MECHANICAL ENGINEER

Summary

This is a public notice flyer to notify interested applicants of anticipated vacancies. Applications will not be accepted through this flyer. Interested applicants must follow the directions in the "How to Apply" section of this flyer to be considered. There may or may not be actual vacancies filled from this flyer. Notice of Result letters will not be sent to applicants who respond to this flyer.

Duties

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• You will be a key member of the Instrumentation Research and Engineering Division at USNOFS that supports the maintenance, upgrade, and development efforts of new and existing telescopes and astronomical instrumentation.
• You will be responsible for maintaining astronomical instrumentation for night-time operations, provide on-site support to the science staff, troubleshoot and solve instrument problems in a timely and flexible manner.
• You will be responsible for maintaining astronomical instrumentation for night-time operations, provide on-site support to the science staff, troubleshoot and solve instrument problems in a timely and flexible manner.
• You will maintain contacts with commercial and government agencies that design and operate astronomical telescopes and detector systems ensuring USNOFS remains equipped with forefront instrumentation capable of carrying out mission requirements.
• You will/may represent USNOFS at scientific and DOD meetings as they relate to telescope systems, optical systems, or detector systems.
• You will be expected to support the publication of scientific articles and learn new skills sets by attending relevant conferences and obtaining additional training as required.
• You will/may also be asked to provide tutoring and continued education to other technical staff members or visiting scientists and students.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• Must be determined suitable for federal employment.
• Must participate in the direct deposit pay program.
• New employees to the Department of the Navy will be required to successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit e-verify.gov
• Within the Department of Defense (DoD), the appointment of retired military members within 180 days immediately following retirement date to a civilian position is subject to the provisions of 5 United States Code 3326.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• You will be required to obtain and maintain an interim and/or final security clearance prior to entrance on duty. Failure to obtain and maintain the required level of clearance may result in the withdrawal of a job offer or removal.
• This position may require travel from normal duty station to CONUS and OCONUS and may include remote or isolated sites. You must be able to travel on military and commercial aircraft for extended periods of time.

Qualifications

Your resume must also demonstrate at least one year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-12 grade level or pay band in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private or public sector. Specialized experience must demonstrate the following:

• Experience as a telescope engineer with a thorough understanding of large astronomical telescopes and their optical subsystems.
• Experience designing, constructing, and procuring new telescopes and/or telescope systems to meet emergent requirements. Additionally, the telescope engineer will support the maintenance and upgrade efforts of existing astronomical instrumentation at USNOFS.
• Experience and possess a solid background in structural design, drafting, modeling, and finite element analysis using SOLID WORKS.
• Experience with machine shop manufacturing, CNC, 3D printing, and working with external manufacturers to meet defined specifications or requirements.
• Experience and possess a strong mechanical engineering background and will be responsible for the mechanical design, analysis, drafting, and fabrication of mechanical assemblies and support equipment.
• Experience and must have the aptitude to work within a multidisciplinary engineering team consisting of software, controls, and electronics engineers, as well as machine shop personnel and technicians.
• Experience solving complex technical problems with little supervision and expected to be highly self-motivated. The candidate is a cooperative team player who strives to make the team successful.
• Experience and possess a firm understanding of optical systems, including the handling, coating, and alignment of the optical elements of the four one-meter class telescopes. As part of these efforts, the candidate is also responsible for the maintenance and upgrade of the station's mirror coating facility and its supporting infrastructure.
• Experience and possess excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• The incumbent must have the equivalent of a B.Sc. degree in Mechanical Engineering or Optical Sciences (Physics) with at least 10 years of professional experience, preferably at an astronomical observatory, or a M.Sc. or Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering or Optical Sciences and 5 years of professional experience, preferably at an astronomical observatory.

Additional qualification information can be found from the following Office of Personnel Management website:

AND ;br>
Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (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.

Education

Applicants must meet the following basic education requirements of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualifications Standards Manual:

Successful completion of a professional engineering degree. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree (or higher) in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (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. Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position.

OR

Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT), 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 more information about EI and EIT registration requirements, please visit the National Society of Professional Engineers website at: ;br>
OR

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 The FE examination is not administered by the U. S. Office of Personnel Management. For more information, please visit: ;br>
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 one 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.

Additional information

This announcement uses the Certain Personnel of the DoD direct hire authority to recruit and appoint qualified candidates to positions in the competitive service.

This position is covered by the Department of Defense Priority Placement Program.

Several vacancies may be filled.

A tentative offer of employment will be rescinded if the selectee fails to meet the pre-employment requirements, including failure to report to any of the scheduled appointments.

Federal annuitant information: The selection of an annuitant is subject to the Department of Defense and Department of the Navy policy on the employment of annuitants. Policy information may be found at: ;br>
Veteran's preference does not apply when selecting individuals under this specific hiring authority. However, if you claim veteran's preference, you will be required to submit supporting documentation with your application as described in the Required Documents section below.

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Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

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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.

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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.