Smart Energy Buildings & Cities PDEng program

The Smart Buildings & Cities (SB&C) PDEng program wants to contribute to the transition to an energy-positive built environment in which indoor environmental quality is optimized for health, comfort and/or productivity. To achieve these goals a transdisciplinary approach is required which:

• addresses technological solutions for energy generation, storage, distribution and demand reduction, and

• integrates and optimizes these in design, construction and operation of new and existing buildings.

This requires technical designers who are able to work in a multidisciplinary environment and know how to communicate with different disciplines and stake holders. This PDEng program educates trainees to become those technical designers!

After the two year program our trainees become technical designers with a broad technological understanding of energy related disciplines in the built environment (mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, building physics and services and ICT), who excel in their own discipline and who are able to work in multidisciplinary design teams, contribute to design issues outside their own core disciplines, integrate different technologies into new products and concepts, and who understand the commercial aspects of these innovative products and concepts.

Job description

The Department of the Built Environment of the Eindhoven University of Technology offers you a trainee position to follow a two-year post-master technological designer program, which leads to the degree of 'Professional Doctorate in Engineering' (PDEng). The SB&C program consists of two main parts:

1. Workshops. You will follow technical workshops in which you acquire knowledge concerning important concepts of disciplines other than your own (master) specialism. You will follow these workshops with other SB&C trainees (all with different master specialisms). The workshops increase your ability to effectively and efficiently communicate with these other disciplines in multidisciplinary design teams. Furthermore, you will follow workshops on design methods, entrepreneurship and professional skills.

2. Design projects. You will work on a design project with a group of SB&C trainees and you will work an individual in-company assignment (see description below). The latter is a design project in collaboration with a company and the university. You work within the company structure (facilities, office desk, computer and other required equipment are provided by the company). It is your main responsibility to manage and execute the project. You are supported by an advisor from the company and an advisor from the university. A business plan for implementation or marketing of the project or product is part of the final deliverables.

Half of the program consists of post-master level education in the form of courses and design projects about design methods, entrepreneurship and professional skills. The other half of the program is dedicated to an individual design project in collaboration with a company. Nonetheless you will start working on the in-company assignment from the start of the program. The in-company assignment related to this traineeship is described below.

The main building of the Eindhoven University of Technology, the Atlas building, is being refurbished. The design of the Atlas building is awarded with the BREEAM Award for most sustainable educational building. See also: https://www.tue.nl/en/tue-campus/discover-your-campus/building-and-development/renovation-main-building-to-atlas/. This PDEng design project focuses on the Atlas building and specifically the lighting situation resulting from the innovative electric lighting system and the innovative façade system. The goal is to evaluate and optimize the lighting situation at the workplaces.

The PDEng trainee will be embedded in the Building Lighting group - www.tue.nl/buildinglighting. For questions about the project contact prof. Dr.-Ing A.L.P. (Alexander) Rosemann.

Who can apply?

We are looking for

• an excellent and highly motivated candidate with a MSc degree in Architectural Engineering, Building Science, Building, Civil, Mechanical, Electric or Environmental Engineering, or equivalent.

• Solid knowledge in Lighting related to the built environment, knowledge computational building performance simulation is essential.

• an interest in developing new sustainable technologies and applications for the built environment.

• an academic attitude in order to develop new technologies and perform applied research with an integral view on what is needed for the future built environment.

• an excellent command of the English language, both in speaking and writing.

What do we provide?

We offer a fulltime traineeship of two years. The traineeship is a formal employment at the Eindhoven University of Technology according to the Collective Labour Agreement Dutch Universities (CAO-NU). Trainees receive a financial compensation according to this standard. Brutto monthly salary: € 1828.

Trainees are provided with their own work place in the building of the Department of the Built Environment. The university provides all general modern facilities belonging to first class universities; mediation in housing, excellent sports facilities, language courses, modern digital library facilities etc. For more information please visit www.tue.nl/en/.