Lead Thermal Engineer | Defense Tech | South California

Darwin Defense is partnering with a high-growth Defense Tech to find a Lead Thermal Engineer for a critical, urgent hire.

This is a full ownership role for someone who thrives in complex, fast moving engineering environments. The company is scaling rapidly across multiple hardware platforms and needs a thermal engineer who operates independently, drives their own analysis and testing, and moves quickly from problem to solution without hand-holding.

What You’ll Be Doing

Owning thermal architecture across multiple hardware platforms at both component and system level. Designing active and passive cooling solutions across a range of high power, thermally demanding applications. Developing and executing qualification campaigns including instrumentation, environmental testing, and model correlation. Building and running thermal analyses from first principles through to detailed simulation. Specifying thermal interface materials, coatings, and surface treatments. Partnering cross functionally with electrical and mechanical engineering teams. Capturing real world thermal data in operational field conditions and correlating back to models. Supporting battery system thermal design.

What You Can Bring

Strong hands on experience in thermal engineering across demanding, real world environments. Proficiency in industry standard CFD and thermal simulation tools. Solid fundamentals across conduction, convection, and radiation with the ability to validate by hand. Experience designing cooling solutions for embedded electronics and high power systems. Demonstrated history of running thermal test campaigns end to end, independently. Python or MATLAB for data reduction and analysis. Someone who takes ownership of projects and runs their own tests without being directed.

Battery thermal management experience is a strong plus. Background in high power electronics cooling or integrated system thermal design welcomed. Experience in fast paced, resource constrained environments advantageous.

US Citizenship required. DoD security clearance eligibility required.

What’s In It For You

$150,000-$225,000. Equity, relocation support, unlimited PTO, comprehensive benefits. Opportunity to become the thermal authority in a growing, mission driven organisation at an exciting stage of development.

Please apply within to register your interest or reach out directly on LinkedIn to Kyle Gauntlett.

Darwin Recruitment is acting as an Employment Agency in relation to this vacancy.

Kyle Gauntlett