Electrical Engineer

Bureau of Reclamation•Yuma, AZ

22d•Onsite

About The Position

The Electrical Engineer serves in the Bureau of Reclamation, Lower Colorado Basin Region, Yuma Area Office, Technical Support Office, in Yuma, Arizona. Duties may include on-call work, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime, and shift work. Duties may be developmental below the full performance level. The position provides electrical engineering support for the Yuma Desalting Plant (YDP) electrical distribution, instrumentation, and industrial control systems, and supports control systems and networks at the Water Quality Improvement Center (WQIC). Work includes engineering analyses, technical planning, data collection and management, design, modeling, troubleshooting, and risk analyses. The engineer coordinates plant operational changes, outages, and instrument calibrations; manages configuration and quality assurance for control-system software and firmware; and supports the reliability and integration of systems used for desalting and water-quality processes. The role also provides technical oversight of construction and operations and maintenance work, including contractor inspection and acceptance. It involves planning and coordinating scheduled and emergency maintenance, repairs, and modifications; reviewing maintenance standards and tests; performing diagnostic tests and evaluating results; and conducting facility examinations, condition assessments, and inspections. The engineer identifies deficiencies, estimates repairs, coordinates with partners, documents findings, conducts root-cause and incident investigations, and identifies future asset investment needs. Additional work includes supporting regulatory oversight and compliance, managing project scope, schedules, and budgets, and reviewing designs, drawings, analyses, specifications, technical documents, and contract correspondence for accuracy and quality assurance. The position is typically office-based, with periodic field visits and possible overnight travel. Telework may be allowed with supervisor approval.

Requirements

Must be a U.S. Citizen or U.S. National.
Must possess and maintain a valid driver's license throughout employment.
Must meet the engineering basic education requirement through an ABET-accredited engineering bachelor's program, specified engineering coursework, or an allowed combination of education and experience and qualifying registration, examination, coursework, or related curriculum.
Must meet the applicable GS-11 or GS-12 qualification requirements, including the stated specialized experience, qualifying graduate education, or an allowed combination, as applicable.
For GS-11 specialized experience, must have one year equivalent to GS-9 and experience in at least two of the listed areas; alternatively, qualifying graduate education or a combination of education and experience may qualify.
For GS-12 specialized experience, must have one year equivalent to GS-11 and experience in at least two of the listed areas.
Competitive candidates must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements.
Must submit transcripts when using education to qualify; foreign education must be evaluated as equivalent to U.S. education.
Must pass a background investigation and favorable adjudication, E-Verify, and any required probationary period.
Must participate in Direct Deposit.
Males born after December 31, 1959, must be registered for Selective Service.
Must comply with applicable safety instructions and regulations and promptly report unsafe acts, conditions, and accidents.

Responsibilities

Perform and coordinate engineering analyses and technical planning, including data collection, validation and management, design, modeling, site-condition analyses, equipment troubleshooting, and risk analyses.
Provide electrical engineering support for YDP electrical distribution, instrumentation, and industrial control systems, including sustaining, troubleshooting, and improving DCS, PLCs, HMIs, and data historians.
Coordinate operational changes, planned outages, and instrumentation calibrations with plant operations and maintenance personnel and vendors; document changes in control narratives and configuration baselines.
Manage configuration and quality assurance for ICS/DCS software and firmware updates in accordance with agency standards and Yuma Area Office procedures.
Support integration and reliability of control networks and field control units at YDP and the WQIC research facility.
Provide technical oversight of construction and operations and maintenance work, including inspection and acceptance of contractor-performed facility or utility construction.
Plan, coordinate, and direct scheduled and emergency maintenance, repairs, and modifications of complex facilities and equipment.
Review performance standards and maintenance techniques; conduct specialized diagnostic tests and evaluate test data and corrective measures.
Plan, schedule, coordinate, and conduct facility examinations, reviews, condition assessments, and construction and transfer inspections.
Identify deficiencies, estimate repair costs, coordinate with internal and external partners, document and present results, conduct root-cause analyses and incident investigations, and identify future asset investment needs.
Support regulatory program oversight, policy and rulemaking efforts, compliance reviews, and resolution of engineering issues.
Develop, monitor, and manage project plans covering scope, schedule, and budget.
Conduct technical reviews, peer reviews, and checks of designs, drawings, analyses, technical documents, specifications, and contract correspondence for accuracy and quality assurance.