[4] Kirchner began his career as a metallurgist and worked with the Union Carbide/Cabot Stellite Division, now known as Haynes International, for 18 years.
[4] During this time, he obtained several patents and played an instrumental role in the development of Hastelloy C-276.
[4][7] The company was established during an economic downturn and initially focused on distributing sawed bars and plate capabilities.
[4] However, by the late 1980s, it had transitioned to manufacturing plates, sheets, bars, and forgings.
[4] After 25 years as president of High Performance Alloys, Kirchner retired in 2009.