No comments and low rating, at the start you have to keep letting your hq die while lathing stuff until they die.
There's no need for your HQ to die at all.
Edit: ... although perhaps I'm not the best one to offer an opinion. My original strategy and my improved version...
Spoiler
First play: I did this when it first went up, and must have sacrificed the HQ a few times - my old time was much like yours, six or seven minutes.
After reading your comment: Start taking out Emitters. The lower-right first, then the middle (using the plasma to buy the extra time needed). Then build an energy mine on the right, for 1 eps. This can keep the HQ charged. As it zapped the rest of the structures, Emitters first, I realised there was a Lathe to be built. From there, it was easy, though a Doppel or two did spawn.
Improvement: After that, I tried a few variants, and ended up using the same start (micromanaged for speed) followed by lathe and energy management.
I doubt that the top score is entirely legal.
Edit:
Spoiler
Out of interest as to how the top score was obtained, I tried an edited version, with a particle cap of 0. That's actually slower, because the land can't be mired.