Moels and Co 528 Watch by Betina Greca Menescal - Moels and Co is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2022 Golden A' Design Award in Jewelry Design Competition Category.
GoldJewelry· 2022
Moels and Co 528 Watch
by Betina Greca Menescal - Moels and Co
Client: Moels and Co
Golden A' Design Award Winner in Jewelry Category
Verified Award Winner
Verify Award Status for #139840The Design
About Moels and Co 528 Watch
Moels and Co 528 is a mid modern century inspired wrist watch with a rectangular shaped case and an asymmetric dial which was sectioned according to the golden ratio. The dial is painted with a silver metallic base mixed with a pigment coating that provides a luminous finish and depending on the light circumstances the color of the dial changes creating an effect that is highly attractive. Without frills, complications or needless decorations this design is truly uncommon on today's market.
The Recognition
About the Golden A' Design Award
Moels and Co 528 Watch is a Golden A' Design Award winner, an immensely prestigious recognition granted to first-rate, marvelous, and outstanding designs. Golden winners are exceedingly innovative, visionary, and glamorously dazzling creations that reflect the prodigy, wisdom, and prowess of their designers. Moels and Co 528 Watch is expected to be a highly praised, trendsetting, and monumental invention that delivers unprecedented value. This Golden A' Design Award-winning design is a spectacular, respected project that highly benefits and advances the boundaries of art, science, design, and technology. Moels and Co 528 Watch creates intense feelings of desire, evokes passion, encourages creativity, and fascinates us.
Where to Get It
Designer Watches with Mid-Century Modern Aesthetics
We create distinctive timepieces that blend timeless design principles with premium materials. Our watches feature unique rectangular cases, asymmetric dials based on golden ratio proportions, and Swiss automatic movements. Each piece combines architectural precision with sustainable craftsmanship.
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Design Interview
What is the main principle, idea and inspiration behind your design?
My goal while designing Möels & Co 528 was to communicate a message of a strong unity in which all elements of the design fit together and feel like they all belong to each other in a unified piece. I believe if a design isn't unified, then it's disjointed. In any design I create, it needs to have a strong unity. No matter how beautiful a design can be, if there's not some type of unity bringing all the elements together then the design will ultimately fail in its goal.
In terms of inspiration I was influenced by vintage style and culture from the 50s, 60's and 70’s, they are the base for creating my mid-cent inspired designs.
What are your future plans for this award winning design?
Together with my team and partners we want to become one of the coolest watch brands in the industry, we will make collaborations with artists and launch signature limited editions. We will re-invest 50% of our profits into R&D and production, we will have a prototyping workshop in-house and will set-up a service network worldwide for maintenance and repairs. We will also implement a loyalty program with rewards for those who stay faithful to our brand and we will open a flagship store in London. We have 5 new concepts in the pipeline but for now we will concentrate on evolving the 528 model. We intend to offer precious metal cases and also other high end movements. We also have plans to offer an integrated steel bracelet and two case sizes, one bigger and another smaller.
How long did it take you to design this particular concept?
This is my first product and building a product from scratch is challenging, especially with no academic background in industrial design. I spent a long time on researching and educating myself, but my biggest challenge was finding the design path. It took me 2 years to find it but after that the development went smoothly despite the pandemic.
Behind the Design
Press Kit
Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.
- Unique Properties
- Moels & Co 528 is a highly distinctive timepiece due to its unique rectangular case shape and the asymmetric dial which was sectioned according to the golden ratio. In addition, the see-through case back that shows the mechanical movement working, a 10 ATM water resistance rating much greater than standard 3ATM, a 3mm thick double domed sapphire crystal used mostly on dive watches and the dial painted with metallic shimmers that change colours depending on the light circumstances.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- The case measures only 33mm in height (41mm with lugs), 45mm in width and 11mm thick including the double domed sapphire crystal. The custom designed eco-friendly package is small, it measures only 18cm x 8cm x 4cm and I designed it to fit into a mailer bag and reduce shipping costs. Leather strap width and length are 22mm/20mm and 120mm/80mm respectively.
- Tags
- Mid century inspired design, automatic watch, designed by woman, clean, classic, metallic colours, TV shaped case, premium materials.
- Production Technology
- I used Vectorworks to develop the technical drawings and instead of using 3D printing I built the mock ups myself using only paper, cardboard and velcro. I then forwarded my CAD files to the factory, where they produced the prototype. The case is manufactured with high precision 5 axis CNC machining and it is made of 316L 1.4404 steel which is the most commonly used metal in watchmaking. Stainless steel remains the best material for case production due to its excellent properties and infinitely recyclability with no loss of quality.
- Design Challenge
- This is my first product and building a product from scratch is challenging, especially with no academic background in industrial design. I spent a long time on researching and educating myself, but my biggest challenge was finding the design path. It took me 2 years to find it but after that the development went smoothly despite the pandemic.
- Research
- I used only social networks and received amazing feedback from the general public, watch enthusiasts and even from industry insiders. In just two weeks in reputable watch groups and forums I have received almost 5000 likes and more than 1400 positive comments about the design and 99% of them expressed they would definitely purchase a Moels & Co 528 timepiece due to its unique design, technical specifications and price point. This positive feedback was enough for me to valid my design and move forward.
- Inspiration
- Thanks to my architecture background I am highly influenced by the Bauhaus and Mid-century Modern. I believe that many people like me are experiencing feelings of nostalgia for long-lasting products from the past that bear much simpler aesthetics so I decided to get back to basics and create a product using the same solid design principles from the past and added the best possible components and modern manufacturing.
- Project Duration
- The project started in April 2020 in Como, Italy and finished prototype manufacturing in January 2022 in Como, Italy.
- Operation Flow
- Mechanical watches do not require batteries as they are powered through the kinetic energy generated by the wearer's arm movement. A mechanical movement is made entirely of metal and it is incredibly robust, it can be easily serviced and repaired and will last decades with proper maintenance. A mechanical watch is a product that lasts for generations and it never comes to waste, it has an indefinite lifespan which quartz powered watches and smartwatches do not have.
- Patents
- Mark: MOELS+CO, 2022, Trade Mark No: UK00003689538, Holder: MADMAN & FATMAN LTD.
- Image Credits
- Image #1: Render by Stefan Brown/Renderologists Ltd, Front View Graphite, 2022.
Image #2: Render by Stefan Brown/Renderologists Ltd, Back View, 2022.
Image #3: Render by Stefan Brown/Renderologists Ltd, Exploded View, 2022.
Image #4: Photographer Betina Menescal, 2022.
Image #5: Photographer Betina Menescal, 2022.
Video Credits: A film by Betina Menescal and David Goncalves. Cinematography and Editing by David Goncalves. Music by Matrika, license code: DJBJEWILOGIQV1DZ. All stock footage legally acquired under Shutterstock license.
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