Red Dot Corp. founder Harky Runnings dies at 92

SEATTLE (March 24, 2005) -- Harcourt G. "Harky" Runnings, the founder 
and former chairman of Red Dot Corp. whose generosity and respect for 
his employees brought family spirit to the workplace long before it was 
fashionable, died yesterday in Shelton, Wash., at 92. A memorial 
service will be held at 1 p.m. on Friday, April 1, at Red Dot's 
headquarters in Seattle at 745 Andover Park E.

Runnings founded Red Dot in 1965 after the popularity of the truck 
heaters he built at his Seattle radiator shop outpaced his ability to 
produce them. Under his stewardship, Red Dot became a leader in the 
design and production of heating and air conditioning systems (HVAC) 
and replacement parts for commercial trucks, buses, agricultural 
vehicles, and construction equipment. Today the company has more than 
480 employees at its headquarters in Seattle and additional facilities 
in Memphis, Tenn., and Ipswich, England.

Runnings' ingenuity and skill as an industrial designer brought 
numerous innovations to the mobile HVAC field. They include the 
Grilldenser; separate climate controls for the sleeper compartment of 
heavy trucks; the trinary pressure switch; air-operated water valves 
and vent doors; and low-profile roof-top condensers.

As focused as Runnings was on products that bring comfort to people in 
demanding jobs, the welfare of his employees was his number-one 
concern.

The company instituted time-and-a-half pay for employees on vacation 
because Runnings wanted them to have time off without having to go in 
debt or sacrifice important things in their lives. In the early 1970s, 
Red Dot went to a four-day workweek so employees would have Fridays for 
personal business, a radical idea at the time.

Upon his retirement in 2000, Runnings sold 100 per cent of Red Dot's 
ownership to its employees, fulfilling a promise made when he founded 
the business. "The best decisions for a company are made by people who 
want to carry the business forward for themselves," he said at the 
time.

At Christmas that year, he and his wife gave Red Dot employees a total 
of $2.2 million for their support and loyalty over the years.

"Harky believed there should be a greater reward for work than a 
paycheck," said Red Dot president Randy Gardiner, who is Runnings' 
grandson. "He wanted his employees to feel important and valued, like 
family."

Perhaps it was because his early family life was so tenuous.

Runnings was born in 1912 in Porcupine, Ont., the third of six 
children. He spent his first years on homesteads in rural Manitoba, but 
the family was split up in 1919 after his mother died of appendicitis. 
Runnings' father dispatched the children to live with relatives, 
putting them on a train with written instructions pinned to their coats 
as to their final destinations. Runnings stayed with an aunt and uncle 
on a farm near Regina, Sask. He slept in the attic and spent his days 
carrying feed and water to the pigs and chickens. At 14, he reunited 
with his father and two oldest sisters in Seattle, where he attended 
school for the first time.

To improve his job prospects during the Depression, Runnings enrolled 
in a trade school and became a talented machinist. He worked for Boeing 
during World War II and saved money to buy a service station in West 
Seattle. Looking to differentiate himself, Runnings specialized in 
radiator repair because no one else in the neighborhood offered the 
service. He opened what has become a Seattle landmark, the West Seattle 
Radiator Service.

The business thrived, and in the late 1950s Runnings began designing 
radiators and heaters for Kenworth and Freightliner mail trucks 
operating in the harsh conditions of the Alaska-Canadian Highway. By 
the early 1960s, cooling and heating trucks was his principle line of 
work. In 1965, Red Dot was incorporated.

Runnings leaves two daughters, Gloria Runnings of Seattle and Carolyn 
Olsen of Shelton, Wash. He had 14 grandchildren and 20 
great-grandchildren. Runnings is predeceased by his first wife, Ruby, 
in 2001, and his second wife, Mary, also in 2001. Flowers may be sent 
to Red Dot, 495 Andover Park E., Seattle, WA 98188-7657; in memoriam, 
flowers may be sent to the company. Memorial donations may be made to 
the Alzheimer's Association, 12721 30th Ave. N.E., Seattle, WA 98125; 
206-363-5500.

ABOUT RED DOT:

Red Dot is a worldwide leader in the design and production of heating, 
ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems and replacement parts 
for commercial trucks, buses, and vehicles used in construction, 
mining, agriculture, fire and rescue, and military service. The company 
was founded in Seattle, Wash., in 1965 and now has 430 employees at 
three locations in the United States and Europe. Visit Red Dot at 
www.rdac.com.