Senior R&D Engineer, Turbomachinery

at  Energy Recovery

Energy Recovery (NASDAQ: ERII) creates technologies that solve complex challenges for industrial fluid-flow markets worldwide. Building on our pressure exchanger technology platform, we design and manufacture solutions that make industrial processes more efficient and sustainable. What began as a game-changing invention for desalination has grown into a global business advancing the environmental sustainability of customers’ operations in multiple industries. Headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, Energy Recovery has manufacturing, research and development facilities across California and Texas with sales and on-site technical support available globally. For more information, please visit www.energyrecovery.com.

JOB SUMMARY:

Energy Recovery is seeking a qualified candidate for an immediate full-time job opening for the position of Senior R&D Engineer, located in San Leandro, CA and reporting to the Engineering Manager of Product Design team. The R&D department is a dynamic group of engineers with a wide range of backgrounds, several of them holding PhD and Masters Degrees. We are looking for a talented and energetic candidate who can thrive in a team environment, lead and deliver on R&D projects for new technology/new product development.
The position requires a well-rounded expertise in mechanical design and analysis, CAD modeling, instrumentation and experimental validation of turbo machines and other high-pressure fluid equipment. A sound knowledge base in machine design, dynamics and vibrations is required. Expertise in use of CAD packages such as SolidWorks and FE Analysis tools such as ANSYS is required. This position is responsible for hands-on development – component design, analysis, prototype fabrication, test loop design, instrumentation selection & experimental validation and production release of rotating equipment such as pressure exchangers, compressors, pumps, turbines, turbochargers etc. The candidate will spend bulk of his time working with a multidisciplinary team to develop disruptive technologies and products based on our proprietary isobaric pressure exchangers. In addition, the candidate will be providing mechanical design support to various NTI/NPI projects including validation testing.

SKILLS & REQUIREMENTS:

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering with 7+ years of relevant industry experience or Master’s degree with 5+ years of experience desired.
• Proficiency in commercial CAD packages such as SolidWorks required.
• Expertise in commercial FEA solvers such as ANSYS Workbench required.
• Hands on experience with assembly, testing and experimentation, sensors/transducers (to measure pressure, temperature, flow rate, vibration, position, pressure pulsations, noise etc.), controls/data acquisition, data collection languages (e.g. LabVIEW) is required.
• Experience with mechanical design, testing and selection of rotodynamic & reciprocating fluid machines such as compressors, pumps, turbines, turbochargers, pressure exchangers etc., is highly desirable.
• Experience with mechanical design, testing and selection of hydrostatic and hydrodynamic bearings, static and dynamic seals & supporting equipment is highly desirable.
• Expertise in design of high pressure mechanical systems, developing manufacturing drawings using DFM/DFA principles, GD&T, stack-up analysis, RCA, DFMEA, HAZOP drawing up inspection & quality control plans highly desirable.
• Experience with thermodynamic cycle modeling, sizing of heat exchangers, compressors and HVACR equipment a plus.
• Must possess a demonstrated ability to work/lead in a team environment, under pressure, manage multiple tasks, and be goal oriented.
• Ability to oversee and execute on assigned R&D projects from initial concept development to lab validation and final commissioning in a highly analytical, detailed and precise manner.
• Familiarity with engineering standards such as ASME BPVC / API / ANSI / NFPA / UL / PED etc.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Position requires up to 10% domestic and international travel.
  The below range is the range that we reasonably believe to be the range of possible compensation for this role at the time of this posting. We may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range and this range is only applicable for jobs to be performed in California. This range may be modified in the future. The salary range for this role is $130,000 to $160,000
  We are an EOE/AA employer committed to workforce diversity.
  No recruiters or phone calls

• Lead R&D projects (NTI/NPI) involving fluid machines such as pressure exchangers, compressors, centrifugal and reciprocating pumps, turbines, turbochargers etc.
• Lead / participate in the entire development cycle of a fluid machine including 1-D sizing (mechanical & hydraulic), engineering analyses, detailed design & layout prep, design/selection of rotor-bearing systems, seals & secondary flow paths, validation test rig development, experimental validation & release to manufacturing.
• Design fluid machinery components and assemblies and draw detailed engineering drawings with appropriate GD&T while optimizing for manufacturability & quality.
• Leverage commercial FEA solvers such as ANSYS to evaluate mechanical integrity, design life and robustness of components and assemblies over the full range of operating conditions.
• Design prototype and component validation test rigs, integrate sensors, controls, data acquisition hardware/software (LabVIEW based) to obtain high quality data, perform validation testing in the lab and support pilot/beta testing at remote field sites.
• Design experiments and test setups to validate the design by simulating the operational environment in the lab with appropriate instrumentation, controls & data acquisition systems.
• Develop validation test plans and work closely with testing team to confirm and validate model predictions. Use commercial (e.g. Matlab) and open-source (e.g. Python) software to process test data and draw physics based insights and inputs for models & optimization.
• Work closely with the Product Engineering, Testing, Project Management Office, Manufacturing, Quality Control & Business Units to successfully deliver on NPI/NTI projects.
• Follow ERI’s internal technology and development processes (PDLCM/RDF), manage projects using project management principles and drive rigorous design reviews / documentation at each phase.
• Contribute to development of validated design tools and design practices.
• Other duties & projects as assigned.