Nebraska is home to many remarkable companies that are global industry leaders. “Born in Nebraska, known worldwide” seems to be the way for these companies. Nebraska’s department of economic affairs also prides the state as being 8% below the national average cost of doing business. With many encouraging conditions, it is no wonder that companies thrive in the state. As a result, some of the largest tech companies in Nebraska feature in the Fortune 500 and 1000 list.
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Which Tech Companies Were Founded in Nebraska?
Lindsay Corporation – Founded in 1956
Lindsay Corporation was formally known as Lindsay Manufacturing. It was founded in 1955 in Omaha, Nebraska. The tech company provides irrigation systems and other industrial technology products. Even though most of its revenue ($1.6 B market cap) comes from irrigation systems, it has also ventured into GPS solutions and wireless farm management systems.
HDR – Founded in 1917
HDR is a diverse tech company that provides solutions for big data, nanotechnology, and artificial intelligence. The century-old company was founded in 1917 by H.H. Henningson to provide tech solutions to rural communities in Midwest Nebraska. Currently, the organization has evolved to having over 11,000 employees and engages in large-scale projects like electrification and dam building.
Lozier Corporation – Founded 1956
Lozier Corporation is a tech company that engages in retail automation systems. Some of the products and services include selling, installing, and servicing retail checkout systems. The company has in-house design and engineering teams that customize POS systems and office countertops according to client needs. The company was founded in 1956 in Omaha, Nebraska. It however has additional facilities in Missouri, Indiana, and Pennsylvania with a workforce of 2200 employees.
What are the Biggest Tech Companies Located in Nebraska?
Some of the biggest tech companies in Nebraska, based on revenues, seed funding, and workforce include:
Valmont Industries – $1.1 billion quarterly revenue
Valmont industries is a Nebraska technology company best known for providing lighting, traffic, and windmill support structures. The company was founded in 1946 by Robert Doherty. The founder purchased patents for irrigation technology and the company has since grown beyond Nebraska to the rest of the world. The company now employs 11,000 people in centers located in 22 countries. In the third quarter of 2022, Valmont industries recorded net sales of $1.1 billion.
Hudl – $980M in venture funding
The Largest Private Tech Companies in Nebraska
Kiewit
Kiewit Corp is a Fortune 500 business that is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska. Unlike most other companies that have net yearly revenues of over $10 billion, Kiewit is fully employee-owned. It focuses on large-scale construction technology projects such as bridge retrofitting and maintenance. Kiewit also spearheads off-shore operations for residential or business development.
Some of the renowned projects include a geodesic dome at the Henry Doorly Zoo. Currently, it still holds the record as the largest geodesic dome in the world. Being a highly data-driven venture, Kiewit is always adopting digital technologies to efficiently scale new heights. Kiewit has a fortune rank of 313th and made a revenue of $12 billion in 2021. Surprisingly, Kiewit publicly reports its revenue even though it is a privately-held company.
Spreetail
Brands use all or part of Spreetail’s platform to reduce the cost of building and running their in-house systems. This includes all the security architecture, policy, and log audits. Due to the Sidecar feature, businesses can get their products to customers faster than when the customer has to source for a product alone, order, and have it shipped to them. The end-to-end channel makes it a more efficient e-commerce company. Spreetail has 1550 employees.
Computer Systems, Inc
Computer Systems, Inc was founded in 1981 and has its headquarters in Omaha, Nebraska. It has local private ownership. It strives to provide cloud and network services in Omaha and develops managed services across the USA. Computer Systems was one of the first companies in the USA to come up with enterprise network services for small companies. At the moment, it has over 3000 systems operating in the USA and six other countries.
Computer Systems, Inc also offers cloud-based solutions that manage digital workflows. Most of the services developed by Computer Systems are geared towards unlocking employee productivity for small and medium enterprises.
Computer System, Inc aims to grow fast, innovate faster, and still have a socially responsible impact within the Omaha community.
AIM Institute
The AIM Institute is a pay-for-service organization that facilitates other organizations with training programs. It does so by formulating creative apps that streamline education. Nebraska residents laud the AIM institute as a tech and software company that applies a community-before-revenue approach. Even with 62 employees, this company garnered $10M in revenue in 2022. It has over 30 years of experience in tech-centered education programs and capacity building.
Some of the repeat clients for AIM institute usually seek advisory services in automating their brand strategies, intelligent market research, and onboarding software usage in their business development. Clients can acquire the necessary skills to innovate, build leadership and still improve their existing programs.
For example, through its Aria software service, companies can get cloud solutions to remove billing inconsistencies in multi-branch businesses. As AIM institute serves customers with cloud solutions, the customers and other trainees all get to learn the process and replicate the cycle in other events. This works differently from a competitor who would sell some software and leave the clients to fend for themselves.
Virtual Incision
Virtual Incision features prominently among the largest tech companies in Nebraska not because of the revenues it brings nor the number of staff, but because of the sheer scale of innovations it has come up with. Nested in Lincoln, Nebraska, Virtual Incision is a tech company providing robotic solutions for minimally invasive surgical procedures. The organization has so far netted $116M through funding spread over 11 rounds. The most recent funding came in August 2022 from a grant.
One of the flagship projects by Virtual Incision includes MIRA, (Miniaturized In vivo Robotic Assistant), a miniaturized robotic device that can be inserted into the body to perform specialized surgical procedures. It can perform colon resection among other surgeries.
In late 2022, Virtual Incision’s miniaturized robot became a news sensation when it was announced that it will be included onboard future International Space Station missions to undergo zero-gravity testing. The company, in collaboration with scientists from the University of Nebraska, has tipped the robot to accompany astronauts as a medical aid for manned missions on mars and other outer space endeavors in years to come.
Virtual Incision Funding sources
The organization gets grants from big names like NASA (August 2022), Endeavor vision, Bluestern Capital and Baird Capital. These seed funds mostly go to the robotic technology that offers miniature medical equipment for hospitals and surgery centers.
Funding rounds ensure that Virtual incision has a sure source of finances to support the research and development roadmap. Aside from the colon resection robot’s design, the Nebraska tech company is actively developing similar robots meant for hysterectomies and gallbladder removal. These mini-robots are capable of enabling millions of advanced surgical procedures in a year. As Virtual incision owns the intellectual property for all these robots, the company is set to enjoy a continued financial fortune from robotic-assisted surgery in the foreseeable future.
The Largest Publicly Traded Tech Companies in Nebraska
Duncan Aviation
Duncan aviation is one of the largest tech companies in Nebraska dealing with aviation support technology. It was founded in 1956 and currently has more than 1750 employees. It consistently nets an average of $280 million in yearly revenue. Aircraft operators need their aircraft serviced in good time even when they have spread out operations around the USA. Customers visit their maintenance facilities currently in Lincoln, Nebraska; Michigan, and Utah. Duncan Aviation hires an army of engineering and IT experts to manage various aviation-related tasks. Innovative aviation computing solutions need to be created now and then to maintain a growing clientele.
Some tech solutions that would get you phoning Duncan Aviation include aircraft purchase queries, frame, and engine service, avionics installation and upgrade, and general instrument overhauls. Some of the aircraft they service include Bombardier, Dassault, Gulfstream, and Embraer. The operations are structured to execute support services through scores of avionic satellites and 16 state-of-the-art rapid response offices. These all carry out the field operations for any scheduled and walk-in orders.
Globally, there is a parts team working round the clock to provide support to customers in case there are airplane problems in far-flung areas. Knowledgeable representatives are available to provide phone support to the customers. The organization is well-known for hiring highly experienced tech teams and constantly has a new crop of trainees ready to get straight into the action.
Forgotten Tech companies
Orion Advisor Solutions
Orion Advisor Solutions is an Omaha tech solutions company providing financial management infrastructure. It offers personalized advisory tech and investment monitoring solutions to customers who provide fiduciary services. Some of the software includes trading platforms, billing portals, financial planners, and tax management apps.
Orion Advisor Solutions broke into more subsidiary organizations and that is why some people may not know about the parent company itself. These smaller firms help it serve boutique, SME, and large enterprises. The software reviews lean towards ideas that work for businesses in already-crowded marketplaces. It has 835 employees, most of which consist of information technology experts and financial technology personnel.
Some of the subsidiary organizations include Orion Portfolio Solutions and Brinker Capital Investments. The software products help business managers improve productivity and use automation to improve client experience.
