Christopher McLean

President, Heroic Design Inc. | Adjunct Professor, UBC

Role: Associate

Site: CDL-Vancouver

Stream: Climate

Christopher McLean is a professional mechanical engineer (PEng), with over 25 years of design leadership in startup companies.

He started his career designing gas purification plants for renewable energy: hydrogen for refueling stations, oxygen for on-board fuel cell vehicles, and biogas for energy recovery and greenhouse gas reduction.

He then co-founded Espro, a product company that improves coffee quality and consistency for home baristas and coffee shops. He was responsible for design, overseas manufacturing, and intellectual property. Espro’s products are sold in Starbucks, Williams Sonoma, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, REI, Macy’s, Bed Bath & Beyond, Crate and Barrel, Sur La Table, and Amazon. Espro was sold in 2018 to a US kitchenware manufacturer.

Chris just finished a design process text that helps people learn how to design new products. As an Adjunct Professor at UBC, he also mentors engineers in design studios and lectures. And as a consultant, he is working to increase oxygen availability for newborns in low-resource settings.