Tesla lost engineering director Joseph Mardall, who helped produce “some of the best engineering” that Elon Musk has seen in a long time.
Tesla Model Y heat pump
With the Model Y last year, Tesla introduced several design improvements, and its new heat pump is a major one.
A heat pump is a device that transfers thermal energy from a heat source to what is called a thermal reservoir.
It is a device that was not in the Model 3 at the time and can make vehicles much more efficient in colder climates, which can affect the range of any vehicle – although there is more focus on the range of the EV.
After Tesla introduced the same heat pump to Model 3, owners were able to compare the efficiency of temperature control with and without Tesla’s new heat pump, showing that the latter is much more efficient.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk commented on the heat pump project on Twitter and praised the team that designed it:
The model Y heat pump is one of the best engineering I have ever seen. The team did the next level work.
Musk elaborated in the Model Y heat pump project:
PCB design techniques applied to create a heat exchanger that is physically impossible by normal means. The heat pump also has a local heating circuit to quickly roll up and extend the usable temperature range. Octavalve is also very special. The team did a great job. No credit to me.
Now Tesla has lost the leader of that team that delivered “some of the best engineering” he has ever seen.
Joseph Mardall, director of engineering at Tesla
Mardall is a mechanical engineer trained at Cambridge and MIT who started working as an aerodynamicist at McLaren Racing before joining Tesla.
He spent the last 10 years at Tesla, where he contributed to a long list of really important projects at the automaker, including the Model Y heat pump, according to patents and his LinkedIn profile:
- (2018-2021) Led 3 teams of more than 60 engineers with responsibility for HVAC and Thermals, Vehicle Integration and Structural Vehicle Analysis (from 2019) for the development of Model Y, Semi and Roadster.
- Highlights include the innovative Model Y heat pump system and Tesla’s efforts to develop a fan.
- (2014-2018) Led 25 engineers to develop Thermal / HVAC systems for Model X and Model 3, including simulation, HW design, supplier selection, testing, reliability and production ramp.
- Highlights include Air Blower and SuperBottle Model 3 and HEPA Model X
- (2014) Led a team of 5 people for layout, design, simulation, sourcing and validation of the Model X Powertrain Thermal system.
- (2011-2014) Selected by Elon Musk to lead the development of the Tesla Hyperloop concept, resulting in the Hyperloop-Alpha white paper. Led aerodynamic development, route planning, structural design of tubes and pylons, budgets, human factors, maglev research.
- Led the aerodynamic development for the Model S thermal system, including all HVAC ducts, ducts and heat exchanger shutters, including surface, CFD simulations and vehicle testing.
- Developed the industry’s leading battery thermal leak simulation tool and led design developments to optimize Tesla Energy vehicle and battery designs resulting in 3 patents.
The engineer has now announced that he is leaving Tesla to join Zipline, a drone development startup for delivering medical products.
Mardall announced on LInkedIn:
After 10 wonderful years at Tesla, I am super excited to begin my next chapter as chief engineering officer at Zipline, working with a team of talented and committed engineers to provide all humans on Earth with instant access to vital medical supplies. The next 5 years will change everything and I can’t wait! We are hiring for all engineering roles and I would love to hear from you – come fly with me!
With a decade at Tesla, Mardall was among the automaker’s most senior executives.
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