Harshad Lakhani, PE was born and spent his childhood in Mumbai (Bombay), India’s famed business center. He left Mumbai for Poona where he achieved his mechanical engineering degree. After college in 1968, he left India
and emigrated to the United States of America to attend illustrious Pratt Institute where he was admitted to the graduate program in which he focused his concentration in a master of mechanical engineering degree. Mr. Lakhani
began his career at a large multi-disciplinary firm as a consulting engineer. In 1976, he obtained his Professional Engineer’s license. Harshad Lakhani, P.E. has made monumental achievements in his professional life serving as past president of the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Engineers in 1984 – 1985. In addition he has served as a board member of the New York Association of Consulting Engineers. He is also listed in Sterling’s Who’s Who Directory, Executive Addition. Mr. Lakhani has also served as the executive secretary for the Association of Professionals and Businessmen of New York.
Mr. Lakhani has been most prolific as a consulting engineer through his work primarily with universities and hospitals, and especially university-medical complexes. Mr. Lakhani has spearheaded such projects as the Medical
Laboratory at the State University of New York at Buffalo, and the Center for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine at Rutgers, the State University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Although, the high-sciences projects have
been his most recognized, Mr. Lakhani has a deep interest in the renovations of historic facilities on university campuses. Some of his famed projects have included LaGuardia Hall the center point of Brooklyn College, and the
City University Graduate School Center, a staggering renovation, which was highlighted by its award-winning design in the conversion of the 1906 B. Altman building into a 12-story multi-use graduate center facility designed
to hub all graduate locations from their previously random settings at various institutions throughout the CUNY system.
Additionally, Mr. Lakhani’s work has been represented at numerous major broadcast television facilities including USA Network’s Network Origination Center in Jersey City, New Jersey, WPIX television, New York, and Time-Warner’s New York One studio. He is working closely with Payette Associates, based in Boston,
Massachusetts on the $130 million Center for Genetic and Translational Medicine research center at Yeshiva University’s Albert Einstein Medical College. Additionally, Mr. Lakhani is pace-setting the engineering component
of the $120 million New Academic Building at Medgar Evers College with the Polshek Partnership.
What has made Harshad Lakhani, P.E. unique has been that throughout his tremendous success he has remained very loyal to his origins, and native community. In so doing, he has become one of the most prolific businessmen to
represent the Indian-American community. In 1987, he was president of the Society of Indian-American Engineers and Architects. He has been an election chairman for the Society of Indo American Engineers and Architects and the Indian-American Cultural Association of Westchester. He has been very active in the Gujarati Samaj of New York and the Jain Temple Building Committee. As a civic leader Mr. Lakhani has been president of the Northern Greenville Civic Association in Scarsdale, New York, where he is a resident. He joined the Friends of Thirteen as a volunteer during the annual fund-raising campaign during the premier of Desi South Asians in New York. Mr. Lakhani was received at the White House of the United States by President William J. Clinton, as a representative of the Indian-American Community.
Mr. Lakhani has supplemented SIAEA financially many times over the years, and continues to provide required assistance to the organization. He has been a founder and life member of the society. During his presidency, he started and strongly supported recognition luncheon program for our industry leaders.