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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

In brief: Southwest Airlines modifies rewards

From Wire Reports

Southwest Airlines is the latest airline to reduce the value of loyalty rewards.

Southwest has announced that rewards points earned by fliers will vary in value based on destination, time, day of travel, demand and other factors.

The changes, which take effect April 17, were announced in an alert to Southwest reward members. The airline offered no more details.

Robots key at Amazon center

DUPONT, Wash. – Robots do a lot of the heavy lifting at the new Amazon.com fulfillment center, helping 500 human employees fill orders for the Seattle-based Internet retailer.

The center is one of 50 around the country and three in the Puget Sound area. The others are at Bellevue and Sumner. A fourth is under construction in Kent.

The $100 million DuPont Fulfillment Center has been operating since last June, but Amazon held a grand opening ceremony Friday for political and economic development officials, the (Tacoma) News Tribune reported.

Engine needs no oil change

MILWAUKEE – Calling it an end to a messy annual ritual, and a first for the outdoor power equipment industry, Briggs & Stratton Corp. has developed a lawn mower engine that never needs an oil change.

The new engine will be available this spring on certain Toro, Craftsman, Snapper, Troy-Bilt and Yard Machine walk-behind mowers. Its air intake system is sealed tighter so dirt doesn’t get inside the engine and contaminate the oil, and the engine runs cooler so heat doesn’t break down the lubricant.

“If an engine runs cooler, with less debris in the oil, it will last longer,” said Rick Zeckmeister, Briggs vice president of marketing and planning.

The four-stroke mower engine is designed to last the life of the equipment it’s used on, which could be about 12 years, without an oil change.

Harvard grads lead IPO class

NEW YORK – Harvard is top of the IPO class for 2014.

The Ivy League school is the alma mater for seven chief executives who led their companies’ IPOs last year. That’s more than twice the number of the next highest schools in the rankings, according to figures from Equilar, an executive compensation data firm.

Harvard’s performance wasn’t a fluke. The Cambridge, Massachusetts, school has led the rankings for at least the last three years, according to Equilar.

Tied for second place last year were Columbia University, Stanford University, Texas Tech University and University of North Carolina. Each school produced three CEOs who took their companies public.

Harvard executives are following one of the school’s most famous students. Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, studied computer science at the school from 2002-04 before leaving to focus on the social networking company.

Valentine’s Day fast facts

Love is in the air – either that or it’s pollen from grass and trees getting an early start on spring, what with all this warm weather. And today, as you know, is Valentine’s Day. Thanks to the National Retail Federation and the U.S. Census Bureau, here’s a look at Romance by the Numbers in 2015.

$19.6 billion: Total predicted to be spent by Americans for the holiday.

$142.31: Average amount an American celebrant will spend.

$190.53: What the average man will spend.

$96.58: What the average woman will spend.