Specializing in Process-Critical Manufacturing Systems


For more than 30 years, Dakota has built process-critical systems designed to help our clients succeed. Beginning in 1968 when Dakota Founder and CEO John Thomas built the laboratory gas piping section of an automatic diffusion oxidation system for early chip manufacturing at age 15, Dakota has garnered unparalleled domain expertise in process equipment design and manufacturing and has a long history partnering with companies in emerging technologies.

Today, Dakota’s design and engineering are ubiquitous in the laboratory design and semiconductor equipment industry and at the forefront of next generation life science equipment and emerging technologies equipment. Browse the Dakota timeline below to learn more about our domain expertise and our history partnering with companies to optimize their product design, product lifecycle and profits.

2021

Dakota develops electrical panel product and presented Ultrapipe concept for AES.

2020

Dakota Systems adds new stainless steel fermentation tank to biotech product offerings.

2014

Designed and fabricated 5000L bioreactor. Also partnered with OEM for Ultrapure water treatment systems and ion beam process tool gas boxes.

2013

Dakota System designed chemical vapor delivery system for hydrophobic glass coating.

2012

Designed and fabricated multiple automated lecture cylinder gas cabinets for major semiconductor OEM. Worked on solar cell Epitaxial gas delivery system.

2009

Designed and fabricated multiple ion implanter gas boxes as well as controlled environment modules for biotech equipment.

2008

Designed and fabricated silane-alternative solar cell anti-reflective coating chemical delivery system.

2006

Dakota designed an manufactured bioreactors for Xcellerex' new disposable product line.

2003

Dakota built chromatography skids for Amersham Bioscience which was later acquired by GE Healthcare.

1999

Dakota designed and built application specific gas delivery systems for Lucent's manufacturing facility producing fiber optics for the emerging technology.

1998

Dakota designed and manufactured the first modular gas box for Varian Associates which later became Applied Materials.

1997

Dakota ceased construction operations to focus purely on manufacturing high purity gas delivery systems.

1996

Dakota hired by Organogenesis to build the piping for their life sciences facility. Dakota's knowledge and expertise working in the semiconductor industry made it a natural fit for the life sciences piping needs.

1988

Dakota designs and builds the gas delivery system for the Motorola MOSS 6 facility in Mason, AZ. At the time it was the highest purity bulk gas delivery systems ever attempted.

1984

Dakota Systems founded. Over the next three years Dakota would design and build the process piping systems for Martin Marietta Corporation, Xerox Corporation, MIT Lincoln Labs, and MIT Building 39.

1982

Mr. Thomas began to design and build small to medium sized semiconductor facilities.

1980

Mr. Thomas went into business with his father in Systonics and created a construction group within the company which installed process piping systems in semiconductor facilities.

1979

Mr. Thomas worked for Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) as the Equipment Installation Manager installing all the semiconductor process equipment for DEC's semiconductor manufacturing facility producing the Alpha Chip.

1968

At age 15, future Dakota founder John M. Thomas built the gas piping section of an automatic diffusion oxidation system for his father’s company Systonics to be used in early chip manufacturing.

1968

Future Dakota founder John M. Thomas began his career with Systonics building gas delivery systems for the burgeoning semiconductor industry. Systonics provided the emerging market with precise and versatile process equipment ergonomically designed for easy operation and minimum maintenance – the traits that would become the foundation for Dakota. Click the links below to browse historical documentation from Systonics: