Description

Western Washington University, with over 15,000 students in seven colleges and the graduate school, is nationally recognized for its educational programs, students and faculty. The campus is located in Bellingham, Washington, a coastal community of 90,000 overlooking Bellingham Bay, the San Juan Islands and the North Cascades Mountain range. The city lies 90 miles north of Seattle and 60 miles south of Vancouver, British Columbia. Western has additional sites in Anacortes, Bremerton, Everett, Port Angeles, and Poulsbo. Western is recognized nationally for its successes, such as being named one of the top public master's-granting institutions in the Pacific Northwest for 25 years in a row by U.S. News & World Report.

Western Washington University is committed to achieving excellence through advancing inclusive success, increasing our Washington impact, and focusing on transformational education grounded in the liberal arts and sciences and based on innovative scholarship, research, and creative activity. Western's greatest strength is the outstanding students, faculty, staff, and alumni/ae who make up its community. Western supports an inclusive governance structure for all and provides a learning and working environment in which everyone can thrive. In pursuit of this excellence, individual employees are expected to establish and maintain productive and effective inclusive working relationships amongst diverse populations including staff, faculty, administration, student, and external constituents. Further, individual employees are expected to have the ability to operationalize sustainability concepts (economic, societal, environmental) into all aspects of performing their job duties.

Scientific Technical Services (SciTech or STS) supports Western's mission, which states that together with our students, staff, and faculty, we are committed to making a positive impact in the state and the world with a shared focus on academic excellence and inclusive achievement. We encourage applications from women, people of color, people with disabilities, veterans, and other candidates from underrepresented backgrounds and with diverse experiences interested in this opportunity.

SciTech is a department that supports research, scholarship and teaching across all colleges at WWU by providing access to advanced multi-user scientific instrumentation, machine and electronics shops, and equipment design, fabrication and repair services.  It operates two core facilities: The University Instrument Center, Western’s primary multi-user equipment facility with chromatography, mass spectrometry, and spectroscopy instrumentation and the University Shops, with electronics, metalworking, woodworking, and design and repair services.

Students, staff, and faculty from across campus rely on SciTech for expert advice and training on scientific instrumentation, assistance with laboratory class instruction, to design, build, and repair equipment, and assist in the analysis of research and classroom samples. Hundreds of users come through our doors each year with projects ranging from the analysis of water quality samples, to the repair of antique Steinway pianos and the construction of custom equipment for Western athletic teams.  For over 30 years SciTech has been a centerpiece of Western’s innovation infrastructure, supporting research, creativity, and learning campus-wide.

Scientific Technical Services (STS) provides technical support to faculty, staff, and students for a wide variety of teaching and scholarship activities involving instrumentation, and the design, manufacture, and repair of equipment to all divisions at WWU. Under general direction, this position will perform senior-level engineering technician work designing, developing, modifying, constructing, installing, calibrating, testing, and repairing instruments, apparatus, and equipment within a scientific, instructional, or engineering application. Applicable skills for this position include mechanical, electro-mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, electronic, cabinetry, carpentry, welding, machining, and sheet metal. The focus of this position will be to support the operations of the STS Machine Shop.

This position is part of a Public School Employees of WWU bargaining union.

Required qualifications

• One year of experience as an Engineering Technician 2 OR two years of experience as an engineering technician OR equivalent education/experience.
• Strong education and/or experience with CNC machining.
• Experience with CAD and CAM programing.
• Ability to use typical machine shop equipment such as lathes, milling machines, drill presses, welding and soldering equipment, and common hand and power tools.
• Ability to work independently under general supervision.
• Strong record of effective teamwork and collaboration.
• Ability to work with diverse groups and individuals.
• Strong problem-solving and trouble shooting skills.

Preferred qualifications

• Demonstrated ability to design and/or repair electronic, electro-mechanical, hydraulic, and pneumatic systems.
• Experience working with 3D printing or additive manufacturing.
• Proficiency with Windows OS and Microsoft Word, Outlook, and Excel.
• Excellent verbal and written communications skills.