Prof. Manfred Huber elected future Director of the Department of Engineering & Architecture at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts
The Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts Council has elected Prof. Manfred Huber as the new Director of the Department of Engineering & Architecture in Horw. The experienced university manager and digital construction specialist brings with him an impressive combination of academic expertise, practical professional experience and digital innovation. Manfred Huber will take over from Viktor Sigrist in August 2025.
Following a multi-stage process, the University of Applied Sciences Council has chosen 52-year-old Manfred Huber as the future Director of the Department of Engineering & Architecture at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSLU). Born in Zug, Manfred Huber combines experience as an entrepreneur and manager in the construction industry with many years of teaching and research activities at various universities of applied sciences and universities. Over the past ten years, Manfred Huber has focused on the topic of "digitalization in construction". He founded the Institute for Digital Construction at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW) in 2017 and still heads it today. As a member of the Executive Board of the FHNW School of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geomatics in Muttenz, Manfred Huber can draw on extensive strategic management experience and productive networking between a wide range of disciplines.
Manfred Huber’s professional career began at the ETH Zurich and at the School of Architecture in Ahmedabad (India). He completed his studies there in 2000 and then worked as a research assistant at the ETH professorship for architecture and building realization. During this time, he founded his own architecture and consulting firm, aardeplan in Baar (ZG). In addition to his entrepreneurial activities, he continued his education in various fields, including Virtual Design & Construction and Leadership at Stanford University (USA). His desire to combine the latest findings from research with practical experience provided the ideal conditions for a part-time teaching career, which Manfred Huber gradually expanded. Since 2007, he has worked in training and further education for various universities, including HSLU. Between 2017 and 2020, he taught as part of the MAS in Construction Economics.
Manfred Huber also contributes his expertise to various commissions and board activities. He is involved in leading positions in local and national professional associations, is currently on the advisory board of uptownBasel, a competence center for Industry 4.0, works on the board of Bauen digital Schweiz and acts as an expert for trends and innovations in the Swiss Association of Master Builders. His contacts also extend far into the international arena, including through his teaching activities and involvement in relevant European and international standards committees.
On August 1, 2025, Manfred Huber will take over as Head of the Department of Engineering & Architecture at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts. He succeeds Viktor Sigrist, who has shaped the department for many years and is retiring. Stefan Keller, President of the HSLU University of Applied Sciences Council, is delighted: "In Manfred Huber, we have gained a strong leader with in-depth knowledge and a clear view of the future. His experience in the field of digital construction and in shaping interdisciplinary collaboration will make a decisive contribution to further strengthening the Department of Engineering & Architecture in times of technological transformation."
Barbara Bader, Rector of HSLU, adds: "The challenges in architecture, construction and technology are huge - from digitalization and sustainability to interdisciplinary collaboration. Manfred Huber has the ideal qualifications to further develop Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts as a location for innovation and to promote the transfer of knowledge and technology."
With his professional expertise, his interdisciplinary commitment and his large network, Manfred Huber will actively shape the positioning of the Department of Engineering & Architecture at the HSLU.
