University Assistant (m_f) (Prae-Doc)

30 hours/week | limited to 3 years

TU Wien is Austria’s largest institution of research and higher education in the fields of technology and natural sciences. With over 26,000 students and more than 4000 scientists, research, teaching and learning dedicated to the advancement of science and technology have been conducted here for more than 200 years, guided by the motto “Technology for People”. As a driver of innovation, TU Wien fosters close collaboration with business and industry and contributes to the prosperity of society.

We offer a 3 year PhD position in the cooperative doctoral programme NextGeneration SIC! at TU Wien, limited to expected 3 years at 30 hours/week.

Smart Industrial Concept
Major changes are taking place in today’s industry: Energy is no longer just a cheap resource that can be used without consideration to fulfil the needs of industry. Resource scarcity and climate targets, such as the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, are forcing companies to switch to renewable energy sources and to use innovative technologies. Flexibility of the energy system as well as the transition to a sustainable energy system is growing ever more important. In the future, data-driven modeling and automation will take on numerous tasks. Artificial intelligence will play a significant role in decision-making processes and the creation of more efficient and sustainable processes. A smart industrial concept is needed urgently to leverage digitalization in industry and enable efficient, sustainable production, energy requirements planning and optimization of plant operations.

NextGeneration SIC!
The cooperative doctoral programme NextGeneration Smart Industrial Concept! (NextGeneration SIC!) is comprised of several individual research projects that are carried out by partners from academia and industry. In these sub-projects, research on designing, operating and monitoring industrial processes in an energy-optimized way is done from different perspectives in order to reduce emissions, increase efficiency and flexibility and maximize the use of renewable energy. The opportunities created by digitalization play a key role in this endeavour. By identifying and developing suitable methods of modelling, simulation and optimization, and subsequently processing and analyzing the data, numerous crucial energy-related applications are enabled.

You will work in cooperation with several other PhD students and benefit from the broad range of expertise provided by the academic and industrial partners. The connection of the research projects in SIC! enables a holistic view of industrial energy systems of the future that goes far beyond individual research projects.

More details on the doctoral programme can be found on the website NextGeneration SIC! .

• Research and project activities in the area of industrial energy systems in cooperation with scientific and industrial partners.
• Writing of scientific publications and project reports in English and German
• Collaboration in organizational and administrative tasks in projects as well as direct contact with industrial partners
• Participation in regular events of the cooperative doctoral programme NextGeneration SIC!
• Presentation of research results and participation in scientific events

We are offering a interdisciplinary position for the research project described below.

Research project:

• Method development in the area of digital twins for industrial energy systems
• Assembly of a new laboratory setup focused on implementing and testing concepts of sector coupling/integrated energy systems and digital twins
• Exploring the potential of low-latency wireless communication for applications in the energy sector
• Method development in model identification, simulation and real time optimization
• Testing of models and algorithms during operation and decision support in thermal energy plants

• Master’s degree in mechanical engineering, physics, electrical engineering or equivalent studies
• Knowledge in the field of energy and power systems and basics of thermodynamics
• Knowledge in the field of measurement technology and control engineering
• Programming skills in common programming languages (e.g. Python, MATLAB, etc.)
• Excellent communication skills in English (C1) and German (B2 or at least the willingness to learn the language)
• Interest in working with students and industrial partners
• Ability to work in a team, problem-solving skills and innovative thinking

• Diverse and exciting field of work with a lot of interdisciplinary research cooperation
• Possibility of secondments to international academic partners and national and international non-academic partners
• Completion of a doctoral degree at the internationally renowned TU Wien
• Continuing personal and professional education and flexible working hours
• Central location of workplace with very good accessibility (U1/U4 Karlsplatz)
• A creative environment in one of the most liveable cities in the world
• Additional benefits for employees can be found at the following link: Fringe-Benefit Catalogue of TU Wien

TU Wien is committed to increasing the proportion of women in particular in leadership positions. Female applicants are explicitly encouraged to apply. Preference will be given to women when equally qualified, unless reasons specific to a male applicant tilt the balance in his favour.

People with special needs are equally encouraged to apply. In case of any questions, please contact the confidant for disabled persons at the university, Mr. Gerhard Neustätter.

Entry level salary is determined by the pay grade B1 of the Austrian collective agreement for university staff. This is a minimum of currently EUR 2,294.00/month gross, 14 times/year for 30 hours/week. Relevant working experiences may increase the monthly income.

More details on the doctoral programme can be found on the website NextGeneration SIC! .
We look forward to receiving your application until 08. January 2023.

Furthermore, please note that applicants will not normally be reimbursed for travel costs incurred in connection with this admission process.