Thermo King history

198) was purchased by L. B. Hartz Wholesaler in Thief River Falls, Minnesota, in 1940, and donated to a dealership in St Paul before being returned to the world headquarters in Minneapolis for display.

The first two models were workable but mounted under the trailer and were on the road by 1942 in several states.

By 1949, annual revenues reached $3 million for the company.

In 1956 the company needed more space and purchased a 90,000-square-foot plant in Bloomington, Minnesota.

With the introduction of diesel engines in refrigerated units in 1958, engine life would out-perform their gasoline-powered counterparts in terms of longevity.

By 1960, Thermo King had net earnings of $1.5 million.

Numero continued as company president until 1963 and then served as honorary chairman, when Myron Green, who had been serving as executive vice-president, was named to the presidency.

In 1988 Numero told Irene Clepper of Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration News, "The saying about the world beating a path to your door if you invent a better mousetrap--don't believe it.

In 1991, the National Medal of Technology was awarded to Joseph A. Numero and Frederick M. Jones.

A profitable company for parent Westinghouse, Thermo King had a record setting year in 1994: revenue grew 22 percent to $877 million and operating profit rose 19 percent to $130 million.

In August 1995, Westinghouse announced its agreement to buy CBS Inc., the well-known broadcasting company, for $81 a share, or $5.4 billion.

In 1997, Ingersoll Rand acquired Thermo King from Westinghouse for $2.56 billion in cash, 13 times earnings, and added it to its Climate Control Technologies (later Climate Solutions) businesses, alongside Trane and Hussmann.