This position is in Grand Coulee Power Office of the Bureau of Reclamation, within the Department of the Interior. The incumbent serves as an experienced mechanical engineer, providing mentorship and technical expertise for a variety of complex projects and activities at Grand Coulee Dam, the nation's largest hydropower facility, and the source of water for the Columbia Basin Project, serving irrigation water to more than 670,000 acres in Eastern Washington State.
At the full performance level (GS-12) the major duties of this position include, but are not limited to Technical Consultation and Guidance; Reviewing; and Engineering Analysis: Technical Consultation and Guidance: Provides technical expertise, mentorship, training, and advice to engineers, technicians, management, and internal and external stakeholders; contributes to engineering policies, technical guidelines, standards, procedures, and project objectives; and collaborates with technical teams and external partners to address complex mechanical engineering issues.
Reviewing: Conducts and supports technical and peer reviews of designs, drawings, engineering analyses, specifications, cost estimates, contract documents, and related correspondence. Verifies technical accuracy, constructability, compliance with applicable policies and standards, and adherence to quality assurance requirements before documents are approved or accepted.
Engineering Analysis: Performs advanced mechanical engineering studies and evaluations involving planning, data collection, modeling, risk analysis, instrumentation data, design development, diagnostic testing, commissioning, and operational support. Develops procedures and recommendations for unique or complex problems; evaluates equipment and systems; supports acceptance testing and maintenance activities; and prepares or reviews cost estimates for significant projects.
At the GS-11 level, the major duties of this position include, but are not limited to Technical Consultation and Guidance; Reviewing; and Engineering Analysis Technical Consultation and Guidance: Provides technical support, guidance, and training to junior engineers, technicians, and internal partners. Assists in interpreting engineering analyses, supports team discussions, and assists senior engineers in developing technical standards and guidelines.
At this level, consultation is advisory and collaborative-focused on reinforcing established policies and contributing to technical decision-making under the oversight of senior engineers. Reviewing: Conducts and assists in technical reviews and peer reviews of designs, drawings, calculations, specifications, cost estimates, and engineering analyses. Ensures technical accuracy, completeness, and adherence to applicable codes and standards.
Confirms compliance with quality assurance requirements and assists in ensuring documents are ready for technical approval. Engineering Analysis: performs and coordinates engineering analyses that include technical planning, data collection, modeling, troubleshooting, and risk estimation. Provides engineering recommendations based on conventional and well-established methods.
Provides analyses supporting feasibility studies, preliminary and final design work, contractor design submittals, equipment evaluations, and field acceptance testing. Assignments may involve multiple systems or complex facilities, applying established methodologies and precedents to address problems. Duties will be developmental in nature when filled below the full performance level.
This is an open continuous announcement in which applications are accepted over several months and reviewed according to multiple cut-off dates. Applicants who apply by the initial cut-off date will receive first consideration. The first cut-off date is 11:59 pm ET, 10/20/2026. Applicants will have 5 days to complete the required USA Hire Assessment after receiving the assessment notice.
Applications will continue to be reviewed throughout the open period; however, additional referral certificates will only be issued when a hiring official has exhausted a current certificate and/or when additional vacancies arise. Final application disposition will be completed once all positions have been filled or the announcement reaches the end of the open period stated in the announcement.
This position has a mandatory education requirement. You must submit a copy of your transcript(s) to support claimed education if substituting education for experience. Transcripts must include your name, school name, grades, credit hours earned, major(s), grade point average or class ranking, and date the degree was conferred, if applicable. A typed list of courses, grades, semester/quarter hours, GPA, etc. will not be accepted.
Non-submission may result in being rated not qualified for the position. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work.
Foreign Education: To receive credit for education completed outside the United States, you must show proof that the education has been submitted to a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education has been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education programs. Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | U.S. Department of Education.
https://www.ed.gov/about/initiatives/international-affairs/recognition-of-foreign-qualification
This position is with Bureau of Reclamation, Department of the Interior.
The posted pay range is $99954 – $127443/yr.
This position is eligible for telework.
Applications close on 2027-01-05.
There are 5 openings for this position.
This position is open under the 'Fed Transition' hiring path.
Source: USAJOBS.gov — U.S. Federal Government
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