University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The Grainger College of Engineering
Civil & Environmental Engineering

Manuel Gomez-Achecar

Manuel Gomez-Achecar
Manuel Gomez-Achecar (MS 82, PhD 84)
President, EPSA-LABCO
EPSA-LABCO Ingenieros Consultores S.A.
Gazcue, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

CEEAA Distinguished Alumni Award, 2022

For being the founding member of the civil engineering consulting firm EPSA, and current president of EPSA-LABCO, Ingenieros Consultores, SA, one of the leading civil engineering firms in the Dominican Republic; for his role as the Lead Engineer or Engineering Supervisor/Manager on several major infrastructure projects in the Dominican Republic and the Caribbean; and for his leadership in Rotary International activities and EPSA-LABCO’s sponsorship of the “Engineering Excellence Lectures” at The Technological Institute of Santo Domingo.

Biography

Manuel Gómez – Achécar was born in the small town of Pimentel in the Dominican Republic. In 1965, Manuel moved to Santo Domingo where he studied Civil Engineering at the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo (UASD), graduating cum laude. Manuel then moved to Illinois, together with his wife and three kids, to pursue higher education in engineering. In 1984, Manuel earned his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana – Champaign.

After completing his Ph.D., Manuel moved back to the Dominican Republic, where he co-founded the engineering firm EPSA-LABCO, Consulting Engineers. His firm provides Engineering, Procurement, Supervision and Construction Management services. Since its inception, his firm has supervised hundreds of infrastructure projects such as roads, highways, bridges, airports and dams.  Highlighting his technical expertise, Manuel is a member of the board of directors of the Dominican Committee of Large Dams (DOMCOLD), and continues to engage in scholarly work, presenting papers at the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), and the International Commission of Large Dams.

In 1972, Manuel married his university classmate Milagros Ramírez, also a University of Illinois alumna. They have two sons and a daughter, and six grandchildren.  Manuel is a member of Rotary since 1986, where he has engaged in countless work for the community. In 2019, he served as the Governor of Rotary International for the Dominican Republic.