President

Kiel Davis has over 24 years experience in developing electromechanical systems from early concept through to flight. His responsibilities include project management, company resource management, business development, mechanical and electrical design, control systems design, software development, systems implementation and testing of advanced automated and complex engineering systems. His work on space missions, including the Mars Exploration Rovers’ Rock Abrasion Tool, the Mars Phoenix Lander’s Icy Sample Acquisition Device, and the Mars Science Laboratory’s Surface Removal Tool provide him with an in-depth understanding of the challenges and difficulties inherent in designing mechanisms for long life in harsh environments. He holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from University of Rochester and an M.S. in Systems Engineering from Polytechnic University. Kiel started on ground floor level at Honeybee as administrative assistant in 1996 and became President in 2011.

VP, Engineering

Erik Mumm has over 18 years experience in electro-mechanical systems design, development, and test for NASA programs. In tandem with the Chief Engineer, Mr. Mumm chairs internal design reviews and ensures Honeybee’s technical standards are followed and continuously improved upon. Most recently he has acted as technical lead on a robotic Sample Manipulation System for NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory. His responsibilities since joining Honeybee in 2002 include mechanism and systems design of flight hardware, controls and software development, flight operations support, extensive laboratory and field testing. He holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Nebraska.

Quality Control System Director

Sase Singh has over 27 years of experience in electro-mechanical systems at Honeybee as a project engineer, software developer, quality engineer, program manager, and as of 2011, the Quality Manager. He is responsible for ensuring Honeybee maintains its high level of quality and, as appropriate, works with the various process owners to establish and implement new and improved processes. He holds a B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from the City College of New York.

VP, Exploration Technology Group

Dr. Kris Zacny is VP of Exploration Systems (EX) and Senior Research Scientist at Honeybee Robotics. His interests include space mining, In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU), extraterrestrial drilling and sampling, and planetary geotechnical engineering. He co-founded EX, based in Altadena, CA to focus on developing space mining robots for the Solar System exploration and utilization. EX has grown from 2 to over 100 employees in less than 10 years.

In his previous capacity as an engineer in South African underground gold, diamond, and coal mines, Dr. Zacny managed numerous mining projects and production divisions. This hands-on experience became invaluable in developing such technologies for Space.

Dr. Zacny received his PhD from UC Berkeley (2005) in Geotechnical Engineering with an emphasis on Extraterrestrial Drilling and Mining, ME from UC Berkeley (2001) in Petroleum Engineering with emphasis on Drilling and Materials Science, and BSc cum laude from U. of Cape Town (1997) in Mechanical Engineering.

He participated in several Antarctic, Arctic, Atacama, and Greenland expeditions. Dr Zacny has over 200 publications including several books, he has been a Principal Investigator on over 50 projects, he has over 40 NASA New Technology Records and several NASA Group Achievement Awards.

Director, Advanced Systems

Andrew Maurer brings 15 years of experience in spacecraft instruments, mechanisms, and attitude control systems. At Honeybee since 2014, he is responsible for the Motion Control business unit, overseeing strategy and execution, as well as program management and customer satisfaction. He works with HBR’s customers to understand their specific needs and the needs of the industry and directs the business to create product lines and bespoke solutions that answer those needs. His team supports business development, capture, and proposal efforts. Andrew holds B.S. degrees in Applied Physics and Aeronautical Engineering and an M.S. degree in Astronautical Engineering from Purdue University.

Director, Human Resources

Sarah Tye is the Director of Human Resources for Honeybee Robotics. She leads all aspects of the company’s HR function including recruitment, employee relations, training, development, compensation and benefits for the company. Sarah has a wealth of experience in the aerospace and high-tech industries. Her background and knowledge cover all areas of human resources, including compensation, benefits, employee relations, policy administration, succession planning, employment law and talent acquisition.

Sarah joined Honeybee in 2018. Prior to joining Honeybee, she held human resources leadership positions at Seagate, Pitney Bowes and Waterstone Environmental. Sarah has a B.S. in Biology and Environmental Sciences from the University of Colorado and is a certified professional in HR through HRCI.

Director of Contracts and Supply Chain

Caitlin King has 9 years of experience in the aerospace industry working with government and commercial contracts and subcontracts. Since joining Honeybee in 2017, her responsibilities include leading and evolving company compliance processes, supporting the business development team, and ongoing monitoring of customer contracts to ensure performance and execution. Ms. King’s areas of expertise include government regulation compliance, negotiation, contract risk mitigation, and supply chain process development, both customer and vendor facing. She holds a B.S. in Geological Sciences from the University of California, Santa Barbara and an MBA from Seattle University. 

Chief Engineer Motion Control

Ron Hayes has over 25 years of experience in developing electromechanical mechanisms for challenging requirements including space-qualified systems. His responsibilities include ensuring that projects are planned and conducted with sound engineering practices, reviewing technical concepts for major projects, resolution of technical issues, and business development tasks. Mr. Hayes’ experience spans mechanical design, electrical design, system design and integration, standard testing practices, materials, manufacturing techniques, software design, root cause analysis, mathematical modeling and computer simulation. Previous positions include Chief Engineer for Electro-Mechanical Systems at SpaceDev – Starsys Inc., Senior Design Engineer at Electrotec Corp and Research Scientist at Langley Research Center. He has played a lead role in providing dozens of spacecraft mechanisms for flight missions including solar array drives, gimbals, and other electro-mechanical mechanisms incorporating motors, transmissions, bearings, slip rings, and other subsystems. He holds a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Ron is a lover of puppies, especially wiener dogs!

Chief Engineer Motors

Scott Starin has nearly 40 years of experience deigning motors and motion control components for the Aerospace industry. He has extensive component and system engineering experience in demanding high performance / high reliability applications. He has authored 14 technical papers for NASA and the European Space Agency and has two US patents for passive sensing components. Scott founded Avior Control Technologies in 2010 and joined the EBI – Honeybee Robotics team in 2018, and now serves as the Vice President of the Avior Product Group at Honeybee. Current responsibilities include business development, customer interaction, product development and staff consultant for other Motion Control Group applications. Scott has a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Nova Southeastern University.