Data Center Architect

Cloudflare•Austin, TX

3d•$158,000 - $205,000

About The Position

Cloudflare is hiring a senior individual-contributor Data Center Architect to define and deliver physical infrastructure for high-density compute and GPU deployments across its global network. The role owns three connected domains: liquid cooling, low-voltage connectivity, and medium- and low-voltage electrical architecture. It spans architecture, detailed design, technical qualification, design governance, commissioning, and operational readiness, serving as Cloudflare’s owner-side technical lead with colocation providers, equipment manufacturers, and delivery partners. Scope ranges from individual racks in commercial colocation facilities to multi-megawatt compute deployments, designing power, cooling, and cabling together as an integrated system. The architect develops reference designs and standards; translates hardware and capacity needs into engineering requirements; qualifies sites and facility interfaces; and leads electrical, cooling, and structured-cabling designs. The role also coordinates controls, resilience, delivery, commissioning, acceptance, sourcing, cost and efficiency improvements, and operational handover. Travel is required for assessments, vendor reviews, factory testing, commissioning, and deployment support, including international travel. The position is located in Austin, San Francisco, or New York. Compensation may vary by work location. Estimated annual salary is $165,000–$205,000 for San Francisco Bay Area hires and $158,000–$195,000 for New York hires. The role is eligible for Cloudflare’s equity plan. Applicants progressing to the offer stage may be asked to attend an in-person interview at a Cloudflare office or hub. The position may require access to information protected by U.S. export control laws, and an offer may be conditioned on authorization to receive controlled technology without export-license sponsorship.

Requirements

At least 8 years of experience in data center mechanical, electrical, or physical-layer infrastructure, critical-facility cooling, or structured cabling, including architecture or technical design leadership.
Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
Experience delivering liquid-cooled compute infrastructure from requirements through commissioning or production handover; conventional HVAC experience alone does not qualify.
Ability to create and review electrical single-line diagrams and schematics, with hands-on MV/LV system design experience covering protection, selectivity, and grounding.
Strong command of thermodynamics, heat transfer, fluid mechanics, hydraulic calculations, pump and heat-exchanger selection, and cooling performance under variable conditions.
Practical experience with CDUs, facility and technology cooling loops, rack distribution, coolant compatibility, leak detection, and interfaces between liquid-cooled hardware and facility systems.
Strong knowledge of copper Ethernet, single-mode and multimode fiber, patching systems, LC and MPO/MTP connectivity, optical loss budgets, polarity, cable management, and applicable test methods.
Experience in colocation environments, including cross-connect delivery, diverse physical paths, and practical constraints of working inside third-party facilities.
Ability to write and critically review basis-of-design documents, P&IDs, electrical and mechanical specifications, equipment selections, operating sequences, and test plans.
Working knowledge of NEC, NFPA, UL, mechanical and plumbing codes, TIA and ISO/IEC structured-cabling standards, relevant ASHRAE data-center guidance, and manufacturer operating requirements, and ability to apply them with qualified local engineering partners.
Experience evaluating resilience and maintainability, participating in commissioning, and resolving system-level problems across equipment and organizational boundaries.
Experience directing design consultants, contractors, installation partners, or remote hands, with clear ownership of technical decisions and acceptance outcomes.
Clear written and verbal communication across disciplines and time zones, and ability to run several projects with limited oversight.
Legally authorized to work in the United States on a continuing and permanent basis without company sponsorship.

Nice To Haves

Professional Engineer (PE), Chartered Engineer, or equivalent electrical or mechanical engineering registration.
BICSI RCDD, DCDC, or comparable credential.
Experience with high-density GPU platforms, OCP rack, power, and cooling interfaces, or qualification across multiple hardware and cooling suppliers.
Experience with hydraulic and electrical modeling tools such as AFT Fathom, PIPE-FLO, ETAP, or SKM; thermal or CFD modeling; and validation of models against measured performance.
Experience with high-density optical distribution, parallel optics, preterminated assemblies, and cabling transitions across successive network generations.
Experience with modular or prefabricated power or cooling infrastructure, live-site retrofits, DCIM platforms, automated connectivity or telemetry analysis, or lifecycle energy and water performance.
Familiarity with Cloudflare-relevant network environments, including optical transport, ISP interconnection, out-of-band management, and liquid-cooled rack integration.

Responsibilities

Own physical-infrastructure architecture and create reference designs for power, liquid cooling, and connectivity for AI and high-density compute at rack, row, and site levels; maintain standards, templates, and design libraries.
Translate hardware and capacity needs—including heat loads, electrical loads, port counts, network topologies, and growth plans—into engineering requirements and site and rack qualification criteria.
Assess provider power and cooling availability, utility and backup capacity, water conditions, hydraulic capacity, heat rejection, expansion headroom, maintenance constraints, and contractual boundaries; document risks and make go/no-go recommendations.
Lead medium- and low-voltage electrical architecture, including single-line diagrams, power distribution, switchgear and UPS topology, busway and PDU design, grounding, and bonding.
Design AC and DC power infrastructure, including power conversion, backup generation, energy storage, and distribution, considering fault levels, selectivity, and maintainability.
Validate electrical designs through load-flow, short-circuit, arc-flash, and selectivity studies, checking against measured performance where possible.
Define digital power monitoring, metering, protection-coordination, and control requirements; work with controls and operations teams on alarms, trend retention, remote monitoring, and BMS/SCADA integration.
Incorporate emerging electrical standards, including NEC, NFPA, UL, and OCP power and rack specifications, into designs.
Own the liquid-cooling architecture and roadmap; develop repeatable direct-to-chip designs and evaluate liquid-to-liquid, liquid-to-air, rear-door, and other approaches.
Design and validate hydraulic systems, including flow and pressure-drop calculations, pipe sizing, pump selection, balancing, and control requirements; validate partial-load, expansion, maintenance, and failure scenarios.
Specify and qualify CDUs, heat exchangers, pumps, manifolds, hoses, quick-disconnects, valves, and instrumentation; coordinate rack access, piping routes, service clearances, and installation sequencing across disciplines.
Set coolant integrity and serviceability requirements for fluid quality, material compatibility, cleanliness, filtration, corrosion control, condensation prevention, and leak detection; ensure safe and maintainable isolation, fluid handling, replacement, and servicing.
Own physical-layer connectivity architecture and reference designs for rack, row, cage, and site connectivity, including copper and fiber distribution, patch-panel placement, cross-connect demarcations, route diversity, and expansion capacity.
Specify and validate fiber and copper connectivity, media, connectors, trunks, cassettes, patching, optical loss budgets, connector counts, polarity, breakouts, bend radius, and hardware compatibility.
Produce buildable connectivity designs, including pathway layouts, fiber schedules, port-to-port patching plans, cable-length schedules, bills of materials, and installation specifications.
Qualify colocation and carrier infrastructure, including meet-me-room access, provider pathways, cross-connect options, demarcation points, and route diversity; define handoffs with providers, carriers, ISPs, and Cloudflare network strategy.
Coordinate white-space layouts for rack access, airflow, cooling pipes and manifolds, power segregation, pathway capacity, and expansion; coordinate supports, bonding, grounding, and firestopping with responsible disciplines and providers.
Design for resilience and controlled failure by evaluating redundancy, shared failure dependencies, cooling and power interruptions, and thermal ride-through; agree protective responses for equipment, control, sensor, leak, and power failures.
Define controls and operational visibility for temperatures, pressures, flows, power metering, leak alarms, equipment status, and capacity telemetry.
Act as owner-side design authority; own basis-of-design documents, single-line diagrams, P&IDs, schedules, interface requirements, scopes, responsibility matrices, review gates, and acceptance criteria.
Review partner designs and contractor submittals, resolve RFIs and technical disputes, and drive deviations to documented closure.
Guide contractors and remote hands through deployments, expansions, migrations, and remediation; coordinate installation sequencing, methods of procedure, change controls, and rollback plans with deployment and operations teams.
Define factory and site acceptance tests across electrical, cooling, and connectivity; track deficiencies and verify corrections before sign-off.
Maintain accurate infrastructure records and standards for labeling, connectivity, as-builts, power and cooling, patching, cross-connects, and test records; reconcile them with Cloudflare inventory and DCIM.
Oversee handover, including deficiency closure, operator training, maintenance procedures, spares, and turnover documentation before production.
Support sourcing through RFPs, technical bid evaluations, technical negotiations, supplier qualification, and lifecycle cost analysis; partner on prefabricated assemblies, preterminated cabling, rack integration, lead times, and labor-saving alternatives.
Evaluate phased deployment, consumption, and retrofit options to reduce energy and water use.
Investigate incidents and recurring installation defects with network and operations teams and use commissioning and operating results to improve designs, standards, and quality checks.
Travel for site assessments, vendor reviews, factory testing, commissioning, and deployment support, including international travel.

Benefits

Medical/Rx insurance
Dental insurance
Vision insurance
Flexible spending accounts
Commuter spending accounts
Fertility and family-forming benefits
On-demand mental health support and Employee Assistance Program
Global travel medical insurance
Short- and long-term disability insurance
Life and accident insurance
401(k) retirement savings plan
Employee stock participation plan
Flexible paid time off covering vacation and sick leave
Leave programs, including parental, pregnancy health, medical, and bereavement leave
Equity plan participation