Systems Engineer

About this position

Position Description

Advanced Light Source Upgrade (ALS-U)

The Water Systems Engineer is responsible for the design, operation, maintenance, reliability, and continuous improvement of process and facility water systems supporting both the ALS-U project and ongoing ALS Operations. This position serves as the primary technical authority for cooling water infrastructure associated with accelerator systems, beamlines, experimental equipment, HVAC interfaces, and associated utility systems.
The role requires close coordination with engineering, facilities, operations, installation, controls, EH&S, and scientific staff to ensure water systems meet performance, reliability, safety, and operational availability requirements for a world-class synchrotron user facility.

• - Lead the design and engineering of cooling water systems supporting ALS-U and ALS operational infrastructure.
• - Develop system architectures, P&IDs, flow diagrams, hydraulic calculations, equipment specifications, and design documentation.
• - Perform engineering analysis related to heat transfer, fluid flow, pump sizing, pressure drops, thermal stability, and water quality management.
• - Specify and oversee procurement of pumps, heat exchangers, filtration systems, expansion tanks, piping systems, valves, instrumentation, and water treatment systems.
• - Coordinate integration of water systems with accelerator, beamline, cryogenic, HVAC, and facility utility systems.
• - Ensure designs comply with ASME, ANSI, California building and mechanical codes, laboratory engineering standards, and safety requirements.
• - Oversee the daily operation of closed-loop LCW and DI water systems, monitoring critical parameters like resistivity, dissolved oxygen (DO), and pH.
• - Manage chemical dosing, UV sterilizers, mixed-bed deionizers, and reverse osmosis (RO) systems to prevent biological growth, scaling, and galvanic corrosion.
• - Develop and execute preventative maintenance (PM) schedules. Troubleshoot mechanical, electrical, and chemical issues—including pump failures, resin degradation, and leaks.
• - Plan, design, and commission system expansions or retrofits. Evaluate pipe materials (e.g., PVDF, electropolished stainless steel), valves, and instrumentation to maintain ultra-pure water standards.
• - Ensure water systems adhere to strict environmental and industrial safety standards.

• - Serve as system owner for operational water systems supporting ALS and ALS-U.
• - Develop preventive and predictive maintenance programs for cooling water infrastructure.
• - Monitor system performance, reliability, and lifecycle condition.
• - Troubleshoot operational issues including flow instability, thermal excursions, equipment failures, water chemistry concerns, and leakage events.
• - Coordinate outages, repairs, commissioning activities, and maintenance schedules to minimize operational impact.
• - Support 24/7 operational reliability and rapid response during facility incidents or system failures.

• - Manage water-system-related projects from conceptual design through installation and commissioning.
• - Coordinate with contractors, vendors, installation teams, and facilities personnel.
• - Develop project schedules, cost estimates, and technical scopes of work.
• - Review installation quality and ensure conformance with engineering specifications.
• - Support startup, testing, balancing, and commissioning activities.

• - Maintain accurate engineering documentation including drawings, specifications, operating procedures, maintenance procedures, system inventories, and engineering calculations.
• - Support configuration management and change control processes.
• - Develop operational standards and best practices for facility water systems.

• - Ensure all activities are conducted in accordance with Integrated Safety Management (ISM), EH&S requirements, laboratory policies, and applicable regulatory standards.
• - Participate in hazard analyses, readiness reviews, and safety…