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Electronics Technician
UCI Series Concepts
Class Specifications - G.40
Principal Electronics Technician - 8301
Senior Electronics Technician - 8302
Electronics Technician - 8303
Electronics Technician Trainee - 8304
January, 1981
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SERIES CONCEPT
Electronics Technicians perform a variety of operations in connection
with the design, development, evaluation, testing, installation and
maintenance of electronic equipment and systems; and perform other
related duties as required. These operations require a knowledge of the
capabilities, limitations, design characteristics and functional use
of a wide variety of electronic equipment and systems.
Incumbents typically design electronic equipment; fabricate electronic
equipment and systems by wire wrapping boards and back panels, by
mounting components and power supplies, and by constructing
inter-connecting units; test and operate electronic equipment to
establish permissible tolerances and parameters in its operation; debug
prototype equipment and repair existing equipment by working from
schematic drawings and using test equipment in locating and isolating
malfunctions within the equipment; install and check out new equipment;
maintain existing and prototype electronic systems and equipment;
perform diagnostic tests on digital systems; and may get up programs
using digital and analog equipment to perform experiments.
The series is characterized by a knowledge and understanding of
mathematics, electronics and physics that is less than professional
engineering knowledge, but which enables the technician to understand
electronic devices. Electronics Technicians must apply this general
knowledge, and in addition must transfer their experience and knowledge
of electronic equipment from systems on which they have previously
worked. Knowledge acquired is normally in the areas of digital
techniques such as loading rules, speeds, noise problems and timing
characteristics of commonly used integrated circuit families; and/or
analog techniques such as elimination of interference and distortion,
modulation and demodulation of waveforms, and amplification of
electrical currents and voltages by recognizing source and load
impedance as well as basic limitations of amplifiers. Levels of
difficulty within the series are based on such factors as the nature and
complexity of work performed, the complexity of equipment involved, and
the degree of technical responsibility exercised.
CLASS CONCEPTS
Principal Electronics Technician
Under general supervision, incumbents design electronic equipment under
the guidance of engineers or other scientific professionals using
reference material from manufacturers' catalogs and trade publications.
Incumbents also perform construction, assembly, installation,
maintenance, documentation, or instrumentation of complex electronic
equipment; and may serve as working leaders of small groups performing
fabrication, assembly, and installation of complex electronic equipment.
Principal Electronics Technicians typically design, construct, and test
experimental electronic devices and circuits, or advise on
modifications or new devices; advise on feasibility of electronic
solutions; maintain, troubleshoot, and install electronic systems or
sub-systems; analyze technical data to determine applicability to
design problems; supply technical advice on the types, techniques and
proper electronic instruments for each experiment; integrate circuits or
units and package prototype models into operational form; conduct and
supervise the collection and interpretation of data; may serve as
working leaders in scheduling and assigning work to other electronics
technicians and personnel performing related work; and assist students
and faculty in solving electronic problems.
Principal Electronics Technicians are distinguished from Senior
Electronics Technicians in that incumbents perform design and
development work on units of a system requiring (a) some adapting of
existing precedents or techniques, and (b) exercising originality based
on an understanding of the interaction of various subunits in adapting
equipment to perform new or different functions to meet objectives;
and/or maintain large scale prototype electronic systems which, due to
density of circuitry, miniature size, or lack of documentation, are most
difficult to maintain. Incumbents work with a high degree of
independence and are responsible for the technical quality and accuracy
of their work.
Senior Electronics Technician
Under supervision, incumbents fabricate, assemble and install electronic
components and assemblies following prints, diagrams, rough sketches
or verbal instructions; devise methods by which mounting and wiring
insures that possible sources of electrical interference are physically
isolated, that length of leads are kept at a minimum to reduce the
possibility of a regenerative feedback, and that circuit components are
securely mounted to avoid malfunctioning under anticipated conditions
of temperature, shock and vibration; perform routine and preventive
maintenance and troubleshooting on major electronic equipment associated
with a complex electronic system using test equipment and schematic
drawings; fabricate delicate or intricate parts using machine tools to
moderately close tolerances; and must possess the ability to follow
schematic drawings and be able to break the schematic into block diagram
form.
Senior Electronics Technicians are distinguished from Electronics
Technicians in that incumbents typically debug or troubleshoot parts of
an electronic system. In addition, they perform construction,
maintenance and testing with a greater degree of independence from
technical supervision than do Electronics Technicians performing routine
construction, maintenance and bench repair work. Incumbents plan their
work and assure that it meets established technical requirements usually
laid down in manufacturers' handbooks.
Electronics Technician
Under supervision, incumbents follow detailed prints or diagrams in
fabricating, assembling and wiring power panels, chassis, printed
circuit boards and back panels involving the mounting of transformers,
switches, resistors, capacitors, integrated circuits, and other parts;
fabricate and install special cables; use metal-working and wood-working
hand tools in connection with fabrication and assembly of parts; perform
routine maintenance of electronic equipment using established
procedures; use complex test equipment; lay out printed circuit boards
and provide adequate mechanical mounting; make calculations to determine
the value of basic components; and may perform scheduled preventive
maintenance or regular periodic calibration to insure that instruments
and systems perform within their design specifications.
Electronics Technicians commonly rely on precedent type or parallel
methods that can be extended or modified in completing the design
concept of the engineer. They may, following precedents, integrate
equipment into complete systems, and make modifications to permit such
integration, but are not expected to have the electronic knowledge and
experience to plan and carry out a non-standardized integration
independently.
Electronics Technician Trainee
Under close supervision and with work assignments checked while in
process, incumbents perform increasingly more difficulty tasks leading
to the development of Technician level skills. Guidelines include
detailed procedures, blueprints, sketches, schematics, or verbal
instructions. Incumbents lay out, fabricate, assemble, and install
electrical, electronic and/or mechanical parts, products, or component
assemblies to systems or units; perform routine diagnosis and
troubleshooting to determine cause and remedy for malfunctions of
equipment; conduct simple tensile, hardness, or other routine
experimental tests; maintain and record test data, calculations,
drawings, curves and graphs; and assist in general laboratory work.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
Incumbents of positions included in the Electronics Technician series
are expected to have the ability to perform basic technical tasks in
research, troubleshooting, or electronic circuitry construction, to
follow oral instructions, and to possess the skills, knowledges, and
abilities essential to the successful performance of the duties assigned
to the position.
Note: Specific minimum qualification requirements are defined for
positions by the appropriate user departments with the assistance of the
Personnel Manager.
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