Thermal Manufacturing Engineer

About the role

We are seeking a Thermal Manufacturing Engineer to own the development, qualification, and scaling of thermal management manufacturing processes for Etched's silicon-to-system products. This role is focused on liquid cooling systems—primarily cold plates—and the manufacturing processes required to bring them from prototype to high-volume production.

Key Responsibilities

• Own the end-to-end manufacturing engineering for thermal components and assemblies (focus on cold plates & manifolds), from NPI through mass production.
• Develop, qualify, and optimize cold plate fabrication processes including but not limited to skiving, vacuum brazing, friction stir welding, diffusion bonding, gun drilling, and extrusion-based channel formation.
• Define process parameters, controls, and acceptance criteria for each manufacturing method; establish capability benchmarks (Cpk, yield, leak rate, flatness, pressure drop).
• Partner with thermal and mechanical design teams early in development to drive DFx for liquid cooling system designs.
• Lead process qualification and first-article inspection at CM/supplier sites; own PFMEA, control plans, and process validation documentation.
• Drive root cause analysis and corrective action for manufacturing defects—leaks, delamination, warpage, insufficient bonding, dimensional non-conformance.
• Evaluate and qualify new suppliers and manufacturing technologies for cold plates and thermal interface materials.
• Define and monitor key manufacturing KPIs: yield, leak rate, flatness, cycle time, rework rate, and cost per unit.
• Collaborate with Manufacturing Test to integrate cold plate pressure testing, flow testing, and thermal performance validation into production lines.
• Support failure analysis and closed-loop feedback between factory, design, and reliability teams for thermal-related field issues.
• Build manufacturing dashboards and reporting for cold plate yield, defect pareto, and process capability trends.
• Drive continuous improvement in cold plate cost, cycle time, and quality through systematic DOE and process optimization.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in manufacturing engineering, process engineering, or thermal systems manufacturing, with direct hands-on experience producing liquid cold plates or heat exchangers.
• Demonstrated expertise in two or more of the following cold plate fabrication processes: skiving, vacuum brazing, friction stir welding, diffusion bonding, gun drilling, or extrusion-based channel formation.
• Strong understanding of aluminum and copper alloy properties, braze alloy selection, and metallurgical failure modes relevant to thermal hardware.
• Experience qualifying cold plate manufacturers and running process capability studies (Cpk, GR&R) for leak rate, flatness, pressure drop, and thermal resistance.
• Hands-on experience with cold plate inspection and test methods: helium leak testing, hydrostatic pressure testing, flow/pressure-drop characterization, flatness measurement.
• Experience with DFM/DFY reviews for cold plate and liquid cooling system designs.
• Track record of driving root cause analysis and corrective action for cold plate manufacturing defects in production.
• Experience working directly with contract manufacturers and thermal component suppliers, preferably in Asia.
• Familiarity with system-level liquid cooling architectures (single-loop, CDU-based, direct liquid cooling) and how cold plate manufacturing choices affect system-level performance.
• Strong technical documentation skills: PFMEA, control plans, work instructions, first-article inspection reports.
• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Manufacturing Engineering, or a related field.
• Prior experience in server, HPC, datacenter, or power electronics thermal management is strongly preferred.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision packages with generous premium coverage
• $500 per month credit for waiving medical benefits
• Housing subsidy of $2k per month for those living within walking distance of the office
• Relocation support for those moving to San Jose (Santana Row)
• Variety of wellness benefits covering fitness, mental health, and more
• Daily lunch and dinner in our office
• Unlimited compute budget subject to ROI justification