Established: 1998

Location: 2301 Spar Ave. Anchorage, AK 99507

Telephone: 907-569-4300

E-Mail: dtl@workmail.com

Focus of the Services: Denali Telecommunications Inc. provides "complete, one stop shopping" in all facets of telecommunications and information technologies, said Ken Blake, the founder, president and chief executive. The company provides, installs and maintains: Information Technology systems, including telephone and electronic systems; cabling and connections; wireless telephone and pager systems; and interior and exterior networking. Most recently, the company added Computer-Aided Drafting Design --an electronic blue-printing and graphing program-- to its resume.

History of the Company: In October of 1998, Blake opened the doors of his home to the world of telecommunications.

Six months later, in April of 1999, he had enough of a client base to warrant moving to a storefront in Anchorage. By October of 1999, the company had outgrown the storefront and moved into its current office building on Spar Ave.

With 11 full-time, permanent employees and the capacity to take on up to 17 during the busy summer months, the current office is straining to contain the staff. Blake said he expects he will expand into an office trailer by next summer.

Just as the staff has grown, so has the company's reach, Blake said. Contracts now reach throughout the state and into the Lower 48. Denali Telecommunications holds primary contracts with, among others, NCS Pearson Inc.

Blake credits his multi-talented staff, as well as his own desire to keep up with technology, for the company's success and notoriety. Members of the Denali team specialize in one area, but can perform any number of the tasks that come with setting up and maintaining an IT system.

"We all work, you can't just have a single entity," he said. "My computer guys can do the technology, they can do the telephone systems or they can do the cabling.

"I feel if you don't keep up with the changes, you get left behind."

Major accomplishment: Blake said he is most proud of the way his company has grown in the last four years.

"The amount of work we've done and the contracts we've had," he said. "We have primaries (contracts) in the Lower 48. They have the faith that we're going to do a good job, and we perform for them."

Major Players: Ken Blake, the founder, president and chief executive of Denali Telecommunications Inc., learned his trade while he was in the Air Force. He started studying mechanics in 1967, eventually moving into electro-mechanics and technical work.

After leaving the military, Blake worked for Metro Fiber systems, and helped run cable down the Trans-Alaska pipeline to Valdez. Soon thereafter, he moved to Alaska Fiber Star where he helped place fiber along the Alaska railroad tracks to Valdez.

-- Regan Foster