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A small photograph is perhaps the most telling testament to alumnus Max Ephraim’s legacy. It hangs in a corner of the factory at Modern Process Equipment, put there not by Dan and Phil Ephraim, Max’s sons and operators of the successful company, but by their workers.

It is a tribute to the man whose generous spirit touched so many lives, and whose wisdom and humor are still cherished by his family and all who knew him. After Max retired, he spent every Thursday at the factory. “He knew more about our workers and their families than we did,” says Phil. “When my dad was here, the ‘factory hum’ on the floor would die down because everyone stopped work to talk to him.”

THE ENGINEER

The patriarch of three generations of IIT alumni—sons Dan (MBA ’76) and Steve (ME ’78) and granddaughter Laurel (B.Arch. ’94)—Max Ephraim was born on the South Side of Chicago in 1917. His father was Jewish and his mother Irish, and Max experienced the discrimination common to both groups at the time. In spite of his modest beginnings, he attended “Armour Tech” during the Great Depression and graduated second in his class in just three and a half years with a degree in mechanical engineering—all while editing the school newspaper, playing intramural sports, participating in the Rho Delta Rho fraternity, and working two jobs to pay his way through school. After graduation, he took one day off before launching into his career at the Electro-Motive Division (EMD) of General Motors. By the time he retired from EMD in 1983, he had gone from draftsman to chief engineer and had been instrumental in the emergence of the diesel locomotive.

His most famous design, the GP7, successfully solidified the transition from steam to diesel locomotives. “The locomotives built today are all lineal descendants of the GP7,” says Rob McGonigal, associate editor of Trains magazine. “They all have the road switcher and the long hood on the side of the car. The long hood was revolutionary.” Ephraim also engineered such improvements as better fuel economy with the new “710” engine, computerized controls and brakes, and the high-adhesion locomotive, which could more easily go up a steep incline.

Because of Max and wife Audrey’s modesty, when their nine children were growing up they weren’t aware of their father’s importance in his field, including his reputation as the father of the modern locomotive. But they were aware of their father’s affinity for trains. During family road trips, if he saw a train, he would often get out of his car, climb aboard the train, and start chatting with whomever he found.

His son Steve, who is an engineer with John Deere, recalls taking a class trip with IIT’s American Society of Mechanical Engineers chapter to General Motors during his senior year. The EMD representative leading the tour told the group that they had a very rare opportunity to hear from someone of great importance. “They introduced my father,” said Steve, “and the reaction from the professors and students gave me some indication of just how influential he was.”

Max’s technical skills were only part of his success; he was also an incredibly effective manager. “He had an amazing combination of technical, managerial, and interpersonal skills that made him a great leader,” Phil recalls. “He would walk through the shop and greet 50 people, and know all their names.” Once, while escorting GM senior officers on a tour of EMD, Max broke protocol and personally introduced a fork lift operator to GM’s chairman, Roger Smith.

And he was fun to be around. On the job, he often masterminded elaborate practical jokes. Max carpooled with coworkers, including one who was very proud of his chess skills. Max was just a rookie, but one day he set up a game with the more skilled player at the customary meeting place over lunch. Max’s two accomplices, who were expert chess players, began a game directly alongside, mimicking Max’s opponent’s moves and providing Max with countermoves. The trick was successful until someone came by and noted, “Hey, isn’t that something? Both games have the pieces in exactly the same place!”

THE FATHER

Max passed down his three priorities to his family: God, family, and career (in that order). He also passed down a great love for IIT. “He knew all the words to the fight song,” recalls granddaughter Laurel. His report card still hangs in his old home office. (He received just one “B”, which was in English, and he always contended it was only because the instructor didn’t care for him.)

Today, the nine Ephraim children are scattered across the country, but still consider themselves close-knit and remember their father’s impact on their lives with respect and fondness. Max tried not to unduly influence his children in their choice of university, but he helped them navigate their careers. James earned an engineering degree and an MBA and is currently director of business development for a California electronics company. Gary graduated in mechanical engineering and is a senior project manager for CITGO Petroleum in the Chicago area. Alicia enrolled in medical school and is now both a nurse practitioner and owner/operator of a homeopathy clinic in the San Francisco area. Lois is creative director for a West Coast advertising and marketing firm that assists many non-profit organizations. Janet pursued teaching before taking up philanthropic causes, most recently as director of an orphanage in Jakarta, Indonesia. Paul followed directly in his father’s footsteps, beginning his career as a draftsman at EMD just five years before Max retired, and continuing his career there as designer.

Steve chose IIT for his undergraduate studies in mechanical engineering, and although he was a commuter student, he has warm memories of his time spent on campus. One of his favorite experiences was creating a wheelchair that could assist quadriplegics in daily tasks. He also remembers the quirky imaginations of his fellow IIT students, including a homemade “tennis ball bazooka” that was used to pitch a ball over 100 meters in a makeshift baseball game. Steve is a project engineer for John Deere in Waterloo, Iowa.

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