General Engineer (Inspector) (Direct Hire).

Duties

As a General Engineer (Inspector), You Will

• Recognize discrepancies or inconsistencies between information reported or made available to the office of Pipeline safety and the true nature of the activity under review.
• Conduct safety program reviews and provide engineering analyses and evaluations of potential pipeline safety regulatory deficiencies.
• Participate in technical conferences, symposia and meetings as a technical expert and authority on safety issues related to the pipeline industry.
• Interpret and apply Federal regulations and monitor the design, construction, operation and maintenance of gas and liquid pipeline systems.
• Evaluate projects to determine compliance with existing Federal safety regulations.

The ideal candidate for this position is a General Engineer who is seeking a challenging assignment performing Federal pipeline safety compliance inspections; evaluating intrastate and interstate pipeline operators subject to Federal authority; investigating pipeline failures; and representing the Office of Pipeline Safety in all matters related to pipeline safety before Federal, state and industry authorities.

PLEASE NOTE: This announcement establishes an open continuous (6 month) vacancy announcement for General Engineer (Inspector) GS-0801-11/12/13 Given our continuing need for top professionals in this field, we will routinely review applications and refer the top candidates for potential interviews multiple times during the open period of the announcement. Reviews and referrals of applications will be completed on an as needed basis. The final review will be on the closing date. Following these dates, we will contact qualified applicants to schedule interviews. We will give equal consideration to all applications we receive. Duty locations will vary. The difference in salary is determined by the locality pay in each location.

If selected, your starting salary may be different that what is listed above, as salaries are based upon your duty location. All locality pay tables are available on the OPM website:

https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• Direct Hire Authority will be used to fill this position
• Submit application and resume online by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date
• Required documents must be submitted by the closing date.
• You must be a U.S. citizen & meet specialized experience to qualify

Conditions Of Employment

• GOVERNMENT TRAVEL CARD: This position involves travel. A government contractor-issued travel card will be issued and must be retained for official business only.
• DRUG TEST: Tentatively selected candidates are required to undergo urinalysis in accordance with DOT 3910.1D entitled "Drug and Alcohol-Free Departmental Workplace", which includes testing for marijuana. Marijuana is legal in some states, however it’s still illegal at the federal level. Therefore, if selected for the position you will be required to submit to a pre-employment/pre-appointment drug test, you will also be subject to Random Drug Testing. Failure or refusal to take a drug test may result in disciplinary action up to and including removal from federal service
• PCS/RELOCATION/RECRUITMENT: Permanent Change of Station (PCS), Relocation, and Recruitment Incentive authorization varies by position/selection.
• PROBATIONARY PERIOD: Applicants may be required to successfully complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed).
• SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for the Selective Service.

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-11 On Experience, You Must Have At Least One Year Of Experience Equal Or Equivalent To The GS-09 It Must Include

• Experience creating or reviewing engineering design and/or construction proposals/specifications for compliance with procedural, regulatory or related requirements.

To qualify for the GS-11 on Education alone, you must have:

3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree.

You can also qualify based on a combination of higher level graduate education and experience. This must be fully supported by your resume and transcripts, provided with your application.

To Qualify For The GS-12 On Experience, You Must Have At Least One Year Of Experience Equal Or Equivalent To The GS-11 It Must Include

• Experience applying engineering concepts, principles, and practices applicable to duties concerned with the design, and construction of gas or liquid pipeline systems of operators.

To Qualify For The GS-13 On Experience, You Must Have At Least One Year Of Experience Equal Or Equivalent To The GS-12 It Must Include

• Experience reviewing design specifications for pipeline systems.
• Experience conducting safety program reviews, engineering analyses, and evaluations of natural gas or hazardous liquid pipelines in accordance with safety regulations.
• Experience providing technical determinations, and resolutions of compliance issues arising from pipeline safety inspections.

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:

• Technical Competence: Skill in assuring that field actions comply with national policies, objectives, and regulations, as well as ensuring those regional programs are compatible with environmental, social, and economic goals and needs.
• General Engineering: Knowledge of the concepts, principles, and theories of engineering and their practical applications.
• Compliance Inspection: Ability to direct an enforcement program in order to determine probable violations, assess preliminary civil penalties, issue proposed compliance orders, issue corrective action order, act as a senior official at enforcement hearings, evaluate response material, recommend final enforcement actions and issue warning letters.

For all types of consideration, 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

Students enrolled in a qualifying degree program can apply if the anticipated graduation date is within six months of closing date of the announcement. Graduation transcript must be received before start date.

Other applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Education

Mandatory Education Requirements

• 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

The Adequacy Of Such Background Must Be Demonstrated By One Of The Following

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.

• 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).
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.

Additional information

Please Note

This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if similar vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

Qualified CTAP/ICTAP candidates receive priority and will be referred to the hiring manager.

• 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.

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.