On a quiet industrial street in Palm Springs, Next-Machina is building something remarkable from start to finish.
The outside of the facility is quiet. Inside, it’s anything but. That’s where the design, welding, CNC machining, mold making, composites, thermoforming, painting, and final assembly are happening side by side.
It’s where specialized electric vehicles and basalt-fiber modular housing systems are being iterated, built, and tested.
“The desert itself is a test lab,” says Antonio Carvajal, founder of Next-Machina. “When we validate a composite panel or a vehicle in high temperatures, we know it will successfully perform anywhere in the country.”
A TWO-DIVISION MANUFACTURER BUILT FROM ONE IDEA
The vertically integrated manufacturer operates two divisions from the same Palm Springs facility. The electric vehicle division builds specialized models, including light electric utility vehicles for personal and commercial use and the Carvon 1, a Class 4 electric work truck. The housing division builds Bastion, a modular building system made from basalt-fiber composite panels that can assemble into structures of varying sizes.
That all-under-one-roof approach has been important to Carvajal, who recognizes that this kind of industrial setup can’t be found everywhere…especially in California.
“The space and environment afforded by the Greater Palm Springs area has helped Next-Machina move toward production,” Carvajal says. “Industrial space here let us do something that’s nearly impossible in coastal California: put design, welding, CNC machining, mold making, composites, thermoforming and paint under one roof.”
The result? Next-Machina can iterate in days, not months, because each stage of the process remains inside the building.
FROM VEHICLE DESIGN TO A BROADER MANUFACTURING PLATFORM
The vertically integrated, fast-paced operation now known as Next-Machina didn’t happen overnight. Instead, Carvajal has spent decades perfecting his processes.
The current company grew out of Carvajal Motorsports, where he spent more than 20 years designing and building vehicles, including his first electric truck in 2012.
“Next-Machina is the evolution of that work into full-scale manufacturing,” Carvajal adds.
Today, Next-Machina applies many of the same disciplines, including lightweight materials, advanced composites, fabrication, structural design, and in-house assembly to both mobility and housing.
That shared manufacturing strategy makes the Palm Springs facility even more important. Basalt fiber is used across both sides of the business, giving Next-Machina a common foundation for two very different markets.
“It’s the thread that connects everything,” he explains. “It's a mineral-based structural fiber we use across both vehicles and buildings, and developing it as a core material is central to how we compete.”
That commonality is part of what makes the Palm Springs facility so important. The company can refine the material, adapt it across product lines, and test the results without sending each stage of development to a different vendor, city or state.
A CALIFORNIA MANUFACTURING REBUTTAL
For Carvajal, Next-Machina’s story reaches beyond one company. It challenges the assumption that advanced manufacturing can no longer work in the state.
“Next-Machina’s experience proves you can still build sophisticated hardware in California – vehicles, batteries, advanced composites – if you own your whole process and have the room to do it,” Carvajal says. “Greater Palm Springs offers the physical scale and cost basis to be vertically integrated, which is exactly what advanced manufacturing needs and exactly what coastal metros can no longer offer.”
With its manufacturing operations running smoothly for both divisions, Next-Machina is preparing for its next chapter – publicly debuting a new vehicle platform this November.
While Carvajal uses Palm Springs as a testing ground for Next-Machina’s products, his company has become a proof point for Greater Palm Springs.
“We’re proof that the region can be a place where things are engineered and built, not just enjoyed,” he says.
About Greater Palm Springs
In the heart of California’s Coachella Valley, Greater Palm Springs — comprising the nine cities of Desert Hot Springs, Palm Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, La Quinta, Coachella, and Indio, plus unincorporated areas of Riverside County and five Tribal nations — is a vibrant region where cultural heritage and innovation come together with a spirit of regional collaboration that supports economic development and creates opportunities for businesses to start, grow, and thrive.
