ENGINEER - RESEARCH ENGINEER - Thermal Engineer

Who We Are:

We are a collaborative, agile team of engineers within Southwest Research Institute dedicated to advancing science and applying technology for the benefit of government and industry. We develop next-generation thermal and fluid systems across data center cooling, energy and power, aerospace, aviation, and defense—delivering objective, high-impact solutions to complex engineering challenges.

Objectives of this Role:

• Provide engineering support for research projects on thermal systems involving heat transfer and complex fluid phenomena.
• Topic areas include data center cooling, space thermal management, electronics cooling, HVAC and other energy/water nexus topics.
• Lead experimental research projects in a laboratory setting.
• Provide design solutions for thermal management systems and/or fluid systems using analytical and computational approaches.
• Develop innovative solutions for commercial and government clients on the world’s challenges in the energy-water nexus.

Daily and Monthly Responsibilities:

• Lead bench- and pilot-scale thermal-fluid experiments, including design of flow loops; integration of pumps, heat exchangers, cold plates, chillers, CDUs; installation of temperature/pressure/flow instrumentation; and commissioning of safe, fully integrated test systems.
• Develop and operate LabVIEW-based data acquisition and control systems; automate test sequences; monitor performance in real time; and conduct data reduction, analysis, visualization, and uncertainty quantification using MATLAB and/or Python.
• Design and optimize thermal management and fluid systems using first principles, analytical methods, and CFD tools (e.g., ANSYS Fluent, STAR-CCM+); validate models with experimental data for data centers, space systems, electronics cooling, HVAC, and energy-water applications.
• Manage multiple concurrent technical projects, including planning, budgeting, scheduling, documentation, and technical/financial performance; prepare test plans and reports; present results to stakeholders and at national/international conferences.
• Apply relevant standards (e.g., ASHRAE, AHRI) to design and testing; communicate complex findings effectively; support proposal development and customer engagement; identify new research opportunities; and maintain safe laboratory operations.

Requirements:

• Requires a Masters or a PhD in Mechanical Engineering or related field.
• 0-5 years: Dissertation or thesis must be related to one of the following fields: thermal management design in data center cooling, space thermal fluids, electronics cooling, HVAC, or energy-water systems.
• 1 years: For those with unrelated dissertation or thesis, 1 year of industry experience in a thermal engineering role is required.
• Experience in LabVIEW for data acquisition and control and CFD tools (e.g., ANSYS Fluent, STAR-CCM+) for modeling and optimization is preferred.