Senior Thermal Hardware Engineer – ECU
General Motors
full-time
Posted on:
Location Type: Hybrid
Location: Warren • California • Missouri • United States
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Job Level
About the role
- Translate CTRS / vehicle requirements into thermal requirements and design constraints (ambient temp, under‑hood vs in‑cabin environment, duty cycles, altitude etc.)
- Define thermal budgets (Tj/Tc limits, margins) for SoCs, power devices, memories, and other critical components.
- Perform steady‑state and transient simulations to optimally size heatsinks, cold plates, fins, airflow paths, and liquid loop elements.
- Evaluate options such as passive cooling, forced air, liquid cooling, heat pipes, and vapor chambers and recommend the best architecture.
- Work with cross-functional teams to implement your thermal design strategy.
- Develop thermal test plans and run thermal characterization tests.
- Provide thermal inputs to DFMEA, DRBFM, and design reviews; clearly quantify risks, margins, and mitigations.
- Present thermal status, trade studies, and recommendations at PDTs, design reviews, and leadership updates.
Requirements
- BS in Mechanical Engineering (or related discipline) with strong focus on heat transfer and thermodynamics.
- 5+ years of experience in thermal design and analysis of electronics (ECUs, servers, power electronics, or similar).
- Hands‑on experience with thermal simulation tools (e.g., Ansys Icepak, FloEFD, Flotherm, or equivalent) and data analysis (e.g., MATLAB, Python, or similar).
- Strong understanding of: Conduction, convection (forced and natural), radiation
- Thermal interface materials (TIMs, gap pads, PCMs)
- Heatsink and cold‑plate design, flow/pressure trade‑offs
- Practical experience defining or executing thermal test plans in environmental chambers and correlating models to lab results.
- Ability to interpret electrical power maps/BOMs, derive thermal loads, and work closely with EE/PCB teams.
- Strong communication skills; able to present complex thermal trade studies clearly to both technical and non‑technical stakeholders.
- Demonstrated ability to work across cross‑functional and global teams and manage multiple programs in parallel.
Benefits
- From day one, we're looking out for your well-being–at work and at home–so you can focus on realizing your ambitions.
Applicant Tracking System Keywords
Tip: use these terms in your resume and cover letter to boost ATS matches.
Hard Skills & Tools
thermal designthermal analysisheat transferthermodynamicsthermal simulationthermal test plansthermal characterizationthermal interface materialsheatsink designcold-plate design
Soft Skills
strong communication skillscross-functional collaborationability to manage multiple programspresentation skillsrisk quantificationstakeholder engagementteamworkproblem-solving
Certifications
BS in Mechanical Engineering