Klaus and Brigitte Gueldenpfennig co-founded Victor, NY-based REDCOM Laboratories in 1978. He was CEO and she served as the telecommunications company’s chief financial officer. REDCOM is a designer and manufacturer of digital and IP-enabled telecommunications systems for carriers, utilities, emergency response, and defense applications. Privately held and family owned, REDCOM’s staff fluctuates between 150 and 200—including many RIT alumni and co-ops—and has a client base of government, military, and industrial customers all over the globe as it competes with industry giants such as Siemens AG and Cisco Systems. The Gueldenpfennigs emigrated from Germany to the United States, initially to Queens and ultimately to Rochester, for job opportunities.

Both Tigers, he earned a master’s degree in electrical engineering in 1974 and an MBA in 1977 and she earned an MBA in 1981. He was then appointed to the Board of Trustees in 1992 and named trustee emeritus in 2006. Over the years, the Gueldenpfennigs’ impact at RIT has been immense. Through REDCOM, the couple significantly funded the REDCOM Global Telepresence Room and McGowan Center for Telecommunications. That support, both financial and professional, is at the heart of the highly respected Telecommunications Engineering Technology program. The Gueldenpfennigs have also been a significant supporters of Saunders College of Business, offering financial gifts and equally valuable strategic advice.

In addition to serving on RIT’s Board of Trustees, Klaus served on several board subcommittees, including Enrollment Management and Career Services, Buildings and Grounds, and Finance. He was a member of the Kate Gleason College of Engineering’s Center for Quality and Applied Statistics Council and sat on the College of Engineering Technology’s Telecommunications Engineering Technology Advisory Board for many years.

Brigitte served on the Saunders College of Business Dean’s Advisory Council for 20 years and also sat on the Co-op & Placement Committee for several years. For their contributions to both the Rochester and RIT communities, the Gueldenpfennigs received the Nathaniel Rochester Society Award in 2014, the Herbert W. Vanden Brul Entrepreneurial Award in 1990, and the Saunders College of Business Distinguished Alumni Award in 1988. RIT and the entire Rochester community mourned the passing of Klaus Gueldenpfennig in September 2021.