About Us
About the company
LeapFast Manufacturing combines Advanced Manufacturing and Digital Twin technology to develop and deploy new manufacturing solutions rapidly. Through continuous internal development of these two approaches, we create the capability to address two emerging market needs. Our advanced manufacturing technologies enable us to build metal products in radically new ways, transforming the current supply chains. In parallel, with our computational expertise, we provide Digital Twin solutions for established manufacturing providers.
LeapFast Manufacturing Inc. was born out of a chance meeting between two researchers at a technical conference, each immersed in solving different challenges in friction stir welding. Though pursuing similar problems using fundamentally different approaches, and for entirely different end goals, we shared a common frustration: the inability to merge complementary capabilities within our institutional silos. For over a year, we attempted collaboration through traditional channels, only to find them inadequate for what we aimed to achieve.
That experience revealed a broader truth: advanced manufacturing technology rarely reaches the real world at the pace or scale it deserves. We realized that bringing transformative manufacturing innovations into widespread use requires rethinking both the purpose and the approach behind technology development. Most importantly, it’s not enough to insert a new process into an existing system. The system itself, its geography, supply chain, and foundational assumptions, must often be reimagined for technology to thrive in a world of continuous transformation.
With this conviction, a shared vision, and an ambition that reaches to the moon and back, we founded LeapFast Manufacturing Inc. We saw not just a company, but a vehicle for turning potential into performance, rapidly, intelligently, and with impact. Our journey has not been without its challenges. Chief among them is one we embrace: our aspirations often exceed our current resources. But belief, ingenuity, and execution have propelled us thus far, and they will continue to drive us forward.
Our Values: We value innovation, excellence, and sustainability, both technically and economically. People are at the heart of our work, guided always by integrity and trust.
LeapFast delivers tailored, high-performance manufacturing solutions, currently focused on solid-state processes, by combining rigorous hands-on development with high-throughput practices and efficient digital twin solutions. This approach ensures performance, efficiency, and financial feasibility from the outset. We’re advancing aluminum fabrication and processing, with plans to expand into other metals and materials. Our focus spans critical sectors including aerospace, defense, transportation, energy, and heavy industry. As we grow, our goal is not just to enhance existing manufacturing systems, but to reimagine where and how advanced technologies take root.
With eyes on the stars and feet firmly on solid ground, we’re always ready to LeapFast. Are you?
CEO Bio
From Driveways to Deep Space: A Journey of Grit, Growth, and the Power of “Can and Will”.
Every day is a gift, and that’s not just a mindset, it’s a way of life I carry with me into everything I do. Growing up in a rural corner of Northeast Ohio as the youngest of five boys, I learned early on what it meant to hold your ground and fight for what matters. Whether it was shoveling snow from driveways, landscaping door-to-door, or launching my first business selling canned drinks to classmates in seventh grade, I came to understand that grit is something you build, not something you’re born with.
That grit carried me through long nights and double shifts as a high school busboy, where I juggled work and studies while falling in love with engineering at the Medina County Career Center. I proudly served as engineering class president, convinced I had all the answers, until college humbled me and showed me just how much more there was to learn.
Perseverance became my closest companion during that time. Nearly 100 internship applications led to just one offer from a small but mighty company in Youngstown, Ohio. I seized the opportunity and soon found myself stepping into my mentor’s shoes while he recovered from surgery. That experience taught
me: show up, rise to the occasion, and growth will follow.
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One of my most defining moments came during my final undergraduate year when I stumbled across a job posting at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. I knew applying wouldn’t be enough, I had to go the extra mile. I tracked down the hiring manager, introduced myself, and followed the thread until I earned a spot in NASA’s competitive Pathways Co-Op program. For two years, I worked full-time and earned a master’s in Welding Engineering, but I wasn’t done yet.
With a growing passion for aerospace and a dream of pushing materials science forward, I set my sights on a PhD. During the time before I was eligible for employer endorsement of my PhD studies, I took a leap and started flight school, despite a lifelong battle with air sickness. From getting queasy on takeoff to earning my pilot’s license, I trained like a fighter pilot: spinning in chairs, chewing raw ginger, and refusing to give up.
Eventually, I earned a coveted sabbatical through NASA’s employee graduate study program and began my doctoral studies in Materials Science and Engineering. It meant living four hours away from my wife, making eight-hour round trips every other weekend just to be with her. It wasn’t easy, but nothing worthwhile ever is.
My personal journey was complemented by ten years of civil service at NASA as a Welding Engineer, developing advanced welding, additive manufacturing, and testing processes and In-Space Manufacturing Portfolio Manager leading NASA’s development of in-space electronics, welding, recycling, and verification technologies. Now the journey continues, not just as an engineer or scientist, but as a founder, a husband, a father, and an explorer of both ideas and the world itself. I’ve hiked through national parks, summited Mount Elbert, and stood in awe at the base of the Grand Canyon. Travel and connection have taught me that innovation isn’t just about technology, it’s about people, empathy, and resilience.
Welcoming my son into the world lit a new fire in me. Everything I do, from building LeapFast Manufacturing Inc. to charting the next great adventure, is fueled by a deep desire to create a better future for him and for all of us. The lesson I’ve carried through it all is simple, but powerful: we are capable of more than we know, and the path forward begins with the belief that we Can and Will.
– Zach Courtright, Co-Founder & CEO
CTO Bio
Kranthi Balusu, Chief Technology Officer at LeapFast, is an expert in engineering R&D with a proven track record. His career is distinguished by a consistent ability to introduce groundbreaking capabilities to every team he joins, a fact underscored by his publication record in multiple subfields. He developed this expertise over 10 years of research, including three years as a scientist at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and two years at Arizona State University. During this time, he led research projects supported by sponsors such as the Department of Energy, the Air Force Research Laboratory, the Office of Naval Research, the National Nuclear Security Administration, and numerous industry partners. These diverse collaborations provided him with a deep understanding of the technological needs and priorities across a wide range of stakeholders. His technical expertise spans advanced manufacturing, structural health monitoring, and the mechanics of materials, with a particular focus on optimizing the performance of metals, composites, and ceramics in extreme environments. Furthermore, he is a recognized expert in computational modeling, leveraging AI and machine learning to develop solutions that are both faster and more cost-effective. This blend of theoretical knowledge and practical application is grounded in Dr. Balusu’s strong academic foundation: a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Texas and a Bachelor’s degree in the same field from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras.
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As a technology leader, he fosters a culture of innovation, empowering his teams to evolve relentlessly and operate at the very edge of human capabilities. His extensive experience in applied research enables him to develop a comprehensive technology development roadmap that considers not only the technical intricacies but also the broader societal and economic factors. This ensures that LeapFast’s manufacturing technology advancements are not only groundbreaking but also commercially viable. His leadership is pivotal in translating LFM’s vision of enabling a new industrial revolution into a tangible reality.