Digi-Key Electronics has been named a 2021 Fire Award winner by Minne Inno in the High Tech Company category for its leadership in the local technology community and commitment to innovation.
The Fire Awards celebrate the companies and people that keep Minnesota’s tech and startup scene alive, and recognizes 50 companies from across the state. In July, a panel of judges will select the top “Blazer” winner from each category.
“We are so proud to be recognized by Minne Inno for our leadership in the local technology community and commitment to innovation throughout the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Ramesh Babu, CIO and vice president – information technology at Digi-Key. “We especially want to thank our dedicated team for quickly implementing new technology at home and at the PDC to stay safe and productive during a time of record growth and demand. Their hard work ensures that Digi-Key can continue to deliver the electronic components customers need, including critical medical device companies building ventilators and other important technology needed on the frontlines during the pandemic.”
As a leading global electronic components distributor for nearly 50 years, Digi-Key employs more than 4,500 people and provides top technology, med-tech, automotive and up-and-coming companies around the world, with access to more than 11.8 million electronic components, with over 2.6 million in stock and available for immediate shipment.
Business has been booming for Digi-Key over the past year, with professional engineers and hobbyist tinkerers alike ramping up product design activity, which has increased demand for electronic components to unprecedented levels. Components from Digi-Key are used in devices in all industries and countries, but the medical industry has especially been a major focus area over the past year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In spring 2020, Digi-Key engineers partnered with physicians at the University of Minnesota to develop a new open-source ventilator called the Coventor, a simple machine that was the first ventilator approved for use under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Emergency Use Authorization for the COVID-19 outbreak, and was concepted and approved by the FDA within a record 30 days.
Digi-Key also took quick action to ensure the health and safety of its staff, shifting 2,300 positions to a virtual setting and developing new and innovative protocols to protect warehouse staff, including inventing a UV sanitization tunnel to disinfect the nearly 8,000 totes that travel through Digi-Key’s facility each day.
Throughout all of this, Digi-Key has also been working on expanding to a new product distribution center (PDC) on its campus in Thief River Falls, which when completed this summer will add another 2.2-million-square-feet to the company’s footprint. The more than $400 million investment will house 3,400 employees and is expected to contribute an additional $500 million in economic output.
Fire winners in all categories are featured on Minne Inno’s website here.
Print this page
