Senior Mechanical Design Engineer

Altera Corporation; Malaysia; On-site; MYR 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Altera Corporation is seeking a Senior Mechanical Engineer in Penang, Malaysia, to lead the mechanical design and thermal engineering of engineering validation boards and FPGA platforms. You will translate system requirements into robust, manufacturable hardware through concept, CAD, simulation, and production release.

The role requires 10+ years of hands-on experience with electronics platforms, Creo/SolidWorks, and thermal modeling.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering or related field; advanced degree is a plus.
• 10+ years of professional experience in mechanical design for electronics platforms.
• Proficiency with Creo and/or SolidWorks for complex designs.
• Hands-on experience with thermal simulation tools such as ANSYS Icepak, FloTHERM, or CFD.
• Strong knowledge of heat transfer, thermal management, and measurement techniques.
• Experience designing mechanical solutions around PCBs, PCIe cards, and system interfaces.
• Knowledge of manufacturing processes (CNC, sheet metal, injection molding).
• Ability to lead across multiple projects and collaborate with global teams.

Responsibilities

• Own mechanical architecture for boards and platforms, balancing performance, cost, and manufacturability.
• Create 3D CAD designs and production drawings using Creo and/or SolidWorks.
• Develop heatsink and thermal-management solutions for high-power designs.
• Perform thermal simulations and correlate with lab measurements.
• Lead tolerance analysis and design-for-reliability assessments.
• Drive design execution from concept to release with cross-functional teams.
• Plan bring-up and validation activities including environmental testing.
• Collaborate with electrical, silicon, and manufacturing teams to resolve constraints.
• Engage suppliers and contract manufacturers on DFM/DFA and tooling.
• Mentor engineers and raise design and simulation standards.
• Maintain CAD databases, drawings, specs, and validation data.

Skills

Leadership

Cross-functional skills

Communication

Mentoring

Education

Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering

Advanced degree a plus

Tools

Creo

SolidWorks

ANSYS Icepak

FloTHERM

CFD

Job description

Position Overview

Altera is seeking an experienced Senior Mechanical Engineer to lead the mechanical design and thermal engineering of engineering validation boards, FPGA platform prototypes, PCIe cards, accessories cards, and Altera Development Kits. This role converts system, board, package, power, and application requirements into robust, manufacturable hardware solutions—from early concept and CAD architecture through simulation, prototype build, validation, and production release. The ideal candidate brings 10+ years of hands‑on experience, strong technical judgment, and a track record of delivering complex electronics platforms in partnership with electrical, silicon, package, validation, manufacturing, and supplier teams.

What You Will Do

• Own mechanical architecture for engineering validation boards, FPGA development platforms, PCIe cards, accessories cards, evaluation systems, and related accessories, balancing performance, reliability, schedule, cost, and manufacturability.
• Create and maintain detailed 3D CAD designs, assemblies, layouts, and production drawings using Creo and/or SolidWorks; define interfaces, mounting schemes, board keep-outs, stack-ups, brackets, covers, enclosures, sockets, and heatsink assemblies.
• Develop heatsink and thermal‑management solutions for high‑power FPGA and board‑level designs, including thermal interface materials, airflow paths, fans, heat spreaders, conduction paths, and mechanical retention features.
• Perform and interpret thermal simulations using ANSYS Icepak, FloTHERM, CFD, or equivalent tools to predict temperature, airflow, pressure drop, and thermal margin; correlate models with lab measurements and drive design iterations.
• Lead tolerance analysis, structural checks, vibration/shock considerations, thermal‑mechanical stack‑up reviews, and design‑for‑reliability assessments for prototype and production‑intent hardware.
• Drive design execution from requirements and feasibility through concept reviews, design reviews, prototype fabrication, engineering validation, issue resolution, and release of complete technical documentation.
• Plan and support hands‑on bring‑up and validation activities, including fit and function checks, environmental testing, failure analysis, and root‑cause/corrective‑action closure.
• Partner with electrical, PCB, silicon, package, power, signal integrity, validation, compliance, and program teams to resolve cross‑domain constraints and deliver platform‑level solutions with minimal iteration.
• Collaborates with thermal engineers to optimize the design parameters, deliver performance objectives, and partner with external vendors through initial conceptual studies, layout, design, fabrication, assembly, and validation.
• Engage contract manufacturers, machining houses, sheet‑metal and injection‑molding suppliers, and component vendors on DFM/DFA, tooling, material selection, cost, lead time, quality, and production readiness.
• Establish and communicate mechanical/thermal risks, assumptions, trade‑offs, schedules, and mitigation plans to engineering leadership and program stakeholders; mentor engineers and raise the team’s design and simulation standards.
• Maintain accurate CAD databases, drawings, specifications, simulation reports, validation data, change records, and technical presentations in accordance with Altera engineering processes.

Qualifications

• Minimum Qualifications Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering or a closely related engineering discipline; advanced degree is a plus.
• 10+ years of professional experience in mechanical design and engineering for complex electronics, computing, semiconductor, FPGA, networking, or instrumentation platforms.
• Demonstrated hands‑on proficiency with Creo and/or SolidWorks for complex part, assembly, enclosure, board‑level, and heatsink design; able to produce clear, release‑quality drawings.
• Hands‑on experience with thermal simulation tools such as ANSYS Icepak, FloTHERM, or equivalent CFD/thermal modeling platforms, including model setup, boundary conditions, interpretation, and lab correlation.
• Strong understanding of heat transfer, conduction, convection, thermal resistance networks, airflow management, thermal interface materials, heat sinks, heat spreaders, and temperature measurement techniques.
• Experience designing mechanical solutions around PCBs, high‑speed/PCIe cards, sockets, connectors, FPGA packages, board stiffeners, retention hardware, and system‑level interfaces.
• Working knowledge of tolerance analysis, DFM/DFA, material selection, and manufacturing processes such as CNC machining, sheet metal, injection molding, die casting, and additive manufacturing.
• Proven ability to lead technical work across multiple projects, make sound engineering trade‑offs, and communicate effectively with global cross‑functional teams and external suppliers.
• Ability to travel occasionally to support prototype builds, supplier engagements, design reviews, and validation activities.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with FPGA development kits, engineering validation boards, reference platforms, accelerator cards, or semiconductor evaluation systems.
• Experience developing high‑power heatsink assemblies, fan/duct solutions, heat pipes, vapor chambers, cold plates, or conduction‑cooled platforms.
• Familiarity with thermal, structural, vibration, shock, acoustic, EMC/EMI, safety, and environmental requirements for electronics hardware.
• Experience with design verification plans, validation methods, DOE, test instrumentation, thermal chambers, data acquisition, and engineering change processes.
• Proficiency with 2D drafting and drawing standards, PLM/PDM systems, Microsoft Office automation, and technical data/reporting tools.
• Experience mentoring engineers, setting design guidelines, reviewing technical work, and influencing platform architecture without direct authority.

Job Type

Job Type: Regular Shift: Shift 1 (Malaysia)

Primary Location

Primary Location: Penang 15, Penang, Malaysia

Posting Statement

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, religious creed, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, military and veteran status, marital status, pregnancy, gender, gender expression, gender identity, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by local law, regulation, or ordinance.

About Altera

Altera: Accelerating Innovators Altera provides leadership programmable solutions that are easy‑to‑use and deploy in applications from cloud to edge, offering limitless AI possibilities. Our end‑to‑end broad portfolio of products including FPGAs, CPLDs, Intellectual Property, development tools, System on Modules, SmartNICs and IPUs provide the flexibility to accelerate innovation. Altera is helping to shape the future through pioneering innovation that unlocks extraordinary possibilities for everyone on the planet.