Back
Defence

Highwater Bolsters its Leadership Team with Three Seasoned Hires

Highwater

Dave Whitcomb, Scott McMurtry, and Andy Davis appointed to lead functional and geographic areas to support company’s growth trajectory


PORTLAND, Ore.--BUSINESS WIRE--

Highwater (the “Company”), a leading provider of naval services to the U.S., Australian, and Allied navies, today announced the appointments of Dave Whitcomb as Chief Operating Officer and Scott McMurtry as Chief Financial Officer of Highwater, and Andy Davis as Chief Executive Officer of Highwater Australia. All three executives will report to Steve Zogas, Highwater’s global CEO. Highwater is a portfolio company of Arlington Capital Partners, a Washington, D.C.-area private investment firm specializing in defense and government-regulated industries.

In their new roles supporting Highwater’s growth, Dave will be responsible for all aspects of customer delivery, quality, and safety; Scott will be responsible for financial reporting and analysis, internal controls, and business systems; and Andy will lead the Company’s operations in Australia and the Western Pacific.

“I am thrilled to welcome Dave, Scott, and Andy to Highwater to support the significant growth opportunities that are ahead of us,” said Steve Zogas, CEO of Highwater. “In addition to continued inorganic investment, we are investing resources into the infrastructure and capabilities of the business to build the premier specialist naval services organization for Allied navies worldwide. These appointments will help us continue to deliver a comprehensive suite of specialist capabilities in a coordinated fashion to meet the growing needs of our customers.”

Highwater was formed in 2026 through the acquisition of Eptec Defence and AMP United, two leading providers of naval preservation services. In July, the Company announced the acquisition of Taylor Bros, the leading naval outfitting and habitability company in Australia. Highwater is also growing its geographic footprint in the US and Australia.

Prior to joining Highwater, Dave served as COO of Vigor Industrial, a leading full-service ship repair provider for the defense and commercial sectors. In addition to his proven leadership capabilities, Dave brings more than 30 years of experience acquiring, integrating, and growing ship repair businesses and supporting service organizations in the naval ecosystem.

Scott previously served as VP of Finance and Director of Accounting at Vigor Industrial for over 10 years, where he worked with Steve and Dave. Before Vigor, Scott held finance and tax roles at Behr Paint and Grant Thornton.

Andy joins Highwater Australia with over 35 years of executive leadership experience across defence, engineering, and maritime sustainment. Previously, he served as MD Defence and more recently Executive Director AUKUS & Strategic Growth at Babcock Australasia, where he was responsible for spearheading strategic growth with the Australian and New Zealand navies, as well as crafting the company’s strategy for AUKUS. Previously, Andy held leadership roles at UGL and Naval Ship Management.

About Highwater

Highwater is a leading global naval services company supporting Allied Naval readiness across the U.S. and Australia. For more than 25 years, Highwater has delivered maintenance, repair, and modernization services that keep fleets mission ready and on schedule. With dedicated presence across key naval hubs in the U.S. and Australia, Highwater supports submarines, carriers, surface combatants, and support vessels with trusted and proven defense-focused expertise. For more information, visit Highwater’s website at www.Highwater.com.


Contact details:

Media Contact
Ryan Fitzgibbon
Prosek Partners
[email protected]