After 60 years of innovation, problem-solving and culture-building, Red Dot employee-owners look toward a future of expanded markets and capabilities
For six decades, Red Dot Corporation and its employee-owners have been industry leaders in heavy-duty mobile HVAC systems engineered and built to withstand the world’s toughest environments. Now, they’re celebrating the company’s 60th anniversary by launching a new brand platform that represents an expansive vision for the future: Red Dot is REDy for anything. Are you?
“REDy for Anything captures both who we are and where we’re going,” said John Beering, CEO of Red Dot Corporation. “It reflects our purpose: to take the team member ingenuity, product reliability, and customer relationships that have defined us for 60 years and apply them to new frontiers. We’re expanding into emerging markets while staying deeply committed to the people, products, and partnerships that built Red Dot’s legacy.”
Throughout October 2025, Red Dot employee-owners celebrated the company’s 60th anniversary—sharing their stories in a new video and dedicated website. The celebrations came on the heels of the launch of Offroad Arctic, a new brand of in-cab climate control for UTVs, including the industry’s first-ever air-conditioning system for side-by-sides.
With manufacturing and sales facilities in the United States, United Kingdom and China, a Millennium RedDOT LTD partnership in India, international OEM partnerships, a strong distributor network and products in use across six continents, Red Dot remains strongly committed to its legacy business and partners—and is REDy for what comes next.
Looking Back, Moving Ahead
Red Dot traces its beginnings to the late 1950s, when Harcourt G. “Harky” Runnings started a sideline business making heaters at his automotive radiator repair shop in West Seattle. Harky’s reputation grew, and in 1965, he incorporated Red Dot with a plan to develop heating and air conditioning products specifically for heavy-duty vehicles and off-highway equipment.
Since then, Red Dot has met its customers with sleeves-rolled-up service, inventory readiness, advanced performance and boots-on-the ground expertise.
“Red Dot’s 60th anniversary isn’t just a culmination of incredible resilience and innovation, but a celebration of the people behind our success,” Beering said. “As a proudly 100% employee-owned corporation, our culture is built on accountability, pride and problem-solving, and that will set us up for success over the next 60.”
Many team members count their tenure in decades, and work alongside extended family members spanning generations.
“I’ve worked here 47 years, and it’s more than a job—it’s family. My mom worked here, my husband worked here, and my daughter worked here. Now I’m watching a new generation grow up here, just like they watched mine,” said Julie Skaro, senior production planner at Red Dot.
Also key to the Red Dot community are customers: leaders and engineers at international OE customer organizations, heavy-duty vehicle aftermarket dealers, and industry suppliers. Among the company’s distributor network, some organizations have partnered with Red Dot for nearly its entire existence.
“We think of our customers as business partners, and this milestone reflects the trust and longstanding relationships we’ve built together, all rooted in our shared commitment to turning technical challenges into opportunities and meeting end-users’ needs,” said Pat Carroll, Red Dot’s vice president of sales.
Solving for Yes
As part of the REDy for Anything platform, Red Dot leaders articulated four readiness pillars that empower employee-owners to, as they say, “solve for yes” when it comes to customer challenges and opportunities:
- Inventory-REDy: Going far beyond stocked shelves. Employee-owners plan ahead so fleets and customers have what they need, when they need it.
- Scorecard-REDy: Our partners measure us by strict performance scorecards—and we welcome every benchmark. From operations to on-time delivery, our employee-owners embrace transparency and continually raise the bar to exceed customer expectations.
- Product-REDy: Red Dot products are proven where it counts: in the field. Designed for reliability and rugged durability, every heavy-duty climate control system we build is made to perform in the harshest real-world conditions, day after day.
- Future-REDy:We don’t just react to change—we drive it. We push for smarter, more efficient solutions that keep pace with evolving vehicles, technologies, and industries. Always looking ahead, always REDy.
Red Dot continues to build on its decades of expertise serving construction, agriculture, mining and off-highway, military, emergency, coach and bus, and specialty vehicle markets. These industries have relied on Red Dot to deliver rugged, reliable heating and cooling systems that perform in the most demanding conditions, keeping operators safe and comfortable day after day.
Building on that legacy, Red Dot is expanding into strategic new markets, including UTVs and side-by-sides, electric vehicles, battery thermal management, and advanced commercial applications. By collaborating closely with manufacturers, Red Dot’s engineering teams are developing next-generation HVAC and thermal solutions that optimize comfort, performance, and efficiency—helping customers tackle emerging technologies and evolving challenges with confidence.
Beering emphasized that Red Dot’s ability to innovate across new frontiers stems from the dedication and drive of its employee-owners. Joe Schaan, general manager of Red Dot’s manufacturing facility in Memphis, Tenn., echoed that this dynamic drives everyday operations.
“As a 100% employee-owned company, I view my coworkers as co-owners in our commitment to each other, our continuous improvement, and our customers. Red Dot has a strong foundation of resiliency both with our people and our products,” Schaan said. “Our forward-looking perspective is what encourages and motivates us to be our best every day.”
About Red Dot:
For 60 years, Red Dot has conquered the world’s toughest environments, delivering climate solutions for heavy-duty vehicles and today’s UTVs, EVs, and high-tech commercial applications. As the mobile HVAC standard in construction, agriculture, and military markets, we’ve expanded our field-tested expertise into emerging industries. We solve for yes with install-ready A/C and heaters, advanced battery thermal management, custom-engineered systems and more. Proudly 100% employee-owned, we’re REDy with sleeves-rolled-up service, inventory readiness, advanced performance, and boots-on-the-ground expertise. We pressure-test challenges others won’t touch, because customer success is our success. Red Dot isn’t just ready—we’re REDy for anything. Are you?
For more information on Red Dot’s plans, products and capabilities, visit reddot.red.
The post Red Dot Celebrates 60 Years with Vision for the Future: REDy for Anything first appeared on HVAC Insider.
