Position SummaryMainstream Engineering is looking for a Senior Thermal Engineer to develop advanced thermal management technologies for military, government, and commercial applications. This is an R&D-focused role for an engineer who enjoys solving difficult problems, working with hardware, and turning ideas into real products.
Our thermal engineers don't simply perform analysis and hand off their work. You can take an idea from concept to prototype to testing to production. You'll have the opportunity to identify new technologies, develop proposals around your ideas, design and build experimental hardware, perform testing, analyze results, interact directly with customers, and help transition successful technologies into production.
Our current work includes thermal systems for hypersonic vehicles, high-power laser systems, and power-dense aerospace platforms, with a focus on reducing size, weight, and power while improving system performance.
You'll have the opportunity to work with technologies including:
- Microchannel cooling
- Additively manufactured 3D cooling passages
- Single-phase pumped fluid loops
- Vapor compression and other refrigeration cycles
- Radiation thermal management
- Heat exchangers and electronics coldplates
- Thermal energy storage
- Oscillating heat pipes
- Advanced experimental cooling techniques
Your creativity and curiosity can help determine what we investigate next.
What You'll Do- Lead thermal engineering projects from concept through prototype, testing, and production
- Develop innovative thermal management solutions for challenging real-world applications
- Perform analytical calculations involving heat transfer, thermodynamics, and fluid mechanics
- Develop and evaluate computational models using CFD and FEA tools
- Design, build, instrument, and test experimental hardware
- Develop laboratory test plans and analyze experimental data
- Work with temperature, pressure, flow, and other instrumentation and data acquisition systems
- Collaborate directly with customers to understand requirements and develop solutions
- Prepare technical proposals and develop new R&D concepts
- Support design for manufacturability and transition of successful technologies into production
- Research emerging thermal technologies and identify opportunities for new product development
What We're Looking ForWe're looking for engineers who are curious, creative, self-motivated, and excited by difficult technical problems.
Required:
- Master's or PhD in Mechanical Engineering or Aerospace Engineering
- Minimum of a 3.3 for all completed degrees
- 10+ years of professional engineering experience
- Strong understanding of heat transfer, thermodynamics, and fluid mechanics
- Hands-on laboratory, prototype, or experimental testing experience
- Experience developing thermal systems, components, or technologies
- Ability to independently lead technical projects and solve complex engineering problems
- U.S. Citizenship due to ITAR requirements
Preferred:
- Experience with data acquisition systems; LabVIEW experience is a plus
- Experience with CFD and/or FEA; ANSYS/FLUENT experience is a plus
- Experience designing and testing thermal management systems
- Experience working with aerospace, defense, or other high-performance systems
- Experience taking R&D concepts through prototype development and into production
Why This Role Is DifferentYou won't be limited to one piece of the engineering process.
At Mainstream Engineering, our engineers have the opportunity to research, design, build, test, analyze, present, and manufacture their ideas. If you see a better way to solve a problem, you have the opportunity to investigate it.
If you're the type of engineer who would rather build and test something than just talk about it, this could be a great fit.
Join a team where your technical curiosity can become the next technology we develop.
Mainstream Engineering Corporation is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified candidates will be considered without regard to legally protected characteristics. 
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