Lance Hagenbuch is the Senior Director of Engineering at Kairos Power. He is responsible for leading the Engineering Program Management Office (PMO) to ensure Kairos Power product designs are safe and commercially successful. He also leads the high bay expansion of the Albuquerque facility to support future testing activities.
Mr. Hagenbuch brings over 20 years of program management and engineering experience from both the energy and aerospace markets. He previously worked for 11 years at SolarReserve, LLC, where he led the commercialization of the firm’s proprietary molten salt heat exchanger technology including the successful design, engineering, fabrication, and commissioning of the world’s first commercial scale unit at the Crescent Dunes Solar Power Plant in Tonopah, Nevada for which he was promoted to Vice President, Engineering & Technology. Prior to SolarReserve, Mr. Hagenbuch worked at Boeing for over 11 years, where he was Deputy Program Manager for the A160 Hummingbird Program Unmanned Aerial System (UAS), which set several world records for rotorcraft UAS flight endurance. He also served in a variety of program management and business development positions covering satellite and rocket propulsion markets. Before Boeing, Mr. Hagenbuch worked for Owens Illinois, a leader in commercial glass and plastics, and led the startup of a prototype production facility producing next generation ink jet printer cartridges for the Hewlett-Packard Corporation.
Mr. Hagenbuch also served in the U.S. Navy for over 8 years, primarily as a Naval Flight Officer on E-2C Hawkeye aircraft on board the USS Ranger aircraft carrier. His flight experience included 44 combat missions totaling 175 hours in Operation Desert Storm and he was twice awarded an Air Medal with Valor for control of US and Coalition Force aircraft.
Mr. Hagenbuch received his Bachelor of Science (Magna Cum Laude) degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and his MBA from the University of Rochester.