Senior Certification Engineer

Gradian Thermal Solutions•Maple Grove, MN

2d•$115,000 - $145,000•Onsite

About The Position

Gradian is seeking a Senior Certification Engineer to lead product certification and regulatory compliance strategy across its liquid cooling, air handling, and chiller product lines. The role owns certification planning from concept through sustaining engineering, translates standards and regulatory requirements into actionable design inputs, and coordinates testing, technical documentation, agency submissions, audits, and product release readiness. The engineer works with NPD, R&D, Test & Integration, Quality, Operations, Product Management, suppliers, accredited laboratories, and certification bodies to secure and maintain market access while managing certification risk, cost, and schedule impact. The position is based at Gradian’s Maple Grove, Minnesota office. Gradian designs and manufactures thermal-management solutions for data centers and other mission-critical, commercial, and industrial markets, including liquid cooling systems, air handling equipment, heat rejection units, and modular factory-assembled systems. The role requires periodic travel to laboratories, suppliers, manufacturing sites, and customer locations.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or a related discipline; equivalent relevant experience may be considered.
Seven or more years of experience in product certification, product safety, regulatory compliance, HVACR, industrial equipment, data-center cooling, or a closely related engineering environment.
Demonstrated ownership of certification projects from requirements definition through testing, findings resolution, approval, and sustaining compliance.
Working knowledge of North American certification frameworks and codes, including UL, cUL, CSA, NEC, NFPA, and NRTL processes.
Ability to interpret and apply standards to complex electromechanical products involving fluid systems, pressure boundaries, controls, motors, drives, heat exchangers, fans, pumps, or refrigeration components.
Experience preparing certification plans, compliance matrices, test plans, technical construction files, agency submittals, and clear test reports.
Ability to review electrical schematics, wiring diagrams, engineering drawings, bills of material, specifications, P&IDs, labels, and installation documentation.
Strong project management, technical writing, root-cause analysis, negotiation, and cross-functional leadership skills.
Ability to travel periodically to laboratories, suppliers, manufacturing sites, and customer locations.

Nice To Haves

Direct experience certifying coolant distribution units, direct-to-chip or immersion liquid-cooling equipment, including application of UL/CAN/IEC 62368-1 and UL/CAN/IEC 60335-2-40.
Experience with air-handling units, fan systems, coils, heat exchangers, or related AHRI certification programs and ASHRAE test methods.
Experience with air-cooled and water-cooled chillers, AHRI 550/590, refrigerant safety, low-GWP refrigerants, and applicable energy-efficiency requirements.
Knowledge of UL 508A industrial control panels, component recognition, short-circuit current ratings, NEC/NFPA 70, and NFPA 79, as applicable.
Experience with pressure equipment compliance, including ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, pressure-vessel registration, pressure piping, or CE/UKCA pressure-equipment requirements.
Experience with global conformity assessment and market access, including IEC/IECEE CB, CE, UKCA, EMC, machinery, RoHS, REACH, WEEE, ecodesign, and environmental documentation.
Experience with certification-body factory inspections, follow-up services, quality-system interfaces, supplier compliance, and engineering-change control.
Participation in standards committees or industry groups such as AHRI, ASHRAE, UL Standards & Engagement, CSA, IEC, or Open Compute Project.
Professional Engineer licensure, product-safety certification, project-management credential, or auditor qualification.

Responsibilities

Own certification strategy, scope, budgets, schedules, and deliverables for new-product development, product changes, and sustaining programs across liquid cooling, air handling, and chiller platforms.
Determine applicable North American and international requirements based on product architecture, voltage, refrigerant or coolant, pressure boundary, controls, installation, and target market; document the rationale in certification plans and compliance matrices.
Serve as the technical interface with Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratories, certification bodies, AHRI, authorities having jurisdiction, external test laboratories, customers, and suppliers.
Lead product-safety certification projects, including applicable UL/cUL/CSA and IEC requirements, and address relevant requirements such as UL/CAN/IEC 62368-1, UL/CAN/IEC 60335-2-40, and UL 1995.
Lead performance certification and rating activities for applicable air and chiller products, including relevant AHRI programs and standards such as AHRI 550/590.
Define and review compliance test plans covering electrical safety, mechanical integrity, pressure and leak performance, abnormal operation, thermal performance, controls, EMC, environmental, reliability, and product-specific requirements.
Review schematics, layouts, bills of material, drawings, P&IDs, software or controls requirements, labels, installation instructions, and technical files; identify gaps and drive corrective actions with engineering teams.
Coordinate prototypes, witness testing, agency evaluations, deviations, findings, retests, and final submittals; resolve technical issues through root-cause analysis and engineering judgment.
Create and maintain certification records, declarations, certificates, test reports, construction files, critical-component lists, compliance matrices, and product-family documentation with configuration control and traceability.
Ensure certification evidence is complete before product release and manage follow-up services, factory inspections, annual audit testing, engineering changes, alternate components, certificate renewals, and product discontinuations.
Support global market access as required, including CE and UKCA conformity activities and applicable electrical safety, EMC, machinery, pressure equipment, ecodesign, RoHS, REACH, WEEE, and refrigerant requirements.
Monitor changes to codes, regulations, and standards; communicate product and schedule impacts, update internal design guidance, and represent Gradian in relevant industry committees or working groups.
Develop reusable certification processes, checklists, templates, approved-component strategies, and lessons learned to improve first-pass success, cost, schedule predictability, and organizational capability.
Mentor engineers and cross-functional partners on certification requirements, design-for-compliance practices, documentation quality, and risk-based decision making.