--- title: 'Senior Mechanical Engineer (Modular Data Center) at Orbital' canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/senior-mechanical-engineer-modular-data-center-orbital-london-8yvmg2dacg9m' type: 'job' last_seen: '2026-09-05' --- # Senior Mechanical Engineer (Modular Data Center) at Orbital - **Company:** Orbital - **Location:** London, United Kingdom - **Employment:** full-time - **Work type:** hybrid - **Posted:** 2026-04-22 - **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-05 - **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/orbitalindustries/afe3fcce-e5ed-48c4-abf2-41c20ca703ab ## Job description Orbital Industries is an AI Industrial company, with frontier AI embedded at every step in the production of critical physical products - from creating advanced materials to engineering and manufacturing. Every Orbital Industries product is developed using CurieOS, our AI operating system, uniting AI-automated hardware engineering with AI-designed material science to achieve breakthrough real-world performance. We also offer CurieOS to our customers and partners, extending the same platform and workflows that power Orbital Industries to their own teams and products. We have an ambitious mission and need excellent people in all our teams - AI research, operations, advanced materials, mechanical engineering, chemical engineering and manufacturing. Working at Orbital Industries means working in vertically integrated teams across the full stack, from molecules to manufacturing. We're looking for people who have a love of physical technology, curiosity in AI and a desire to learn. ## ROLE OVERVIEW Orbital is seeking a highly skilled and innovative Senior Mechanical Engineer to design and optimize advanced Modular Data Centers. This is a Senior role within the MDC function that combines strategic input and involves hands-on participation in cutting-edge research, including design and layout of mechanical systems for data center equipment and actively participating in and conducting lab experiments to verify the validity and performance of our modular data centers. ## KEY RESPONSIBILITIES A lead role within Orbital for Modular Data Center design, manufacturing and deployment. As a subject matter expert, you’ll interface with existing and potential clients configuring modular deployments to best suit their needs and suggest improvements. Design for Modular Data Centers - Selection of coils, heat exchangers, chillers, compressors, pumps and other supporting components - Working with key stakeholders to recommend designs for performance, manufacturability, and ease of deployment - Compare the impact on overall efficiency of the data center of different refrigerants for the ambient design condition - Select compressors, expansion valves, and other supporting systems Coordination, Review and Approval of Technical Reports and Documentation - Review internal engineering work as well as external contractors such as CFD and FEA analysis - As the team continues to grow, this role will be responsible for the direction of intermediate engineers, drafters and designers from various disciplines that will be added to the MDC team. Miscellaneous - Participate in the evaluation and selection of potential contract manufacturers - Assist in supporting internal and external manufacturing operations including integrating feedback from various stakeholders to continuously improve our modular products - Lead role in bringing new and innovative ways to design and manufacture products ## WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR - Professional engineering designation with 7+ years of experience in the design, selection, and/or manufacturing of mechanical and electrical systems for data centers, HVAC, and large-scale cooling applications - Deep understanding of modular data center architecture — including mechanical/electrical subsystems, applicable codes, data center tiers, and best practices for efficiency and reliability - Expertise in chiller and refrigeration system selection, design and optimization - Experience with simulation tools (e.g. CFD, FEA) for thermal and fluid dynamics, and hands-on lab experience designing and executing experiments to validate mechanical system performance - Ability to interpret experimental data and translate findings into actionable design improvements WHY JOIN ORBITAL? - Competitive salary and equity package - the ability to own part of Orbital as we grow - Flexible and generous paid time off - Excellent health, dental and vision insurance plan - Regular company off-sites to the USA and beyond - The experience of working in a cutting-edge organisation dedicated to a better future Orbital is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. ## About Orbital ## Company Overview - **One-liner**: Orbital Industries is an AI-first industrial company that designs and manufactures physical products using its own AI platform, starting with advanced hardware for AI data centers. - **Entity Type**: Private (Funding stage not disclosed) - **Headquarters**: London, United Kingdom - **Founded**: 2022 - **Founders**: Jonathan Godwin (CEO) ## Core Business - **Primary Industry**: Manufacturing / Industrial AI / Data Center Hardware - **Target Customers**: B2B, Enterprise (specifically data center operators) - **Mission/Purpose**: To lead an industrial renaissance by advancing critical technologies and securing the planet, using AI to accelerate the invention and manufacture of physical products. ## Products & Services - **Orb (AI Platform)**: An integrated AI foundation model and agentic operating system that unites domain-specific AI across material science, fluid dynamics, and hardware engineering to discover and design novel physical products. It powers all of the company’s hardware development. - **AI Data Center Products**: High-performance, sustainable hardware for AI data centers, including direct-to-chip and two-phase liquid cooling systems using newly discovered molecular classes for high-density GPU cooling. These are sold as modular data center components. ## Market Standing - **Valuation / Market Cap**: Not publicly available. - **Key Metric**: Headcount is approximately 58 employees (as of mid-2026), with 12 active job postings indicating continued growth. - **Notable Investors/Partners**: No specific investors named, but the company highlights a relationship with **NVIDIA**. CEO Jonathan Godwin discussed the company with Jensen Huang at an NVIDIA event, and Orbital is part of the beta release for NVIDIA's Alchemist toolkit. - **Growth Signals**: - Rapid initial headcount growth (currently ~58 employees). - 12 open positions across ML engineering, mechanical engineering, finance, and talent. - Active in the Open Compute Project community. - Strong LinkedIn follower growth (+3.9% monthly). ## Competitive Advantages - **AI-Native Hardware R&D**: Unlike traditional hardware companies with large, siloed R&D departments, Orbital operates like an AI lab with small, interdisciplinary teams that use AI agents, robotic labs, and physical engineering sites. - **Foundation Models for Physics**: Possesses world-leading AI models for advanced materials, fluid dynamics, and other physical sciences, enabling rapid iteration in simulation ("in silico") before physical prototyping. - **Sample-Efficient AI**: Their "autoresearch" agents are designed to find correct answers in as few experiments as possible, dramatically reducing the time and cost of physical R&D, which is typically measured in months and millions of dollars per experiment. ## Strategic Focus - **Geographic Expansion**: Scaling operations with offices already established in London (HQ), San Francisco, and Calgary. Hiring a Head of Sales for the EMEA region. - **Broader Industrial Ambition**: While starting with data center cooling, the strategy is to apply its AI platform to other critical physical sectors, including energy, semiconductors, and general materials and machinery. - **Talent Acquisition**: Actively hiring ML researchers and engineers to build the "next frontier of industrial AI," alongside core engineering and business roles. ## Why Work Here - **Culture**: Described internally as a "talent-dense" team operating like a frontier AI lab, but with the tangible output of physical products. This appeals to those who want to see their code impact the real world. - **Work Model**: Hybrid (typical time on-site varies by role and office location). Roles in San Francisco are in-office; London roles are hybrid. - **Notable Perks/Engineering Culture**: Engineers work on cutting-edge problems at the intersection of AI and physics. The company is small but has high-profile ambitions and partnerships (e.g., NVIDIA), offering significant ownership and impact. ## Sources 1. [orbitalindustries.com](https://www.orbitalindustries.com/) 2. [orbitalindustries.com/about](https://www.orbitalindustries.com/about) 3. [linkedin.com/company/orbitalindustries](https://www.linkedin.com/company/orbitalindustries) 4. [builtin.com](https://builtin.com/company/orbital-industries) 5. [jobs.ashbyhq.com/orbitalindustries](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/orbitalindustries) ## Other roles at Orbital - [Forward Deployed Engineering Lead](https://feeny.ai/job/forward-deployed-engineering-lead-orbital-london-qc117e9csesh) — London, United Kingdom - [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/forward-deployed-engineer-orbital-london-j0ky5sndyk9x) — London, United Kingdom - [Senior Backend Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-backend-engineer-orbital-london-hjbxs88h2eyt) — London, United Kingdom - [Prototype Researcher](https://feeny.ai/job/prototype-researcher-orbital-san-francisco-vepxqr2185j3) — San Francisco, CA - [Test Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/test-engineer-orbital-san-francisco-n70wp6h29wkn) — San Francisco, CA - [Machine Learning Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/machine-learning-engineer-orbital-london-2agc9mw9xeey) — London, United Kingdom