Product Engineer Thermal

Optimal Staffing; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Optimal Staffing in Long Beach, CA is seeking a Mechanical Design Engineer to lead the thermal system hardware design across coolant, refrigeration, and HVAC subsystems from concept through production release. You will translate targets into manufacturable geometry and ensure robust performance.

Responsibilities include packaging, routing through the vehicle, working with suppliers and cross‑functional teams, and applying GD&T and DFMEA to deliver reliable, cost‑effective components.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required.
• 3+ years of automotive mechanical design experience.
• Proficient in 3D CAD for part and assembly modeling.

Responsibilities

• Lead design of thermal hardware across coolant, refrigeration, and HVAC subsystems.
• Package and route thermal hardware through the vehicle, resolving space and clearance constraints.
• Apply GD&T and tolerance stack‑up analysis to ensure fit, sealing, and function.
• Support DFMEA and design for manufacture/assembly across molding, brazing, stamping, extrusion, and machining.

Skills

Mechanical Engineering

CAD Design

Heat Exchange

Product Design

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering

Tools

CATIA

NX

3DEXPERIENCE

Job description

You will lead the mechanical design of thermal system hardware across one or more subsystems, translating performance and packaging requirements into detailed, manufacturable designs.

Component & Assembly Design

Design thermal hardware across coolant, refrigeration, and HVAC/climate subsystems in 3D CAD from concept through production release.

System Packaging & Routing:

Package and route thermal hardware through the vehicle, resolving space, interface, and clearance constraints with adjacent systems (battery, drive unit, power electronics, IP, chassis, and body) and coordinating shared interfaces across subsystems.

Performance-Driven Design:

Translate thermal, hydraulic, and refrigerant performance targets from the system and subsystem engineers into physical geometry flow paths, sealing, mounting, and heat‑exchanger placement - that meets thermal, pressure, and flow requirements.

Design for Manufacture & Assembly (DFM/DFA:

Develop designs optimized for their manufacturing processes (injection molding, brazing, stamping, extrusion, machining) and for high-volume assembly, working with full service and build to print suppliers on tooling and process feasibility to balance cost, mass, and quality.

Tolerance & GD&T:

Apply geometric dimensioning and tolerancing, perform tolerance stack‑up analysis, and define critical dimensions to ensure fit, sealing, and function across the production range and across mating subsystems.

Design Analysis & Robustness:

Support structural, flow, thermal, and durability analysis (CFD/FEA in partnership with analysis teams), and use DFMEA to identify and mitigate various failure modes.

Engineering Documentation:

Create and release detailed part and assembly drawings, manage engineering changes, and maintain CAD data and bills of materials through the product development process.

Cross‑Functional Collaboration:

Work closely with the system and subsystem engineers (who own performance targets), Controls Engineers (for actuator/valve strategy), test engineers (for validation), and suppliers (for tooling and build), supporting design reviews and readiness gates through launch.

Skills Required:

• Mechanical Engineering, CAD Design, Heat Exchange, Product Design

Experience Required:

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline.
• 3+ years of experience in mechanical design of automotive components or systems.
• Proficiency in 3D CAD (CATIA, NX, or 3DEXPERIENCE) for part and assembly modeling and detailing.
• Working knowledge of GD&T and tolerance stack‑up analysis. Solid understanding of design for manufacture and assembly across multiple processes (e.g., molding, brazing, stamping).
• Familiarity with heat transfer, fluid dynamics, and pressure‑system fundamentals as they apply to thermal hardware.

Experience Preferred:

• Master's degree in a relevant engineering discipline.
• Direct experience designing thermal hardware coolant loops, refrigeration/heat‑pump circuits, heat exchangers, or HVAC units. Experience with EV thermal management systems (battery, drive unit, power electronics, and cabin cooling/heating).
• Familiarity with refrigeration and HVAC systems.
• Experience with actuator and valve‑driven hardware and control interfaces.
• Experience with DFMEA, DVP&R, and the release/change‑management process for production parts.

Education Required:

• Bachelor's Degree

Use of AI Technology:

Unless expressly authorized in the interview/skill set validation instructions, candidates may not use AI tools or other third‑party assistance during an interview or assessment to generate or provide substantive answers to interview questions. Candidates should answer organically in their own words, drawing on their own knowledge, skills, and experience. Failure to adhere to these expectations may result in the candidate being removed from consideration.