Mechanical Engineer Data Center - Customer Focused Team

Ecolab Inc.•San Francisco, OH

2d•$150,000 - $200,000•Onsite

About The Position

The Mechanical Engineer on the Customer Focused Team works closely with a key customer and an advanced team to understand customer needs, use cases, and product requirements; agree on project scope and initial design direction; and remain a core team member throughout the Coolant Distribution Unit (CDU) design and new product introduction (NPI) lifecycle. The role makes major contributions to mechanical design and collaborates with internal and external teams to keep customer interests central throughout product development. The position leads early-stage CDU design and concept development, builds performance models, evaluates design concepts, and supports prototype construction and testing. The engineer produces design documentation, reviews and approves engineering work, and contributes to improving CDU performance, reliability, cost, and efficiency. The role also involves working with industry groups on emerging standards and mentoring junior team members. The role is based in the San Francisco Bay Area, with frequent travel to customer facilities and up to 30% domestic and international travel, including to CoolIT headquarters in Calgary, Alberta. The stated salary range is $150,000–$200,000, dependent on experience and skills.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Engineering Physics, or a directly related discipline.
At least 7 years of relevant engineering and/or design experience.
Excellent verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills.
Excellent time-management and organizational skills.
Strong analysis, problem-solving, and risk-mitigation skills.
Thermo-mechanical design calculation skills, including heat transfer, fluid mechanics, piping design, and HVAC.
Proficiency with CAD software such as SolidWorks for detailed mechanical designs and drawings.
Knowledge of heat transfer fundamentals in liquid-to-liquid and liquid-to-air systems.
Understanding of hydraulic and gas-fluid behavior, particularly for liquid-cooling heat-transfer systems; ability to build first-order fluid network models from component performance curves and predict system-level pressure-flow curves.
Knowledge of datacenter design basics, relevant standards, and facility design or operation best practices.
Knowledge of process piping, P&IDs, and building mechanical design, particularly HVAC and fluid transfer.
Understanding of pump, motor, heat exchanger, and sensor selection, testing, and validation.
Knowledge of technical product and design review, including competitive benchmarking, performance, estimated cost, design for manufacturability, design for assembly, and design for service.
Experience with engineering change management for NPI and sustaining products.
Strong sense of urgency and responsiveness, with the ability to drive projects to closure.
Ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams, customers, and external partners.
Ability to understand customer needs and translate them into functional engineering requirements that guide product design.
Ability to provide technical leadership in complex projects with cross-functional teams.
Ability to perform engineering design calculations and FEA simulations for fluid mechanical, thermal, and/or seismic analyses.
Ability to travel domestically and internationally.
Position is located in the San Francisco Bay Area and may require frequent trips to key customer facilities in the area.

Nice To Haves

Professional engineering designation, or eligibility to obtain one in California within 12 months.
Experience in the datacenter, high-performance computing, or liquid-cooling industries.
Experience in customer-facing roles such as technical sales, key account management, consulting, or engineering roles with frequent customer interaction.
Experience in product design, technical sales, or engineering of thermal management and heat-transfer solutions, fluid dynamics, datacenter, or HVAC products.
Experience with rapid-prototyping manufacturing techniques and testing thermal/mechanical components or assemblies; familiarity with laboratory data-collection equipment.
Familiarity with NPI product design, PLM, and PDM processes and their role in engineering change management.
Proficiency with finite-element computer simulations such as CFD, heat transfer, and stress/strain analysis.
Experience with seismic analysis.
Knowledge of Design for Lean Six Sigma or related statistical product-design methodologies.

Responsibilities

Develop and maintain excellent working relationships with the key customer.
Lead early-stage NPI design of CDUs during concept development, supporting agreement on product specifications, requirements, and design approach.
Contribute substantially to initial product design using thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and mechanical engineering, including accurate performance models for product architecture and design decisions.
Support rapid design iteration through technology assessments, feasibility analyses, and proofs of concept.
Oversee construction and testing of thermal, hydraulic, and integrated assembly prototypes for validation.
Create engineering drawings, reports, design reviews, and other documentation to communicate design concepts, test results, and recommendations.
Collaborate with core teams, customers, and industry partners to deliver CDU designs on time and in alignment with market needs.
Review and approve designs, drawings, and other engineering documentation.
Advance CDU component and system design to improve CoolIT’s competitive position.
Collaborate with industry groups to define and influence emerging standards and best practices.
Identify ways to improve CDU performance, reliability, cost, and efficiency.
Mentor and guide junior team members.
Travel domestically and internationally to CoolIT headquarters, customer sites, and industry conferences and trade shows; travel may be up to 30%.

Benefits

Generous paid time off, flex days, and a paid company-wide holiday-season shutdown.
Comprehensive benefits plan, with most premiums funded by CoolIT.
Company-funded 401(k) contributions.
Annual professional development allowance.
Medical, dental, and vision insurance.
Life, accident, critical illness, hospital indemnity, auto, home, and pet insurance.
Identity theft protection.
Short-term and long-term disability.
Pension plans and retirement health care benefits.
Short-term incentives.
Vacation (12 days) and holidays.
Parental leave.
Employee stock purchase plans for full-time associates.
Discounts on daycare and caregiver services.
Adoption assistance.
Group legal services.
Employee assistance program.
Employee discount program.
Education assistance program.
On-site childcare and fitness facilities may be available at select Ecolab locations.