IWC Schaffhausen Brings Swiss Watchmaking Tradition into Space
IWC Schaffhausen partners with Vast to take Swiss watchmaking into orbit, testing mechanical timepieces for the space age.
Swiss watchmaker IWC Schaffhausen has announced a bold new partnership with Vast, the pioneering space habitation company that is engineering the world’s first commercial space station.
In this collaboration, IWC becomes Vast’s Official Timekeeper and embarks on a project that brings Swiss watchmaking tradition into an entirely new frontier: space.
Pushing the Boundaries of Time
Vast is preparing to launch Haven Demo, an in-orbit test bed for its upcoming space station Haven-1, which will house an innovation lab for scientific research, technology development and in-space manufacturing.
This will not only benefit life on Earth but also pave the way for long-term human presence in space.
For IWC Schaffhausen, whose connection to aviation and precision engineering dates back almost a century, the partnership is a natural next step.
“This collaboration will enable IWC to intensify its research and development efforts for watches that are tested for spaceflight,” says CEO Chris Grainger-Herr. “During future, long-duration missions, a mechanical watch showing Earth time can also serve as a powerful emotional link between astronauts and their home.”
A Meeting of Minds
Max Haot, CEO of Vast, describes the collaboration as a historic milestone.
“Vast and IWC Schaffhausen both share a passion for innovation driven by scientific progress. With our mutual commitment to bold invention, we are excited to collaborate on timepieces that embody exploration and discovery.”
IWC Schaffhausen x Vast. Credit: IWC Schaffhausen
The partnership will see IWC’s prototypes tested under simulated launch vibration conditions and assessed for material compatibility with Haven-1 hardware, a process usually reserved for space-bound equipment.
This marks Vast’s first brand partnership and signals a growing commercial ecosystem for low-Earth orbit.
A Legacy Ready for Space
IWC is no stranger to exploration. From its pioneering work with titanium and ceramics to its renowned professional instrument watches, the brand has consistently merged engineering and aesthetics to create timepieces that stand up to the most demanding environments.
The collaboration with Vast builds on IWC’s earlier experience providing watches for commercial spaceflights such as Inspiration4 and Polaris Dawn.
For collectors and connoisseurs, this moment marks more than a technical experiment. It signals a new era in which Haute Horlogerie is not just inspired by exploration but actively contributes to it.
The first IWC x Vast timepieces will be designed not only for the wrists of astronauts but also for those on Earth who seek to wear a piece of the spacefaring future.
