Héctor Diego wins the Good Design award 2013

The Spanish designer scoops this prestigious prize for his HD doorstopper created for Brico-Tec.

Spanish industrial designer Héctor Diego has won the prestigious, international Good Design Award 2013, in the home accessories category, for his doorstopper called HD, which he created for the Valencia-based company Brico-Tec. Thanks to winning this prize, the piece will form part of the permanent collection of the Chicago Atheneaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design – which gives the prizes – this year.

The HD doorstopper is the result of a meticulous study on domestic doors and how these interact with the home. It’s the only existing doorstopper that doesn’t damage the floor, wall or even the door since it radically departs from the traditional doorstopper fixed to the floor, replacing this with a new design that’s innovative, built-in and unobtrusive. The doorstopper is attached to the upper part of the door, so it’s out of sight, and is made from injection-moulded aluminium which renders it strong, lightweight and durable. Its top is made of elastic, injection-moulded rubber which cushions the door against knocks and muffles noise, while a small strip covered with felt, designed to prevent the door from being scratched, acts as a bridge between the door and doorstopper. The piece is 100 per cent recyclable, and comes in different colours, finishes and sizes.

The Good Design Awards were established in Chicago in 1950 by Edgar Kaufmann Jr, former director of the industrial department at New York’s Museum of Modern Art, and architects Eero Saarinen and Charles and Ray Eames. Every year, they honour the achievements of the world’s foremost designers and manufacturers, thanks to their quest for excellence in extraordinary design.

This is the third time in four years that Diego has won a Good Design award – in itself a demonstration and international recognition of his work. In 2010, he won the prize in the furniture category for his Plane bench, created for the company De la Oliva, and again in 2011 for his collection of sofas called Highback Noon, designed for the firm Koo International.

Brico-Tec is part of a group that specialises in manufacturing and distributing iron fittings and ironmongery.