Job Title: Senior Thermal Analyst
Job Description The Senior Thermal Analyst leads thermal analysis activities to support the mechanical design, analysis, and evaluation of complex engineering projects using sound engineering principles and established business standards, practices, and procedures. This role focuses on thermodynamic system analysis for advanced nuclear reactor plants and plays a key role in informing design, manufacturing, construction, and licensing strategies. The Senior Thermal Analyst provides technical leadership, guides multidisciplinary engineering teams, and ensures the delivery of high-quality, well-documented engineering work products on schedule and within budget.
Responsibilities
• Lead a team responsible for performing thermodynamic system analysis to inform the design, manufacturing, construction, and licensing strategy for advanced nuclear reactor plants.
• Support the planning and execution of mechanical design, analysis, and evaluation activities in accordance with engineering principles, business standards, and project requirements.
• Provide support for managing the utilization of engineering resources across multiple projects, ensuring qualified engineers are assigned and performing work effectively.
• Lead design cycle sprints and provide direction to align the efforts of engineering team members, partners, and suppliers, ensuring timely and on-budget delivery of high-quality engineering work products.
• Potentially manage mechanical engineering staff by setting expectations, monitoring performance, and promoting their professional development.
• Influence and support the development of strategies, methodologies, and technical tools within the area of responsibility.
• Interpret internal business and technical challenges and recommend best practices to improve products, processes, tools, and services.
• Use sound judgment to support decision-making and handle complex tasks or problems in operations, product management, technology, or engineering.
• Plan and perform analyses to assess structures and systems, ensuring they can perform their intended functions and meet technical specifications and design requirements.
• Perform computations using hand calculations and analytical tools for structural, thermal, hydraulic, and other scoping calculations as required by project leads and systems engineers.
• Collaborate within a multidisciplinary engineering team to design and develop advanced next-generation nuclear power plants.
• Perform work in accordance with design control procedures, including thorough documentation of analyses, facilitation of internal and external design reviews, and control of product design configuration data.
• Maintain a professional demeanor and behavior in all forms of communication, fostering a respectful and collaborative work environment.
Essential Skills • Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering or a related discipline from an accredited university or college.
• 7–12 years of engineering experience.
• Proven experience in thermal analysis, including thermal design and heat transfer.
• Mechanical engineering background with demonstrated ability to support mechanical design and evaluation activities.
• Experience using 1D flow-solvers to perform heat/energy and mass balance calculations (for example RELAP, Flownex, NPSS, SINDA/FLUINT, or similar tools).
• Ability to perform structural, thermal, and hydraulic computations using both hand calculations and analytical tools.
• Experience working within formal design control procedures, including documentation, design reviews, and configuration control.
• Strong judgment and problem-solving skills for handling complex engineering and operational tasks.
• Ability to lead and coordinate multidisciplinary engineering teams and stakeholders.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with a consistently professional demeanor.
Additional Skills & Qualifications • Experience with computational fluid dynamics (CFD) for high pressure, high heat thermal applications.
• Experience in thermodynamic system analysis for advanced nuclear reactor plants or similar complex systems.
• Familiarity with Matlab for engineering analysis and data processing.
• Experience contributing to the development of engineering strategies, methodologies, and technical tools.
• background in environments undergoing significant growth, such as organizations preparing for or operating as publicly traded companies.
• Demonstrated ability to facilitate internal and external design reviews and interface effectively with partners and suppliers.
Work Environment The role is based in an office environment and involves working closely with a multidisciplinary engineering team. You will use engineering analysis tools such as 1D flow-solvers, Matlab, and potentially CFD software to perform thermal, structural, and hydraulic analyses. Work follows formal design control procedures with an emphasis on thorough documentation, structured design reviews, and configuration management. The position involves regular collaboration with internal teams and external partners and suppliers, and requires a consistently professional demeanor in all forms of communication.
Job Type & Location
This is a Contract to Hire position based out of Rockville, MD.
Pay and Benefits The pay range for this position is $75.00 - $100.00/hr.
Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific elections, plan, or program terms. If eligible, the benefits available for this temporary role may include the following:
Medical, dental & vision
Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital
401(k) Retirement Plan – Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions available
Life Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for the employee and dependents)
Short and long-term disability
Health Spending Account (HSA)
Transportation benefits
Employee Assistance Program
Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation or Sick Leave)
Workplace Type This is a fully onsite position in Rockville,MD.
Application Deadline This position is anticipated to close on Jun 12, 2026.
About Actalent
Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services and talent solutions. We help visionary companies advance their engineering and science initiatives through access to specialized experts who drive scale, innovation and speed to market. With a network of almost 30,000 consultants and more than 4,500 clients across the U.S., Canada, Asia and Europe, Actalent serves many of the Fortune 500.
The company is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all applications without regard to race, sex, age, color, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any characteristic protected by law.
If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, such as the modification or adjustment of the job application process or interviewing process due to a disability, please email actalentaccommodation@actalentservices.com for other accommodation options.
San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance: Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, for all positions located in the city and county of San Francisco, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.
Massachusetts Lie Detector: It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.
Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI): We may use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support parts of our hiring process, including sourcing, screening, and evaluating candidates. AI helps assess applications and qualifications, but final decisions are made by our hiring team. By applying, you acknowledge and agree that your application may be reviewed using AI tools.
$75-$100 per hour Employment Type: CONTRACTOR