Dedicated to the memory of Norris Hekimian 
1926-2010

Dr. Hekimian founded Hekimian Laboratories, Inc. in 1968 and the initial Company office and laboratory were located in his home in Rockville, MD.

 There were no outside investors and the total paid-in capital was never more than $50,000.

At the beginning, the Company did work for several government agencies including the design of a unique Adaptive Burst Communication system for NASA.

The first telecommunications test equipment was a phase jitter meter which was purchased by virtually all of the common carriers and provided the earnings that enabled the initial company growth.

The desirability of sending digital data at the fastest possible rates over ordinary telephone circuits forced the development of sophisticated impairment measuring equipment. Dr. Hekimian was a visionary and committed the Company to develop and manufacture the Model 3900 which achieved  50% market share and enabled further growth in facilities and personnel.

The Company had grown to more than $30M in revenues by the time it was sold to Axel Johnson, Inc. in 1983.

He provided critical technical as well as administrative leadership during this entire 15-year period.

The Company continued to grow and, in 2000, Axel Johnson sold it to Spirent PLC for $1.6B.

He was made a Fellow of the IEEE in 1981 for contributions to circuit design in the field of telecommunications test equipment.  

Dr. Hekimian was a lifelong resident of the Washington Metropolitan area and was an avid supporter of the performing arts.

He was a pioneer of the Telecommunications industry and with his team enabled the first television images to be sent from a satellite.

Dr Hekimian designed the telephone system contained in the Berlin Wall Tunnel.

Obituary information  

Norris Carroll Hekimian was the only son of Armenian immigrant Nejib Hekimian and Louise Von Andrian Hekimian.  Growing up in Washington DC during the great depression, Norris Carroll Hekimian exemplifies the archetypical “rags to riches” story.

Age:84
Cause of Death: Hemmhorragic stroke
Date and Place of Death: 10 June 2010,
 Manor Care Potomac, Md.
Place of Birth: Washington DC
Place of residence:  Potomac MD
Length of time lived in Washington area: 84 years

• Work History:

• Norris Hekimian sold homemade crystal radios to his classmates when he was in junior high

• His first real job was in a radio repair shop near his home in NW DC .

• Norris or “Buddy” built his first television set from discarded parts and kept a set in each room of his house by fixing throw-aways.

• After earning his bachelors degree in electrical engineering, Norris took a job with the National Bureau of Standards

• Norris also worked at the National Security Agency where he worked on projects in long-range communications and spread-spectrum modulation.  Norris Hekimian was a principal designer of the telephone system serving the top secret allied tunnel underneath the Berlin wall.

• Norris Hekimian continued to serve the U.S. Government as a contractor with Page Communications.  While working for Page, Norris Hekimian designed and built the first television transponder to send television images to earth from a satellite in orbit. 

• Norris Hekimian founded Hekimian Laboratories Incorporated with Mr. John Kelley in 1968. Norris Hekimian was awarded multiple patents for analog electrical circuits and transmission test measurement systems.  Hekimian Laboratories Inc. developed the first modular telecommunication test system, the first remote control system for telecommunication testing, and novel systems for phase jitter testing and the testing of intermodulation distortion.  Hekimian Laboratories also made dialed number recorders for use by law enforcement and Bell Telephone for investigative and anti-fraud purposes.

• Since the sale of Hekimian Laboratories (or “Hekimian” after a company name change) Norris Hekimian and his wife Betty founded the Phase Foundation which is a charitable foundation directed towards meeting the needs of communities in the Washington DC area and beyond.

• The company that Norris C. Hekimian started in his basement went on to sell at one point for $1.6 billion dollars.
  

• Military History:  
  Norris C. Hekimian worked as an aircraft mechanic in the Army Air Corps near the end of WWII.  He worked primarily on B-24 Liberators.
  

• Colleges and High Schools Attended:  
  Norris Hekimian graduated from Central High School in Washington DC, class of 1944.  He received his bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering from The George Washington University in 1949. He received a Masters degree in Electrical engineering from the University of Maryland in 1951 and a doctorate in electrical engineering from the University of Maryland in 1969
  

• Volunteer work:  
  Norris C. Hekimian served on the advisory council for the George Washington University and established an engineering endowment at that school. He served as an ombudsmen to the business community for suburban hospital. Norris Hekimian was also an active supporter of Montgomery College where he helped to develop programs to improve technical education and job placement within the community.
  

• Honors:

• Norris C. Hekimian was a Life Fellow of the IEEE
  for contributions to circuit design in the field of telecommunications test instrumentation.

• Eta Kappa Nu, 1979

• GWU Alumni Achievement Award, 1976
  

• Religious or other affiliations: 
  None specified
  

• Names of all spouses including marriages that ended in divorce or death:

• Joan Elizabeth Hekimian
  

• Names, relationships and current towns of residence for surviving spouse, children, parents and siblings

• Spouse: Joan Elizabeth “Betty” Hekimian, Potomac , MD.

• Children:

• Allen Mark Knechtel, Sumter , SC

• Allison Hekimian Sitar, Virginia Beach , VA

• Christopher David Hekimian, Germantown , MD

• Catherine Louise Hekimian, Germantown , MD

• Number of surviving grandchildren: 
  2
  

• Number of surviving great-grandchildren:
   4
  

• Name of mortuary used: 
  Pumphrey’s funeral home in Rockville , MD.