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Simpson Gumpertz & Heger

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Adapted from the English Wikipedia article Simpson Gumpertz & Heger, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 9 August 2025
Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Inc
Company typePrivate
IndustryEngineering consulting
Founded1956
FounderHoward Simpson, Werner Gumpertz, Frank Heger
Headquarters
Waltham
,
United States
Area served
United States and over twenty countries
Key people
James Parker (CEO), Niklas Vigener (CTO)
ProductsStructural engineering, building enclosure engineering, engineering mechanics, building science, construction engineering, material testing
Number of employees
625

Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Inc (SGH) is a privately owned engineering firm ranked within the ENR 500, focusing on the design, investigation, and restoration of structural systems and building envelopes. SGH provides services to commercial, institutional, and residential sectors, as well as transportation, water and wastewater, nuclear, scientific research, and defense industries throughout the United States and over twenty additional countries. The organization employs 625 specialists distributed across eight locations: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, New York City, Oakland, Southern California, and Washington, D.C.

Services

SGH delivers specialized knowledge in areas including Commercial, Institutional, and Residential Buildings; Transportation; Nuclear facilities; Water/Wastewater systems; and Science/Defense infrastructure. Their technical proficiencies encompass Building Enclosure Engineering, Structural Engineering, Engineering Mechanics, Building Science, and Construction Engineering. The firm undertakes projects involving design development, investigative analysis, performance assessment, repair solutions, and rehabilitation utilizing advanced design methodologies and project management practices. Supporting these efforts are SGH’s laboratories that perform material testing as well as mechanical and environmental evaluations. The majority of their assignments involve structures across diverse sectors such as education, industrial facilities, healthcare institutions, and residential developments.

Background

Established in 1956 by MIT faculty members Howard Simpson, Werner Gumpertz, and Frank Heger, SGH has built a reputation for expertise in structural engineering design, historic preservation initiatives, and assessment of building exteriors. Nationally acknowledged for their proficiency in analyzing structural failures, the firm notably investigated the detachment of glass panels from Boston’s John Hancock Tower in 1973. More recently, SGH was commissioned by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to examine the collapse mechanisms of New York’s World Trade Center following the September 11 attacks. In this role, SGH created comprehensive computer simulations modeling the towers’ structural behavior under aircraft impact and subsequent fire exposure. These simulations integrated data from NIST’s research on impact dynamics, fire behavior, heat transfer processes, and steel material testing to assess temperature-dependent properties. Utilizing finite element analysis techniques ranging from component-level to full structural models, SGH analyzed the sequence from initial impact through progressive collapse.

Financial development

During Glenn R. Bell’s leadership as CEO from 1995 to 2016, SGH grew from two offices with $14 million in annual revenue to six offices generating close to $104 million per year. Under his guidance, the firm experienced consistent revenue growth between 15% and 20% annually over the last decade of his tenure. Bell was instrumental in strategic planning efforts including rebranding and organizational restructuring while maintaining a strong corporate culture with low employee turnover rates. In 2017 Charles J. Russo assumed the CEO position; later in 2022 James Parker took over as CEO with Niklas Vigener appointed CTO.

From 2001 through 2005, SGH’s revenues increased by more than 72%. By 2006 the company reached $50 million in revenue with a workforce of 300 employees; notably, the Waltham office contributed $30 million and employed 160 staff members. Between 2006 and 2007 revenue rose by 25%, with the New York office doubling its income during that period. Billings for fiscal year 2007 approached $70 million compared to $37.1 million recorded in 2003. A significant factor driving this expansion was a marketing approach that raised SGH’s national profile through seminars, published materials, and newsletters.

Projects

SGH has played a significant role in both the design and restoration of prominent landmarks, including Spaceship Earth at Epcot Center, Grand Central Terminal in New York, and the Hultman Aqueduct in Massachusetts. The firm continues to specialize in masonry design for new construction and restoration projects, as evidenced by their involvement in distinguished assignments such as the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark, the Miami Dade Center/Stephen P. Clark Government Center in Miami, and the Bowdoin College Chapel Restoration located in Brunswick.

Awards

SGH has been honored with a variety of accolades within the industry. In 2013 alone, the company secured 15 awards at national and regional levels, featuring two lifetime achievement recognitions, an international "best of" distinction, and four rankings among "top firms" by the Boston and San Francisco Business Journals. Since 2004, SGH has consistently been named a "Best Firm to Work For" by Structural Engineer and CE News magazines, maintaining a position within the top 10 structural engineering firms since 2005.

On March 8, 2006, SGH received the Gold Engineering Excellence award from the American Council of Engineering Companies of Massachusetts (ACEC-MA) for its comprehensive Global Analysis of the World Trade Center Towers project conducted for the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). This study provided an in-depth chronology of the events leading to the collapse of the WTC on September 11. The ACEC-MA Engineering Excellence awards program acknowledges exceptional engineering achievements through silver, gold, platinum, and Grand Conceptor honors.

Design services

  • "Dancing Ladies" – East Station Plaza "Danseurs" Sculptures, Union City, California
    • Awarded SEAONC 2014 Excellence in Structural Engineering for Special-Use Structures
  • China Basin Landing – San Francisco, California
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Simmons Hall – Cambridge, Massachusetts
    • Recipient of the 2004 Harleston Parker Medal from the American Institute of Architects
  • De Young Museum – San Francisco, California
    • Honored with the 2006 Excellence in Architecture: Civic Achievement Award by the American Institute of Architects San Francisco Chapter
  • New Museum of Contemporary Art – New York City, New York
    • Awarded "Best of 07" for Best Cultural Project of the Year by New York Construction Magazine

Investigation services

Rehabilitation services

  • University of Arizona, Phoenix Biomedical Campus, Health Sciences Education Building
    • Winner of Metal Architecture Design Awards' Natural Metals Award (2013) by Metal Architecture magazine
    • Recognized as Most Challenging Project at the 2013 RED Awards Arizona Commercial Real Estate
    • Received 2013 Honor Award for Architectural Design from AIA California Council
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Building 10 Dome Restoration – Cambridge, Massachusetts
    • Earned Silver Award at the 2011 Engineering Excellence Competition by ACEC/MA
    • Honored with Aon Build America Award in Construction Management Renovation category (2010)
  • Sutro Tower – San Francisco, California
  • Griffith Observatory – Los Angeles, California
    • Awarded Gold at the 24th Annual Reconstruction Award by Building Design & Construction Magazine (2007)
    • Recipient of the Los Angeles Conservancy Preservation Award (2007)
    • Honored with National Preservation Honor Award from National Trust for Historic Preservation (2007)
    • Received Preservation Design Award for Rehabilitation category from California Preservation Foundation (2007)
  • Longfellow Towers – Cambridge, Massachusetts
    • Won 2005 Award of Excellence for Repair of High-rise Structures from International Concrete Repair Institute
  • New York State Capitol Building – Albany, New York
    • Recognized with Best Safety Project by Engineering News Record (2013)
    • Received Preservation Merit Award from Historic Albany Foundation (2007)
    • Honored with Excellence in Historic Preservation by Preservation League of New York State (2007)
    • Awarded Gold Circle Award from National Roofing Contractors Association (2004)
    • Named Best Interior Lighting in Best of Hudson Valley by Hudson Valley Magazine (2003)

See also

References

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