General Engineer/Mechanical Engineer

Summary This position is located at the Research and Development, Forest Products Laboratory in Madison Wisconsin. The research involves laboratory measurements on the combustion and degradation of wood, wood composites, and wood structures from the micron to meter scales. For additional information about the duties of this position, please contact Christopher Senalik at christopher.a.senalik@usda.gov. Responsibilities Serves as an engineer with responsibility for developing project plans, designs, and specifications for the advancement and evaluation of new and complex equipment used in forest products research. Leads troubleshooting efforts in an engineering specialty field. Defines, designs, and develops new tools or modifies existing general-purpose tools to enhance safety and productivity. Coordinate test plans, test methodologies, analysis procedures, test schedules; execute tests; evaluate data obtained; and recommend design alterations to meet the research objectives. Applies engineering knowledge to the creation of new or substantially improved equipment, systems, materials, procedures and criteria in carrying out a series of complex, inter-related engineering operations. As a technical specialist, provides subject matter advice and counsel. Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement. For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards. Your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience requirements. Transcripts must be provided for qualifications based on education. Provide course descriptions as necessary. This is an interdisciplinary position and may be filled in any of the job series listed below. See education section for education requirements. In addition to meeting the basic requirement, you must also possess experience and/or directly related education in the amounts listed below. Specialized Experience Requirement: For the GS-12: You must have one year specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 in the Federal service. Specialized experience is defined as one or more of the following: Coordinated test plans, test methodologies, analysis procedures, test schedules; execute tests including conducting and/or overseeing the performance of both destructive and nondestructive tests; Lead troubleshooting efforts in an engineering specialty field. Defines, designs, and develops new tools or modifies existing general-purpose tools to enhance safety and productivity; and/or Used a variety of computer software and data acquisition such as MATLAB, LabView, lmageJ, Excel, AutoCad and other computer programs and data acquisition. OR a Conferred Ph.D. degree that included scientific research in areas related to the work of the position which is life-cycle assessment techniques and methods and/or includes coursework in areas such as mass and energy balances, biomass analysis, environmental analysis, thermodynamics, unit process modeling. 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. TIME IN GRADE REQUIREMENT: If you are a current federal employee in the General Schedule (GS) pay plan and applying for a promotion opportunity, you must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirements of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled. This requirement must be met by the closing date of this announcement. Education In addition to meeting the basic requirement, you must also possess experience and/or directly related education in the amounts listed above in the Qualifications section. This is an interdisciplinary position and may be filled in any of the job series listed below. For Series 0801: Four year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree in engineering: The program must have (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: A college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying professional engineering, and (2) theoretical and practical understanding of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering as demonstrated by one of the following: Professional registration/licensure - Current registration as a professional engineer by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Written Test - Passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) examination, or a written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board. Specified academic courses - Completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences that included the courses specified in the degree requirements. Related curriculum - 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, and at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision. For Series 0830: 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.ORB. 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)2 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). Additional Information Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) or Reemployment Priority List (RPL): To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified (or above) based on an evaluation of the competencies listed in the How You Will Be Evaluated section. When assessed through a score-based category rating method, CTAP applicants must receive a rating of at least 85 out of a possible 100. Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA) provides current or former temporary and term employees the opportunity to compete for permanent competitive service positions. Individuals must have more than 24 months of service without a break between appointments of two or more years and the last temporary or term appointment must have been with the Forest Service. Service must be in the competitive service and have been at a successful level of performance or better. Part-time and intermittent service will be credited only for time actually worked. Non-pay status such as leave without pay is credited for up to six months in a calendar year; anything beyond six months is not credited. Applicants are responsible for providing sufficient information/documentation to determine if the 24 month criteria is met. The Forest Service may use certain incentives and hiring flexibilities, currently offered by the Federal government, to attract highly qualified candidates. Additional Information is available on the OPM Website. This is a bargaining unit position and is represented by either NFFE, AFGE, or NAGE. Salary wage as shown is for Rest of the U.S. For more information, refer to the Office of Personnel Management, Salary and Wages web page.