Posting Title

Commercial Buildings Postdoctoral Researcher Engineer – Building Science and Energy Modeling

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Location

CO - Golden

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Position Type

Postdoc (Fixed Term)

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Hours Per Week

40

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Working at NREL

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado is the nation's primary laboratory for energy systems research and development.

Join the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), where world-class scientists, engineers, and experts are accelerating energy innovation through breakthrough research and systems integration. From our mission to our collaborative culture, NREL stands out in the research community for its commitment to an affordable and secure energy future. Spanning foundational science to applied systems engineering and analysis, we focus on solving complex challenges to deliver advanced, secure, reliable, and cost-effective energy solutions. Our work helps strengthen U.S. industries, support job creation, and promote national economic growth.

At NREL, you’ll find a mission-driven environment supported by state-of-the-art facilities, multidisciplinary research teams, and strong collaborations with industry, academia, and other national laboratories. We offer robust professional development opportunities, and a competitive benefits package designed to support your career and well-being.

Learn about NREL’s critical objectives: NREL's Mission and Vision.

Job Description

The Communities and Urban Sciences Research Group in the Building Technologies and Science Center at NREL conducts leading research on the integration of systems for optimized energy consumption, generation, and storage in the built environment at multiple scales. Our research focuses on efficiency, decarbonization, resiliency, affordability of energy systems, and equitable deployment across the United States and the world.

Communities and Urban Sciences Research Group at NREL is hiring a Building Science Researcher who will work on district energy system modeling, commercial building energy modeling, and urban-scale modeling and model development. The successful applicant will be responsible for research-level energy analyses, with a focus on district thermal energy modeling and whole building research relevant to the commercial buildings sector. Work will consist primarily of using EnergyPlus, OpenStudio, and URBANopt to develop and analyze building energy models from individual buildings to campus/district scales. Work will include using as-built drawings, trend data, and other information to build and calibrate models of existing buildings. The successful applicant will work collaboratively to identify planning, design and operational strategies that allow buildings to operate as efficient, grid-integrated resources, and will work with industry to advance the next generation of highly efficient commercial buildings and districts. 

The role requires a candidate who has knowledge of building science, building and community energy systems, buildings industry, utility programs, and government entities.  The successful applicant will be expected to publish relevant research outcomes in peer-reviewed scientific journals and must be comfortable working across interdisciplinary teams to develop integrated solutions that address complex challenges and unique opportunities in buildings, districts and communities. There is the opportunity to engage with external stakeholders and demonstrate expertise in strategies for achieving energy efficient and decarbonized buildings

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Basic Qualifications

Must be a recent PhD graduate within the last three years.

* Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.

Additional Required Qualifications

• Strong understanding of building science principles, theories, and concepts, including thermodynamics and heat transfer
• Industry or practical experience with modeling, design, commissioning, and operation of commercial building HVAC systems,
• Must have Industry or practical experience modeling, commercial building energy modeling, urban-scale modeling and model development experience.
• Exposure to modeling such as EnergyPlus, OpenStudio, and URBANopt
• Strong technical writing skills
• General knowledge and application of engineering technical standards