RESEARCH ENGINEER - SR. RESEARCH ENGINEER - Computational Materials Integrity

Southwest Research Institute; San Antonio (TX); Hybrid; USD 86,278 - 175,469; Full time

Job summary

Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, Texas is seeking a Research Engineer specializing in computational materials integrity. This role involves developing advanced fatigue crack growth software, conducting applied research, and managing complex software codebases. Candidates should possess a Master’s or PhD in relevant engineering fields, along with experience in fracture mechanics and software development. The position offers a competitive salary range from $86,278 to $175,469, depending on experience.

Qualifications

• 1 year related work experience with a Masters, 0 years with a PhD.
• Experience in fracture mechanics, continuum mechanics, and related fields preferred.
• Experience in software development for scientific computing and optimization.

Responsibilities

• Develop advanced fatigue crack growth software programs.
• Coordinate accuracy test campaigns of software predictions.
• Drive the development of new methods for damage tolerance assessments.

Skills

Fatigue crack growth assessment

Fracture mechanics

Numerical methods

Software development

Applied mathematics

Education

Masters or PhD in Mechanical Engineering or related field

Job description

RESEARCH ENGINEER - SR. RESEARCH ENGINEER - Computational Materials Integrity

18-01604

Who We Are:

We develop and apply advanced computational methods to assess the performance of a variety of engineering materials that are used in a wide range of systems with a particular focus on estimating the life and reliability of high-consequence engineering applications. We seek candidates skilled in analytical and numerical methods that support software development for fatigue crack growth and fracture of metallic materials under sustained and cyclic loading. Most relevant technical areas include damage tolerance, computational mechanics, and computational material science.

Objectives of this Role:

• Join our team to perform fundamental and applied research through the development of advanced fatigue crack growth for material and structural integrity assessments.
• Help manage our established software codebase and provide guidance on the technical solutions to solve problems related to practical fatigue crack growth, fracture, and structural integrity assessments.
• Work within a large team and a software operations framework to write integrate, compile, text and debug source code to support long-term, commercial software programs.
• Apply principles in advanced continuum mechanics, numerical methods, materials science, and applied mathematics to solve unique problems using the modern Fortran programming language.
• Build and apply skills to support contract research programs, develop new technology areas, and interact with government and commercial clients.

Daily and Monthly Responsibilities:

• Provide technical leadership toward the ongoing development and enhancement of fatigue crack growth software programs: NASGRO® and DARWIN®.
• Coordinate accuracy, precision, and consistency test campaigns of predictions implemented within high-criticality commercial software.
• Drive the development of new practical methods to perform damage tolerance assessments.
• Champion innovations focused on reducing memory footprint, optimizing computational efficiency, and streamlining the analysis of large datasets.
• Oversee the resolution of user-reported issues by identifying root causes and implement fixes in a timely manner.
• Interact with a larger development team to coordinate issue resolution within a large, interconnected, and legacy codebase.
• Collaborate with clients, stakeholders, and development teams to align the software’s documentation, usage, and evolution with industry demands.
• Lead reports and papers on new technical solutions.
• Lead tasks and projects to completion, ensuring they are delivered within scope, budget, and schedule constraints.
• Drive improvement initiatives to optimize software development and execution.

Requirements:

• Requires a Masters or a PhD in Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Structural Engineering, Computational Mechanics, Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, Geomechanics, or similar engineering degree.
• 1 year related work experience required with a Masters, 0 years required with a PhD.
• 0-5 years: Experience and/or training in fracture mechanics, fatigue crack growth assessment, continuum mechanics, materials science, applied mechanics, applied mathematics, and mechanical behavior of engineering metals.
• 0-5 years: Experience and/or training in software development processes for scientific computing, including version control, optimization, software verification, relevant programming languages, and programming assisted by ML/AI tools.
• 0-5 years: Experience in stress-intensity factor solutions, weight function methods, fatigue crack growth algorithms, time-dependent crack growth, small-crack growth mechanisms, threshold, shakedown, rainflow, environmental fatigue, and multi-point computational fracture mechanics.
• 0-5 years: Experience in customer issue resolution, supporting for legacy code and application programming interfaces, and using ML/AI tools to streamline software development, sustainment, documentation, and verification.
• A valid/clear driver's license is required.
• Salary Range: $86,278 - $175,469

Special Requirements:

Must be a U.S. person (i.e., U.S. citizen, non-U.S. citizen national, lawful permanent resident, asylee, or refugee) due to ITAR work in section.

Job Locations: San Antonio, Texas Or Remote

For benefits information at our San Antonio location, click here .
For benefits information at all other locations, click here .

An Equal Employment Opportunity Employer: race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, and veteran status.