Senior Aerodynamicist - Analysis & Development
On-site- Woking, England, United Kingdom
F1 - Technical
Job description
At McLaren, our mission is to set the standard for high performance in sport. And everyone, in every part of the team, has a role to play. So if you want to test your ideas with the world watching... And measure your progress in milliseconds... And play your part in racing history... You belong here. High performance starts with you.
The closing date for this role is expected to be Wednesday 28th August; in the case of a high volume of applications, the vacancy may be closed sooner or may be closed temporarily to allow applications to be reviewed in good time.
Analysis & Development group:
The recently created Analysis & Development group is tasked with improving the technical integration of the various stakeholders within the Aerodynamics Department: Aerodynamic Development, Aerodynamic Performance Group, CFD, Wind-Tunnel Engineering, Design and Operations - and more broadly, Car performance and Data science groups - through the continuous evolution of our aerodynamic development methodology resulting from a thorough data driven analysis and increased understanding.
The group is purposefully small, but must be highly re-active, active and pro-active to successfully complement the work carried out by the specialized stakeholders in our common focused aim of improving lap time performance.
Purpose of the Role:
The key challenge for the Analysis & Development group within the Aerodynamics department is to deliver, through detailed data analysis and modelling, useful aerodynamic insights that enhance the ability of the aero department to deliver car performance at a faster rate.
The role is essentially technical and requires a high level of technical flexibility and creativity.
Given the size of the group, the direct management tasks will be limited, but management skillsets such as coaching and mentoring, effective communication and project co-ordination across stakeholder groups will be very useful.
Principal Accountabilities:
- Work collaboratively with key stakeholders across the Aerodynamics department (and beyond) to identify aerodynamic challenges and data which merits deeper analysis.
- Dedicate time to explore data sources that could be better exploited to enhance aerodynamic understanding.
- Look at data from all environments (CFD, WT & track) in different ways from traditional aero development to gain new insights and develop metrics to enhance performance.
- Apply and help develop new and innovative data science methods / techniques to draw out interesting trends and information that can influence car performance.
- Robustly challenge assumptions and beliefs to ensure we have the data to support our philosophy & design directions.
- Collaborate with the Aero Performance Group using track and simulator data to help define further performance opportunities.
- Summarize, report and be proactive in communicating and presenting results of any studies or analysis to stakeholders from project scoping through to completion, with the intention of improving the lap time performance of the race car.
- Attend team reviews, contributing to the ideas and design philosophy discussions about where to find further aero performance.
- Promote collaborative work when discussing results or defining development direction.
- Coach and mentor more junior members of the team to help develop their aero understanding, data analysis skills and techniques.
Job requirements
Knowledge, Skills and Experience:
- Excellent data driven analysis skills.
- Very good knowledge of flow structure characteristics and flow breakdown mechanisms.
- Extensive experience in motorsport Aerodynamics development with sound knowledge of racing car wind tunnel testing, CFD application (and CFD methodology preferred) and on-track aero performance environments.
- Desirable : Extensive experience in F1 Aerodynamics development specifically.
- Good understanding of the experimental techniques and technology in use, the analysis tools available, and the limitations of the data.
- Extensive experience in the analysis of complex data sets to understand underlying behaviour.
- A degree in a relevant STEM subject area, or equivalent industry experience.
- Demonstrable CAD design experience. Desirable: experience with 3DX.
- Desirable, but not required:
- Software programming skills (R&D “prototype” level)
Personal Attributes:
- A team player but with the initiative to make own decisions and work with minimal supervision.
- Self-starter, able to collaborate with the key stakeholders to identify opportunities, define requirements independently, and then make proposals for solutions.
- Resilient in the face of challenges; Able to work under pressure, to tight deadlines, often with ever-changing priorities and enjoy and be comfortable in dealing with new technical challenges at a fast evolution pace.
- The ability to plan, organize and/or co-ordinate a project to deliver and execute to target specifications, often to a tight deadline.
- Ability to communicate effectively with colleagues at all levels and across different departments/disciplines, and the ability to influence as appropriate.
- Aptitude to learn from others and share knowledge with others.
- Excellent problem-solving skills and analytical approach, with attention to detail.
- Flexible approach to working hours due to the nature of F1 work.
What McLaren can offer?
We constantly strive to be better tomorrow than we are today. Our ambition is to be the most pioneering and exhilarating racing team in the world, and our collective task is to set the standards for high performance in sport. We show up every day with energy and enthusiasm, ready to play our part.
We encourage and support diversity, equity and inclusion. We will actively promote a culture that values difference and eliminates discrimination in our workplace.
McLaren Racing is based at the iconic McLaren Technology Centre (MTC) near Woking. Our state of the art, sustainable campus offers many facilities including a gym, restaurant and indoor and outdoor break-out areas, as well as direct access to park and common land. The MTC is connected to Woking mainline station via regular shuttle buses, from which London Waterloo is a 30 minute train ride.
We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including private healthcare, car schemes, life insurance and generous pension contributions.
or
All done!
Your application has been successfully submitted!
