Summary This position is located in the Maintenance and Operations (Boiler Plant) of the Facilities Management Service at VA Connecticut Healthcare System and is under the direct supervision of the Maintenance and Operations (Boiler Plant) Supervisor. Responsibilities The incumbent is responsible for the safe and efficient operation of the central heating plant, minor repairs, lubrication and adjustment of the Boiler Plant equipment which consists of three D-@type pressurized water-tube boilers each developing 32,000 pounds of steam per hour for a maximum of 128,000 pounds per hour operating 110-125 psig and are automatically controlled by combustion equipment, which consists of air fuel ratio controls, inlet and outlet controls, pressure and fuel oil temperature controls. The incumbent follows safety procedures in the lighting off sequences and all boiler testing procedures. Also operates all support equipment; i.e., Deaerator Tank, condensate storage tanks, associated pumps, chemical injection systems, and air-control systems. Records steam production and other operating data at hurly intervals as required on the steam log sheet, changes flow charts, and computes daily use of makeup water, steam production, and average outside temperature. Performs hourly inspections of operating equipment and records fuel tank levels and fuel usage daily. Performs hourly checks of all operating equipment in the chiller plant, making shiftly inspections. Maintains a comfortable environment throughout the campus, controlling air handlers, hot water reheat systems and chilled water pumps via the Johnson Metasys Control system, a PC-based building management system, checking the alarm screen at least hourly. In addition to the above responsibilities, the incumbent will also be required to: 1. Monitor and operate the air conditioning plant. This will require hourly readings to be taken during the cooling season and interpreting these readings to make key decisions on the operation of this equipment. 2. Operate the Boiler Plant in a safe and economical manner to provide a continuous supply of steam to the station; and makes adjustments to combustion controls, feedwater controls and other controls when necessary. 3. Maintain log sheets by gathering operating data such as feedwater temperature boiler pressure, stack temperatures and number of pounds of steam generated hourly. Make regular water tests and treats boiler feedwater with chemicals as required. 4. Perform preventive maintenance such as lubrication, adjustment, minor parts replacement and necessary minor repairs designed to keep plant and equipment in good operating condition. 5. Perform general maintenance such as lubrication, adjustment, minor parts replacement and necessary minor repairs designed to keep plant and equipment in good operating condition. 6. Perform other duties as assigned: miscellaneous painting of equipment and utility lines, general cleaning of the boilers, equipment, utility lines, general areas, etc. 7. Monitors and place request, to the Utility Systems Supervisor, for fuel oil as needed during the heating season. 8. Incumbent has direct contact with vendors for all materials, supplies and fuels required to maintain the Boiler Plant; and as required, will initiate requests to the Utilities Systems Supervisor. 9. On occasion, shift coverage is such that two boiler plant operators are on the day shift. When required, one Boiler Plant operator will be detailed to the HVAC Shop or Mechanical Maintenance Shop for maintenance and repair work throughout the facility. 10. Maintains and updates preventive maintenance procedure and inspections on a recurring basis for all equipment related to the Boiler Plant per VHA Directive 2003-050. 11. When required on other than normal working hours of Facilities Management Service (FMS) staff, the incumbent will receive emergency calls and will dispatch them to appropriate individuals as instructed by the Chief of FMS and outlined in FMS emergency call back procedures. Work Schedule: Various Shifts. Position Description Title/PD#: Utility Systems Operator/PD00601A Physical Requirements: Incumbent must be physically able to do a considerable amount of walking, standing, climbing ladders and stairs, crawling inside of tight spaces such as boilers, and heavy lifting. Must be able to work in bent, prone or crouched positions; must have good or corrected eye sight for observing water columns and gauges; must have good hearing for detecting noises that would indicate trouble with boilers, A/C chiller and auxiliary equipment. Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this job Subject to a background/suitability investigation Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 A complete application package; including Resume, Transcripts, etc. is required Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Beginning September 27, 2025, Federal agencies will only accept resumes up to two pages in length to comply with the Merit Hiring Plan. Resumes longer than two pages will result in ineligibility for further consideration for the position. USAJOBS will not allow you to upload or build resumes longer than two pages, and you will need to update the resumes in your profile before applying for a job. Resumes should include information relevant to the knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies of the position to which you are applying. VA is unable to make assumptions about qualifications if not clearly listed. Resumes must be legible so they can be reviewed for eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement. Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. We recommend using a sans-serif font size like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans. Make your page margins 0.5 inches. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume. The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement. EXPERIENCE: A specific length of training and experience is not required, but you must show evidence of training or experience of sufficient scope and quality of your ability to do the work of this position. Evidence which demonstrates you possess the knowledge, skills, and ability to perform the duties of this position must be supported by detailed descriptions of such on your resume. Applicants will be rated in accordance with the OPM Federal Wage System Qualification Standards. SCREEN-OUT ELEMENT: Your qualifications will first be evaluated against the prescribed screen out element, which usually appears as question 1 in the on-line questionnaire. Those applicants who appear to possess at least the minimal acceptable qualification requirement are considered for further rating; those who do not are rated ineligible and are eliminated. The potential eligibles are then rated against the remainder of the Job Elements: Equipment Assembly, Installation, Repair Materials Operation of Equipment/Machinery Work with Others Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Education Additional Information As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer (TJO). Please visit the Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP), va.gov/EMPLOYEE/docs/The-Fair-Chance-to-Compete-Act.pdf for more information. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be well-qualified, applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors if applicable, and must be proficient in most of the requirements of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website which can be found at https://www.opm.gov/. Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.
