Senior Linear Dynamics FEA Engineer

About CFD Research

Since its inception in 1987, CFD Research has delivered innovative technology solutions within the Aerospace & Defense, Biomedical & Life Sciences, Intelligence & Sensing, and Energy & Materials industries. CFD Research has earned multiple national awards for successful application and commercialization of innovative component/system technology prototypes, multi-physics simulation software, multi-disciplinary analyses, and expert support services. Based in Huntsville, Alabama where laboratory facilities and headquarters are located, CFD Research also has office and laboratory facilities in Dayton, Ohio, prototyping test and evaluation facilities in Hollywood, Alabama, and office facilities in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. CFD Research is an ISO9001:AS9100D registered company and is appraised at CMMI Level II for Services. CFD Research is a 100% ESOP (employee-owned company) recognized in Inc. Magazine's Inc5000 as a top growing company for four of the last five years.

Senior Linear Dynamics Finite Element Engineer

• Evaluate vibration, shock, and random/acoustic responses, in aid of the design, verification and manufacture of aerospace structures
• Experience with turbomachinery and rotordynamics is a plus
• Location: CFD Research’s Huntsville Headquarters
• Work closely with existing structural, fluid and thermal analysis teams to provide rapid design recommendations and assessments
• Interface regularly with Prototype, Test and Evaluation Division engineers located at the company’s Hollywood, AL Engineering Test Center
• Necessitates trips to Hollywood to support in-person meetings 3 times a month
• Potential to help grow and eventually lead the burgeoning high fidelity structural analysis team
• Proficiency with any one of the following FEA tools is required: Abaqus, ANSYS or NASTRAN
• Experience with running on a remote HPC cluster and submitting jobs to a bash scheduler

Key Responsibilities

• Development and validation of linear dynamic FEA models for modal, linear transient, steady state dynamics (SSD), vibration, and shock response spectrum analyses
• Production of engineering reports and documentation in support of requirement verification and design reviews

Basic Qualifications

• US Citizenship and eligibility to obtain and maintain a secret security clearance
• Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical Engineering
• 6+ years hands-on experience with linear dynamics FEA for complex structures
• Proficiency with Abaqus and Solidworks
• Strong understanding of structural dynamics, vibration theory, modal analysis, frequency response functions, and damping models
• Experience with vibro-acoustic coupling or specialized acoustics tools
• Ability to create clear technical documentation and present results to stakeholders
• Strong problem-solving, communication, and teamwork skills

Desired Qualifications

• An active secret security clearance
• Masters Degree in Mechanical Engineering
• Experience with ANSYS or NASTRAN
• Experience with fatigue assessments and failure-based correlations to testing
• Experience with rotordynamics and associated analysis methods
• Familiarity with high-performance computing (HPC) and large-scale models
• Knowledge of design for manufacturing and producibility affecting dynamics
• Experience with python for post processing of tabular data or the creation of automation macros

Benefits

• Competitive salaries and excellent employee benefits
• Employer matching 401(k)
• Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP)
• Highly competitive insurance package, including medical, vision, and dental insurance
• Company-paid leave, compensation time, parental leave, long-term and short-term disability, accidental death and dismemberment, and life insurance
• Group and individual bonuses awarded for exceptional performance