Job Description

The Principal Engineer, Tower Structures, acts as a global technical authority for the structural integrity and optimization of wind turbine tower shells. In this role, you will define the structural strategy for new and existing turbine platforms, ensuring that tower designs balance cost, mass, manufacturing feasibility, and regulatory compliance. You will serve as the technical lead for complex shell buckling analysis, fatigue assessment, and the interface between the tower and the turbine’s nacelle and foundation systems.

Essential Responsibilities

Design & Structural Strategy:

• Structural Strategy & Design: Lead the design development of tower shell sections, including plate thickness optimization, weld specifications, and flange design. Oversee the creation of detailed structural models to ensure performance under extreme gust, seismic, and fatigue loading conditions.
• Design Review & Approval: Serve as the final technical signatory for tower structural design packages. Conduct and preside over formal design reviews, ensuring all calculations, drawings, and specifications meet internal safety standards and project requirements prior to release.
• Loads Interface & Integration: Partner with Loads and Control departments to optimize the structural frequency response (eigenvalue analysis) and load-path transmission. Ensure tower structural designs are optimized against the dynamic behavior of the entire wind turbine system.

Safety & Governance:

• Safer Case Reviews: Lead and facilitate "Safer" (or equivalent safety-critical) case reviews for structural designs. Critically assess potential failure modes, evaluate the robustness of safety margins, and ensure that mitigations are embedded within the design.
• Root Cause Analysis (RCA): Act as the technical lead in RCA investigations for field failures or structural anomalies. Utilize forensic engineering skills and data analysis to identify the root cause of structural issues and oversee the implementation of corrective and preventive actions (CAPA).
• Technical Governance: Maintain deep subject matter expertise in international standards (IEC 61400-series, DNV-ST-0126, Eurocodes). Own the technical relationship with external certification bodies to facilitate Type Certification and ensure project-specific compliance.
• Mentorship: Mentor high-potential engineering talent, perform peer reviews of critical design documents, and provide leadership in maintaining the company’s engineering design rules and best practices.

Required Qualifications

• Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering from an accredited university or college.
• Minimum 15 years of professional experience in structural engineering, with a minimum of 7 years specifically focused on wind turbine towers or large-scale tubular steel structures.

Desired Qualifications

• Proficiency in non-linear FEA tools (e.g., Ansys, Abaqus) and analytical code validation.
• Deep understanding of buckling criteria (EN 1993-1-6), and fatigue damage accumulation.
• Demonstrated experience in the design of critical joints, including bolted L-flange and T-flange connections.
• Demonstrated history of leading complex RCA efforts and managing structural risk through formal safety review processes.
• Ability to distill highly complex structural data into actionable engineering decisions for leadership and cross-functional teams.

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Additional Information

For candidates applying to a U.S. based position, the pay range for this position is between $131,700.00 and $219,300.00. The Company pays a geographic differential of 110%, 120% or 130% of salary in certain areas. The specific pay offered may be influenced by a variety of factors, including the candidate’s experience, education, and skill set.Bonus eligibility: discretionary annual bonus.This posting is expected to remain open for at least seven days after it was posted on August 20, 2026.Available benefits include medical, dental, vision, and prescription drug coverage; access to Health Coach from GE Vernova, a 24/7 nurse-based resource; and access to the Employee Assistance Program, providing 24/7 confidential assessment, counseling and referral services. Retirement benefits include the GE Vernova Retirement Savings Plan, a tax-advantaged 401(k) savings opportunity with company matching contributions and company retirement contributions, as well as access to Fidelity resources and financial planning consultants. Other benefits include tuition assistance, adoption assistance, paid parental leave, disability benefits, life insurance, 12 paid holidays, and permissive time off.GE Vernova Inc. or its affiliates (collectively or individually, “GE Vernova”) sponsor certain employee benefit plans or programs GE Vernova reserves the right to terminate, amend, suspend, replace, or modify its benefit plans and programs at any time and for any reason, in its sole discretion. No individual has a vested right to any benefit under a GE Vernova welfare benefit plan or program. This document does not create a contract of employment with any individual.