Chemical Engineer (Process Safety Management)

These positions are with the U. S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Dallas Region. They are in the Houston North Area Office and Houston South Area Office.

• The full performance level of these positions are at the GS-12 grade level.
• Positions are in the bargaining unit.
• A writing sample may be included as a part of the interview process.
• Selectee will be expected to report to the office.

Qualifications:

THE ENGINEERING SERIES HAS AN INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENT. ALL APPLICANTS MUST MEET THIS REQUIREMENT IN ORDER TO BE CONSIDERED. You must meet the "Individual Occupational Requirement" and the "Specialized Experience" as described below, to qualify for the Chemical Engineer position.

INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENT (IOR):
A. Degree: Bachelor's degree (or higher degree) in engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree (or higher degree) 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.

OR

B. 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), 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) examination, or any other written test required for professional registration, by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, or 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 A above. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program.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 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.

In addition to meeting the Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR), applicants must meet the following specialized experience:
Applicants must have one year of specialized experience, equivalent to the GS-07 in federal service, that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position. Examples of specialized experience include:

• Applying theories, concepts, principles, and methodologies of chemical and/or mechanical engineering combined with fundamental knowledge of the chemical manufacturing industry and petrochemical processes.
• Experience with fluid dynamics, piping and instrumentation (P&I) diagrams, and computer chemical process mapping.
• Presenting data through various venues, such as discussions, meetings, fact sheets, reports, briefings and presentations.

OR

Education: completed a Master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the work of the position, such as experience with assisting in identifying and evaluating health hazards; surveys, assessing, understanding, and investigating health problems, determining the probable cause, and recommending solutions. (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.)

OR

Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. To compute the percentage of the requirements, divide your total months of experience by 12. Then divide the total number of completed graduate semester hours (or equivalent) beyond the second year (total graduate semester hours minus 36) by 18. Add the two percentages.

Responsibilities:

Major Duties include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Assists in the investigation of incidents, emergencies, and inspection of complex industries and processes.
• Advises on safety management subjects including process hazard analysis, mechanical integrity, instrumentation, process chemistry, and system safety.
• Reviews established abatement plans and agreements and evaluates the progress of their implementation for compliance with existing schedules for abatement.
• Conducts opening conferences with employers and employee representatives when appropriate to explain the purpose and scope of the inspection or investigation and pertinent PSM Standard regulations.
• Conducts closing conferences with the employer/establishment representative to review hazards and/or violations noted.

Salary : $71,181