Materials Process Engineer - Metals

Vulcan Elements is manufacturing American rare-earth permanent magnets for a secure, resilient future. With a focus on national security and economic resiliency, we serve critical industries such as defense, aerospace, and automotive powering a high-technology future. Vulcan Elements is building a team of ambitious professionals committed to Mission Focus, Technical Excellence and Transparency.

As a Materials and Process Engineer with a metals focus, you will build and validate computational models of fluid dynamics, heat transfer, electromagnetic behavior, and mechanical response across key process steps, providing engineering insight that drives process optimization and supports product development. This is a technical role requiring strong fundamentals in computational mechanics, experience with commercial simulation platforms, and the ability to translate modeling results into actionable manufacturing guidance. This role begins in Durham, NC and is expected to move to Benson, NC upon completion of new facility. 

Responsibilities

• Model thermal conditions during manufacturing processes such as sintering, heat treatment, and casting.
• Create representative models for various manufacturing processes including fluid dynamics, mechanical behavior, heat transfer, and electromagnetic phenomena.
• Use models combined with process data to support process improvement and optimization.
• Build and refine simulations using ANSYS (Mechanical, Maxwell, ROCKY, Fluent), COMSOL Multiphysics, or equivalent commercial simulation platforms.
• Collaborate with process, materials, and data engineers to integrate simulation outputs into process development and optimization workflows.
• Design simulation studies to evaluate process sensitivities, identify failure modes, and guide experimental campaigns.
• Document modeling assumptions, boundary conditions, validation results, and recommendations in a structured manner consistent with quality system requirements.
• Support development of custom scripts and automation tools (Python, MATLAB, or similar) for pre/post-processing of simulation data.

Responsibilities and tasks outlined are not exhaustive and may change as determined by the needs of the business.

Qualifications

• B.S. or higher in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering, or a closely related field.
• Demonstrated experience building and validating process models using ANSYS (e.g., Mechanical, Maxwell, ROCKY, Fluent), COMSOL Multiphysics, or equivalent commercial simulation software.
• Strong working knowledge of computational fluid dynamics (CFD), heat transfer modeling, and mechanical stress/strain analysis.
• Proficiency with scripting languages (Python, MATLAB, or similar) for simulation setup, data extraction, and post-processing.
• Ability to work independently, manage multiple concurrent modeling efforts, and communicate results clearly to cross-functional teams.

Must be a U.S. Person due to required access to U.S. export-controlled information or facilities.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience modeling metal manufacturing processes such as sintering, casting, powder compaction, forging, or heat treatment.
• Experience modeling particle-level interactions including powder packing, granular flow, or discrete element methods (DEM).
• Experience with electromagnetic modeling and simulation (e.g., ANSYS Maxwell) for magnetic field analysis or electromagnetic process design.
• Familiarity with phase-field, CALPHAD, or other microstructure-evolution modeling approaches.
• Experience with Multiphysics coupled simulations (e.g., thermo-mechanical, fluid-structure interaction).
• Familiarity with GPU-accelerated computing, HPC environments, or cloud-based simulation platforms.
• Experience in a production, industrial, or R&D environment with exposure to manufacturing constraints and process validation.

Physical and Environmental Requirements

The position requires regular presence on the production floor and the ability to navigate all areas of the facility. Candidates must be able to climb stairs, stand and walk for extended periods, and work in environments that may be hot, humid, or noisy. The role also requires the use of personal protective equipment, including respirators, and adherence to all applicable safety policies, procedures, and regulatory requirements. Employees must be able to complete required fit testing, wear appropriate PPE for the duration of assigned tasks, and respond safely to changing conditions within the production environment.

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