Born May 20 in Wiesbaden, Germany

Begins studies in architecture and interior decorating at Wiesbaden School of Art

Breaks from studying to gain practical experience and conclude carpentry apprenticeship

Resumes studies at Wiesbaden School of Art

Graduates with honours

Begins working for Frankfurt based architect Otto Apel

Recruited to Braun originally as architect and interior designer

Designs, with Hans Gugelot, the Phonosuper SK4 (commonly referred to as ‘Snow White’s coffin’) music system

Designs include L01 loudspeaker, T3 / T31 portable radio

Vitsoe & Zapf start first production of Rams furniture designs

Designs TP1 and TP4 portable record player and radio

Designs 606 Universal Shelving System for Vitsœ & Zapf

Designs LE1 loudspeaker

Receives ‘Kulturkreis im Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie’ Scholarship Award

Appointed Head of Design at Braun

TP1 receives ‘Supreme Award’ at Interplas exhibition, London

Designs RT20 radio

Designs 620 Chair Programme for Vitsœ

Designs include F21 flash and T1000 All-wave radio

F21 receives ‘Supreme Award’ at Interplas exhibition, London

Appointed Director of Braun Design Department

Designs T2 table lighter

Awarded ‘Honourary Royal Designer for Industry’ of the Royal Society of Arts, UK for ‘distinguished design in furniture and light engineering products’

620 Chair awarded ‘Gold Medal’ at the International Furniture Exhibition in Vienna

Designs HLD4 hairdryer

Designs, with Jurgen Greubel, MPZ2 citrus press

Appointed as Member of Supervisory Board of German Design Council

Designs, with Dietrich Lubs, ET44 pocket calculator

Awarded ‘SIAD Medal of the Society of Industrial Artists and Designers’, UK

Appointed Professor at the Academy of Fine Arts, Hamburg, Germany

Awarded ‘Académico de Honor Extranjero’ by the Academia Mexicana de Diseno, Mexico

Appointed ‘Honorary International Faculty Member’ of the Ontario College of Art, Toronto, Canada

Appointed Executive Director of Braun

Appointed Chairman of the German Design Council

First recipient of the ‘Industrie Forum Design Hannover’, Germany, for special contribution to design

Awarded ‘Doctor honoris causa’ by Royal College of Arts, London, UK

Receives IKEA prize and uses prize money for his own ‘Dieter and Ingeborg Rams Foundation’ for the promotion of design

Promoted from Design Department to become Executive Director Corporate Identity Affairs at Braun

Receives ‘World Design Medal’ from the Industrial Designers Society of America

Awarded the ‘Hessian Order of Merit’ for services to Hesse

Retires from Braun after co-designing, designing and overseeing designs of 411 products

Appointed Honorary Chairman of Design Council of Germany

Awarded ‘Verdienstkreuz des Verdienstordens der Bundesrepublik Deutschland (Commanders Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany)

Receives ‘Design Award ONDI’, Havana, Cuba for his special contribution to industrial design and world culture

Awarded Design Prize of the Federal republic of Germany for his life’s work

Receives Lucky Strike Designer Award from the Raymond Loewy Foundation

Retrospective exhibition ‘Less and More: the design ethos of Dieter Rams’ opens in Osaka, Japan

Retrospective exhibition ‘Less and More: the design ethos of Dieter Rams’ opens in Tokyo, Japan

Retrospective exhibition ‘Less and More: the design ethos of Dieter Rams’ opens in London, United Kingdom

Retrospective exhibition ‘Less and More: the design ethos of Dieter Rams’ opens in Frankfurt, Germany