Principal Engineer - NVH

Responsibilities & Key Deliverables

The role involves comprehensive leadership and hands-on responsibilities in Noise, Vibration, and Harshness (NVH) development for vehicles at Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.

You will be responsible for setting precise NVH targets across vehicle, system, and component levels, ensuring alignment with functional image objectives and customer expectations. This includes thorough benchmarking against industry standards and competing products to define robust, achievable targets.

Your expertise will be key in diagnosing and refining the critical design parameters influencing body-borne noise and vibrations, enhancing occupant comfort through structural optimization techniques and transfer path analysis.

 Additionally, you will focus extensively on optimizing mount designs, and ensuring minimal noise radiation and vibration transmission from the engine and drivetrain systems.

The role requires leading cross-functional teams during the development phase to ensure vehicle prototypes meet defined NVH objectives through effective testing and iteration.

Key responsibilities include:

• Developing, reviewing, and tracking test plans for physical prototype NVH performance evaluations.
• Guiding the vehicle NVH development team in delivering superior NVH outcomes across multiple vehicle systems including BIW, sound packaging, chassis engineering, suspension, seals, mounts, seats, and steering systems.
• Managing NVH risk assessments proactively and implementing solutions to mitigate performance issues within weight and cost constraints.
• Fostering innovation by developing new NVH processes and leveraging emerging technologies to continuously improve vehicle acoustic and vibration quality.
• Coaching team members to operationalize NVH strategies effectively and align subjective jury trials with corporate NVH targets.
• Resource planning to address current and future NVH technology needs, ensuring the team possesses cutting-edge capabilities.

This position also entails active collaboration with cross-disciplinary teams to integrate NVH considerations early in the design and manufacturing processes, promoting a systemic approach to creating vehicles that excel in comfort and refinement.

Experience

Applicants should have 12 to 15 years of immersive experience in vehicle NVH development within the automotive industry, demonstrating a proven track record of delivering NVH performance targets in physical prototype stages and production vehicles.

Essential experience includes:

• Expertise in vehicle NVH simulation and analysis, including advanced use of tools such as TestLab, muller-BBM, and proficiency in statistical techniques like ASQ, PCA, TPA, and sound power measurement.
• Deep understanding of system-level NVH attributes across powertrain, driveline, chassis, suspension, mounts, seats, steering, body-in-white (BIW), and sound packages, focusing on refinement and optimization through development and benchmarking phases.
• Familiarity with the latest technologies influencing NVH, including materials engineering, dynamic analysis, and manufacturing process impacts on noise and vibration characteristics.
• Proven ability to convert NVH analysis into actionable design countermeasures, working closely with design and manufacturing teams.
• Experience in leading NVH development teams, coaching multidisciplinary groups, and managing complex project deliverables under tight timelines.

Strong communication skills and a collaborative approach are necessary to interact effectively with diverse stakeholders, including engineering, testing, and product management teams.

Industry Preferred

The ideal candidate will come from the automotive industry, with extensive experience in vehicle development environments focused on noise, vibration, and harshness performance. Exposure to leading automotive manufacturers and suppliers specializing in NVH solutions will be advantageous. Backgrounds in automotive engineering, powertrain and chassis development, and vehicle refinement are highly valued.

Qualifications

Applicants must hold a Master of Technology (M.Tech) or Master of Engineering (M.E.) degree in Mechanical Engineering or Design Engineering, or an equivalent qualification recognized within the automotive engineering domain.

Academic credentials should reflect strong foundations in mechanical systems, vehicle dynamics, acoustics, and structural analysis. Additional certifications or training in NVH methodologies, simulation software, or project management will be considered beneficial.

General Requirements

General requirements for this role include:

• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively within multidisciplinary teams in a fast-paced, dynamic automotive development environment.
• Strong analytical skills, problem-solving abilities, and decision-making under pressure to meet project timelines.
• Proactive approach to learning and implementing emerging NVH technologies and industry best practices.
• Excellent organisational and communication skills, with the capability to document and present technical information clearly across all levels of the organisation.
• Commitment to adhering to company policies, safety regulations, and quality standards throughout the development process.
• No travel requirements, facilitating a consistent presence within the Chennai NVH department for close team collaboration.

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