UP Engineering Research honors captains of industry

‘UPERDFI aims to recognize the top 10 donors since 1972 or ‘Legacy Donors’ for their steadfast commitment and exceptional contributions in fostering growth and success of the UPERDFI Development Programs in support of the UPCOE and the advancement of engineering education and research and development in the Philippines.

The UP Engineering Research and Development Foundation Inc. will recognize the country’s captains of industry and local as well as overseas business luminaries who have provided substantial contributions to their continuing efforts at raising and managing funds to support the University of the Philippines College of Engineering, which remains at the forefront of engineering education, R&D, and public service in the country.

UPERDFI will formally recognize the honorees when they hold a Recognition and Thanksgiving Dinner on 7 February 2024, 5 to 9 p.m. at the Makati Sports Club in Salcedo Village, Makati City.

During the event, UPERDFI aims to recognize the top ten donors since 1972 or “Legacy Donors” for their steadfast commitment and exceptional contributions in fostering growth and success of the UPERDFI Development Programs in support of the UPCOE and the advancement of engineering education and research and development in the Philippines.

•Dr. Magdaleno B. Albarracin Jr. Dr. Albarracin, a BS Electronics Engineering alumnus, is the vice chairman of PHINMA Inc. and former chairman of UPERDFI. In 2008, he mounted a matching fundraising campaign for the construction of the Concordia Albarracin Residence Hall (Engineering Centennial Dormitory Building 1). Together with PHINMA Foundation, he provided UPCOE with funding for 11 professorial chairs for engineering faculty members, six of which are still being used today. In 2023, he donated 50 million for the upgrading of the Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute laboratories to modernize instructional facilities and improve student learning. He also contributed to the Technology Development and Strategic Studies Fund, the Student Wellbeing Program, and the UPERDFI administration.

•Engr. Isidro A. Consunji UPERDFI Founder David Consunji(+) and Adviser Sid Consunji who are both UP Civil Engineering alumni, led various companies in the DMCI Holdings, such as DMCI Project Developers, Semirara Mining and Power Corporation, DACON Corporation, in providing UPCOE with 11 professorial chairs and 8 teaching and research awards, funding for the Institute of Civil Engineering Building completion and the David M. Consunji Theater, lecture rooms, classrooms, and laboratories. In 2023, DMCI Homes donated universal testing machines and laboratory equipment for the ICE Construction Materials Laboratory and Semirara provided replica testing and metal specimen sample preparation equipment to the Department of Mining, Metallurgical and Materials and Engineering.

•Engr. Diosdado Banatao Dado Banatao is a worldrenowned Filipino inventor, most famously known for computer microchips inside our computers today. He graduated with a BS Electrical Engineering degree from the

Mapua Institute of Technology and obtained his Master’s in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University. During the UP Centennial celebration, The Dado and Maria Banatao Institute gave a $500,000 endowment fund that has been sustaining three super professorial chairs and research grants in engineering since 2008.