Lead Thermal Engineer

Job Title: Thermal Engineer

Job Description

The Thermal Engineer designs, models, and validates advanced thermal solutions for energy storage systems and power electronics, ensuring high performance, reliability, and cost-effectiveness across a diverse product portfolio. This role works hands-on with CFD modeling, thermal test vehicles, and instrumentation, and collaborates closely with cross-functional teams in hardware, software, reliability, and manufacturing to bring thermally complex products from concept through volume production.

Responsibilities

• Architect, design, and model thermal solutions for energy storage systems (ESS) and power electronics, ensuring robust and efficient heat management.
• Build detailed CFD models and develop instrumented thermal test vehicles to validate designs against simulation results.
• Create thermal solutions that balance performance, form, and function across the product portfolio, aligning with product and engineering requirements.
• Optimize designs for thermal performance, manufacturability (DFM/DFA), acoustics, size, reliability, and cost.
• Provide clear, actionable thermal design guidance to cross-functional engineering teams throughout the product development lifecycle.
• Select and specify components for passive, forced-air, liquid, and two-phase thermal solutions, including fans, radiators, heat sinks, heat pipes, and related hardware.
• Manage relationships with thermal component suppliers, supporting component selection, validation, and integration into the overall system.
• Partner with validation and reliability teams to define thermal test parameters, acceptance criteria, and validation plans.
• Collaborate with software and firmware teams to establish thermal policies and constraints for control algorithms and system operation.
• Apply expert knowledge of heat transfer, thermodynamics, and fluid mechanics to solve complex thermal challenges in electronics and battery systems.
• Use instrumentation and data acquisition methods to conduct thermal validation testing and analyze results for design improvements.
• Support bringing thermally complex products from development into volume production, including design refinement and issue resolution.
• Contribute to failure analysis and reliability investigations related to thermal performance and component behavior.
• Incorporate regulatory and safety considerations, such as UL 9540A requirements for battery systems, into thermal design and validation strategies.
• Travel up to 30%, including international travel, to support testing, supplier engagement, and cross-site collaboration.
  
  

Essential Skills

• Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering or a related field.
• Minimum of 7 years of hands-on experience in thermal design and electronics cooling.
• Expert-level knowledge of heat transfer, thermodynamics, and fluid mechanics.
• Expertise in modeling passive cooling, forced-air cooling, liquid cooling, two-phase systems, battery thermal behavior, and solar radiation effects.
• Proficiency in sizing and selecting fans, radiators, heat sinks, heat pipes, and related thermal components.
• Experience with instrumentation and data acquisition methods for thermal validation testing.
• Expert proficiency in Ansys, Flotherm, Star-CCM+, or a comparable CFD package.
• Strong analytical skills in thermal analysis and CFD.
• Ability to provide clear written and verbal communication of technical concepts and design recommendations.
• Willingness and ability to travel up to 30%, including internationally.
  
  

Additional Skills & Qualifications

• Master's degree in mechanical engineering with a specialization in heat transfer.
• Demonstrated record of bringing thermally complex products from development into volume production.
• Experience designing thermal solutions for outdoor NEMA/IP-rated products.
• Experience in validation testing, product reliability, and failure analysis related to thermal performance.
• Proficiency with 3D CAD tools, with preference for Creo or SolidWorks.
• Experience designing thermal solutions specifically for battery energy storage systems.
• Familiarity with battery pack failure modes, including thermal runaway, outgassing, and propagation.
• Working knowledge of UL 9540A regulatory requirements and their implications for battery system thermal design and testing.
• Strong collaboration skills for working effectively with cross-functional teams, suppliers, and external partners.
  
  

Work Environment

The role operates in a highly collaborative engineering environment focused on energy storage systems and power electronics, combining office-based design work with laboratory and test facility activities. You will regularly use advanced CFD tools such as Ansys, Flotherm, or Star-CCM+, along with 3D CAD platforms like Creo or SolidWorks, to develop and refine thermal solutions. Hands-on work with instrumented test vehicles, thermal chambers, and data acquisition equipment is an integral part of the position. The schedule typically follows standard full-time working hours, with periods of increased activity during key testing or product launch phases. The role includes up to 30% travel, including international trips, to visit test sites, suppliers, and other engineering locations. Attire is generally business casual for office work, with appropriate safety gear and protective clothing required when working in labs, test facilities, or around hardware under evaluation.

Work Experience

7-10 years

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

At Actalent, Diversity And Inclusion Are a Bridge Towards The Equity And Success Of Our People. DE&I Is Embedded Into Our Culture Through

• Hiring diverse talent
• Maintaining an inclusive environment through persistent self-reflection
• Building a culture of care, engagement, and recognition with clear outcomes
• Ensuring growth opportunities for our people
  
  

Actalent is an equal opportunity employer.

About Actalent

Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services. For more than 40 years, we've helped visionary companies advance their goals. Headquartered in the United States, our teams span 150 offices across North America, EMEA, and APAC—with four delivery centers in India led by 1,000+ extraordinary employees who connect their passion with purpose every day.

Our Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, and Chennai delivery centers are hubs of engineering expertise, with core capabilities in mechanical and electrical engineering, systems and software, and manufacturing engineering. Our teams deliver work across multiple industries including transportation, consumer and industrial products, and life sciences. We serve more than 4,500 clients, including many Fortune 500 brands. Learn more about how we can work together at actalentservices.com.