James Nistler
About James Nistler
James Nistler is an R&D S&E Systems Engineer at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with a background in mechanical and general engineering.
Title
James Nistler holds the title of R&D S&E Systems Engineer at Sandia National Laboratories. He has been with the organization since 2019.
Current Position at Sandia National Laboratories
James Nistler is currently an R&D S&E Systems Engineer at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He joined the team in 2019 and primarily focuses on developing novel models and systems for clients, coordinating modeling work for his teammates, and leading several program management initiatives. He has also established a Hardware in the Loop (HIL) real-time hardware and system testing lab.
Previous Experience
Before his current role, James Nistler worked at Sandia National Laboratories as a Product Design Engineer from 2016 to 2019. He also gained valuable experience as a Production Engineering Intern at Noble Energy in 2015 and as an Engineering Intern at MGP Ingredients in 2014. Early in his career, Nistler served as a Construction Worker at Bell Construction & Development, LLC from 2010 to 2013.
Education and Expertise
James Nistler earned a Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering - Controls from the Georgia Institute of Technology between 2017 and 2019. He also holds a dual degree in Mechanical Engineering and General Engineering, obtained from The University of North Dakota and Benedictine College, respectively. He completed this dual degree program in four years, a feat typically designed for completion in five years. His academic achievements include a GPA of 3.82 in Mechanical Engineering and 3.9 in General Engineering.
Key Projects and Initiatives
James Nistler led the development of a model-based design (MBD) architecture for Nuclear Weapons using controls and Simulink expertise. He successfully secured two clients who funded his team for two fiscal years after earlier planned funding fell through. Additionally, he recruited two teammates from other departments to address a lack of internal resources. Nistler represented Sandia National Laboratories at the MathWorks Advisory Board and has modeled a parameterized ASIC sensor for radiation and a mission-informed electrical load profile for a transportation system.