Cooling Infrastructure Leader – Data Centre

About Nava

Nava is advancing the next generation of AI infrastructure and GPU cloud platforms throughout the APAC region. We are expanding our hyperscale data centre presence and seek an experienced Cooling Infrastructure Leader to oversee the design, operation, optimization, and reliability of critical cooling systems for high-density AI and GPU environments.

Role Overview

The Cooling Infrastructure Leader will manage the entire lifecycle of essential cooling infrastructure, including strategy, design oversight, commissioning, operations, maintenance, enhancement, and sustainability projects. This position collaborates closely with Electrical Engineering, Data Centre Operations, Facilities, Construction, Network Infrastructure teams, and external providers to deliver reliable and energy-efficient cooling solutions for next-generation AI computing.

Key Responsibilities

• Direct the design, deployment, commissioning, and ongoing management of cooling systems throughout Tier III+ and Tier IV data centre facilities.
• Formulate long-term capacity plans to support large-scale AI and GPU clusters.
• Set engineering standards, maintenance protocols, and operational procedures for critical cooling equipment.
• Ensure top performance and reliability of chilled water systems, air- and water-cooled chillers, CRAH and CRAC units, cooling towers, precision AC systems, ventilation, pumps, heat exchangers, in-row and rear door heat exchangers, direct-to-chip liquid cooling, immersion cooling (preferred), and adiabatic cooling solutions.
• Maintain all systems with N+1 or 2N redundancy to ensure optimal thermal performance.
• Guarantee 99.999% uptime for critical cooling infrastructure through predictive and preventive maintenance strategies.
• Lead root cause investigations for system failures and implement corrective measures.
• Develop emergency response and backup protocols for cooling-related issues.
• Oversee Building Management Systems (BMS) and DCIM for real-time monitoring of environmental conditions.
• Implement airflow optimization techniques, including hot aisle and cold aisle containment.
• Continuously enhance cooling efficiency, capacity use, and thermal management based on data analysis.
• Drive sustainability efforts focusing on Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE), Water Usage Effectiveness (WUE), carbon footprint reduction, free cooling, heat recovery, and sustainable technology adoption in accordance with Singapore's Green Data Centre Roadmap.
• Manage relationships and performance of HVAC contractors, OEMs, commissioning consultants, and maintenance vendors.
• Review and approve HVAC designs, capacity assessments, and commissioning documentation.
• Support both greenfield and ongoing expansion projects.
• Recruit, mentor, and lead a team of mechanical and cooling engineers, fostering engineering excellence and cross-functional collaboration.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical or HVAC Engineering, or a related field.
• Over 10 years of experience managing critical cooling infrastructure and at least 5 years in engineering leadership roles.
• Expertise with Tier III/IV Data Centres, hyperscale providers, colocation, or critical infrastructure environments.
• Strong technical knowledge of HVAC, thermal management, and critical facility operations.
• Hands-on background with chilled water plants, CRAH/CRAC units, chillers, cooling towers, heat exchangers, precision cooling, pumps, hydronic systems, airflow management, BMS/DCIM, thermal modeling, capacity planning, and monitoring.
• Proven ability to develop and implement preventive and predictive maintenance for mission-critical systems.
• Experience with advanced cooling technologies such as direct-to-chip liquid cooling, immersion cooling, and adiabatic systems.
• Familiarity with Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for airflow improvements is highly advantageous.
• Knowledge of smart cooling and energy optimization methods.
• Preferred certifications: CDCP, CDCS, DCEP, ASHRAE, CEM, LEED Accredited Professional, PMP, or OEM certifications (Vertiv, Schneider Electric, Stulz, Trane, Carrier, Johnson Controls).

Why Work at Nava?

• Contribute to building and scaling world-class AI infrastructure powering global workloads.
• Design and optimize cooling solutions for some of APAC's leading GPU and hyperscale data centres.
• Lead high-impact engineering projects with significant ownership and a fast-paced work environment that encourages innovation and operational excellence.
• Join a culture focused on continuous learning and engineering quality.