Manufacturer of LED video displays, scoreboards, digital billboards and dynamic message signs for sports, traffic and outdoor advertising
Daktronics, Inc.
Brookings, SD (US) · Sioux Falls (US) · Redwood Falls, MN (US) · Wiesbaden (DE) · Bristol (UK) · Hong Kong (CN) · Shanghai (CN) · Belgium (BE) · Montreal, Quebec (CA) · Brazil (BR) · Ireland (IE) ·New on Amplifa
About Daktronics
Daktronics, Inc. is an electronics manufacturer founded in 1968 and headquartered in Brookings, South Dakota (USA), which develops, manufactures, installs and services LED video displays, sports display systems, digital billboards, dynamic message signs, sound systems and associated control software. Manufacturing starts at the component level and ends with the final assembly of complete LED display modules; aluminum sheet and extruded profiles, sheet steel as well as plastic louvers and housings are processed. Production capacity exceeds 27,000 modules or 2,500+ square meters of LED video display per week; worldwide the group maintains more than 1,000,000 square feet of production space. Customers include sports stadiums and arenas, schools and colleges, out-of-home advertisers (OOH), transportation authorities as well as business and community applications in over 120 countries. At its headquarters, the company operates Lab Services, its own testing laboratory for image quality, light, EMC, thermal, UV weathering, water tightness and salt fog testing. Since 2003, Daktronics has maintained a branch in Wiesbaden, Germany, with the Daktronics GmbH; further locations exist among others in Belgium, Brazil, Ireland, Australia and Singapore. The company is listed on the NASDAQ under the ticker DAKT.
- Site
- -5128 Brookings, SD, USA
- Processes
- LED display module manufacturing (component to final assembly), Sheet metal working/inspection (aluminum and steel sheet, aluminum profiles) with measuring, Powder coating, Lab Services – component testing (image quality, light/color, EMC, thermal, UV weathering,, Design-build / engineering (structural, electrical and systems integration), Installation and field service (worldwide commissioning, maintenance), Design-build / engineering, Sign permitting
- Materials
- Aluminum (sheet and extruded profiles), Sheet steel, Plastic louvers and housings (louvres/housings), Silicone, Epoxy, Plastic louvers and housings, LED display module manufacturing, Powder coating
- Certificates
- ISO 14001:2015, ISO 45001:2018 / ISO 14001:2015 / ISO 9001:2015 (integrated), ISO 14001:2015 (Daktronics Australia), bizSafe Level 3, SSIP UK / CHAS, ISO 9001:2015 (integrated, Daktronics Australia), ISO 14001:2015 (Daktronics Ireland), ISO 45001:2018 (integrated, Daktronics Australia)
- Founded
- 1968
- Employees
- 2500+
- Industries
- Sports stadiums/arenas, Schools/colleges, Out-of-home advertising (OOH/billboards), Traffic/ITS, Business & Community
- 01
Engineering / design-build construction
- 02
Component manufacturing (sheet metal working aluminum/steel, plastic parts)
- 03
Module manufacturing (component to LED display module)
- 04
Final display assembly
- 05
Powder coating
- 06
Inspection and testing (Lab Services)
- 07
Installation and commissioning
- 08
Service and support
Materials and Processes
Aluminum (sheet and extruded profiles)
Used for housing parts, structures and display components and inspected for dimensional accuracy in the testing laboratory.
Sheet steel
Used for load-bearing structures and housing components of the display systems.
Plastic louvers and housings
Plastic louvers and housings for display modules and weather protection.
Silicone
Tested in reliability tests for weather and UV resistance.
Epoxy
Encapsulation and adhesive material examined for degradation in the UV weathering tester.
LED display module manufacturing
Manufacturing from the raw component to the fully functional LED module and its assembly into a display.
Powder coating
Surface process for aluminum and steel parts with reduced VOC emissions.
Locations
Brookings, SD
USHeadquarters, production, Lab Services
- Lot size
- 27,000+ modules/week, 2,500+ m² LED video display/week
- Materials
- Aluminum, steel, plastic, LED components
- Coordinate measuring machine (tolerance ±3 µm)
- Integrating sphere
- EMC test chamber
- Environmental test chamber (full-sun simulation)
- UV weathering tester
- Temperature and humidity chamber (-40 °C to 100 °C, 10–98 % RH)
- Salt fog chamber (5 % salt, 35 °C)
- C3 Critical Cleanliness Control
Products and Systems
Inside the production
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LED display module manufacturing (component to final assembly)Assembly | – | – | – | 27,000+ modules per week | Aluminum, Steel, Plastic, LED components |
| Sheet metal working/inspection (aluminum and steel sheet, aluminum profiles) with measuringTesting | ±3 µm | – | – | – | Aluminum, Steel, Plastic |
| Powder coatingSurface | – | – | – | – | Aluminum, Steel |
| Lab Services – component testing (image quality, light/color, EMC, thermal, UV weathering,Testing | – | – | – | – | LED modules, Plastic, Silicone, Epoxy, Electronics |
| Design-build / engineering (structural, electrical and systems integration)Engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Installation and field service (worldwide commissioning, maintenance)Assembly | – | – | – | – | – |
8 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coordinate measuring machine | – | – | Tolerance ±3 µm | – | Brookings, SD, USA |
| Integrating sphere | – | – | – | – | Brookings, SD, USA |
| Electrically absorber-lined chamber (EMC test chamber) | – | – | – | – | Brookings, SD, USA |
| Environmental test chamber (large-scale, full-sun simulation) | – | – | – | – | Brookings, SD, USA |
| UV weathering tester | – | – | – | – | Brookings, SD, USA |
| Temperature and humidity chamber (-40 °C to 100 °C, 10–98 % RH) | – | – | – | – | Brookings, SD, USA |
| Salt fog chamber (5 % salt, 35 °C) | – | – | – | – | Brookings, SD, USA |
| C3 Critical Cleanliness Control (corrosion/salt detection) | – | – | – | – | Brookings, SD, USA |
Additional services
Quality and Testing
In its own Lab Services testing laboratory at the Brookings headquarters, image quality, light output, EMC, thermal performance, UV weathering, water tightness and corrosion resistance are tested beyond the usual compliance requirements. A coordinate measuring machine inspects sheet-metal, profile and plastic parts with a tolerance of ±3 micrometers.
| Evidence | Brookings, SD |
|---|---|
| ISO 9001:2015 (integrated, Daktronics Australia) | |
| ISO 14001:2015 (Daktronics Ireland) | |
| ISO 45001:2018 (integrated, Daktronics Australia) | |
| SSIP UK / CHAS |
History
- 1968
Founded by professors Aelred Kurtenbach and Duane Sander on December 9 in Brookings, South Dakota.
- 1971
Matside wrestling scoreboard as the first own product.
- 1974
Construction of Building 1 at today's campus in Brookings with 14,000 sq ft of production space.
- 1978
Reaching USD 1 million in annual revenue.
- 1980
Display systems for the Winter Olympic Games in Lake Placid.
- 1988
First traffic display for the Connecticut DOT.
- 1994
IPO on the NASDAQ under the ticker DAKT.
- 1998
First NFL LED video display for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
- 2000
Montreal branch; first centerhung for the Minnesota Wild; acquisition of Keyframe.
- 2001
First fully digital LED billboard for Lamar Outdoor Advertising.
- 2003
Opening of the Wiesbaden branch (Daktronics GmbH).
- 2004
Branches in Bristol (UK) and Hong Kong; installation of the Coca-Cola display.
- 2006
41×25 m HD display for Texas Memorial Stadium, at the time the largest display in the world.
- 2012
Opening of the Brazil branch.
- 2013
Acquisition of OPEN Out Of Home (Belgium).
- 2015
Revenue exceeding USD 600 million.
- 2023
Class action lawsuit over alleged securities fraud.