Born in Seville in 1953, José Domínguez Abascal, “Pepón”, was an Industrial Engineer from the University of Seville (1975) and earned his PhD in Industrial Engineering from the same university (1977). He finished his Industrial Engineering degree at the age of 21, graduating first in his class, and obtained his doctorate at 23, with the highest honors (summa cum laude). He was a researcher at the prestigious University of Southampton (UK), where he carried out a large part of his doctoral thesis, and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT, USA), as a Fulbright Postdoctoral Fellow in 1977 and as a Research Associate in 1978. A professor at the Polytechnic University of Madrid and the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, he joined the then Higher Technical School of Industrial Engineers of the University of Seville as Professor of Structures in 1982. Pepón was a great person, a great engineer and university professor, who created a school of thought and excelled in all the areas in which a university professor carries out their work: teaching, research, management, and knowledge transfer.

He held the position of Vice-Rector of the University of Seville between 1990 and 1992, and from 1993 to 1998 he was Director of the Center where he began his professional career, the Higher Technical School of Engineering of the University of Seville.

From 2004 to 2008, he served as Secretary General for Universities, Research, and Technology of the Regional Government of Andalusia, where he spearheaded high-impact programs such as the funding of Excellence Projects, the Talentia scholarships, and the creation of Technology Centers. He was Technical Secretary General of Abengoa from 2008 to 2015, and Chairman of the company from September 2015 to February 2016, a role he combined with that of part-time Professor at his beloved and ever-present Higher Technical School of Engineering (ETSi) at the University of Seville. In 2016, he returned to the ETSi as a full-time Professor. During the 2017-2018 academic year, he enjoyed a sabbatical year at Harvard University, conducting research at the Center for International Development at the Kennedy School of Government. In June 2018 he was appointed Secretary of State for Energy of the Ministry for Ecological Transition, a position he held until 2020. Currently, and since June 2022, he was President of Envision Group in Spain, in addition to continuing as a part-time Professor of Structures at the ETSi.

Furthermore, he supervised numerous doctoral theses in three interconnected fields: Numerical Methods, Fracture Mechanics, and Dynamic Soil-Structure Interaction. He mentored many generations of engineers and researchers, establishing a school of thought in the field of structural engineering. Throughout his long career as a researcher, he participated in important projects related to the restoration of historical heritage, such as the Giraldillo in Seville and the fountain in the Court of the Lions at the Alhambra, among others. 

Throughout his long career, he received numerous awards, including the Leonardo Torres Quevedo National Research Prize in Engineering, the National Prize for the Restoration of Cultural Heritage, and the FAMA Award from the University of Seville for Research Trajectory. He was awarded honorary doctorates by the Universities of Granada and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. He was an active member of the European Academy (Physics and Engineering Section), the Royal Academy of Engineering of Spain, and the Royal Academy of Sciences of Seville, as well as a Fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

His professional achievements were numerous, but above all, Pepón stood out for his human qualities. José Domínguez Abascal was a highly esteemed and respected member of the entire academic community at the University of Seville. May he rest in peace.