Senior Mechanical Engineer

Microsoft • Charlotte, NC

5d • Onsite

About The Position

Microsoft’s Cloud Operations & Innovation (CO+I) organization operates the infrastructure behind Microsoft’s online services, including Azure. The Senior Mechanical Engineer serves as the on-site technical authority for mechanical infrastructure at Microsoft data centers in the Charlotte Metro. The role ensures the safe, reliable, efficient, and compliant operation of critical mechanical systems while supporting 24x7x365 data center operations alongside Information Technology and Critical Environment teams.

Systems supported include chilled-water plants and thermal storage; air-handling and airflow systems; liquid cooling for high-density compute; evaporative and adiabatic cooling and water treatment; generator fuel and engine-cooling systems; and interfaces with fire protection and building management systems. The engineer provides leadership in operations, maintenance, incident response, water efficiency, vendor oversight, construction, commissioning, and continuous improvement. Success is measured by the safe operation, reliability, availability, efficiency, and improvement of critical mechanical infrastructure.

Requirements

• Doctorate in Mechanical Engineering or a related field; or a master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related field and 3+ years of related technical engineering experience; or a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related field and 4+ years of related technical engineering experience; or equivalent experience.
• Ability to meet Microsoft, customer, and/or government security screening requirements, including passing the Microsoft Cloud Background Check upon hire or transfer and every two years thereafter.

Nice To Haves

• 10+ years of related technical engineering experience; or a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related field and 8+ years of related technical engineering experience; or a master’s degree and 6+ years; or a doctorate and 4+ years; or equivalent experience.
• Experience operating or maintaining mission-critical facilities such as data centers, hospitals, semiconductor facilities, or manufacturing plants.
• Hands-on knowledge of chilled-water, air-handling, liquid-cooling, and evaporative-cooling systems, including psychrometrics, thermodynamics, and fluid dynamics.
• Experience with building management systems, control sequences, and trend analysis.
• Experience leading water-efficiency or water-treatment programs.
• Experience managing vendors, OEMs, and service contractors.
• Professional Engineer license or ability to obtain one.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the technical authority for on-site operation of large-scale mechanical systems and designs, and approve mechanical MOPs, MSOWs, and high-risk maintenance activities.
• Review Technical Service Bulletins and coordinate with CE Operations Managers and CE Program Managers to prioritize, schedule, mitigate risks, and execute corrective actions.
• Participate in Change Advisory Board reviews and provide technical approval for changes affecting critical mechanical infrastructure.
• Establish and coordinate maintenance and safety procedures for redundant cooling systems and backup-power mechanical systems.
• Review preventive maintenance activities and reports for compliance with manufacturer requirements and Microsoft standards.
• Monitor and trend mechanical performance through the BMS, analyze alarms, validate control sequences and setpoints, and drive reliability initiatives.
• Lead response to mechanical incidents, conduct root-cause analyses, and drive corrective and preventive actions to completion; support rotational on-call duties and high-severity incidents.
• Own site Water Usage Effectiveness performance, track water consumption, identify savings, and improve evaporative cooling, cycles of concentration, makeup, and blowdown controls.
• Work with water-treatment vendors on water chemistry, Legionella risk management, and sump and basin cleaning; support PUE optimization and sustainability working groups.
• Select and oversee mechanical suppliers and contractors; hold OEMs and contractors accountable for safety, quality, scope, and schedule; review reports, quotes, and work scopes; manage escalations, warranties, and critical spare-parts strategies.
• Collaborate with Operations and Design teams on mechanical designs for new builds and major upgrades, from project conception through issue for construction.
• Manage equipment lifecycle and obsolescence planning, cooling-capacity planning, and system-reliability improvement programs.
• Maintain engineering documentation, building modifications, as-built drawings, and asset records in Microsoft systems and repositories.
• Promote safety, security, and compliance; mentor and train Critical Environment technicians and engineers; drive continuous improvement and coach Microsoft culture and values.
• Partner with Design, Construction, Commissioning, and Operations teams through project delivery and turnover; conduct site inspections, punch walks, and operational-readiness reviews.
• Review mechanical designs, submittals, OEM documentation, test-and-balance reports, and commissioning results for operational suitability and maintainability.
• Participate in Level 3–5 commissioning, including integrated systems testing, and validate system performance before production service.
• Ensure operating procedures, training, documentation, BMS readiness, and turnover deliverables are complete before facility acceptance; support safe and reliable integration of new infrastructure.

Benefits

• Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation; additional benefits and pay information is available through the company’s careers website.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior