In Memoriam: Robin B. Dill
Robin B. Dill, 70, of Winchester, Massachusetts, died peacefully on December 20 after a brief illness.
Rob was born in San Antonio, TX to David and Sonia (Lemish) Dill. In his early years, Rob lived in upstate New York after moving from Monterrey, Mexico, where his father worked as a geologist. Rob received his Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (cum laude) from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Master of Geotechnical Engineering from the University of California-Berkeley.
For the whole of his professional life, Rob was an engineer, working first at the environmental and engineering firm of Haley & Aldrich, and until his passing, as a Lead Geotechnical Engineer and Vice President of the Water Business Line and Americas Tunnel Practice at the global engineering firm AECOM. Rob’s work involved travel to many locations worldwide, including Cairo, Egypt where he and his family lived for over three years. Rob was a nationally known and highly respected civil engineer and member of several professional organizations. As an AECOM colleague said, “he could grasp the root of the problem at first glance.”
Rob is survived by his wife of 42 years, Pamela Barnes Dill of Winchester, MA; daughter, Christina Dill Schenk and her husband Brian of Atlanta, GA, and two grandchildren, Catherine and James; brother Alexander Dill and his wife, Jessica Kandel of Chicago, IL and their two children, James and Anthea, and by his brother-in-law, Robert Barnes and his wife, Roberta Kelly of Newton, NJ.
In addition to Rob’s deep commitment to his loving family, he had two passions that jointly contributed to delicious gatherings with family and friends. An avid fisherman and open water diver, spanning the Atlantic to the Red Sea, Rob famously provided the main course – lobster – for his wedding in Gloucester. Rob was also an avid gardener, and every summer he delivered fresh vegetables to the dinner table for his family and many beloved friends.
A celebration of life will be held in the spring. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Oceana Organization.
Friends and Colleague Remembrances
Paul Nicholas: “Today we remember Rob, a colleague and friend whose passing was sudden and deeply felt by all of us. Rob was one of the first people I worked with when I returned to the USA he helped me understand the USA engineering business. Rob was someone you could always rely on to help — professional, thoughtful, and generous with his time and knowledge. He brought integrity and Understanding to his work. More than what Rob did, we will remember how he treated his associates — with respect, humility, and quiet encouragement. His presence mattered, and his absence is already being felt. Rob’s impact lives on through the people he worked with and the example he set. We are grateful to have known him, and he will be missed and remembered always.”
Wei Song: “Rob and I first met at a BSCE younger members meeting in Boston before he started work in Egypt and have remained friends thereafter, until he joined AECOM and I was the first person he asked Bob S to bring him to on his first day, when he became a close colleague. Rob has always been a great mentor to me ever since I came to know him more than a decade ago… I have been fortunate to work closely with him, and through those experiences I came to admire both his professional excellence and his character. He was always dedicated and fully committed to his work. His meticulous and disciplined approach was both inspiring and contagious. He possessed extensive knowledge in trenchless technologies, tunnels, rock mechanics, and engineering geology, and he shared that knowledge generously. He also showed the exemplar attitude for tackling problems with determination, enthusiasm, and integrity. …There are people in life you wish you had known sooner and longer, and Rob was certainly one of them to me personally.”
Matthew Condiotti: “I first met Rob at a conference about 3 years ago and he welcomed me into the larger group of AECOM underground construction and tunneling professionals since I wasn’t yet connected with the group. It meant a lot. So, when I had an opportunity recently to work with Rob on developing a tunnel inspection plan, I was excited to reconnect. Rob, despite being busy with many other things, jumped in, asked so many pointed questions, and helped guide me through development of the plan. He showed great leadership, commitment, knowledge, mentorship, friendliness, and was just great to work with. We had discussed writing a few papers together on our work, which I will still do in large part in honor of Rob.”
Bob Scherpf: “I first met Rob in October 2016, and it was immediately clear that he was someone who listened intently, assessed information thoughtfully, and was never hesitant to offer well-grounded suggestions drawn from his deep experience in winning and delivering complex underground projects. He quickly became a dependable and trusted resource, always bringing a can-do attitude to every challenge. Rob’s work ethic was unmatched. He consistently looked for ways to improve outcomes for our clients and elevate the quality of our work. Beyond his professional strengths, I came to consider him a close friend. I will forever remember our last conversation on December 12th, when he assured me he was looking forward to returning to work full time. That moment has stayed with me. In every sense, Rob was the consummate professional and a true gentleman. I cannot begin to imagine the profound loss his family is experiencing. His AECOM colleagues—and the many friends he made across the industry—will miss him deeply.”
Irwan Halim: “I first interviewed with Rob at Haley and Aldrich back in 1998 after I returned from an overseas stint. Although I ended up joining another company at the time, we shortly reconnected in 2000 when both got involved in a tunneling project in Providence, Rhode Island. I eventually moved to another company that was then acquired by AECOM in 2014, where Rob and I were finally reunited with the same company. We have been good friends and colleagues ever since, sitting only a few doors apart in the Chelmsford office, and working together on many common projects. Over the years I came to know Rob and his habits well. He drove a distinct car, so I could always tell when he was around by seeing his car in the parking lot. He always came into the office very early in the morning and left early in the afternoon, so by the time I started my workday, his day was already halfway through. When I asked why he never ate lunch at work, he told me because his wife always prepared good meals at home. He and I are two of the very few people who came into the office on an almost daily basis, even during the COVID period where most people had to stay home. Rob was such a dedicated worker that the last time I spoke to him after his cancer diagnosis, he was still planning to work for another 5 years, which made his sudden passing that much more shocking to me. I will miss the many times he popped up unannounced in my office to discuss work related matters or just to chat about the events of the day. I will miss all our conversations about life and family. I learned a lot from Rob both as an engineer and as a person. He will be sorely missed.”
Bill Levy: “Rob was a long time friend and colleague. … He was the consummate professional geotechnical engineer; very knowledgeable, full of creative solutions to project issues, and always created and led a team of similar experts to himself. He was well known and respected throughout the geoscience community, a long-time Moles member, and very well liked by all. He often gave me valuable advice on how to transition back to consulting from the public sector and we both loved and talked fishing a bunch. Our company and the geoworld has lost one of the greats.”
Mike Wongkaew: “I wish I had more time to work with Rob. During my first 2.5 years at AECOM, I came to depend on him for his geotechnical expertise, project advice, and invaluable leadership guidance. I greatly appreciated Rob’s resourcefulness and his thoughtful, measured approach to challenges. I was particularly grateful that we had the opportunity to have Rob lead and develop the geotechnical team within our tunneling practice as we restructured our resources into a unified practice last October. Our discussions on strategic planning were insightful, and he was kind enough to assist me in preparing an inventory of our geotechnical skillset and drafting a succession plan for the team. While I would have preferred not to lose Rob and to avoid implementing his succession plan, I find some solace in knowing that his struggle with illness was not prolonged. His contributions and spirit will be deeply missed.”
Comments are closed here.