Tech sector blend of new and old guards

High-tech companies abound in the Boulder Valley and provide leadership in a diverse number of industries.

DigitalGlobe Inc. in Longmont, which owns and operates satellites that take high-resolution images from space, has become a world leader in its industry. It provides imagery to governments, the military and commercial users, including Google Maps.

Broomfield is the home of one of the biggest telecommunications companies in the world. Level 3 Communications Inc. is a Tier 1 telecommunications company that owns and operates “long haul” that span and connect continents. Level 3 also offers enterprise services for clients.

Just up the road in Louisville, Zayo Group LLC has emerged as a fast-growing telecom. Zayo builds regional and metro fiber networks that connect businesses, schools, hospitals and other service providers.

Major software companies have offices in the area, including Oracle Corp., which has a major campus in Broomfield’s Interlocken office park and is one of the city’s major employers.

Rally Software Development Corp. is a homegrown, Boulder-based company that celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2012. Rally develops programs and training methods to help software engineers use agile development techniques to develop software.

The legacy of the data-storage industry lives on in the area. Hard drive manufacturer Seagate Technology LLC has a design and product development center in Longmont and is the city’s largest private employer.

Startups pioneering new data storage technology also call the area home. SolidFire Inc., which is based in Boulder, is developing high-performance solid-state drives for cloud service providers. SolidFire has raised $37 million from venture capitalists since incorporating in 2010.

Last but not least, there are the companies in the venerable “Old Guard” that have been major employers in the region for decades.

IBM Corp. employs about 2,800 people at its 500-acre campus on the Diagonal Highway. IBM started developing the campus in the 1960s, and it continues to grow. IBM’s greenest data center opened on the campus in 2008 and was part of the company’s $350 million investment in Boulder.

Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp. was founded in 1956 and has its headquarters in Boulder. Ball designs and builds satellites, scientific instruments and state-of-the-art antennas in its facilities in Boulder and neighboring cities. Ball Aerospace is a subsidiary of Broomfield-based Ball Corp.

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