Urs Felber

Felber was born in 1942 in Egerkingen, Switzerland, a small town in the canton of Solothurn.[1] His family ran a local carpentry workshop.

From 1962 to 1965, he studied mechanical engineering at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich. In 1964, he replaced a fellow student in his field study at a small furniture manufacturer company, De Sede. In 1966, he became a system engineer at De Sede. He took a 50 percent stake in the company.[2] By 1978, De Sede was exporting to over 70 countries.

In 1979, he obtained a PhD in Design Management at Stanford University, California and the University of Fribourg, Switzerland, graduating magna cum laude. He authored Systematic Design Management in the Enterprise: Fundamentals and Concepts which heralded the birth of design management, design science and methodology.[3]

In the 1980s, he became a business partner and CEO of Vitra USA, the world's leading contract furniture manufacturing firm.[4] Parallel to his US activities, he became a board director in several companies, such as Wilkhahn International, Wilkhahn Switzerland, Swissflex and Team by Wellis.

In 2001, Urs Felber bought Swiss furniture company Dietiker AG[5] from the supermarket chain Migros and transformed it into a recognized brand by bringing contemporary designs, with products winning the Red Dot Design Award and Neocon Innovation Award. Dietiker became a leader in Switzerland and Europe in the contract furniture market.

In 1999, urs felber was made a Honorary Fellow of the Tel Aviv Museum of Art. In 2002, he received Doctor Honoris Causa]] from the University of Tel Aviv [6] On 20 May 2003, the Aviva and Urs Felber Jubilee Plaza was inaugurated at Tel Aviv University in recognition of his commitment to the university.[7]

Urs Felber passed away on 26 April 2010.

• Urs Felber's lecture on Good Design at Iidex Neocon, Canada, 2007
• Urs Felber, 'Ones to Watch', Contract Design magazine
• "Metropolismag". Archived from the original on 12 May 2013. Retrieved 18 July 2010.CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link)
• "Metropolismag". Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 18 July 2010.
• Urs Felber, Contract Design magazine
• Urs Felber, Office Work magazine
• Urs Felber, Swiss design magazine Hochpaterre
• Urs Felber and Dietiker, Swiss design magazine Hochpaterre
• Urs Felber, Fachwerk magazine
• Aviva and Urs Felber Piazza at Tel Aviv University
• Urs Felber, Moebelkultur magazine
• Urs Felber and Dietiker, Interieur Suisse Magazine
• Urs Felber, Acade magazine
• Urs Felber interview at Neocon on Vimeo
• Urs Felber, Neoconeast
• Urs Felber, Lifestyle magazine
• Dietiker and Urs Felber, Interior Design magazine
• Hommage a Urs Felber, La Revue du Design
• Insideout Contracts – Contract Furniture specialists