ONE of Derry’s biggest employers Seagate Technology has reported 2021 as its busiest year since 2015.
The data storage group recruited an extra 101 people last year, as the Covid-19 pandemic and the introduction of remote working appeared to drive demand for its hard disk products.
The Springtown operation, originally set up in Derry in 1993, makes recording heads for use in data storage media products which are sold by the Seagate group.
Turnover rose 13 per cent to $188.4 million (£139m) for the year to July 2 2021, the highest figure for seven years.
The figures were contained in a new report from Seagate Technology (Ireland), published by Companies House.
Seagate said the 13 per cent jump was “primarily due to increased demand for read-write heads globally”.
Operating profits rose 26 per cent to $14.2m (£10.5m), with the workforce hitting 1,557 in the reporting period.
Turnover at the operation had been on a general downward trend in the past decade against the backdrop of the growing adoption of cloud based storage worldwide.
Seagate has responded with significant investment in the research of new technologies at the Derry site.
In 2019, it announced a package of investments totalling approximately £57.4m - largely focused enabling further research and development in nanophotonics.
Last year, the Smart Nano NI consortium, led by Seagate, secured a £42m grant from the UK Government's national science funding agency UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). It also leveraged more than £20m more from other sources.
The latest report from Seagate Technology (Ireland) said the company continued to invest in its manufacturing capability of recording head wafers in Derry, employing the very latest product and process technologies.
