Disruption is the new normal, and at Tecnológico de Monterrey, every morning, we wake up with the duty to transform our environment. Our processes are people-centered, ensuring extraordinary experiences together with our talent and the new Tec21 Educational Model. Here you will find your purpose and take advantage of innovative opportunities, you will be part of a collaborative culture based on inclusion, meritocracy, and respect!
Overview
The sustainable supply of high-quality drinking water is a growing challenge in many places in the world, especially as climate change exacerbates the extremity of droughts. When sufficient water supplies are not available, water agencies are often forced to provide intermittent service where water is available only during certain times of the day and/or days of the week. This can dramatically affect the quality of life of residents, is detrimental to the quality of the provided drinking water, and negatively impacts the structural integrity of the water distribution system. These restrictions are especially burdensome for low-income and underrepresented groups that may not have the resources to comfortably endure periods without potable water.
Most water systems, including those in the United States and Mexico, have inefficiencies. By making full use of the available information and modeling techniques there is potential for large quantities of water and energy savings. The Center for Water Energy Efficiency at University of California Davis is on the forefront of pushing the limits of advanced water system management through innovative computational techniques and strategies. Expanding this research in collaboration with the Water Center for Latin America and the Caribbean at Tecnologico de Monterrey would be a significant opportunity to advance the field even further and to globalize the benefits already achieved in California.
Job description
Hydraulic simulation models have been effectively leveraged in the water treatment, water distribution, and manufacturing sectors as a cost-effective and reliable methodology for predicting fluid behavior under most conditions. Utilizing physical laws, including conservation of mass, energy, and momentum, hydraulic models are capable of forecasting water demand, pressure, flow, velocity, and water quality for specified system design and operating conditions. In the water distribution sector such forecast tools are used to simulate capital infrastructure improvement, maintenance schedule impacts, emergency flow conditions, and water delivery operations.
The Center for Water Energy Efficiency, with funding from multiple agencies and organizations totaling roughly $4 million, developed an advanced water system management framework that greatly extends the functionality of hydraulic models. The framework has been translated into a software application called WaterWatch, which has the capability of helping water agencies address any action, technical or behavioral, that improves the resiliency and operation of a water system. WaterWatch was originally created to help water agencies understand how to shift their electric load (by modifying when pumps turn on and off and how water is stored in tanks) to take advantage of when renewable energy (e.g., wind and solar) is available on the energy grid. The successful applicant to this Post-Doc position will focus on expanding the suite of analyses available to water managers and researchers by developing: 1) novel leak detection procedures to allow water agencies to more efficiently locate and repair leaks; 2) methods of identifying and evaluating water conservation strategies; 3) economic frameworks for prioritizing competing alternatives for water demand management; 4) advanced pressure surge modeling algorithms capable of accurately predicting and describing the effects of single or multiple simultaneous pressure surges throughout the distribution network; and 5) methods for predicting pipe breaks to help prioritize preventive pipe replacement. Expansion of the existing Center for Water Energy Efficiency analytical framework would allow water managers everywhere to operate their systems more efficiently and cost-effectively while improving the quality of life for consumers, especially underserved communities most at risk from restricted water supply due to extreme droughts caused by climate change.
Skills and Qualifications
• Strong attention to detail and writing, editing and proofreading skills to quickly and accurately produce complex technical and non-technical material for audiences of varying backgrounds.
• Professional demeanor with interpersonal and communication skills to work effectively and diplomatically with university staff and external partners, and people from diverse ethnic, economic and cultural backgrounds.
• Experience using Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other MS products and use of third-party databases.
• Experience applying critical thinking and good engineering judgment to ascertain relevant from irrelevant data and separate vital factors from less important ones.
• Ability to learn new technologies and develop new skills to meet research challenges and promote professional growth.
• Skills to work collaboratively in a complex, fast-paced research and development environment.
• Work experience performing engineering design and/or technical calculations.
• Experience in or technical knowledge of water and/or wastewater engineering systems.
• Broad understanding of energy- and water-efficiency related technologies, methods, and policies.
• Doctor of Philosophy in Engineering (Civil or Environmental Preferred) or another related discipline.
• Experience with scientific programming and data analysis (e.g. proficiency with R, Julia, or Python).
• Experience with general-purpose programming languages for business software development (e.g. C++, Java, or C#).
• Experience with web application development technologies (e.g. JavaScript, HTML, or CSS).
• Experience building and calibrating hydraulic models and then using them to optimize a water distribution network (e.g., InfoWater, WaterCAD, and particularly EPAnet).
Wants
• Data analysis experience with structured and unstructured data sources (particularly with large data sets).
• Experience developing applications to perform complex engineering calculations, hydraulic modeling, optimization, or data analysis in a team environment.
• Experience designing and programming pump schedule or operating policy optimizations for water distribution networks with hydraulic modeling software.
• Experience with multi-layered architecture employing hardware-level optimizations.
• Published research that utilized hydraulic modeling to analyze a real or fictional water distribution system.
• Experience working in Latin America.
Location/Campus: Monterrey, N.L. (with the possibility of having short stays in Davis, California; it is a full-time position).
Contact: Ana Rincón
Talent Magnet
ana.rincon@tec.mx
Do you consider yourself a person with a lot of passion for new challenges, a concern to contribute innovative ideas and above all to transform Mexico through education? This opportunity is for you!
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At Tec de Monterrey we act under the principle of equal opportunities. Therefore, we do not discriminate based on age, ethnic origin, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, social condition, health status, religious beliefs, political doctrine, or disability.
