Daktronics

The Industry's Trusted Leader 50 Years and Counting

Daktronics started as a small company operating out of a garage.
50 years later, we're the world leader in the display industry.

From Humble Beginnings

With talented students leaving the state after graduating, two South Dakota State University professors of electrical engineering decided to create a company that would keep them in South Dakota. In 1968, Drs. Aelred Kurtenbach and Duane Sander started Daktronics.

This video shares the journey from a small business without a product to a world leader in digital display technology.

Reinventing the way you display since 1968.

  1. 1968
  2. 1970
  3. 1971
  4. 1972
  5. 1973
  6. 1974
  7. 1978
  8. 1979
  9. 1980
  10. 1982
  11. 1983
  12. 1984
  13. 1986
  14. 1987
  15. 1988
  16. 1993
  17. 1994
  18. 1995
  19. 1996
  20. 1997
  21. 1998
  22. 1999
  23. 2000
  24. 2001
  25. 2003
  26. 2004
  27. 2005
  28. 2006
  29. 2007
  30. 2008
  31. 2010
  32. 2011
  33. 2012
  34. 2013
  35. 2014
  36. 2015
  37. 2016
  38. 2017
  39. 2018
  40. 2020
  41. 2021
  42. 2022

  1. 1968 - Daktronics Established

    Founded on December 9, 1968, in Brookings, South Dakota.

    Original Daktronics Building

  2. 1970 - First Electronic Voting System

    First electronic voting system delivered for Utah State Legislature.

    First Electronic Voting System

  3. 1971 - Matside Wrestling Scoreboard

    First Matside scoreboard for wrestling was manufactured.

    Matside Wrestling Scoreboard

  4. 1972 - First Time and Temperature Product

    Installed first time and temperature product for Dakota State Bank in Milbank, South Dakota.

    Time and Temperature Display

  5. 1973 - First Message Center Install

    Installed first message center for First Federal Savings and Loan in Devils Lake, North Dakota.

    Message Center

  6. 1974 - Building 1 Built

    Building 1 was built and established the current Daktronics campus in Brookings.

  7. 1978 - Sales Milestone

    Reached $1 million in annual sales.

  8. 1979 - Employee Milestone

    Reached 100 employees.

  9. 1980 - Winter Olympics

    Selected to provide scoring equipment for the Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York.

    Lake Placid Olympics

  10. 1982 - Working with Sign Companies

    Started working with sign companies to further sell products.

    Founders Al Kurtenbach and Duane Sander are photographed with one of their voting systems.

    First Electronic Voting System

  11. 1983 - Building 2 Expansion

    Broke ground on Building 2 in Brookings.

    Held first sales expo.

    Building 2 Groundbreaking

  12. 1984 - First Large Matrix Color Marquee

    Installed the first large matrix color marquee for Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada.

    Caesars Palace Marquee

  13. 1986 - Dow Jones Zipper

    Installed the Dow Jones Zipper display in Times Square, New York City.

    The company reached $11 million in annual sales.

  14. 1987 - Senior PGA Tour

    Selected to provide products for the Senior PGA Tour.

  15. 1988 - First Transportation Roadway Display

    First transportation roadway display installed for the Connecticut DOT.

    A remote office was opened in Seattle, Washington.

  16. 1993- Employee Milestone

    Reached 500 employees.

  17. 1994 - DAKT Trades Stock on NASDAQ

    Stock was first traded on NASDAQ under the national market symbol DAKT.

    Nasdaq Opening

  18. 1995 - Morgan Stanley Ticker

    The Morgan Stanley Ticker display is installed in Times Square, New York City.

    Morgan Stanley Display

  19. 1996- Sales Milestone

    Reached $52 million in annual sales.

  20. 1997 - Dow Jones Zipper Updated

    Dow Jones Zipper display updated to LED technology in Times Square, New York City.

    Dow Jones Zipper

  21. 1998 - First NFL LED Video Display

    Installed first NFL LED video display for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Tampa, Florida.

    Tampa Bay Buccaneers

  22. 1999 - First High School LED Video Display

    Installed first High School LED video display for Cicero-North Syracuse High School in Cicero, New York.

    Cicero North Syracuse High School

  23. 2000 - First Centerhung Video Display System

    Reached $123 million in annual sales.

    Opened an office in Canada.

    Installed the first centerhung video display system for the Minnesota Wild in St. Paul, Minnesota.

    Minnesota Wild

  24. 2001 - First LED Digital Billboard Install

    First full LED digital billboard installed for Lamar Outdoor Advertising in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

    Lamar Outdoor Advertising

  25. 2003 - Daktronics Opens NASDAQ Stock Market

    Opened office in Germany.

    In honor of 35 years in business, Daktronics opens the NASDAQ stock market.

    Nasdaq Open Event

  26. 2004 - Coca-Cola Display

    Opened offices in Hong Kong and United Kingdom.

    The iconic Coca-Cola display was installed in Times Square, New York City.

    Coca-Cola Display

  27. 2005 - Employee Milestone

    Reached 1,600 employees.

  28. 2006 - First Spherical Building Install

    Opened manufacturing facilities in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and Redwood Falls, Minnesota.

    Opened manufacturing facility in Shanghai and offices in Beijing and Dubai.

    Reached $300 million in annual sales.

    Completed first spherical building installation for Grand Lisboa in Macau, China.

    Grand Lisboa

  29. 2007 - Building 6 Expansion

    Opened offices in France and Macau.

    Completed construction of Building 6 in Brookings.

    Daktronics Building 6

  30. 2008 - Beijing Olympics

    Opened office in Australia.

    Reached $500 million in annual sales.

    Provided products for the Beijing Olympics.

    Daktronics Aerial View

  31. 2010 - Japan Office Opening

    Installed product in 100th country.

    Opened manufacturing facility in Shanghai.

    Opened office in Japan.

    Reached 2,500 employees.

  32. 2011 - Singapore & Spain Offices Open

    Opened offices in Singapore and Spain.

  33. 2012 - America's Top 100 Most Trustworthy Companies

    Ranked among America’s Top 100 Most Trustworthy Companies by Forbes (and every year since).

    Opened office in Brazil.

  34. 2013 - Wembley Stadium

    Opened office in Belgium.

    Upgraded London’s Wembley Stadium with integrated LED video display system.

  35. 2014 - Jacksonville Jaguars

    Opened office in Ireland.

    Installed innovative LED display system at new SLS Las Vegas.

    Installed the largest video scoreboard at the time for the Jacksonville Jaguars in Jacksonville, Florida.

    Jacksonville Jaguars

  36. 2015 - Updated Morgan Stanley Display

    Installed update to 20-year-old Daktronics technology at Morgan Stanley in Times Square, New York City.

    Morgan Stanley Times Square

     

    Completed the first indoor narrow pixel pitch (NPP) display in Gillette Stadium, the home of the New England Patriots.

    Gilette Stadium's first indoor LED video wall

  37. 2016 - ADFLOW Networks and Project NEON

    ADFLOW Networks is acquired as a subsidiary to further the company’s focus on providing complete digital signage solutions.

    Awarded a multi-million-dollar project as part of Nevada’s Project NEON interstate expansion, including 42 digital signs.

    Large LED sign above busy highway in Nevada

  38. 2017 - Mercedes-Benz Stadium

    Installed the world’s largest video scoreboard, The Halo Display, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.

    Installed the revamped Piccadilly Lights as a single, curved, 4K display in Piccadilly Circus, London.

    Atlanta Falcons

     

    Received Manufacturing Leadership Award for Operational Excellence for implementing a robotic overhead rail system to move display sections during assembly.

    LED video displays hanging on Daktronics manufacturing floor

  39. 2018 - AJT Systems

    Acquired AJT Systems’ services and technologies to expand offerings for sport and interactive applications.

    AJT Systems logo

  40. 2020 - Opened Showroom

    Opened our state-of-the-art Daktronics Showroom to feature our audiovisual solutions and provide an immersive meeting space.

    three video walls in Daktronics headquarters

  41. 2021 - Climate Pledge Arena

    Provided extensive integrated LED system for improved Climate Pledge Arena, featuring 224 LED displays and content to create an immersive experience.

    immersive LED video in Climate Pledge Arena lobby

  42. 2022 - Expanded Production and Services

    Manufactured our 5,000th billboard for Lamar Outdoor in Manchester, Tennessee.

    Expanded production facilities in multiple factory locations to support increased demands.

    Atlanta Falcons

    Introduced DakClassroom to provide students with additional opportunities in the classroom and beyond through the Event Production Curriculum, Show Control Education Edition and Crew Connect.

    DakClassroom logo

50th Anniversary Open House

The 50th Anniversary Annual Open House and Shareholders Meeting featured in-depth tours of Daktronics' campus and history. Longtime employees hosted exhibits where guests learned about the historical Matside® scoreboard, the Halo display, and everything in between. There were STEM activities for kids, anniversary cake, and photo opportunities with our founders, Dr. Al Kurtenbach and Dr. Duane Sander. We also hosted special guests South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard and Brookings Mayor Keith W. Corbett.

Daktronics Founders at Open House

 

South Dakota Governor at Open House

 

Presentation at Open House

 

Historic Museum at Open House

 

Visitors at Open House

 

Visitors Learning About Control Systems at Open House

 

Visitors Learning About Modules at Open House

 

People Visiting at Open House

 

Visitors Viewing Demo Area at Open House

 

Visitor Tour at Open House

 

Daktronics Day Proclamation

 

50th Anniversary Letter

 

From our people to our history, get a glimpse of life at Daktronics.

 

 

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