Interdisciplinary Architect/General Engineer/Community Planner

Summary

This position is located in the Architect of the Capitol (AOC), Office of the Chief Engineer, Planning, Engineering and Architecture. The selectee will serve as a General Engineer, Architect or Community Planner and perform program management and/or project identification and development, with emphasis on projects involving work derived from the facility condition assessment database and new or existing public space or facilities in the master plan.

Duties

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This position may be filled at the GS-11 (senior), GS-12 (authorizing) or GS-13 (expert) level. If starting at the lower levels, progressively more complex and independent assignments will be given on a gradual basis leading to the full performance level. Duties quoted below are at the GS-13 level.

Major Duties:

Program / Project Development and Management

• Produces or oversees the production of a wide variety of facilities planning products and services in the support of activities for the Architect of the Capitol. Products and services include, but are not limited to, Area Development Plans, Capital Improvements Plan project development, Asset Evaluations, Facility Requirements, Project Charters, Special Studies, Project Documentation (AOC Form 1391), Site Planning, Energy and Sustainability project documentation, External Engagement, Storm water program management, Economic Analyses, Parametric Cost estimates and Business Case Analyses.
• Prepares the initial program, planning and documentation for a number of multi-million dollar renovation and new construction projects. Projects may include renovation, rehabilitation, alteration and new construction of public space, buildings and infrastructure systems. Programs may include storm water management, project identification management and other planning-related programs to aid in the development of criteria for improved project development.
• Leverages in-house technical expertise and management capabilities of other division and jurisdiction personnel. Integrates diverse elements at each level and develops recommendations that can be implemented. The selectee needs to have a working knowledge of the AOC Preservation Policy and Sustainability policy and be able to recommend improvements and efficiencies to current status quo project planning.
• Plans various complex project development functions with project teams and makes decisions affecting areas of responsibility that are precedent setting. Identifies and ensures proper resource availability for internal agency professionals as well as contractor organizations. Serves as a professional specialist and a key source of information for assigned areas of accountability.
• Evaluates and monitors projects from other agencies that are adjacent to the Capitol complex and may impact implementation of Architect of the Capitol projects. Collaborates with professionals from area planning agencies including but not limited to National Capital Planning Commission, District of Columbia Office of Planning, District Department of Transportation, National Park Service and Smithsonian Institution to ensure external projects do not conflict with the planning of internal projects.

Technical Advice and Guidance

• Provides assistance on project administration. Contributes to the resolution of technical difficulties that are amenable to changes in approach, criteria or requirements. Conducts studies to develop criteria for more in-depth planning initiatives and other situations encountered during field inspections.
• Facilitates the resolution of project or program related issues and concerns that arise at the Division Director, Jurisdiction Executive, Executive Directors Project Coordinator, Assistant Executive Directors and Executive Director- levels. Provides leadership of the project scope, schedule and budget concerns in the programming and study phases.

Consultant / Contractor Oversight

• Provides technical design and management guidance to professional Architect/Engineers (A/E) Firms. Serves as the Contracting Officers Representative (COTR) for review and compliance with the Architect-Engineer contract specifications.
• Monitors A/E contractors for effectiveness in meeting contractual, functional and technical requirements. Recommends action in cases of programming and planning deficiencies. Reviews functional and technical aspects of project planning in detail. Ensures that applicable codes, standards and criteria are met.
• Recommends use of resources and efforts related to the implementation of projects; and exercises specified contracting officer authority for execution and administration of person and professional services contracts. Independently supervises indefinite delivery contracts for planning/programming, studies and designs when needed.

Business Improvement

• Participants in the AOC efforts to continuously improve business practices and customer satisfaction. Provides professional planning, architectural or engineering expertise in evaluating the effectiveness and efficiency of plans and recommends improvements. This involves life-cycle phases of the project, such as planning and programming through the conceptual design stage, the construction document stage and the construction, equipment installation, commissioning and post occupancy evaluation phases. Identifies areas for improvement, studies processes, recommends changes, studies impact and develops a plan for implementation.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• Your resume and question responses must demonstrate the job-related KSAs.
• You must meet the definition of specialized experience.
• Must meet educational requirement for Architect, Engineer or Comm Planner
• 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 OPM qualification standards

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.

For the GS-11:

Candidates for the GS-11 grade level must have at least 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower (GS-09) grade level in the Federal service.

Specialized experience is defined as having experience: (1) Preparing the initial planning and documentation for a number of multi-million dollar renovation and new construction projects; (2) Providing significant and innovative recommendations and/or methods to accomplish cost-effective, high-quality design and construction activities related to professional planning, architectural, sustainability, and engineering disciplines; i.e., civil, mechanical, fire protection, safety and electrical; and (3) Evaluating studies, plans, design specifications and progress reports for architectural, engineering and construction processes and projects.

-OR-

Qualifying on Education for the GS-11:

• Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or
• 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or
• LL.M., [graduate education must be related to the duties of the position].

For the GS-12:

Candidates for the GS-12 grade level must have at least 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower (GS-11) grade level in the Federal service.

Specialized experience is defined as having experience: (1) Preparing the initial planning and documentation for a number of multi-million dollar renovation and new construction projects; (2) Leading broad based programs that have impact on agency planning initiatives; (3) Providing significant and innovative recommendations and/or methods to accomplish cost-effective, high-quality design and construction activities related to professional planning, architectural, sustainability, and engineering disciplines; i.e., civil, mechanical, fire protection, safety and electrical; and (4) Evaluating studies, plans, design specifications and progress reports for architectural, engineering and construction processes and projects.

For the GS-13:

Candidates for the GS-13 grade level must have at least 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower (GS-12) grade level in the Federal service.

Specialized experience is defined as having experience: (1) Preparing the initial planning and documentation for a number of multi-million dollar renovation and new construction projects; (2) Leading broad based programs that have impact on agency planning initiatives; (3) Providing significant and innovative recommendations and/or methods to accomplish cost-effective, high-quality design and construction activities related to professional planning, architectural, sustainability, and engineering disciplines; i.e., civil, mechanical, fire protection, safety and electrical; (4) Evaluating studies, plans, design specifications and progress reports for architectural, engineering and construction processes and projects; and (5) Developing Master Plans and/or advancing existing Master Plans for a large complex of buildings.

Education

This position is interdisciplinary, one of the following education requirements must be met.

For Engineers:

A. 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-

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: (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

For Architects:

A. Bachelor's Degree in architecture; or related field that included 60 semester hours of course work in architecture or related disciplines of which at least (1) 30 semester hours were in architectural design, and (2) 6 semester hours were in each of the following: structural technology, properties of materials and methods of construction, and environmental control systems.

-OR-

B. Combination of education and experience college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the arts and sciences underlying professional architecture, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the architectural principles, methods, and techniques and their applications to the design and construction or improvement of buildings. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by at least one of the following:

1. Related Curriculum: Degree in architectural engineering may be accepted.
2. Experience: An applicant lacking a degree in architecture must have had l year of experience in an architect's office or in architectural work for each year short of graduation from a program of study in architecture. In the absence of college courses, 5 years of such experience is required. This experience must have demonstrated that the applicant has acquired a thorough knowledge of the fundamental principles and theories of professional architecture.

For Community Planners:

A. Degree: community planning; or related field such as urban affairs, architecture, landscape architect