The Ming 37.06 Royal Selangor Is A Watch That Is Uniquely Made In Malaysia

On the surface, it is an easy, rather obvious partnership. In one corner: Royal Selangor, a household name in Malaysia and experts in pewter craftsmanship for 141 years. In the other: Ming, its nine-year history as an independent watch brand substantiated by accolades, renown, and remarkable engineering. Both are headquartered in Kuala Lumpur. Ming Thein, founder and chief creative of Ming, and Dato’ Yong Yoon Li, managing director of Royal Selangor International, have known each other for years. “This watch is really a partnership of friends. It’s not anything more, and not anything less,” Ming Thein said during the launch of the Ming 37.06 Royal Selangor, which took place at Royal Selangor’s newest retail space and gallery at Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad.

And its creation was, indeed, an easy process—a lunch meeting and only a few months of development before it was ready to go. It is a two-hand watch with a titanium case measuring 38mm in diameter, sporting flared lugs and a minimalist design approach, in Ming’s habitual style. The dial is made of pewter, a material all but unseen in watchmaking. While it is valued for its tactility, it is too soft to be used as a case, for one. But it also has its own warm lustre and textural quality, which is a noticeable contrast with the titanium case.

The dial is manufactured by Royal Selangor and features its signature dimpled texture. The traditional way to create this pattern is by hand hammering, as seen on the brand’s decorative homeware, for example—and, indeed, on the box that the watch comes in. For the dial, it was found that hand hammering would distort the thin slivers of pewter—a notoriously malleable metal—beyond the required tolerances. Instead, a large ‘master’ dial was created by hand, which was then scanned by LiDAR. Individual dial patterns were created from different sections of this ‘master,’ meaning the final dials are individually unique. They are then precision-cut by a CNC machine, with a slight concavity to it, going from a 1.0mm edge thickness to as little as 0.6mm in the centre, providing additional visual depth.

The project is remarkable for reasons outside the watch itself. Malaysia is very far removed from the traditional centres of watchmaking, which is generally dominated by a Swiss supply chain. Ming is no exception. Save for the dial, the 37.06 Royal Selangor consists of Swiss components, and the watchmaker maintains an office in Switzerland. But, as an independent brand known for its disruptive approach, Ming is no stranger to seeking out partnerships outside the norm. The 37.06 Lightning, a collaboration with fellow indie J N Shapiro that was unveiled earlier this year, has its dials manufactured at the latter’s California workshop before being finished with heat treatment in Kuala Lumpur. Its LW.01 watches, which might be the lightest watches in the world, were created with key suppliers from the UK and US.

Looking outside the norm is hence very much in Ming’s DNA. But it is difficult to imagine an independent watch brand seeking out such a non-traditional supplier from Malaysia—even one as established as Royal Selangor—if said watch brand was not also from Malaysia. And while Ming’s watches are usually assembled in Switzerland, the entire 88-piece run of the 37.06 Royal Selangor is assembled in Kuala Lumpur. Royal Selangor long ago proved that ‘made in Malaysia’ can be a hallmark of quality, but applying to this level of horology is rare. And, with the international following that Ming has, it brings it under a new global spotlight.