DigiKey, the global distribution leader of electronic components and automation products, today announced a $100 million investment over the next 18 months to expand its global product distribution centre in Thief River Falls, Minn., and its order management system. This escalation of capacity and automation is designed to support sustained growth in demand for its industry-leading same-day fulfilment model.
Expansion at record-growth pace
The investment funds the next phases of DigiKey’s product distribution centre (PDC) expansion, adding high-volume picking capacity and advanced automated packing operations. The first new automated packing system is already on site and will be in use this year, with additional multi-line packing automation phased in as part of the investment program.
The announcement follows a year of extraordinary growth for the company. DigiKey is on pace to grow more than 50 percent in 2026, and projects continued double-digit growth in the year ahead.
“Our customers choose DigiKey because they know we’re fast and they know we’ll be fast tomorrow,” said DigiKey CEO Dave Doherty. “A $100 million commitment says exactly that: we’re expanding capacity and automating where it counts to keep same-day fulfillment the standard, not the exception.”
Building for future scale
The expansion continues the design philosophy behind the company’s purpose-built product distribution centre: building in capacity ahead of demand. DigiKey’s state-of-the-art, 2.2 million-square-foot product distribution centre expansion project opened in Aug. 2022 and was designed for scalable growth, with many open spaces and much of the fourth floor left empty for future expansion.
New picking bays, order retrieval automation and expanded packing operations will process a growing share of order volume across multiple product form factors with higher speed and efficiency. Every investment in DigiKey is focused on the ultimate goal of sustainable growth.
“Simplification creates capacity, and capacity creates growth,” said Doherty. “We’re redirecting resources from legacy work to future capabilities and investing in where we’re going, not just where we’ve been.”
The investment reinforces DigiKey’s position as a global leader in electronic component distribution, serving one million customers annually with more than 1.9 million products in stock and ready to ship the same day from the product distribution centre.
