Huntington Beach defense maker Mach Industries names Zach Kirkman chief financial officer
Kirkman, most recently deputy chief financial officer at General Motors, will lead finance, capital markets and financial strategy at the Huntington Beach manufacturer as it scales production of unmanned systems, the company announced Tuesday.
Mach Industries, a defense manufacturer headquartered in Huntington Beach, announced on Tuesday that Zach Kirkman has been appointed its chief financial officer.
Kirkman will run the company's financial strategy, its capital markets work and its finance organization as Mach scales production, expands its capital base and moves its portfolio of unmanned systems and critical defense components forward, according to the announcement.
He joins Mach from General Motors, where he was deputy chief financial officer, reported directly to the chief financial officer, and oversaw Treasury, Corporate Development, GM Ventures, and Long-Term Financial Planning and Analysis, the company said. Earlier, he helped establish and lead the Corporate Development function at Tesla, and he started his career at Apple, where his finance roles included Corporate Development.
Kirkman brings close to 20 years of senior finance experience to the job, spanning capital allocation, company strategy and dealmaking in the automotive and technology industries, according to the announcement. He has also served on the board of Lithium Americas Corp. His degrees are an MBA from MIT and a business administration degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, formally California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.
"Zach brings a rare combination of financial leadership and experience navigating the complexities of high-growth, integrated hardware/software businesses," Ethan Thornton, the company's founder and chief executive, said in the announcement. "His expertise in capital allocation and corporate strategy will be invaluable as we strengthen our financial foundation, make disciplined investments, and position Mach for its next phases of growth."
Kirkman framed the move around production capacity. "Mach Industries is tackling one of the most important challenges facing our national security: building the industrial capacity to deliver advanced defense capabilities at scale," he said in the announcement. "I'm excited to join the team at such a pivotal stage of growth and to help build the financial engine needed to accelerate production, expand our capabilities, and support the company's long-term vision."
Mach calls its model deeply vertically integrated and hardware first. The company designs its systems, builds them, tests them and puts them into service, and it sells to outside customers as well. Two units carry the propulsion work: Mach Propulsion and Mach Energetics build jet engines, solid rocket motors and other energetic systems, and the company supplies components and subsystems for unmanned aerial platforms and for booster and sustainer programs, according to the announcement.
The company was founded in 2023 and keeps its headquarters in Huntington Beach at Forge 1, a 115,000-square-foot facility devoted to engineering, rapid prototyping and advanced manufacturing. In an earlier announcement, Mach said the Huntington Beach headquarters would remain in place as it opened a new hub in San Francisco to strengthen collaboration across advanced technology ecosystems.
We correct errors promptly and note them here. Request a correction through our contact form.
