Meeting Recap: Next Generation NOMOS Movements: Thin, Automatic, and Highly Precise

Theodor Prenzel, Head of Design Engineering at NOMOS Glashütte (Glashütte, Germany)
Martina Etti, Head of International Sales at NOMOS Glashütte & Co-CEO at NOMOS Glashütte Inc., New York (Glashütte, Germany)
March 10, 2022

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For the March 2022 lecture, HSNY welcomed Theodor Prenzel, Head of Design Engineering at NOMOS Glashütte, and Martina Etti, Head of International Sales at NOMOS Glashütte & Co-CEO at NOMOS Glashütte Inc., New York, to present the brand's new line of movements.

Etti began the lecture with an overview of the brand and its history in Glashütte, Germany. NOMOS is an independent and owner-managed manufacturer that currently manufactures 11 calibers:

Automatic Movements

  • DUW 5001

  • DUW 5101

  • DUW 5201

  • DUW 3001

  • DUW 6101

Manual Movements

  • Alpha

  • DUW 4101

  • DUW 4301

  • DUW 4401

  • DUW 1001

  • DUW 2022

Incidentally, DUW stands for Deutsche Uhrenwerke or German Clockworks, which can be seen either on the rotors or plates of the timepieces.

After the German reunification, NOMOS introduced its first collections: Tangente, Orion, Ludwig and Tetra. Throughout the years the brand has created a variety of movements:

  • 2001 DUW 4101 Patented NOMOS date mechanism

  • 2003 DUW 4401 Patented NOMOS power reserve indication

  • 2005 DUW 5001 First automatic movement

  • 2010 DUW 5201 World time caliber

  • 2014 DUW 4401 NOMOS swing system in-house escapement

  • 2015 DUW 3001 Neomatik slim automatic movement 

  • 2018 DUW 6101 Patented NOMOS date mechanism

Etti introduced her colleague, Theodor Prenzel, to discuss the latest developments of the Neomatik and the Neomatik Date mechanisms. These pieces exemplify the next generation of movements for the brand.

For NOMOS, a thin watch is an elegant watch. The first design principle is the layout of the movement — instead of two bridges, there's a 3/4 plate which makes the movement extremely stable with the added benefit of cost efficiency since production can be made in high quantities.

Prenzel presented a specifications overview of the DUW 3001 that highlighted the NOMOS swing system with a tempered blue balance spring; and the DUW 6101 quick date correction feature mechanism. Finally, Prenzel discussed the date jump aspects of the DUW 4101 and DUW 6101.

HSNY thanks Theodor Prenzel and Martina Etti for their fascinating lecture!

Submitted by Melody Benloss, Recording Secretary