The UP Engineering Research and Development Foundation, Inc. (UPERDFI) was established in August 3, 1972 by a group of engineering alumni under the leadership of UP College of Engineering (UPCOE) Dean Alfredo L. Juinio. Since its founding, UPERDFI has carried out research and development work with the UP College of Engineering (UPCOE) as its main academic base. In 2017, the vision was set to enable sustainable development and to optimize the utilization of intellectual capital of the UPCOE towards inclusive development and collective prosperity. With the UPCOE and the UP National Engineering Center (UPNEC) as the premier source of brainpower, UPERDFI provides the venue to share faculty and student research with industry and government. It encourages the latter to tap UPCOE/UPNEC resources in addressing specific challenges facing them. It also helps develop new solutions into start-ups and licensing arrangements. In this way, it helps build a robust Innovation Ecosystem in UP.
UPERDFI provides faculty support (professorial chairs and research grants), student support (scholarships, study grants, thesis grants, funds for competitions and awards) and learning infrastructure support (buildings, classrooms and laboratories). These “Lega