Mechanical Engineer

Mechanical Engineer – Commercial Building Design

We are seeking an experienced Mechanical Engineer with a strong background in commercial building mechanical design. A professional engineering license is required; however, candidates eligible for reciprocity in Washington State within three months will also be considered.

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop detailed mechanical construction drawings.
• Perform comprehensive heating and cooling load calculations.
• Design and coordinate HVAC systems, potable water supply, sanitary waste, sewer infrastructure, and mechanical systems controls.
• Navigate and support the permitting process.
• Conduct site surveys and punch‑list inspections during construction phases.
• Prepare mechanical system construction cost estimates and identify value‑engineering opportunities.
• Contribute to mechanical design efforts for medium to large‑scale commercial building projects.

Qualifications:

• Proven experience in commercial building mechanical design.
• Strong understanding of building systems, codes, and mechanical engineering principles.
• Ability to work collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams.
• Excellent communication and documentation skills.
• PE license or ability to obtain Washington State reciprocity within three months.

GENERAL SUMMARY

Provide independent engineering service and support to perform highly complex engineering tasks requiring specialized skills and broad experience in the application of engineering fundamentals in support of the design modification, operating, and independent assessment of Energy Northwest facilities. Serve as an advisor to others.

PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Perform highly complex engineering analyses and designs in support of operations, systems, programs, audit inspections, and assessments requiring skills and experience gained through application of engineering methods and analysis, codes, standards, and regulatory requirements.
• Work with minimal supervision.
• Serve as an advisor providing advice and counsel on assignments concerned with specialized or unique engineering requirements. Solutions provided involve unconventional or innovative problem solving techniques.
• Provide technical leadership and training on highly complex or extended projects.
• Provide leadership of small groups to resolve complex issues.
• Provide technical direction and leadership routinely to other engineers; serve as a mentor. Provide training to others.
• Identify need and initiate development of new policies, programs, plans, and procedures to meet strategic objectives.
• Assure compliance with regulatory and industry guidance. Provide interpretation of industry guidance for application.
• Identify potential problems in design, quality, or operation and initiate corrective action

Engineering employees are expected to be available and to support the following activities as a condition of employment with Energy Northwest:

• Emergency Response Organization (ERO) including being on-call (24/7) during your required team duty (2 weeks out of every 8 weeks).
• 12-hour work shifts during outages as part of our overall Outage support (24/7)
• Engineering duty cycle support (24/7) including call-out availability during your responsible duty assignment. (This is a shared responsibility across all engineering positions).

REQUIRED EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

Engineer Principal

Requires a bachelor’s degree in engineering from an accredited college or university and seven years of engineering experience;

OR a high school diploma or GED and PE license obtained by accredited examination plus eight years of engineering experience.

Engineer Senior

Requires a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from an accredited college or university and three years of discipline specific engineering experience;

OR a PE license obtained by an accredited examination and five years of discipline specific engineering experience. High school diploma or GED is required.

Staff Engineer

Requires a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering from an accredited college or university and at least one year of engineering experience;

OR a PE license obtained by accredited examination and at least one year of engineering experience. A high school diploma or GED is required.

Engineer

Requires a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from an accredited college or university or a PE license obtained by accredited examination and zero to three years of discipline engineering experience. A high school diploma or GED is required.

INCENTIVE COMPENSATION

This position is eligible for an annual at-risk compensation (ARC) incentive plan. Incentives are earned based on agency performance against defined metrics and goals which follow eligibility rules within the ARC plan document.

BENEFITS

Energy Northwest (EN) provides a phenomenal benefits package. Washington State also has no state income tax, and the Tri-Cities provides a cost-of-living lower than the national average.

EN offers substantial retirement benefits through three retirement programs including the Washington State Public Employees' Retirement System pension plan (PERS), a 401(k) savings plan with an employer match component, and a 457(b) savings plan. EN also offers multiple options for medical, dental, vision, disability and life insurance coverage. Other voluntary benefits may include flexible spending accounts (FSAs), tuition reimbursement, student loan repayment, childcare subsides, health reimbursement arrangement (HRA VEBA), health savings account (HSA), supplemental life insurances, credit monitoring/identity theft insurance, and more! Qualifying employees will typically start a personal time accrual rate of 160 hours per year and EN provides nine paid holidays throughout the Calander year; personal time accruals grow significantly at various service intervals.

Energy Northwest does not provide employment visa sponsorship. Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States at the time of hire and throughout employment.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, age, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws. Know Your Rights (PDF)