Watch brand Citizen has no shortage of famous firsts and technological wizardry to tout in its 100-year history: the brand is behind wallet-friendly watches with game-changing innovations, like Eco-Drive, the technology that powers watches with light from any source, or the Citizen Calibre 0100, the world’s most accurate watch. However, a breakthrough achieved by the brand 55 years ago (and the inventions that followed in its wake) may be the development that reveals, more than any other, the brand’s dual commitment to devising watchmaking marvels and continually improving upon them.
In 1970, the Japanese company introduced the X-8 Chronometer, the first-ever watch made in titanium, a metal mainly used in the medical and aerospace industries. Why titanium? “It is easy on the skin—we wanted to make sure that it didn’t cause a metal allergy—and it doesn’t get rusty. Also, it’s light, so it’s a perfect material for wristwatches,” explained Mr. Kazuma Sato, an engineer at Citizen, during a visit to New York to meet with media and friends of the brand. Sounds ideal. But crafting a watch with the metal is easier said than done. Titanium is notoriously challenging to work with; the process required Citizen to devise a precisely calibrated combination of cutting fluids, lubricants and machining speeds.
What’s more, the metal “is a very soft material,” explained Mr. Sato. Citizen invented a solution for that, too. By applying a proprietary surface-hardening technology, Duratect, to its surface, Citizen created its unique and hard-wearing Super Titanium formulation, which is five times harder than stainless steel.
10 years test Super Titanium vs Normal Titanium
The brand’s creativity in the titanium playbook keeps coming. To mark 55 years of work with the metal, a new color has joined the Super Titanium family, Duratect Amber Yellow. It follows predecessors like pink petal-colored Sakura, gold and black. Mr. Sato, the mastermind who led the team on that project, set out to avoid the pitfalls of conventional yellow plating, namely its potential to provoke allergic reactions and its “flashy” appearance. The result is a warm, subtle coating that is hypoallergenic, the latest, but not the last time we’ll hear of Citizen’s prowess in titanium.
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And the metal is having a moment. Survey the releases from the brands exhibiting at the major annual watch exhibitions, and it’s easy to see that titanium is trending. Jeffrey Cohen, President of Citizen Watch America, isn’t worried about more brands entering a territory Citizen pioneered. Other watchmakers “are making titanium watches for $20,000, $30,000,” he said, “and we can make them for $500 to $4,000. It gives me further satisfaction that we bring the material to the market for an accessible luxury price.” The vertically integrated nature of the company makes all the difference. “We make the machines that make the movements, and make the bracelets, and do the surface coating. We’re doing it all,” said Cohen. Conversely, others are “buying it from third parties.”
Cohen says the accessibility and diversity of Citizen watches are among the reasons the brand connects with Gen Z and budding watch collectors, along with its core baby boomer crowd. “They’re buying Citizen watches in many different colors; they’re wardrobing like crazy—for weddings, for first jobs, anniversaries…everything,” he explained. “They appreciate the Japanese heritage. They appreciate craftsmanship, and when they pick up the watch, they can see the attention to detail and feel it.”
