Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering,NTNU has a vacancy for an associate professor in Innovative Metal Working Processes.


The Associate Professor is responsible for conducting research and teaching within the field of mechanical engineering, with a primary focus on new and advanced metal forming of lightweight materials for Industry 4.0 application strategies.

The research will be a combination experimental and theoretical studies, utilizing NTNU’s top notch laboratory equipment for metal working as well as state-of-the-art numerical models. Moreover, the candidate will be challenged to advance the field of metal working/forming both upstream towards physical-based and microstructure models as well as downstream towards adaptive manufacturing processes. 

A particular responsibility will be to operate, maintain and develop aluminum forming activities within the national research infrastructure MANULAB.

A particular research challenge is to develop knowledge-based models for adaptive forming strategies for light-weight materials, and to establish relationships between material, process and product properties in an extended lifecycle perspective.Thus, conducting research with the objective of linking manufacturing processes (including nonconventional ones) and capabilities, and product design and performance is of particular importance for this position ( Design for X).


The position formally reports to Head of Department and to Head of research group on scientific matters.

Duties of the position

As an associate professor within the field of innovative metal working processes you will be responsible for:

  • advancing the field of metal working for lightweight materials by integrating material, process and manufacturing perspectives for Industry 4.0 application strategies
  • Expanding department’s portfolio of research projects by national (RCN) and international (EU) funding
  • obtain external funding for PhD/Post Doc positions
  • supervise PhD, MSc and BSc candidates
  • teaching and administering courses within our study programs (MSc and BSc) including, among others, TMM4112 Machine Elements. Nominal teaching duty is 50 %; i.e., 1 regular 7.5 credit course pr semester
  • publishing research in renowned, high quality per-reviewed academic journals
  • work actively to develop network with industry for collaboration, exchange and joint research projects
  • contributing to creating a strong manufacturing group, culturally and academically, leveraging collaboration and integration across established domains within the department

Required qualifications 

The department is looking for outstanding candidates with high academic ambitions, productivity and quality output. The candidate must document:

  • PhD degree within Mechanical Engineering, Applied Mechanics, Manufacturing Engineering or equivalent relevant field
  • a proven publication track record within the main discipline of this position
  • academic achievements and productivity within the field of the associate professorship
  • experience in working in collaborative research projects with industry
  • experience from laboratory work and physical experiments, in particular extrusion, stretch forming, draw bending, compression bending ,roll bending, and additive manufacturing
  • experience from tool design for metal working processes
  • experience from working scientifically at universities in at least two countries
  • numerical modeling experience (analytical and numerical); continuum and multi-physics based models
  • strong digital competence, including experience in using and programming software for inline control of manufacturing processes
  • teaching experience within course topics relevant to the position
  • good oral and written English language skills

You must document relevant basic competence in teaching and supervision at a university/higher education-level, as referenced in the Norwegian national Regulations. If this cannot be documented, you will be required to complete an approved course in university pedagogy within two years of commencement. NTNU offers qualifying courses. 

New employees who do not speak a Scandinavian language by appointment is required, within three years, to demonstrate skills in Norwegian or another Scandinavian language equivalent to level three of the course for Norwegian for speakers of other languages at the Department of Language and Literature at NTNU.  

Preferred qualifications

  • ability to supervise MSc and PhD candidates
  • ability to initiate research activities and secure funding
  • publishing track record – and further research plan
  • experience in analyzing product and material behavior with both academic and industrial perspectives
  • an international network in academia (and industry), particularly relevant to the department
  • proven skills for pushing the frontier within metal working technology development in general and metal forming in particular
  • some practical working experience from manufacturing, engineering., consultancy or similar
  • fluency in Scandinavian language (required for teaching at BSc level)

Personal qualities

  • strategic
  • motivational
  • analytical
  • good relation building skills
  • good communication skills
  • balanced academic and practical pursuits

We offer 

Salary and conditions

As a Associate Professor (code 1011) you are normally paid from gross NOK 600 000 – NOK 750 000 per annum before tax, depending on qualifications and seniority. As required by law, 2% of this salary will be deducted and paid into the Norwegian Public Service Pension Fund.

The engagement is to be made in accordance with the regulations in force concerning State Employees and Civil Servants, and the acts relating to Control of the Export of Strategic Goods, Services and Technology. Candidates who by assessment of the application and attachment are seen to conflict with the criteria in the latter law will be prohibited from recruitment to NTNU.   

After the appointment you must assume that there may be changes in the area of work. 

It is a prerequisite you can be present at and accessible to the institution on a daily basis. 

Application Process

You can find more information about working at NTNU and the application process here.

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About the application

Your application and supporting documentation must be in English. 

Publications and other scientific work must follow the application. Please note that your application will be considered based solely on information submitted by the application deadline. You must therefore ensure that your application clearly demonstrates how your skills and experience fulfil the criteria specified above.

If, for any reason, you have taken a career break or have had an atypical career and wish to disclose this in your application, the selection committee will take this into account, recognizing that the quantity of your research may be reduced as a result.

Your application must include:

  • CV, diplomas, and certificates
  • Academic works – published or unpublished – that you wish to be considered during assessment of your application (up to 10 works)
  • A description of the academic works you consider most relevant, which you particularly wish to be factored into the assessment
  • A list of your works, with information on where they have been published
  • Names and contact information for three relevant referees
  • Details of projects for which you have served as project manager, including information on financing, duration, and scope
  • Details of teaching qualifications based on Documentation of teaching qualifications in applications and appointments to academic positions at NTNU)

Joint work will also be considered. If it is difficult to identify your specific input to a joint project, you must include evidence of your contributions.

In the evaluation of which candidate is best qualified, emphasis will be placed on education, experience and personal and interpersonal qualities. Motivation, ambitions, and potential will also count in the assessment of the candidates. Our assessment of the pedagogical skills will be based on documented pedagogical material, forms of presentation in your academic works, teaching experience, PhD, and Masters supervision, and any other relevant pedagogical background. Both quality and scope will be taken into consideration.

NTNU is obliged by the evaluation criteria for research quality in accordance with The San Fransisco Declaration on Research Assessment – DORA. This means that we will pay particular attention to the quality and academic range demonstrated by your scientific work to date. We will also pay attention to research leadership and participation in research projects. Your scientific work from the last five years will be given the most weight.

Your application will be considered by an expert committee. Candidates of interest will be invited to an interview, and to deliver a trial teaching session.

General information

NTNU believes that inclusion and diversity is a strength. We want our faculty and staff to reflect Norway’s culturally diverse population and we continuously seek to hire the best minds. This enables NTNU to increase productivity and innovation, improve decision making processes, raise employee satisfaction, compete academically with global top-ranking institutions and carry out our social responsibilities within education and research. NTNU emphasizes accessibility and encourages qualified candidates to apply regardless of gender identity, ability status, periods of unemployment or ethnic and cultural background.

NTNU is working actively to increase the number of women employed in scientific positions and has a number of resources to promote equality.   

The city of Trondheim is a modern European city with a rich cultural scene. Trondheim is the innovation capital of Norway with a population of 200,000. The Norwegian welfare state, including healthcare, schools, kindergartens and overall equality, is probably the best of its kind in the world. Professional subsidized day-care for children is easily available. Furthermore, Trondheim offers great opportunities for education (including international schools) and possibilities to enjoy nature, culture and family life and has low crime rates and clean air quality.

As an employee at NTNU, you must continually maintain and improve your professional development and be flexible regarding any organizational changes.

A public list of applicants with name, age, job title and municipality of residence is prepared after the application deadline. If you want to reserve yourself from entry on the public applicant list, this must be justified. Assessment will be made in accordance with current legislation. You will be notified if the reservation is not accepted.

For the sake of transparency, candidates will be given the expert evaluation of their own and other candidates. As an applicant you are considered part of the process and is stipulated to rules of confidentiality.

If you have any questions regarding the position, please contact Professor Torgeir Welo , tel. +4741440061, e-mail torgeir.welo@ntnu.no.

If you have questions regarding the recruitment process, please contact HR Consultant Linn-Cecilie Felle, e-mail linn.c.felle@ntnu.no

If you think this looks interesting and in line with your qualifications, please submit your application electronically via jobbnorge.no with your CV, diplomas and certificates attached. Applications submitted elsewhere will not be considered. Upon request, you must be able to obtain certified copies of your documentation. 

Application deadline: 15.07.2022

NTNU – knowledge for a better world

NTNU – knowledge for a better world

The Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) creates knowledge for a better world and solutions that can change everyday life.

Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering

We educate graduates who can create new products, operate and maintain products, and manage projects. The Department has a variety of bachelor’s and master’s degree programmes. We conduct wide-ranging research in fields such as technology, energy, product quality and development, and productivity. The Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering is one of eight departments in the Faculty of Engineering.

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