Research Engineer III — Building Energy Modeling

At PNNL, our core capabilities are divided among major departments that we refer to as Directorates within the Lab, focused on a specific area of scientific research or other function, with its own leadership team and dedicated budget.

Our Science & Technology directorates include National Security, Earth and Biological Sciences, Physical and Computational Sciences, and Energy and Environment. In addition, we have an Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a Department of Energy, Office of Science user facility housed on the PNNL campus.

The Energy and Environment Directoratedeliversscience and technology solutions for the nation’s biggest energy and environmental challenges. Our more than 1,700 staff support the Department of Energy (DOE), delivering on key DOE mission areas including: modernizing our nation’s power grid to maintain a reliable, affordable, secure, and resilient electricity delivery infrastructure; research, development, validation, and effective utilization of renewable energy and efficiency technologies that improve the affordability, reliability, resiliency, and security of the American energy system;

and resolving complex issues in nuclear science, energy, and environmental management.

The Electricity Infrastructure and Buildings Division, part of the Energy and Environment Directorate, is accelerating the transition to an efficient, resilient, and secure energy system through basic and applied research. We leverage a strong technical foundation in power and energy systems and advanced data analytics to drive innovation, transform markets, and shape energy policy.

This position is in the Building Simulation and Design Group (BS&DG) within PNNL’s Electricity Infrastructure and Buildings Division. BS&DG conducts modeling and analysis to evaluate the impacts of building energy policies, codes, and standards; develops tools and workflows to support building research and decision making; and helps accelerate adoption of energy-efficient technologies. The group maintains core research capabilities in building energy simulation, building energy policy analysis, and tool development for building applications.

The BS&DG is seeking a Research Engineer III - Building Energy Modeling with strong knowledge of building energy systems, advanced hands-on Energy Plus modeling expertise, programming and data analysis skills, and demonstrated ability to lead technical work. The selected candidate will serve as a technical lead. They will select and develop technical approaches and lead research to evaluate building energy performance, building technologies, and energy efficiency policies, codes, and standards.

Responsibilities include developing and improving modeling tools and simulation workflows, guiding technical contributors, ensuring the technical quality of research results, and communicating findings to sponsors and stakeholders. The candidate will also integrate AI-enabled methods into modeling and analysis workflows, with an emphasis on engineering accuracy, reproducibility, and practical value.

The successful candidate will be accountable to Project and/or Task Managers for performing assigned roles, following applicable project and field procedures, and completing assigned tasks on time and within budget. The candidate will also be accountable to the Group Leader and Team Leader for their own staff performance and development, operational discipline, and project execution.

The successful candidate will be responsible for:

• Defining research questions and selecting and developing modeling and analytical approaches to address building performance challenges, including appropriate methods, assumptions, evaluation metrics, and study boundaries.
• Developi…