Principal Structural Engineer, Data Center Design Engineering

Amazon Web Service (AWS) operates 123 Availability Zones (AZs) within 39 geographic Regions around the world. Amazon's AWS Data Centers (DCs) are a major component of worldwide cloud-computing infrastructure and are industry leading examples of critical facilities.

Architects and Engineers in AWS work to design resilient, cost-effective DC facilities. We are responsible for achieving a world-class uptime for our customers and drive to develop a fleet of buildings emphasizing security, safety, efficiency, and cost effectiveness, while finding new ways to meet AWS's growing demand. We justify and communicate the technical decisions we make to AWS leadership and work hard to drive continuous advancements in our designs. As an Architect/Engineer at AWS you will have the opportunity to impact changes in our current design, as well as establish design procedures and protocols for future systems.

As a Principal Structural Engineer you are a leader in your field, collaborating with and leading the work of cross-functional teams including: technical program management, product management, architecture, civil engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, supply chain management, operations, safety, security, finance, and legal. You will participate in external forums/consortiums to understand current trends and developments within the industry. Additionally, you will be a leader for global structural design strategy and development. This role will communicate the technical decisions we make to Senior Management and will drive continuous improvements with our designs.

Key job responsibilities

The Principal Structural Engineer will be responsible for the following:

• Provide technical oversight and governance of the global Basis of Design (BOD).
• Conceives, initiates, and leads special projects with widespread impact on AWS infrastructure design, environmental footprint, and implementation time.
• Be a leader and technical educator within internal and external Amazon teams supporting our existing DCs and ongoing planning, design and construction projects.
• Collaborate with internal partner teams to define building requirements and be a technical source for all building structural attributes.
• Decompose complex structural issues relating to existing buildings or projects in construction into straightforward and actionable solutions and drive resolution of mitigation measures.
• Develop strategic prototypical building solutions which meet or exceed our quality requirements and drive value engineering and standardization of interior infrastructure support systems, building superstructure, and cladding systems.
• Serve as a technical advisor for AWS DC design projects including; review of foundation and structural systems, evaluating superstructure design options, and assessing structural calculation assumptions.
• Maintain and host collaborative technical meetings to provide a venue for generating innovative and environmentally sustainable solutions for global deployment.
• Collaborate with local regulatory agencies and certification agencies to ensure compliance with federal, state and municipal requirements and building codes.

About the team

The Design Quality Assurance (DQA) team is a team within AWS Design Engineering Americas (DE-AMER) focused on ensuring quality and consistency across data center designs at scale. The team standardizes design execution for new products and innovations, maintains technical communications, drives continuous improvement of design documents, and serves as the primary DE liaison with product/solutions teams. Staffed by principal and senior level SMEs across core disciplines, the DQA team shepherds first-article designs, facilitates technology intercepts, and mentors the broader DE organization to prevent errors from propagating across the fleet.