Hem Gupta, founder of Environmental Systems Design (also known as ESD), died on February 10 at the age of 85.
The family did not disclose the cause of death.
A native of India, Gupta received his Masters degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Illinois. In 1954, he began his professional career at Skidmore Owings & Merrill. Gupta also worked for Epstein, and was Perkins + Will’s chief engineer when he launched his own firm, ESD, in 1967.
ESD grew into one of Chicago’s largest MEP consulting and engineering firms. The projects it has worked on in that city include the UBS Tower, Citadel Center, and Hyatt Center on Wacker Drive. ESD’s international work includes several buildings for the King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Gupta is survived by his wife Asha (nee Simpson), four children (Reeta Gupta Brendamore, David, Mark, and Raj, who took over for his father as CEO of ESD in March 2011); 12 grandchildren and one great grandchild.
“My father served as a big brother, father, or grandfather figure for members of our ESD family,” recalls Raj Gupta in a prepared statement.
Related Stories
| Jul 31, 2013
15 innovations impacting higher education
Colleges must become more nimble, entrepreneurial, student-focused, and accountable for what students learn, according to Steven Mintz, Executive Director of the University of Texas system’s Institute for Transformational Learning. Mintz offers 15 innovations in higher education.
| Jul 31, 2013
Hotel, retail sectors bright spots of sluggish nonresidential construction market
A disappointing recovery of the U.S. economy is limiting need for new nonresidential building activity, said AIA Chief Economist, Kermit Baker in the AIA's semi-annual Consensus Construction Forecast, released today. As a result, AIA reduced its projections for 2013 spending to 2.3%.
| Jul 30, 2013
Better planning and delivery sought for VA healthcare facilities
Making Veterans Administration healthcare projects “better planned, better delivered” is the new goal of the VA’s Office of Construction and Facilities Management.
| Jul 30, 2013
Healthcare designers get an earful about controlling medical costs
At the current pace, in 2020 the U.S. will spend $4.2 trillion a year on healthcare; unchecked, waste would hit $1.2 trillion. Yet “waste” is keeping a lot of poorly performing hospitals in business, said healthcare facility experts at the recent American College of Healthcare Architects/AIA Academy of Architecture for Health Summer Leadership Summit in Chicago.
| Jul 30, 2013
Healthcare designers and builders, beware: the ‘Obamacare’ clock is ticking down to midnight [2013 Giants 300 Report]
Hard to believe, but we’re only six months away from when the Affordable Care Act will usher in a radical transformation of the American healthcare system. Healthcare operators are scrambling to decipher what the new law will mean to their bottom lines and capital facility budgets.
| Jul 30, 2013
In support of workplace chatter
As the designers of collaborative work environments, architects and engineers understand how open, transparent spaces can cultivate the casual interaction and knowledge sharing that sparks innovation. Now a new study reveals another potential benefit of open workplaces: social interaction that supports happier employees.
| Jul 30, 2013
Top Healthcare Sector Engineering Firms [2013 Giants 300 Report]
AECOM, Jacobs, URS top Building Design+Construction's 2013 ranking of the largest healthcare engineering and engineering/architecture firms in the U.S.
| Jul 29, 2013
VIESTE, ESD team up to design net zero data centers nationwide
VIESTE Energy, LLC has teamed up with ESD (Environmental Systems Design, Inc.) to design a national portfolio of net zero data centers.
| Jul 29, 2013
University of Kentucky’s Rupp Arena, Lexington Center will be renovated
The University of Kentucky’s Rupp Arena and the nearby Lexington Center will undergo a major renovation beginning next year.
| Jul 26, 2013
HDR acquires Sharon Greene + Associates
HDR Engineering, Inc. has acquired the business and assets of Sharon Greene + Associates, a firm specializing in transportation economics and financial analysis with offices in California and Denver.
