, Jazz, Contemporary Jazz, Funk, Sufi, Qawwali, Ghazals, Reggaeton, Afro, Chill-Out, Dream-Trance, EDM, Reggae, Flamingo, Contemporary-Salsa, Arabic, New-Age Arabic and so much more.
Zak sees himself as a global artist not bound by any single genre or style. He has always been influenced by world music and his vision is to record in as many different styles as possible.
The Album is produced by Icon Art Productions, Songs are written by Zak Zorro, Faraz Rizvi, Waqqas Qadir Sheikh, Sammyoung, and Music Produced by Faraz Rizvi and Zak Zorro. Sammyoung is also featured in 2 Songs in Ishara and Dil Tujhpe Dharkay.
‘Baby Dil Dena” released on 25th July ‘2021 on all the digital stores iTunes, Amazon Music, Spotify, Gaana, Saavan & YouTube on the Zak Zorro channel worldwide.
Music lovers can enjoy Zak Zorro Music and Music videos on:
“Baby Dil Dena” Is A Title Track and Dance Track, Synth Waves and Heavy Kicks Along with Some Groovy Baselines.
‘Bumpe YOLO YOLO’ Is A Modern EDM Track with Catchy Hook Lines and Melodic Vocal Chops That Keeps the Listener Engaged Throughout the Song.
“Ishara” Is A Contemporary R&B/Hip Hop Vibe. Dramatically Engaging Vocal Chops Giving It a Smooth Groovy Essence.
“Kaali Raat” Is Also a Modern Jazz & Blues Orientation. Saxophone And Guitars Along with Bluesy Style Vocals Are Keeping the Retro Vibe Alive in This Track.
“Dil Tujh Pe Dharkay” Is A Modern Salsa Vibe with Funky Trumpets, And to The Point Backings Vocals as Fillers Are Spot on With the Given Pump on Bass and Kicks. Afro Verses with Hindi Chorus Are the Hooks Driving the Track.
“Dhoka” Is A Modern Pop Flamingo Track with Fresh Guitars Sounds & The Story Telling Is Taking Us Back to The Origins of Flamingo Music.
“Faasla” Is A Pop Contemporary Track Emotional as the Vocals and Synth Shines Through Out the Track. Heartbeat Vibe with The Kicks and Complementing Bass Lines Is the Aura of The Track.
“Marjavaan” Is A Modern Punjabi Track Deep Sub Kicks Round Bass and Mellow Guitar Fillers Are Complimenting the Poetry and The Genre in A Very Subtle Style.
“Halka Halka Nasha” Is Commercial Hindi-Punjabi EDM Track Loaded with Smooth Melodies. Powered Kicks with Synth Basslines and Catchy Hooks.
“Haye Mera Dil” Is A Modern Reggaeton, Latin Pop Along with Designed Guitars for The Bright Positive Vibe Over All the Song Complimenting the Lyrics.
“Kabhi Kabhi” Is Also a Contemporary Reggaeton with Latin Urban Pop Vibe.
Vocal Chops and Backing Vocals Are the Beautification Which Is Driving the Feel of The Song. Kick And Bass Itself Makes You Move.
The new flagship of the storied Sarnico shipyard entered the water on Lake Iseo
Sporty, elegant and instantly exhilarating, Riva 68’ Diable touched the water for the first time on Lake Iseo. An irresistible design, magnetic beauty and amazing performance are the distinctive features of this incredibly alluring new masterpiece, forged in the storied Sarnico shipyard and scheduled to make its debut in September at the Cannes Yachting Festival 2021.
With Riva 68’ Diable, a new star is born in the under 70-foot open yacht market, where Riva is the undisputed leader because of its ability to innovate with elite boats that anticipate trends and satisfy the tastes of highly evolved owners.
The brainchild of Mauro Micheli, founder with Sergio Beretta of Officina Italiana Design, working in partnership with the Product Strategy Committee led by Mr. Piero Ferrari and the Group Engineering Department, this incredible yacht revolutionises the open concept, incorporating exciting technological and functional design innovations that elevate liveability and comfort on board to their maximum level. All embellished by the traditional style features and premium detailing that have been distinctive features of Riva’s iconic status from the outset.
“Riva 68’ Diable is the irresistible temptation to which every Riva owner and fan can’t wait to succumb. It looks like a design from the future, but is also a fantastic journey through Riva’s hallmark style and sophisticated detailing,” said Ferretti Group CEO Alberto Galassi. “An unrivalled mix of innovation and masterful hand craftsmanship, it offers outstanding performance and unparalleled comfort. I understand the enthusiasm generated around this incredible boat and it gives me immense pleasure.”
One of the stand-out new features and strengths of this yacht is the innovative built-in hard top, with a clean, linear design that hides the technical and technological elements from view. This ingenious and versatile solution protects and shelters the central areas of the yacht, including the dining area and the helm station on the main deck. The result is total coverage and maximum comfort, without sacrificing the enjoyment and sportiness of an open yacht with a top speed of 40 knots.
Another interesting functional design feature is the sunroof that can be opened in two directions (forwards and reverse) for maximum liveability and comfort on the move.
The layout of the lower deck features three cabins for six guests, arranged around an open space containing a
galley and a dinette for versatility and convenience. The master cabin is amidships, with the twin cabin with single beds to port and the VIP forward.
To discover all the secrets and outstanding design solutions that will seduce owners around the world, Riva 68’ Diable will make its official debut in a world premiere at the Cannes Yachting Festival, in September 2021, after which it will move on to the Genoa Boat Show.
The iconic American 1921 watch faithfully recreated as if in 1921
To mark the 100th anniversary of the American 1921 watch, Vacheron Constantin has delved into its archives and its horological expertise to offer a faithful reproduction of the timepiece emblematic of an era. Stemming from an impressive technical and human epic saga pushing the limits of fine craftsmanship excellence, the creation of the American 1921 Pièce unique watch mobilised the remarkable expertises of the Maison’s Restoration workshop and the Heritage department for an entire year. This approach might be a first in the watch industry, reflecting Vacheron Constantin’s commitment to the conservation, transmission and continuous enrichment of its heritage and of traditional skills.
Only 24 pieces of the reference dated 1921 were originally manufactured. Today only one of them is part of Vacheron Constantin’s private collection, making it an extremely rare and sought-after timepiece for collectors and watch connoisseurs. Some watches tell stories, inviting us to travel back in time, to retrace origins and immerse oneself in bygone eras. Faithfully recreated as if in 1921, the American 1921 Pièce unique watch presented this year is a case in point, offering a journey into the creativity of the Roaring Twenties and reviving the beauty of artisanal skills as practiced a century ago. More than a jubilee watch, it is the fruit of a fascinating odyssey into the heart of the artisanal know-how cultivated by Vacheron Constantin for over 265 years.
Heritage and Restoration departments’ commitment to perpetuate the art of high watchmaking
When the idea of faithfully recreating an American 1921 model from the Vacheron Constantin private collection first took shape, the project looked set to be both exciting and ambitious.
A bridge between the past and future of the Maison, the Vacheron Constantin Heritage department has a place of its own within the Manufacture. Spanning an exceptional timeline that began in 1755, and overseeing a unique collection, it is anything but a dusty museum. The research and expertise of the teams working there on a daily basis are an inexhaustible source of inspiration for the creation of new collections and a masterful reference for the Restoration workshop. The department preserves 800 machine tools, workbenches and sets of watchmaking tools, along with substantial documentary and iconographic archives. No less than 420 linear metres are taken up by an infinite wealth of production and accounting registers comprising foreign sales, correspondence between associates, suppliers and clients, various documents and photographs. All contribute to shedding both historical and artistic light on Vacheron Constantin’s activity through the years and centuries. They represent a sum of written instruments serving to ensure the traceability of a creation since its origins, given that all the models produced are systematically referenced in the production registers. This unprecedent heritage helped retrace the history of the creation of the American 1921 and provided a solid basis for the Restoration workshop teams. The latter thus took up the authentic challenge of reviving some forgotten skills and combining today’s techniques with yesterday’s know-how.
Few Manufactures are able to restore all the watches that have come out of their workshops for centuries. That is why Vacheron Constantin makes it a point of honor to pass on this watchmaking know-how and to ensure that the great history of each of its timepieces continues. The skill and style of the Restoration artisans thus consists in showing respect for ethical considerations in their work. To achieve this, they can draw upon a substantial stock of components, adjust component blanks or entirely remake them – the latter being the most delicate task of all and calling for particularly complex size calculations. Experts in the art of maintaining Vacheron Constantin’s oldest timepieces without altering their nature, the Restoration workshop’s seasoned watchmakers are thus accustomed to combining a historian’s perspective with scientific analysis, but until now they had never undertaken to reproduce an antique watch in its entirety. This unprecedented work of reconstitution, respectful of ethics because it is faithful and precise down to the smallest detail, called upon the multiple competencies of these artisans, who pursued an empirical approach throughout this year-long project.
Several months of research in the Manufacture’s archives, weeks of reflection and observation, numerous experiments, as well as unsuccessful attempts and successful trials were necessary to produce such a work. The American 1921 Pièce unique will be in the spotlight throughout 2021 through prolonged exposure in Vacheron Constantin boutiques around the world.
In order to reproduce the hand-crafted operations performed back in the day, artisans had to work with some historical tools from Vacheron Constantin’s Heritage. A late 19th century facing lathe enabled them to faithfully recreate the elements composing the case; a rounding-up (topping) tool from the latter half of the 19th century served to modify the profile of wheel teeth and to adjust their diameter. Watchmakers used an 18th century upright drilling accessory to drill through the movement’s mainplate. To drive the jewels into their settings, they resorted to an early 20th century staking tool.
These vintage machines were complemented by tools specially made for this project, such as custom-made milling-cutters and riveting tools in line with those of the early 20th century, enabling the artisans to work in a manner attuned to that period and closely reproducing the operations and development techniques of the time. The result of this remarkable stylistic exercise is an exceptional collector’s item symbolising Vacheron Constantin’s unwavering commitment to the transmission, enhancement and continuous enrichment of its production skills.
Rebirth of a vintage movement
While the watchmakers in Vacheron Constantin’s Restoration workshop fully master the art of bringing back to life the most exceptional timepieces produced by the Manufacture in the course of its long history, never before had they been called upon to rebuild a vintage calibre from scratch.
They began by disassembling and examining every single component of the original 11-ligne Calibre Nouveau powering the original model. Apart from the bridges and mainplate which had to be recreated, the Restoration workshop’s stocks proved to be a goldmine for the artisans who thereby had access to all the necessary blank parts. This involved extremely laborious research, since a vintage case could contain an infinite number of components, all different in terms of size and shape. In order to identify them one by one, the first stage consisted in taking the measurements and dimensions of each of the 115 components of the original movement. This meticulous work of observation and comparison subsequently led watchmakers to make plans and mock-ups of the calibre, a particularly delicate task requiring extremely complex sizing calculations.
At this stage, the archive documents safeguarded by the Heritage department proved extremely valuable, notably in recreating the bridges and the mainplate according to the specificities of this vintage movement. How could each component be adjusted and calibrated prior to assembly? How should the vintage machines be regulated? How could the jewels be set on the movement, whereas they are now generally driven in? How could the exact colour of the gilding on the wheels be achieved? At what distance and at which height should they be placed in order to be faithful to the original calibre? These were all issues that the watchmakers had to resolve by assembling the components one by one, as any potential error could jeopardise the entire project.
Setting the jewels on the movement was also a real tour de force. Since the 1940s, it has been customary to drive in the jewels, and while the watchmakers in Vacheron Constantin’s Restoration workshop are accustomed to replacing damaged jewels on very old timepieces, until now they had never had the opportunity to make the settings themselves. Successfully hollowing out the metal to the exact depth required to fit the stones to the nearest hundredth required multiple trials. Not to mention the patient research work required to develop the system for reproducing the unique ribbed pattern which, alongside various manual engravings, adorns the movement in the same way as was done at the time.
A dial and case distinguished by sophisticated craftsmanship
Accurately reproducing the exterior of the American 1921 also represented a real feat of manual workmanship. Here again, Vacheron Constantin’s watchmakers had to provide answers to numerous technical questions by observing the 1921 timepiece in minute detail, while comparing it with archive documents, and then individually crafting each element of the case and dial.
Some period components were available in the stocks of the Restoration workshop, such as rough blanks of the crown and hands. Others had to be entirely recreated, starting with the 31.5 mm case, according to the dimensions of the original American 1921. It was crafted by a Restoration workshop goldsmith from the specific gold alloy used for the historical model (18K 3N yellow gold), identified with the help of a spectrometer in order to reproduce its exact colour. Only a laser engraving applied to the case back, for customs purposes, distinguishes the American 1921 Pièce unique watch from its ancestor.
The creation of the dial also called for highly specialised expertise on the part of the artisan responsible for restoring the grain and unique beauty of the original dial. Crafted in Grand Feu enamel, an ancestral technique considered to be one of the most delicate in the field of watchmaking ornamentation, it required numerous firings in the kiln at a temperature of over 800°C. It features vintage numerals and logo, along with slender open-tipped hands that have been hand-blued by the Restoration workshop using the production techniques of the time.
And since no detail is left to chance, the exercise in style has continued right the way through to the end of the strap, whose pin buckle in 18K 3N yellow gold (the same alloy as the original model) was also produced in the Vacheron Constantin workshop.
A tribute to the art of wearing a watch in 1921
Because it retains all the original properties of the original American 1921, this unique, identically recreated timepiece reflects a historian’s approach.
It subtly mirrors the social and cultural context of the 1920s, the effervescence and the wind of freedom blowing across the United States and Europe at the dawn of the Roaring Twenties. Its distinctive design illustrates the stylistic creativity of Vacheron Constantin which revelled in expressing its “classic with a twist” style through multiple case shapes.
It also tells the story of the early days when the wristwatch began to become more widespread. At that time, men’s wristwatches were only just beginning to take precedence over pocket watches, until then regarded as more robust and accurate. Despite the considerable progress made by watch manufacturers in terms of movements’ resistance, reliability and miniaturisation, water-resistance requirements as we understand them today were not yet a reality. Choosing to wear time on the wrist thus meant exposing the watch to more risks in terms of shocks and external aggressions such as dust, humidity or water. In order to avoid any possible damage, watch owners took numerous precautions, notably including placing their wristwatch on the edge of the washbasin when they washed their hands. The watch was regarded as a life companion that was taken care of and had to be wound every day by hand.
Sum-up
Enriched by a heritage based on the transmission of watchmaking expertise and stylistic research through generations of master artisans, Vacheron Constantin continues to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the American 1921 by recreating this emblematic model from scratch. From the 11-ligne Calibre Nouveau to the gold case along with the decorations and exterior components, the American 1921 Pièce unique watch reproduces the original properties of its ancestor created a century ago. This highly complex and unprecedented process involved the most experienced watchmakers in the Restoration workshop and the Vacheron Constantin Heritage team, who spent a year reviving old tools and forgotten know-how in the course of a passionately exciting human and technical adventure. The result is an exceptional one-of-a-kind timepiece, a symbol of the Maison’s attachment to its heritage and to the continuous enrichment of traditional know-how.
The best-loved Riva sport-fly of recent years proposes new aesthetic solutions combined with unprecedented design and functional features for an increasingly sporty, elegant and high-performance yacht.
Improving a masterpiece with an incredible and long-lasting record of success is a challenge that only Riva can accept and win, thanks to an aesthetic and technological development effort that achieves a perfect balance of past, present and future.
Riva 76’ Perseo Super is the exciting natural evolution of the 76’ Perseo, which in recent years has become one of the sport-fly yachts best loved by owners around the world. The first unit has already been sold and will sail with its owner during Summer 2021.
The result of collaboration between the Product Strategy Committee led by Mr. Piero Ferrari, designer Mauro Micheli – the founder of Officina Italiana Design with Sergio Beretta – and the Ferretti Group Engineering Department, she has a length overall of 23.25 metres (76 feet) and a maximum beam of 5.75 metres (18 feet).
Riva 76’ Perseo has a sleek profile with over 40 square metres of glazed surfaces in the hull and superstructure. The exterior styling reprises and enhances the sporty look of the 76’ Perseo, with the introduction of new style elements.
Worthy of note is the mahogany and polished stainless steel detailing, a technical and design feature that forms part of the Sarnico-based shipyard’s legacy and pays tribute here to the Riva tradition. One of the main functional design features on this fantastic boat is the glass roof with an opening forward section positioned over the lounge, letting light and fresh air into the space below.
EXTERNAL AREAS The stern area is designed to offer comfort for guests and to be practical for the crew. Almost the entire swim platform can be lowered into the water, becoming an underwater surface to relax on and an aid to leaving the water safely.
When the garage door is open and the swim platform lowered, launching and hauling up the tender (up to 3.25 metres) are quick and easy operations. On request, a second water toy can be installed on the swim platform and two seabobs in the garage on either side of the tender.
The cockpit offers an area for socialising, with a sofa in the aft section and a dining table seating eight. On request, the entire area can be converted into a big sun pad with a mechanism that lowers the table so that it can be covered with cushions. The entire area is enhanced with solutions that increase the level of comfort on this yacht, like the option of fitting a drawer refrigerator under the sofa.
On the left, under the stairs leading to the sun deck, is the entrance to the crew cabin on the lower deck. On request, a bar corner is available, with stools featuring mahogany and polished stainless steel detailing and a Corian counter top, complete with fridge, icemaker and sink.
The spacious sun deck is integrated into the yacht’s aerodynamic lines, offering somewhere to relax in total privacy, plus a helm station to pilot the yacht from a privileged vantage point. The deck has a big central sun pad covering about 4 square metres, with a forward-facing sofa at its edge. The second centrally positioned helm station is forward and surrounded on both port and starboard sides by other sofas. The helm station has one 16-inch touchscreen in the standard version and two in the optional version.
Here too, various solutions are available to increase your comfort, including an optional drawer refrigerator under the sofa next to the helm station.
The bow area, on the other hand, is fitted out as a big lounge with a front-facing sofa that can be sheltered by a hood. A big sun pad at the tip of the bow rounds out the fittings in this private relaxation area.
All mooring gear is hidden from view, in a solution designed not to detract from the yacht’s beautiful lines, without compromising on the practicality of technical manoeuvres and enhancing the ergonomics.
A third lateral manoeuvring station is also available on request.
MAIN DECK The lounge is a big open space with a living area inside the glass entrance door, furnished with a sofa and a coffee table on the starboard side. The decor is rounded out by low furniture, an armchair and a pouffe. Further forward is the dining area seating eight, featuring an L-shaped sofa and an oak table with chairs by Arper. Forward on the starboard side and fitted with two Riva pilot seats is the helm station, equipped with integrated control, monitoring and navigation systems, plus three 16-inch touchscreens. A solution with three 19-inch touchscreens and a convenient and functional manoeuvring joystick is also available.
The dominant wood for the standard version is a sand-coloured oak, matched with light and dark lacquer and polished stainless steel detailing. Rosewood is available on request as the featured wood.
LOWER DECK
The lower deck has a lounge furnished with a big L-shaped sofa. Opposite it, on the starboard side, is a fully appointed galley with a door, complete with appliances, a work top, a hob and a sink arranged along the hull sides and in the stern area.
76’ Perseo Super has a standard layout with three cabins, each with its own private bathroom. There is also the option of a fourth cabin, with two single beds and its own bathroom.
The master cabin is in the centre of the boat, while the guest cabin furnished with single beds and a separate bathroom is on the starboard side, and the VIP cabin is in the bow, with a twin wardrobe and an en-suite bathroom with separate shower.
The decor in the cabins reprises not only the dominant wood on the main deck, but also the chiaroscuro contrasts and the same precious materials.
As always, there was a special focus on acoustic insulation in the cabins. All the forward and aft walls in the master suite have additional insulation to guarantee maximum comfort with regard to both other areas and the galley.
The crew cabin, entered from the cockpit and communicating directly with the engine room, extends horizontally to include a bathroom and a night area with two bunk beds.
PROPULSION AND TECHNOLOGY The new Riva 76’ Perseo Super delivers excellent performance in line with all the other great success stories in the sport range. Fitted with two MAN V12 V-engines rated 1,550 MHP each, her top speed is 32 knots and her cruising speed 28 knots. The owner can also opt for a more powerful propulsion system featuring two MAN V12 engines rated 1,800 MHP each, in which case the top speed rises to 37 knots and the cruising speed to 32 knots.
Riva 76’ Perseo Super is fitted with automatic Humphree dynamic trim interceptors, guaranteeing maximum simplicity of use and optimised fuel consumption.
The optional AVENTICS manoeuvring joystick features docking mode functionality for easy handling in confined waters, such as when mooring alongside, with lateral movement obtained by the combined action of the main propellers and the proportional bow thruster.
Performance means comfort too and, on request, a Seakeeper NG18 stabilizer can be installed to minimise rolling at anchor.
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