Durability CAE Technical Specialist - Structures & Closures

Durability CAE Technical Specialist – Structures & Closures

LER TechForce is looking for a Durability CAE Technical Specialist – Structures & Closures. Location: Charlotte, NC (Remote)

Role Overview

We are seeking an experienced Durability CAE Technical Specialist to lead virtual durability sign-off and simulation for vehicle structures and closure systems. This role is critical to ensuring robust, lightweight designs through advanced physics-based simulation, correlation with physical testing, and close collaboration across engineering teams. You will be a recognized technical authority, driving durability decisions early in development and enabling confident program execution before physical prototypes are built.

Key Responsibilities

• Virtual Durability Sign-off Lead structural durability and fatigue sign-off for body structures, frames, closures (doors, hood, liftgate, tailgate), and EV battery enclosures prior to physical builds.
• Closures Performance & Durability Simulation Own durability assessment of closure systems, including:
• Door and liftgate slam durability and abuse events
• Hinge, latch, striker, and check-link load durability
• Sag resistance and long-term stiffness retention
• Hood flutter, over-slam, and misuse load cases
• Sealing load optimization versus customer closing effort
• Fatigue of welds, adhesives, hems, and bonded joints
• Advanced CAE & Dynamic Simulation Lead complex implicit and explicit simulations such as ground strikes, curb impacts, pothole events, cyclic road loading, and closure slam events to evaluate structural resilience and load paths.
• Model Correlation & Validation Drive correlation between CAE predictions and physical test data from proving grounds, durability rigs, and closure test labs to ensure predictive accuracy.
• Load Development & Damage Assessment Translate road load data into representative durability load cases. Define damage metrics, fatigue slopes, and event weighting strategies aligned with real-world customer usage.
• Root Cause Analysis & Design Guidance Diagnose durability failures using nonlinear FEA and fatigue analysis. Provide clear, physics-based design recommendations to improve robustness and reduce program risk.
• Technical Leadership & Mentorship Serve as durability subject matter expert, mentoring engineers, developing CAE best practices, and advancing durability simulation methodologies.
• Cross-functional Collaboration Partner with design, closures, body, manufacturing, and road load teams to define durability targets, align test intent, and embed lessons learned into future vehicle platforms.

Required Qualifications

• Education
  • Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering and 1+ years of experience.
• Experience
  • 1+ years of experience in structural durability CAE and physical correlation
  • Demonstrated expertise in closures durability and system-level simulations
• Simulation Tools
  • Advanced proficiency in Nastran
  • Strong experience with fatigue solvers such as nCode
• Closures & Structures Expertise
  • Modeling of hinge-latch systems, contacts, and nonlinear events
  • Weld, adhesive, and bonded joint fatigue assessment
  • Experience with mixed-material structures (HSLA steel, aluminum castings, bonded assemblies)
• Pre/Post Processing & Automation
  • Proficiency with ANSA and Meta/Post
  • Experience with Python or MATLAB scripting is a plus
• Materials & Failure Mechanics
  • Strong understanding of fatigue, plasticity, ductile failure, and joint durability
• Communication Skills
  • Ability to translate complex CAE results into clear technical recommendations and executive-level summaries