The manufacturing industry increasingly embraces circularity and waste reduction. To really make an impact, sustainability should be at the heart of every stage of a product’s life cycle, from design to assembly, use and disassembly. Operations like repair, refurbishment and remanufacturing must be considered not as an afterthought, but as an integral part of product design. These considerations lead to new, complex challenges for designers, and thereby a need for new computational design methods geared specifically towards sustainability. Key drivers in this new upcoming field are reducing the number of materials, replacing current materials by more climate friendly materials and utilisation of more sustainable manufacturing methods, while maintaining or even improving product functionality. This position allows you to develop and realize your vision in this new research field as Assistant or Associate Professor in Computational Design for Sustainable Manufacturing. 

You will be developing your own research programme within the Computational Design and Mechanics research group. Your multidisciplinary research domain may range from, but is not limited to, design methods for full life-cycle impact, enhancing reuse potential through exploration of single-material micro/meso structures to achieve tailored macroscale mechanical properties, to robust data-driven system synthesis and use of machine learning to enhance sustainability of designs. To realise your research programme, you will build and extend your and our network of academic and industrial partners, including high-tech manufacturers, and attract funding. You will also build, supervise and coach your team of PhD students and Postdocs.

In addition, you will educate our Bachelor and Master students in subjects of mechanics and computational design. Playing an active role in the scientific community, you will transfer knowledge and help strengthen our Faculty, Department and the Computational Design and Mechanics research group. We are an international team of Assistant and Associate Professors, sharing a start-up mentality and a drive to make a difference to the high-tech manufacturing industry. Ours is an open and friendly atmosphere and we and the Department will give you all the support, training and coaching you need to evolve and grow your career. 

You thrive on taking the lead in developing a new field of research, for which you have the ability to build relevant networks and attract funding. Leveraging your communication skills, you convince stakeholders of your research proposals, working closely with industrial partners and students and colleagues of various TU Delft Faculties. In addition, you enjoy mentoring and interacting with students.

You also have:

• A PhD in Mechanical Engineering, Materials Engineering, Aerospace Engineering or another equivalent and relevant subject.
• Research experience (at postdoctoral level or beyond) in computational design, design optimization, topology optimization, data-driven design approaches, or uses of machine learning in a design context.
• Demonstrable affinity with mechanics, structural analysis and mechanical design.
• A passion for sustainability and a desire to make a real contribution to the future.
• Knowledge of, or a keen interest in a wide range of subjects, as your research field is highly multidisciplinary.
• Educational skills and teaching experience, and a genuine interest in working with students. If you do not have extensive experience in teaching, not to worry, as enhancing teaching competencies is part of your personal development programme.
• A portfolio of publications supporting your research excellence.
• A good command of English, as you are working in an internationally diverse community. 

Fixed-term contract: 6 years.

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (salary indication for Assistant Professor: € 3.974 - € 6.181) (salary indication for Associate Professor € 5.506 - € 7.362).

In case of an Assistant Professor appointment, a tenure-track position is offered for six years. Section leader, department leaders and you will agree upon expected performance and (soft) skills. You will receive formal feedback on performance and skills during annual assessment meetings and the mid-term evaluation. If the performance and skills are evaluated positively at the end of the tenure track, you will be appointed in a permanent Assistant Professor position. We expect that you have the potential to grow towards an Associate Professor and/or Full Professor role in the future. For more information about the tenure track and the personal development programme, please visit www.tudelft.nl/tenuretrack.

Inspiring, excellent education is our central aim. We expect you to obtain a University Teaching Qualification (UTQ) within three years if you have less than five years of teaching experience. This is provided by the TU Delft UTQ programme.
For candidates at the Associate Professor level, we offer an initial temporary position with the prospect of a permanent contract. The duration of the temporary position is a maximum of 1 year. After a positive performance assessment, you will be employed in a permanent Associate Professor position.

TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, a discount for health insurance and sport memberships, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged. For international applicants we offer the Coming to Delft Service and for partners the Dual Career Services to assist you with the relocation. An International Children's Centre offers childcare and there is an international primary school.
TU Delft sets high standards for the English competency of the teaching staff. The TU Delft offers training to improve English competency. If you do not speak Dutch, we offer courses to learn the Dutch language.

Delft University of Technology

Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

Faculty Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering

The Faculty of 3mE carries out pioneering research, leading to new fundamental insights and challenging applications in the field of mechanical engineering. From large-scale energy storage, medical instruments, control technology and robotics to smart materials, nanoscale structures and autonomous ships. The foundations and results of this research are reflected in outstanding, contemporary education, inspiring students and PhD candidates to become socially engaged and responsible engineers and scientists. The faculty of 3mE is a dynamic and innovative faculty with an international scope and high-tech lab facilities. Research and education focus on the design, manufacture, application and modification of products, materials, processes and mechanical devices, contributing to the development and growth of a sustainable society, as well as prosperity and welfare.

Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering. Do you want to experience working at our faculty? These videos will introduce you to some of our researchers and their work.