Senior Cooling SME- Piping Specialist

Primary Location

Fairfield, Ohio, Red Oak, TX, or Phoenix, AZ

Overview

The Senior Cooling SME -Piping Specialist is responsible for the design, technical review, standardization, and execution of mechanical piping systems for Modular Data Center and Liquid Cooling solutions, with primary focus on Technology Cooling Systems (TCS) and Facility Water Systems (FWS) supporting high-density AI/HPC infrastructure.

The position requires strong expertise in data center liquid cooling architecture, hydronic piping and hydraulic design, piping materials/components, fabrication, testing, and commissioning. The SME will also lead the development and continuous improvement of internal piping specifications, engineering standards, design guidelines, and standardized TCS/FWS solutions.

Key Responsibilities

TCS & FWS Piping / Hydraulic Design

• Lead design and technical review of TCS and FWS piping systems, including supply/return headers, distribution piping, CDU interfaces, heat exchangers, pumps, and rack/row liquid cooling distribution.

• Understand the complete cooling path from facility cooling/FWS through CDU or heat exchanger to TCS and IT equipment.

• Perform/review pipe sizing, flow velocity, pressure drop, pump head, Cv/Kv, flow balancing, system pressure, expansion, air separation, drain/fill, and flushing calculations.

• Develop/review P&IDs, piping one-lines, piping layouts, mechanical schedules, valve schedules, and sequences of operation.

• Address system reliability, redundancy, maintainability, water quality, cleanliness, and commissioning requirements.

Piping Specifications & Design Standards

• Develop, maintain, and continuously improve internal piping specifications and engineering design standards for TCS/FWS applications.

• Establish standardized requirements for:

• Piping materials, pipe schedules, fittings, flanges, and joining methods

• Valves, balancing devices, strainers, hoses, gaskets, and instrumentation

• Pipe sizing, flow velocity, pressure drop, and design pressure

• Pipe supports, anchors, guides, restraints, and thermal expansion

• Welding, inspection, cleaning, flushing, passivation, and pressure/leak testing

• System cleanliness, water quality, corrosion control, and commissioning

• Develop standard TCS/FWS architectures, design rules, typical details, component selection guidelines, and engineering best practices.

• Drive design standardization to improve quality, reliability, manufacturability, scalability, and cost effectiveness across Prefab data center solutions.

Materials, Components & Fabrication

• Specify and evaluate piping materials, including 304/304L and 316/316L stainless steel, carbon steel, and other applicable materials.

• Select/review pumps, heat exchangers, valves, balancing devices, strainers, fittings, flanges, hoses, gaskets, expansion provisions, and instrumentation.

• Evaluate compatibility with treated water, chilled water, glycol solutions, and TCS cooling fluids.

• Define requirements for welding, inspection, cleanliness, flushing, pickling/passivation, pressure testing, leak testing, and preservation.

Codes & Standards

Provide technical leadership for compliance with applicable requirements, including:

• ASME B31.3 - Process Piping

• ASME B31.9 - Building Services Piping

• ASME B16.5 - Pipe Flanges and Flanged Fittings

• Applicable ASTM/AWS material, welding, fabrication, and testing standards

• ASHRAE data center/liquid cooling guidance

• Applicable building and mechanical codes

• Customer-specific TCS/FWS and water-quality requirements

Technical Leadership & Project Execution

• Serve as the technical SME for TCS/FWS piping systems during internal and customer design reviews.

• Review customer specifications and identify technical risks, gaps, and deviations.

• Collaborate with CDU, heat exchanger, pump, piping, valve, water-treatment, equipment, and fabrication suppliers.

• Support design reviews, DFMEA/risk assessments, supplier qualification, FAT, installation, commissioning, and troubleshooting.

• Resolve hydraulic performance, leakage, corrosion, contamination, vibration, and piping-related field issues.

• Mentor engineers and designers and provide technical guidance on liquid cooling and hydronic piping design.

Education & Required Experience

• B.S. in Mechanical Engineering or a related engineering discipline.

• Minimum 6+ years of relevant engineering experience in piping, hydronic cooling, or liquid cooling systems.

• Demonstrated experience with data center TCS and/or FWS applications, with direct data center liquid cooling experience strongly preferred.

• Strong experience with hydraulic calculations, piping design/layout, materials, component selection, fabrication, testing, and commissioning.

• Experience developing or applying piping specifications, engineering standards, design guidelines, and standard details.

• Experience taking piping systems from design through fabrication, FAT, installation, and commissioning.

Preferred / Plus Qualifications

• Direct experience with CDUs, direct-to-chip liquid cooling, AI/HPC data centers, and facility water systems.

• Piping stress analysis experience is a plus, including:

• Static analysis: sustained loads, pressure, thermal expansion, supports/restraints, and equipment/nozzle loads

• Dynamic analysis: seismic, transportation, water hammer/pressure transients, and vibration

• Experience with CAESAR II, Bentley AutoPIPE, or equivalent

• Experience with Autodesk Revit, AutoCAD, Autodesk Construction Cloud, and Bluebeam.

• Knowledge of water/glycol chemistry, corrosion control, cleanliness, flushing, and passivation.

• PE registration or equivalent professional engineering qualification is a plus.

Core Competencies

• TCS & FWS Architecture: Facility-to-CDU-to-IT liquid cooling system architecture.

• Hydraulic Engineering: Pipe sizing, pressure drop, pump head, Cv/Kv, balancing, and pressure analysis.

• Piping Engineering: Materials, pressure ratings, fittings, flanges, welding, valves, gaskets, supports, and fabrication.

• Standards Development: Ability to translate engineering knowledge and lessons learned into internal specifications, design standards, standard details, and repeatable design practices.

• Technical Leadership: Ability to independently lead complex piping design decisions and customer technical reviews.

• Problem Solving: Strong root-cause analysis and field troubleshooting capability.

• Communication & Mentoring: Ability to lead discussions across customers, suppliers, manufacturing, and engineering teams.

Travel

Occasional travel to factories, suppliers, customer sites, and commissioning locations may be required, typically up to 15%.

For this U.S. based position, the expected pay range is USD 101,600 - USD 152,400 per year. This pay range includes base pay and short-term incentives. The compensation range for this full-time position applies to candidates located within the United States. Our pay ranges are determined by reviewing roles of similar responsibility and level. Within the pay range, individual pay is determined by several factors including performance, knowledge, job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training.

You must submit an online application to be considered for any position with us. This position will be posted until filled.