Volker Schnebel, born in 1950, has worked as a type director for URW++ for 5 years. Over the years, Volker has come to perceive type design as more of tool of artistic expression than simply as a way to make a living. In 1977, after studying Art in Hamburg, he was trained to work with and develop digital type storage. In 1981 he spent 6 months in the USA, where he consulted Compugraphic on the development of 800 Bitmap-Fonts for DEC.

In 1985, Volker founded his own type design company, Digital Type, where he digitised, among others, the 50 Monotype-Brotschriften (e.g. Arial and Times). Since 1990, Digital Type has completed several projects for Japanese companies, including Ricoh, Epson, and Dai Nippon Screen, in addition to redesigning the latin signs of Hiragino Mincho (later purchased by Apple). From 1990 to 1993 he developed of about 1000 engraving fonts for Scripta, Paris. Among the numerous outstanding type designs to his credit: FAZ-Fraktur with G.G. Lange, Biblica with Kurt Weidemann (the head of the Handelsblatt), house fonts for Swiss Re, ZF and for Siemens (with Hans-Jürg Hunziker). Some of his own fonts include: Hermes, Imperial, Joker and Kronos-Trilogie.