Fire Protection Engineer (Program Manager)

Summary

This position is located in the Architect of the Capitol, Office of Safety and Code Compliance (SCC), Fire Marshal Division. The incumbent serves as a Fire Protection Engineer and as an expert staff consultant for the AOC for the wide variety of programs involved within the Fire Marshal Division. Duties cover all aspects of fire protection engineering and life safety for various types and sizes of national, historical and monumental buildings.

This job is open to

Clarification from the agency

Applications Will be Accepted from All US Citizens Note: Please be advised that federal retired annuitant candidates may only be considered as a temporary employee if the role can be filled in that capacity.

Duties

Tour of duty: Monday - Friday 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Hours May Change due to Operating Needs of Management)

Major Duties:

Program Development and Coordination

Formulates and designs agency-wide programs, plans, procedures, and methodologies for programs to improve fire protection and life safety compliance. Advocates for the use of innovative improvement techniques that are appropriate to the agency mission and culture.

Leads the development, creation and implementation of SOPs, policies and procedures for the Fire Marshal Division. Includes the readiness of emergency management documents for SCC and oversees emergency exercises.

Analyze and provide solutions to create long-range program plans, goals, objectives, and milestones for evaluating and measuring the effectiveness of the implementation of these programs. Develop and provide preliminary courses of action to be taken to address changes in programs, technological developments, policies and processes.

Project Management

Functions as the technical expert for broad programs involving the design, installation, maintenance, and operation of fire protection systems, assemblies, structures, and operations. Manages significant elements or phases of fire prevention/protection projects. Overcomes difficult and complex technical, project management, program management and organizational problems using innovative and original approaches.

Assists the Deputy Fire Marshal and Fire Marshal in developing and coordinating program policies and establishing procedures concerning fire protection and emergency management under the AOC. Provides technical support and guidance to responding police officers and firefighters during emergency operations involving firefighting, hazardous materials mishaps, and rescue. Represents the AOC in matters relating to fire protection, suppression, investigation, and emergency management with officials and other agencies.

Contractor Oversight

Lead the PAD program through executing contracts to ensure equipment placement, maintenance and as appropriate, medical evaluations are performed. Serve as the COR for the Public Access Defibrillator Program (PAD), Fire Protection Engineering Services and SCC Emergency Exercise contracts. Is responsible for ensuring that the contractor is tasked with the necessary assignments, task orders and work orders. Monitors and reports on the status and progress of contracted work, checks on work orders in progress and processes invoices, and reviews completed deliverables to verify the execution of the contract. Performs investigations when units are used across the AOC facilities and ensures that devices are readily available for use. Collaborate with other internal AOC Divisions and external agencies for compliance of devices.

Serves as a technical fire protection engineering specialist in the test, checkout and readiness of systems or equipment that involve new concepts and varied problems to be solved. Oversees testing of all aspects of new fire protection systems, equipment and devices per National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards and other test methods and standards commonly accepted by industry.

Problem Resolution

Acknowledged as an authoritative and expert source of information internally, by other agencies, and on a national level on unprecedented technical problems, the latest developments and trends relating to fire prevention and protection. Cooperates with all levels of local management and program officials, key personnel of other Agency locations, other government agencies, and private industry to resolve and track complex and controversial problems that arise and assure the overall resolution of issues.

Data Analysis and Technical Guidance

Presents expert advice to the officials of other AOC jurisdictions, including the Construction Management Division Director and personnel, regarding the design, modernization, operation, and maintenance of fire protection systems and projects performed in the facilities under their jurisdiction. Actively supplies maintenance and construction supervision and coordination as necessary. Presents expert advice to the Chief Operating Officer, Administrative Assistant, Director of Engineering, Director of Architecture, Project Manager Officer, Superintendents and, as requested, directly to the Architect of the Capitol and the Assistant Architect regarding fire protection systems, both existing and proposed, located throughout the Capitol Hill Complex.

Follows all relevant safety rules, regulations and standard operating procedures. Complies with all OSHA safety rules and regulations to ensure that work progresses in a safe manner. Provides or receives training, either on-the-job or through classroom training, to ensure that all safety practices and equipment are fully utilized. Uses required Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

Your resume and question responses must demonstrate the job-related KSAs.

You must meet the definition of specialized experience.

Must meet the educational requirement for Engineers.

You must be able to pass a drug test.

To be employed by the Architect of the Capitol in a paid position, an individual must meet one of the categories below:

A citizen of the United States;

A person who is lawfully admitted for permanent residence and is seeking citizenship as outlined in 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3)(B);

A person who is admitted as a refugee under 8 U.S.C. 1157 or is granted asylum under 8 U.S.C. 1158 and has filed a declaration of intention to become a lawful permanent resident and then a citizen when eligible;

A person who owes allegiance to the United States (nationals of American Samoa, Swains Island, and the Northern Mariana Islands, and nationals who meet other requirements described in 8 U.S.C. 1408); or

A person who is currently an officer or employee of the Government of the United States.

Qualifications

You must meet the United States Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) qualification requirements (including specialized experience and/or educational requirements) for the advertised position. You must meet all eligibility and qualifications requirements by the closing date of the job announcement. Additional information on the qualification requirements is outlined in the OPM Qualifications Standards Handbook of General Schedule Positions. It is available for your review on the OPM web site at

Specialized experience: is experience that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level.

Candidates for the GS-14 grade level must have at least 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower (GS-13) grade level in the Federal service.

Specialized experience for this position must demonstrate the following:

(1) Program development, management and execution to include knowledge of performance evaluation techniques and key metrics, leadership and organizational skills, problem-solving abilities, and written and oral communication skills to achieve the program’s objectives.

(2) Fire protection engineering and life safety concepts and principles and wide range of assignments involving combinations of complex features; devise, customize, operate, oversee and/or evaluate applications pertaining to the controls and the delivery of the design and to resolve a wide variety of complex problems.

(3) Fire protection system design including performing reviews, construction inspections and acceptance testing in various types of occupancy classifications for new and historic facilities.

(4) Knowledge of government contracting laws and regulations to serve as a Contracting Officer Representative, manages contractors, and prepares Statements of Work (SOW) and Requests for Proposals (RFPs).

(5) Development of agency wide fire protection policies, standards, regulations, practices, and procedures to eliminate or control potential fire hazards.

(6) Ability to communicate orally and in writing including the ability to effectively meet and deal with others.

Education

In addition to meeting the specialized experience requirements for this position, applicants must possess the following:

Education Required for Engineers:

1. Bachelor's degree in professional engineering: To be creditable, the curriculum must: (1) be in a school of engineering with at least one curriculum accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) as a professional engineering curriculum; 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: -- statics, dynamics; -- strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); -- fluid mechanics, hydraulics; -- thermodynamics; -- electrical fields and circuits; -- nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and -- any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics.

--OR--

2. 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 professional 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: (a) current registration as a professional engineer by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico; (b) evidence of having successfully passed the Engineer-in-Training (EIT) examination or the written test required for professional registration; (c) successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences that are fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of a professional engineering curriculum; or (d) successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in engineering technology or in an appropriate professional field.

Special Instructions for Foreign Education:

Education completed outside of the United States must be deemed equivalent to that gained in conventional/accredited U.S. education programs to be acceptable for Federal employment.

Qualifying education from colleges and universities in foreign countries must be evaluated in terms of equivalency to that acquired in U.S. colleges and universities. Applicants educated in whole or in part of foreign countries must submit sufficient evidence, including transcripts, to an accredited private organization for an equivalency evaluation of course work and degree.

You must provide a copy of the letter containing the results of the equivalency evaluation with a course by course listing if selected.

Additional information

Welcome Veterans. The Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) gives veterans' preference rights in the legislative branch to certain veterans as applied by the Congressional Accountability Act. Veterans' preference is applied on this vacancy announcement. If you are a veteran and have been separated under honorable conditions, you must submit a copy of your DD-214 or other proof of eligibility; SF-15, if applicable; and Department of Veterans Affairs documentation of disability, if applicable. For more information, please visit

If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System. If you are exempt from registration under Selective Service Law, you must provide appropriate proof of exemption. Please visit the website for more information.

DRUG TESTING: The Architect of the Capitol (AOC) is a Drug Free Workplace. As part of the AOC’s suitability assessment, a candidate tentatively selected for a position who is not currently an AOC employee is required to submit to screening for illegal drug use. Satisfactory completion of a drug test is a condition of employment with the Agency. A candidate must test negative prior to being eligible for appointment into a position. We will schedule, provide, and cover the cost for the drug test.

The selectee(s) under the vacancy announcement for this position is subject to a criminal record check by the U.S. Capitol Police and satisfactory adjudication to be eligible for employment at the Architect of the Capitol.

The Architect of the Capitol is an E-VERIFY Participant. E-VERIFY is an Internet-based system that compares information from an employee's Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, to data from U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Social Security Administration records to confirm employment authorization in the United States. If you are selected for this position, the documentation that you present for purposes of completing the DHS Form I-9 will be verified through the DHS "E-VERIFY" electronic system. For more information on E-Verify, please visit

The Architect of the Capitol is an Equal Opportunity Employer and prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, and/or disability.

This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please notify the agency. The decision on granting reasonable accommodation will be on a case-by-case basis.

Moving expenses are not authorized.

Relocation expenses are not authorized.

Probationary Period-A newly appointed selectee is subject to the completion of a one-year trial/probationary period, regardless of whether or not a trial/probationary period has been completed previously with the Architect of the Capitol or another Federal agency.

This vacancy announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies in any of the jurisdictions of the Architect of the Capitol.

All application materials become the property of the Architect of the Capitol.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Review your resume and responses carefully. Your eligibility for consideration and qualifications for the position will be determined based upon a review of your detailed resume and your responses to job specific self-assessment questions.

Your resume will be evaluated based on evidence of your ability to demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) for this position, possession of any specialized experience, and how well your background and experience relates to the self-assessment questions in the job announcement. The self-assessment questions relate to the following knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies:

KSA 1: Knowledge of the principles,