Momentum - The Magazine for Virginia Tech Mechanical Engineering Vol. 2 No. 4 Winter 2017 | Page 27

about alumni
Nicholas Des Champs '62, '67
The first doctoral degrees in mechanical engineering
awarded at Virginia Tech went to a group that when
together, featured just enough people to play ping pong.
Nicholas Des Champs, was one of the two members
of that inaugural group and is a current member of the
Mechanical Engineering Advisory Board. He earned his
BSME in 1962 and his PhD in 1967.
Des Champs started Des Champs Technologies in 1974.
The company developed the Wringer, the first product of
to allow control of humidity in a building without overcool-
ing. The device reduced the cost of dehumidification by
more than 30 percent and was named Plant Engineering
magazine's Product of the Year in 1992. In all Des Champs
owns 19 patents.
What was your first recollection of coming to Virginia
Tech and the campus? It was cold and very 'institutional.'
Was there a single professor or other mentor who
helped guide you or shape your time at Virginia Tech, or
who had a great influence on your career after gradua-
tion? During my graduate studies, Dr. J.B. Jones was my
major professor and he had a t remendous influence on
my career. He expected nothing but the best you could do.
And, he had no qualms about letting you know when you
weren't meeting his expectations. So, you ended up doing
your best.
As a student, what activities did you enjoy the most
and does that activity still exist at the university today?
Getting together with other engineering students to study
and solve problems. It's probably the same activities that
are occurring today.
What is your proudest academic or professional
achievement? Being inducted into the Virginia Tech Acad-
emy of Engineering Excellence. (Des Champs was inducted
in 2010)
MOMENTUM
Nicholas Des Champs, his wife, Becky, and Virginia Tech Presi-
dent Timothy Sands at an Ut Prosim Society event in spring 2017.
What do you think has been the single greatest change
to the university since you graduated? The social shift. It
was essentially all male and military with one mess hall
and one meal selection - no choices.
What advice would you give to undergraduate mechan-
ical engineers? Do the absolute best you can do and if you
like to think and solve problems, then you will be a great
success in engineering.
WINTER'17

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