Facility Operations Specialist

This position is responsible for providing administrative and technical support to the Chief of Facilities Management Service (FMS) at the VA Central Western Massachusetts (VACWM). Performs a wide variety of administrative, technical and program duties essential to support all sections of FMS.

Qualifications:

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 04/22/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-9 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-7. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

Quality Ranking Factor- National Fire Protection Association (NFPA experience / Quality Management & Compliance.

Individual Occupational Requirements: Undergraduate and Graduate Education:

• Undergraduate and Graduate Education: Major study -- engineering, industrial arts, property management, or business administration. OR
• Specialized Experience (for positions above GS-5): Examples of qualifying specialized experience include:

  • Managing a maintenance program for office or apartment building complexes, hospitals, recreation facilities, military, or other special-purpose installations, including planning maintenance activities, and developing preventive maintenance programs.

  • Conducting surveillance activities over construction and maintenance operations performed by a variety of private contractors, including reviewing project plans and specifications for workability, informing contractors of construction and reporting requirements, and supervising operations for conformance with project plans.

  • Performing maintenance or construction work, including estimating material and labor costs for a variety of construction or maintenance projects (such as construction or maintenance of brick, frame, structural steel, reinforced concrete, and other type structures ranging from one- or two-story buildings to larger structures), directing actual work operations, and maintaining appropriate contacts with the organization funding the project.

Grade Determination:

• Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-7 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Experience 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 to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Applicants who have the 1 year of appropriate specialized experience, as indicated in the table, are not required by this standard to have general experience, education above the high school level, or any additional specialized experience to meet the minimum qualification requirements. OR,
• Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have Master's or equivalent graduate degree OR, two full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree OR, LL.B., or J.D., if related . OR,
• Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education. Combinations of successfully completed post-high school education and experience may be used to meet total qualification requirements for the grade levels specified in the table, and may be computed by first determining the applicant's total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level; then determining the applicant's education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level; and then adding the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent to qualify an applicant for that grade level. Only graduate education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level may be used to qualify applicants for positions at grades GS-9 and GS-11. (When crediting education that requires specific course work, prorate the number of hours of related courses required as a proportion of the total education to be used.).

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Responsibilities:

The work consists of various duties, projects or assignments sometimes involving different and unrelated program analysis technical processes and procedures. Assignments or projects involve various types and sources of information, nonrecurring problems, trends and issues. The purpose of the work is to plan and carry out assignments, which affect and improve the efficiency and productivity of the organization's operations.

Some duties including but limited to:

• Obtains relevant information regarding requests for repairs or replacement of equipment that is under warranty, covered by a service or commodity contract, and coordinates all the appropriate actions for service, maintenance or repair as needed.
• Performs the duties of Contracting Officers Representative (COR) for all TJC, EC, and LS service contracts, such as fire alarm testing & inspection ,etc.
• Performs inspections & trainings. Ensures all records are up to date, all-inclusive, organized and immediately available to inspectors both electronically and in hard copy.
• Knowledge of OSHA, VA Safety and Health regulations, policies and procedures regarding personal protection, fire safety, hot work, accident reporting, and infection control on construction projects.
• Serves as the FMS section OSHA training coordinator which includes preparing the yearly training plan, tracking training in a database, and submitting necessary reports to the Chief of FMS.
• Serves as manager regarding The Joint Commission (TJC) compliance; Life Safety(LS); Environment of Care (EC) & Annual Workplace Evaluation (AWE). Performs all TJC, EC, and LS inspections.
• Maintains current and accurate database on facility information resources for Capital Asset Management Systems (CAMS) program
• Develops & maintains computerized spreadsheets in order to effectively operate and utilize computerized maintenance management system.
• Computer literate and fully knowledgeable of how to effectively utilize a computerized maintenance management system. Knowledge and skill in use of office automation software.
• Performs some tasks on short notice and must produce accurate results in order to ensure the orderly progress of complex and highly time-sensitive construction projects. Research, survey work, self-study, and education are at times required to keep up to date with various programs.
• Maintains effective working relationships with professional, technical and management elements within the Medical Center, the Department of Veterans Affairs and outside the Department of Veterans Affairs.
• Knowledge of project maintenance; organization; planning; control; staffing and funding, NFPA and VA requirements, as well as, acquisition and contract activities, procedures, and relationships.
• Ensures personal safety while visiting construction sites and the ability to recognize unsafe situations associated with construction contractor's work. Familiarization with CADD, within a minimal ability to edit existing drawings, create and print sketches for reports and to document inspections, etc. Knowledge of construction contract requirements, general construction procedures, processes, construction trades, and organization.
• Skill in using office automation software (Microsoft Office, Excel, Access, Light-scribe Burner/CD and DVD copier hardware/software) in order to create and/or update and revise existing databases and/or spreadsheets to produce a wide range of documents. Skill in operation of office equipment (copiers, scanners, large plotters for engineering drawings, and fax machines).

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 7:00am - 3:30pm
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Facility Operations Specialist/PD022910
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized
PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized

Salary : $69,642