Skip to content

Gerson Neves

Mechatronic and automotive engineer. CFD, FEA and powertrain systems, checked against real measurements rather than assumed ones.

CurrentlyPowertrain Controls Engineer on production ECM strategy at Stellantis, via Zeentech

See the workStart a conversation
Gerson Neves

Most of what I do comes down to one habit: refusing to trust a simulation that hasn't been made to answer to something measured.

That habit was expensive to learn. I led the mechanical and thermofluidic simulation department at ModelWorks Engineering as Design Director and COO, and before that ran motorsport aerodynamics as a CFD engineer at Sabe Fluid Dynamics. Those are the two roles this practice draws on most directly.

It started at EESC-USP Formula SAE, Brazil's first Formula Student team. Five years, four roles, and a budget that punished every wrong assumption is where the engineering-and-business instinct actually got built.

Where I am now

Production engine control strategy for combustion and aftertreatment: logic that has to hold in every operating and thermal condition the car will meet.

Stellantis (via Zeentech) · Aug 2025 – Present

Aug 2025 – Present

Powertrain Controls Engineer

Stellantis (via Zeentech)Remote

Specialize in developing and validating ECM control strategies for combustion and aftertreatment systems, optimizing performance, emissions, and regulatory compliance.

  • Define, analyze, and implement complex control logic in alignment with calibration teams and customer perception
  • Evaluate software changes and troubleshoot system behavior across diverse operating and thermal conditions
  • Contribute to critical engineering documentation for calibration, software, and leadership, while driving DFMEA implementation
  • Execute projects within an Agile/Scrum framework, contributing to Sprint Planning, Reviews, and Program Increment delivery
  • Develop and deliver technical training on powertrain mechanics and controls for Centers of Excellence and internal forums
ModelWorks' Dronemog agricultural drone in flight over a soybean field

Running the simulation department

Two and a half years directing mechanical and thermofluidic simulation for automotive, motorsport and industrial clients, answering for the schedule as well as the physics.

ModelWorks Engineering · Jan 2023 – Jul 2025

Jan 2023 – Jul 2025

Design Director & COO

ModelWorks EngineeringSao Paulo, Brazil

Directed the mechanical and thermofluidic simulation departments, leading a multidisciplinary engineering team on projects spanning automotive, motorsports, and industrial applications.

  • Led end-to-end consulting projects covering fluid dynamics (CFD), structural analysis (FEA), thermal management, and system-level powertrain modeling
  • Developed customized simulation workflows to accelerate product development cycles for external clients
  • Supervised engineering operations — resources, schedules, and deliverables — to ensure high client satisfaction
  • Contributed hands-on to complex CFD and multiphase simulations, verifying numerical methods against experimental data
  • Mentored junior engineers and researchers on best practices in computer-aided engineering and technical reporting
Stress result on a welded structural frame from a ModelWorks FEA study
Turbulence and wind disturbance generated by grandstands and buildings around the circuit

Racing aerodynamics

External aerodynamics for race cars, internal flows in the engine, and a neural network that estimates the wind on the circuit in real time.

Sabe Fluid Dynamics · Jan 2021 – Dec 2022

Jan 2021 – Dec 2022

CFD Engineer

Sabe Fluid DynamicsSao Paulo, Brazil

Executed specialized computational fluid dynamics analyses for high-performance automotive projects and academic research.

  • Conducted external aerodynamic studies on race cars, optimizing downforce and reducing drag through continuous design iteration
  • Investigated internal flows and heat transfer in engine components, correlating 1D gas-dynamic models with 3D CFD outcomes
  • Trained a customized deep neural network as a surrogate model for real-time wind estimation
  • Handled geometry preparation and mesh preprocessing using point-cloud-based representations
  • Improved car performance predictability and setup efficiency by raising aero-map fidelity
Live wind data generated by the trained neural network from weather station input

Work from these years

EESC-USP Formula SAE prototype

Where it started

Five years on a team that had to design it, cost it, build it and then race it, with the same people answering for all four.

EESC-USP Formula SAE, 2015–2020

What the team won

  • 2× Formula SAE Brasil Overall Champion, 2015 and 2016

  • 5× consecutive SAE Best Powertrain Design award, 2015–2019

  • Cost & Manufacturing awards, plus event wins in Autocross, Skidpad, Endurance, and Fuel Efficiency

Dec 2018 – Dec 2019

Business Presentation Team

EESC-USP Formula SAESao Carlos - SP, Brazil

Helped develop the team’s Business Presentation Plan — a feasible business case using the prototype as its core product, framed within a defined market scenario.

  • Production sizing and optimization
  • Market analysis of competitors and customer preferences
  • Accounting and financial analysis of current and projected outcomes
  • Company-related legal considerations (taxes, labor law, general regulation)
  • Strategic planning
Sales and production projection chart from the Formula SAE E17 business presentation

Nov 2017 – Dec 2019

Powertrain Coordinator

EESC-USP Formula SAESao Carlos - SP, Brazil

Coordinated the Powertrain system — IC Engine, Drivetrain, Intake and Exhaust, and Cooling teams.

  • Developed strategic planning, goals, and schedules for a 26-person team, together with the general project manager, across design, manufacturing, and testing
  • Integrated the prototype’s powertrain with other vehicle systems
  • Provided design oversight to team leaders
  • Developed training programs in multiphysics, CFD, thermal, structural, and modal simulation, topology optimization, and 1D powertrain modeling for the whole team
CAD assembly of the Formula SAE powertrain: engine, drivetrain, intake, exhaust, and cooling

Nov 2017 – Dec 2020

Cost and Manufacture Manager

EESC-USP Formula SAESao Carlos - SP, Brazil

Led the team responsible for the prototype’s cost and manufacturing, presenting results directly. Under this role, overall prototype cost dropped 11.3% and manufacturing time dropped 37.5%, while maintaining continuous performance improvement across every subsystem.

  • Project management for 16-person multidisciplinary teams
  • Process mapping for more than 2,000 components
  • Design for manufacturability
  • Production planning and design optimization focused on cost reduction
  • Cost assessment reporting, tracing each component to its provenance
  • Technical assembly, usage, and maintenance manuals
EESC-USP Formula SAE E17 team

Apr 2015 – Nov 2017

IC Engine Team Leader

EESC-USP Formula SAESao Carlos - SP, Brazil

Led the IC Engine team, responsible for the tactical and operational development of the system — a role marked by a 22.5% power improvement and a 17.5% weight reduction across dozens of design iterations.

  • Design and integration of the engine structure, tuning, ignition, lubrication, cooling, and fuel systems
  • Technical report writing and presentation
  • Manufacturing planning and oversight
  • Design validation
  • Component assembly and fine-tuning
  • System testing and maintenance
EESC-USP Formula SAE E14M team with the prototype

Let's talk about your project

Email or WhatsApp, straight to me. No form, no sales call first.

Email meChat on WhatsApp

I reply to every enquiry within one business day.

+55 16 99785-1402