Summary
The Electrical Engineer performs duties involving analysis, troubleshooting, design, specification writing, drawing preparation, and cost estimating on projects/systems in the electrical, electronics and controls fields. These duties are primarily associated with the operation, maintenance and improvement of the St. Lawrence Seaway locks and related facilities owned by the U.S. DOT. Familiarity with related engineering fields, such as mechanical and civil, is also required.
Clarification from the agency
Applications will be accepted from any U.S. citizen.
Direct Hire Authority will be used to fill this position. The 'Rule of Three', Veterans Preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants does not apply to this vacancy.
This is a Bargaining unit position represented by AFGE local 1968.
Duties
As a General Engineer (Electrical), you will:
- Responsible for upgrading and maintaining facilities Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC’s), Human Machine Interface (HMI), and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) Systems. In depth knowledge of PLC and HMI programming required and ability to set up graphic pages for interface by end users.
- Perform engineering design work for projects in the controls and electrical fields to include preliminary site investigations lo determine feasibility of projects, define problem areas, and obtain data for design.
- Prepare preliminary design alternatives and cost estimates for evaluation prior to final design. Prepare final designs, specifications, and cost estimates for work by both contractors and Corporation personnel.
- Serve as technical expert and troubleshooter on controls and electrical equipment/systems, including power distribution systems, programmable logic controller systems and human machine interface software programs.
- Prepare written specifications and justification for capital plans; discuss projects with vendors; provide information and training to system users; prepare preliminary and final sketches and drawings for engineering projects using AutoCAD and manual drafting skills. Be responsible for the design of, and serve as the primary on administrative responsibilities, for the Lock Control/Status System, surveillance systems, Automatic Identification System (AIS), Traffic Management System (TMS}, computer-controlled HVAC systems, water level sensing and recording equipment, electronic access control systems and power distribution systems.
The ideal candidate for this position will have demonstrated their ability to identify problems and develop alternative plans, while meeting fiscal and time constraints and clearly communicating with and balancing the interests of all stakeholders.
*PLEASE NOTE* Early consideration will be given to applicants that apply within the first 30 days.
Conditions of Employment
- You must be a U.S. citizen & meet specialized experience to qualify
- Submit application and resume online by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date
- Required documents must be submitted by the closing date.
- Direct Hire Authority will be used to fill this position
CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:
- SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for the Selective Service.
- GOVERNMENT TRAVEL CARD: This position involves travel. A government contractor-issued travel card will be issued and must be retained for official business only.
- PROBATIONARY PERIOD: Applicants may be required to successfully complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed).
- TELEWORK ELIGIBILITY: This position may be eligible for occasional and/or regularly scheduled telework. The number of telework days approved will be determined by your immediate supervisor or manager following the agency’s telework policy and guidance. If participating in the telework program, you will be required to sign a telework agreement detailing agency telework policy requirements, working conditions, and expectations for the position.
Qualifications
To meet the minimum qualifications for this position, you must (1) meet the Education Requirement for the series, (2) provide a copy of transcripts for verification, AND (3) meet either the education or experience qualifications for the grade at which you are requesting consideration.
To qualify for the GS-13, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-12, it must include:
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Experience carrying out a range of professional electrical and electronics engineering tasks associated with design and/or troubleshooting of utilities, electrical equipment, control systems and telecommunication systems by applying existing precedents and standard procedures.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:
- Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.
- Electrical Engineering - Knowledge of the concepts, principles, theories, and methods related to the design, analysis, test, and integration of electrical systems; energy conversion; electrical power generation; and energy transmission, control, distribution or use.
- Team Building - Inspires and fosters team commitment, spirit, pride, and trust. Facilitates cooperation and motivates team members to accomplish group goals.
Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
For additional information about applying to Federal positions, please click on the following link: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-policies/#url=e4
All applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
Education
MANDATORY EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS:
A. Degree: Engineering To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor’s degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET; or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics. OR
Combination of education and experience -- College-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following:
1. Professional registration or licensure -- Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT)1 , or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard, those applicants who achieved such registration by means other than written test (e.g., State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example, an applicant who attains registration through a State Board's eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions.
2. Written Test -- Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico.
3. Specified academic courses -- Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described in paragraph A.
4. Related curriculum -- Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor’s degree in engineering, provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not all inclusive).
(2) Specialized Experience:
To determine which grade(s) you are eligible for, review the following grade specific details. You will be asked questions as part of your application but make sure to verify how you meet this experience in your resume or you may be deemed ineligible.
(3) Upload the appropriate document(s) to your application for verification purposes. (Refer to 'Required Documents' section for additional guidance).
Students enrolled in a qualifying degree program can apply if the anticipated graduation date is within six months of the closing date of this announcement. If selected, the final transcript must be received before your start date. Other applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement. Transcripts are required for this position.
Benefits
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Review our benefits
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
For this announcement, all applicants will be reviewed to determine if they meet the basic qualifications for this position, specifically the educational requirements. Applications that are verified to meet the basic qualifications will be referred to the selecting official.
Applicants will not be rated or ranked. Veteran’s Preference does NOT apply.
DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE: PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. All answers provided in the on-line process must be substantiated by a resume. If, upon review, it is determined that your resume and/or supporting documents do not support your answer choices, your application may be removed from consideration.
Please ensure that your work history provides enough details to support your answers. You may preview questions for this vacancy.
ALL Applicants must provide a resume that fully supports the required specialized experience and was created within USA Jobs Resume Builder and respond to the vacancy questions by the closing date of the vacancy. Formatted resumes can be uploaded when you arrive at the DOT application system. For assistance with the resume builder, please visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/account/documents/resume/build/
TRANSCRIPTS - Transcripts are REQUIRED if there is a stated education requirement for the series. The transcripts need not be official, but must show that you meet the stated education requirements, including specific major or class requirements.
- Foreign education must be reviewed by an organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education program. For special instructions pertaining to foreign education and a list of organizations that can evaluate foreign education, see the Department of Education website.
- If you are applying to an engineering position and are qualifying based on possessing a current Professional Engineer (PE) license, or passing the Engineer in Training (EIT) exam, please provide a copy of PE license or written documented proof of passing the EIT.
DISPLACED EMPLOYEES: If requesting consideration under the Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or Interagency CTAP program (ICTAP), you must meet the well qualified standards for this vacancy (meeting minimum requirements for position and scoring at least an 85) and provide all of the following documents:
- your most recent performance appraisal,
- the proof of eligibility letter from the Agency, and
- your most current SF-50, displaying current series and grade.
Displaced employees may be eligible for ICTAP or CTAP priority consideration.
For more information, please review the OPM Employee's Guide to Career Transition.
Failure to submit any of the required documents by the closing date of the vacancy will result in your removal from consideration for this position. Please review your application prior to final submission and ensure you have submitted all appropriate documents. Uploading documents to USA Jobs does NOT ensure inclusion with your application to our system. You must verify that the documents are in the system with your application prior to final submission.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from
schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
You must submit a complete application package (including resume, vacancy questions and supporting documents) no later than 11:59 pm (EST) on the closing date of the announcement.
- To begin, click the "Apply Online" button on the job announcement posting.
- Follow the directions to register, submit all required documents and complete the assessment questionnaire.
- You may review your saved application(s) at https://my.usajobs.gov.
If you are having difficulty applying online, please contact the DOT Automated Staffing Office via email at: Transjobs@dot.gov
Next steps
You may check your application status by logging into USAJobs.com (Select "My USAJobs" and click "Applications". Within two weeks of the closing date, a Human Resources Specialist will evaluate your application. Qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring manager. If you are selected for an interview, the hiring agency will contact you directly. Once the position is filled, we will notify all applicants of their final status.
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