AI / Simulation Engineer (Thermal - Electronics Cooling)

Saur Energy International; West Virginia; On-site; USD 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

Saur Energy International seeks an engineer to develop and execute CFD and thermal simulations for electronics cooling, addressing airflow, convection, and conjugate heat transfer. Responsibilities span component to cabinet level thermal analyses and rapid model setup for internal and customer support.

The role emphasizes steady-state and transient analyses, correlation with lab data, and collaboration across electrical and mechanical teams to optimize heat sinks, airflow paths, and enclosure

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Thermal Sciences, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field
• 4–8 years of industrial or applied CFD and thermal-fluid simulations experience
• Strong fundamentals in fluid mechanics and heat transfer, including convection and radiation
• Experience with CFD model setup, solution execution, and result interpretation
• Familiarity with commercial simulation tools such as ANSYS Icepak/Fluent, FloTHERM/FloEFD, STAR-CCM+, COMSOL
• Basic understanding of mesh generation, solver settings, and convergence behavior
• Good written and verbal communication skills in English
• Exposure to electronics thermal management including heatsinks, fans, and enclosures

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute CFD and thermal simulations for electronics cooling applications
• Support thermal analysis for components, boards, enclosures, cabinets, and subsystems
• Analyze industrial environments and derating requirements
• Assist rapid model setup and simulation turnaround for internal and customer support
• Apply boundary conditions including power losses and environmental loads
• Perform steady-state and transient thermal analyses
• Evaluate airflow distribution in control panels and switchgear
• Post-process results to identify hotspots and design improvements
• Correlate simulation results with test data and field observations
• Prepare technical summaries of methods, results, and limitations
• Support V&V activities with engineering metrics and data comparisons
• Engage with engineers to understand UL/IEC standards and temperature rise limits
• Learn and apply mesh strategy, stability, convergence, and credibility best practices
• Support design optimization like heat sink sizing and enclosure ventilation
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams and contribute to a learning-oriented culture

Skills

CFD

Thermal analysis

Heat transfer

Simulation tools

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering/Thermal/Aerospace

Tools

ANSYS Icepak

ANSYS Fluent

Siemens FloTHERM/FloEFD

STAR-CCM+

COMSOL

Job description

• Develop and execute Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) and thermal simulations for electronics cooling applications, including airflow, forced and natural convection, and conjugate heat transfer
• Support component-, board-, enclosure-, cabinet-, and sub-system–level thermal analysis for products such as circuit breakers, PLCs, laptops, and appliances
• Analyze industrial environments (EIA) including high ambient temperatures, enclosure heating, dust effects, and derating requirements
• Assist in rapid model setup and simulation turnaround to support internal service requests and customer engineering needs
• Apply appropriate boundary conditions including power losses (I²R, switching losses), contact resistance, and environmental loads
• Support steady-state and transient thermal analyses, including power cycling, duty cycles, startup conditions, and basic fault scenarios
• Evaluate airflow distribution in control panels, switchgear assemblies, and electronic enclosures
• Post-process and interpret simulation results to identify thermal risks, hotspots, airflow inefficiencies, and design improvement opportunities
• Assist in correlating simulation results with temperature rise tests, lab measurements, and field observations
• Prepare clear technical summaries and documentation of assumptions, methods, results, and limitations
• Support verification and validation (V&V) activities, including comparison with test data using engineering metrics
• Engage with senior engineers to understand UL/IEC standards, certification requirements, and temperature rise limits
• Learn and apply best practices in mesh strategy, numerical stability, convergence assessment, and result credibility
• Support design optimization activities such as heat sink sizing, airflow path improvement, and enclosure ventilation strategies
• Collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams (electrical, mechanical, regulatory) and contribute to a learning-oriented, supportive team culture
  

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) and thermal simulations for electronics cooling applications, including airflow, forced and natural convection, and conjugate heat transfer
• Support component-, board-, enclosure-, cabinet-, and sub-system–level thermal analysis for products such as circuit breakers, PLCs, laptops, and appliances
• Analyze industrial environments (EIA) including high ambient temperatures, enclosure heating, dust effects, and derating requirements
• Assist in rapid model setup and simulation turnaround to support internal service requests and customer engineering needs
• Apply appropriate boundary conditions including power losses (I²R, switching losses), contact resistance, and environmental loads
• Support steady-state and transient thermal analyses, including power cycling, duty cycles, startup conditions, and basic fault scenarios
• Evaluate airflow distribution in control panels, switchgear assemblies, and electronic enclosures
• Post-process and interpret simulation results to identify thermal risks, hotspots, airflow inefficiencies, and design improvement opportunities
• Assist in correlating simulation results with temperature rise tests, lab measurements, and field observations
• Prepare clear technical summaries and documentation of assumptions, methods, results, and limitations
• Support verification and validation (V&V) activities, including comparison with test data using engineering metrics
• Engage with senior engineers to understand UL/IEC standards, certification requirements, and temperature rise limits
• Learn and apply best practices in mesh strategy, numerical stability, convergence assessment, and result credibility
• Support design optimization activities such as heat sink sizing, airflow path improvement, and enclosure ventilation strategies
• Collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams (electrical, mechanical, regulatory) and contribute to a learning-oriented, supportive team culture
  

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Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Thermal Sciences, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field from a reputed institution
• 4–8 years of industrial or applied experience in Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) and thermal-fluid simulations (internships and thesis work may be considered)
• Strong fundamentals in:
  • Fluid mechanics and basic turbulence modeling
  • Heat transfer (conduction, convection, radiation)
  • Thermodynamics relevant to electronics cooling
    • Hands-on exposure to CFD model setup, solution execution, and result interpretation
    • Familiarity with at least one commercial simulation tool such as:
  • ANSYS Icepak, ANSYS Fluent
  • Siemens FloTHERM / FloEFD
  • STAR-CCM+, COMSOL, or similar software
  • Basic understanding of mesh generation and grid quality concepts, solver settings and convergence behavior
  • Structured modeling workflows and technical guidelines
  • Good written and verbal communication skills, with ability to explain results clearly
  • Self-motivated, detail-oriented, and comfortable learning in a technically rigorous environment
  • Exposure to electronics thermal management, including:
    • ICs, PCBs, power electronics
    • Heat sinks, fans, vents, and enclosures
    • Awareness of electronics packaging constraints such as:
      • Space limitations, airflow resistance
      • Material properties and power dissipation
  • Basic experience with thermal testing, such as thermocouple placement, temperature measurement, or data acquisition
  • Introductory experience correlating simulation results with test or experimental data
  • Familiarity with transient thermal behavior, power cycling, and reliability considerations
  • Exposure or interest in industrial products such as circuit breakers, PLCs, switchgear, or control panels
  • Interest in automation, scripting, or AI-assisted simulation workflows