Engineering Technician

Duties Summary

This position is located in the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Field Organization, Plains Area (PA), National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF), Manhattan, KS.

Requirements

• Qualifications: Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement, including specialized experience, as defined below.

• Specialized Experience: Specialized experience is experience directly related to the position to be filled. The specialized experience requirements for the Engineering Technician, GS-0802-12 is one year of specialized experience comparable to the GS-11, in the federal government, which is directly related to the work of this position and which has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. For this position, specialized experience is described as experience performing technical engineering and facility operations work directly supporting a Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS), such as IBM Maximo, within a complex facility environment.

• To comply with USDA personnel security requirements and requirements of the Federal Select Agent Program (FSAP) for access to information and areas with Biological Select Agents and Toxins (BSAT), including Tier One Select Agents at NBAF, the incumbent must meet the following:

  • Pre-employment and random testing of substances of abuse;
  • Participation in and adherence to the facility's Occupational Health Program;
  • Participation in and adherence to the facility's Personal Reliability Program;
  • The ability to obtain/maintain favorably adjudicated Background Investigations or Security clearances (required by USDA);
  • The ability to obtain/maintain a favorable Security Risk Assessment (required by FSAP).

• This is a Public Trust Position and requires that the incumbent be a United States Citizen.

• Medical Standards: The incumbent must demonstrate the physical and psychological capability to conduct normal duties that are appropriate to their position. To prevent the transmission of disease out of biocontainment and retention of the position, the incumbent must meet the following medical standards in a pre-employment medical examination conducted after the receipt of a preliminary job offer and on a periodic basis:

  • Ability to shower out of biocontainment one or more times per day;
  • Not have any skin condition which would prevent this;
  • Body piercings must be able to be removed prior to entry;
  • External medical assist devices must have the ability to be removed prior to entering or not impede the ability to enter biocontainment, and the individual must still be able to shower out safely without assistance;
  • Ability to follow instructions regarding decontamination from biocontainment;
  • Any medical condition which could create an unsafe environment for the individual or his/her co-workers, such as: insufficient control of a medical disorder which could result in sudden loss of consciousness;
  • Inadequate vision and hearing required for safety in a laboratory environment.

• Immunizations: Due to the contagious nature to livestock of Foot-and-Mouth disease, and other diseases under study at NBAF, biosafety protocols specify a personal quarantine for employees working on specific infectious agents in designated areas of NBAF. As a condition for employment, all personnel entering these areas at NBAF shall not be in contact with specific susceptible animals and their premises away from NBAF for a period of five (5) days after leaving the area. Currently, restricted species are cattle, sheep, goats, deer, other ruminants, and swine. Contact with horses, birds (agricultural and pet birds) and rabbits are normally permitted, but restrictions may be placed on staff working with or near infectious agents affecting these species. Restricted livestock or other restricted animals may not be housed on the premises where the employee lives and where the quarantine cannot be enforced. Employees who violate this requirement may be removed from employment or subject to other disciplinary actions.