Data Center Thermal Engineer - Precision Cooling

First Point Group; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 900,000 - 1,300,000; Full time

Job summary

First Point Group in Johannesburg seeks a Mechanical Engineer to lead design, evaluation and lifecycle support of mechanical and thermal management infrastructure across mission-critical data centres.

You will perform thermal cooling-load calculations, CFD reviews, and design CHW circuits, DX systems, CRAC/CRAH, and in-row cooling, ensuring N, N+1, N+2 reliability with BMS integration. Collaborate with EICs and contractors to meet ASHRAE guidelines.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering is required.
• Minimum of 5+ years of progressive professional experience in mechanical design and HVAC deployment.
• Hands-on experience with mission-critical precision cooling and data-centre architectures.
• Experience with chilled-water systems, DX units, chillers, and heat rejection infrastructure.
• Familiarity with ASHRAE data centre guidelines.
• Strong documentation and coordination skills.

Responsibilities

• Design and support resilient HVAC and precision cooling for data centres in Johannesburg.
• Perform cooling-load calculations and airflow analyses.
• Evaluate CHW circuits, DX systems, CRAC/CRAH units, and in-row cooling.
• Ensure redundancy per N, N+1, N+2, 2N standards.
• Collaborate with BMS, electrical engineers, and contractors.
• Review submittals and participate in IST testing.
• Produce HLD/LLD and runbooks.

Skills

Thermal management

HVAC design

CRAC/CRAH

Data centre cooling

CFD analysis

PUE optimization

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering

Tools

AutoCAD

Revit MEP

BIM workflows

Job description

First Point Group in Johannesburg seeks a Mechanical Engineer to lead design, evaluation and lifecycle support of mechanical and thermal management infrastructure across mission-critical data centres.

You will perform thermal cooling-load calculations, CFD reviews, and design CHW circuits, DX systems, CRAC/CRAH, and in-row cooling, ensuring N, N+1, N+2 reliability with BMS integration. Collaborate with EICs and contractors to meet ASHRAE guidelines.