High Performance Computing Systems Administrator II (#1872)

BACKGROUND

The National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center (NBACC) is a one-of-a-kind facility located on Fort Detrick in Frederick MD and is dedicated to defending the nation against biological threats. Its work supports DHS and National biodefense preparedness planning, response, emerging threat characterization and bioforensic analyses. It is the first national laboratory created by DHS in response to biodefense gaps identified following the Amerithrax attacks of 2001 and has been operated by the Battelle National Biodefense Institute (BNBI) since 2006. Since its inception, NBACC and its staff have filled critical shortfalls in our scientific knowledge of biological agents needed to protect the public and defend the Nation from biological threats, whether naturally occurring, accidental, or deliberate and provided federal law enforcement with scientific data to support the investigation and attribution of biocrimes and protection of the US bioeconomy.

NBACC includes two centers: the National Bioforensic Analysis Center (NBFAC), which conducts technical analyses in support of federal law enforcement investigations, and the National Biological Threat Characterization Center (NBTCC), which conducts experiments and studies to obtain data required for a better understanding of biological vulnerabilities and hazards. Together these centers offer a unique national resource for understanding the risks posed by biological agents and emerging technologies to inform biodefense policy and response planning and the operational capability to support the investigation, prosecution, and prevention of biocrimes and bioterrorism.

PRIMARY FUNCTION

Manages the high-performance computing (HPC) environment in the NBFAC to facilitate the efficient and reproducible analysis of bioforensic samples.

MINIMUM REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Requires a Bachelor of Science (or equivalent) in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Software Engineering or related computational discipline and a minimum of 4 years of experience in bioinformatics or a relevant computational field.
• Intermediate knowledge of Linux operating systems (e.g., RedHat/CentOS/Ubuntu).
• Ablilty to troubleshoot ideas with OS, Apps, networks, and hardware.
• Ability to complete tasks for IT security, DevOps support, systems administration and compliance in airgapped environment (e.g. Patching, Scanning, applying STIG, moving data between security levels).
• Ablility to write and debug basic shell scripts and Ansible Playbooks.
• Understanding of and ability to effectively use admin tools and cosoles such as Zabbix, MaaS, PHPLdapadmin, Landscape, Wiki, and Nessus.
• Basic experience with some programming languages required for troubleshooting software and scripting (e.g. Bash, Perl, PHP, Python, Java, R, C/C++).
• Proficient with HPC and DevOps tools such as GIT and SLURM.
• Preferred experience: cluster management and data systems (e.g., SGE, Condor, Hadoop, SLURM); network storage technologies (e.g., NFS, Panasas, RAID); hardware installation, maintenance, and replacement; high-speed networks; programming; relational databases (e.g., MySQL).
• Experience installing research-grade bioinformatics software is preferred.
• Familiarity with lab devices used in Next-Generation Sequencing, Mass Spectrometry and Electron Microscopy and their associated data types is a plus.
• Ability to solve problems of moderate scope in which analysis of situation or data requires review of identifiable factors.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Exemplary organizational skills with a proven track record of working effectively both independently and as a team player.
• Knowledge or experience with biocontainment facilities and procedures, laboratory safety, biosurety, and decontainment is desirable.
• Skills and experience to support laboratory activities and work in accordance with NBACC's management system (e.g., ISO).
• Must be a citizen of the United States, able to obtain and maintain an interim secret clearance leading to a top secret clearance and suitability for DHS.
• Participation in the Immunization Program, Medical Surveillance Program, and/or enrollment in the Personnel Reliability Program (PRP) may be required, dependent upon position and/or business needs.
• May be required to participate in NBACC's alternative work schedule and/or on-call schedule, dependent upon business needs.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Member of management team for a ~4000 core high-performance computing cluster that includes large-memory nodes and GPGPU-capable nodes. Manages hardware, storage, security, networking, and system administration.
• Provides computational support for genomics and metagenomics projects that use DNA sequencing platforms from Illumina, Pacific Biosciences, and Oxford Nanopore Technologies.
• Manages transfers of genomic sequence data and other data from NBFAC laboratories to the NBFAC HPC infrastructure, downloads data from public repositories and manages local databases, and transforms data to necessary formats.
• Adapts quickly to new work assignments, performs assignments outside area of expertise, demonstrates technical proficiency, and manages resources efficiently.
• Works on assignments requiring considerable judgment and initiative, while understanding the implications of work and making recommendations for solutions.
• Follows established procedures on routine works, requires instructions only on new assignments, and is self-sufficient in monitoring and reporting on quality and compliance.
• Researches, evaluates, develops, and implements new HPC hardware and software solutions to meet current and future demands.

• Works on problems of diverse scope in which analysis of data requires evaluation of identifiable factors.
• May determine methods and procedures on new assignments, while mentoring subordinates and/or technical personnel.

• Participates in the testing and evaluation of new technologies and protocols including writing and updating NBACC Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), work instructions and forms to improve NBACC's ability to serve its customers.
• Identifies departures from the Quality Management System (QMS) and initiates actions to investigate and prevent such occurrences.
• Operates, maintains, and monitors the performance of equipment with minimal supervision.
• Serves as a member of a team in developing, validating, and maintaining methods for identifying and characterizing biological threat agents.
• Performs hardware lifecycle management from procurement to disposition.
• Performs file backup and restore using Veritas NetBackup.
• Must be a team player, communicate clearly, be open to hearing ideas and suggestions from others, diffuse situations, and exercise empathy and patience with colleagues.
• Must have the ability to multi-task, maintain composure under pressure, and utilize effective time management skills to prioritize tasks.
• Must be a self-starter driven by an eagerness to succeed, maintain flexibility, adapt to change in a productive and positive manner, learn new concepts, and utilize critical thinking to resolve complex problems.
• Maintains appropriate records.
• Performs other duties as assigned/authorized.