Senior Technician, Laboratory Support

University of Ottawa; Ottawa; On-site; CAD 76,000 - 96,000; Full time

Job summary

The University of Ottawa is seeking a hands-on Mechanical Engineering technical officer to support student and research labs. You will fabricate, assemble and repair specialized equipment, advise on manufacturability, and supervise ship shops and teaching laboratories for safe operation.

Responsibilities include handling CNC tooling, CAD/CAM programming, precision parts fabrication, and maintaining shop safety and equipment. Strong bilingual communication in French and English is required.

Qualifications

• College diploma in Mechanical Engineering Technology or equivalent and/or Certified General Machinist.
• Minimum 5 years of technical experience in an engineering environment with good knowledge of machine tool operation, CAD/CAM and CNC Machine programming and operation.
• Knowledge about properties of metals, plastics, and other engineering materials and their fabrication and finishing techniques.
• Experience with technical CAD drawings, with SolidWorks as an asset.
• Demonstrated skills and experience in conventional and CNC machining operations as well as welding, sheet forming and fabrication.
• Computer skills: Good knowledge of programming software for CNC machine tools and of software for interfacing them with CAD (e.g. MasterCam).
• Bilingualism – French and English (spoken and written).

Responsibilities

• Provides detailed design assistance for student project teams (e.g. supermileage and Baja teams, others), design courses (product design, etc.), and research based projects by offering technical advice on the manufacturability of parts.
• Assists with training workshops for Mechanical Engineering students and supervises everyone working with machines and tools in the student or main workshops. Ensures that they have appropriate knowledge of machine operation and safety practices before being allowed to work by providing instruction in shop safety and machine tool operation and monitoring and ensuring compliance of all safety and other regulations.
• Supervises the student workshops and teaching laboratories by managing all machine maintenance, implementing upgrades to tooling and machining technology, inspecting laboratories to determine maintenance and repair needs. Responsible for assembly, calibration, maintenance and repair of laboratory equipment to ensure proper functioning and diagnose causes of malfunction.
• Assists in the design and fabrication of machine components, prototypes, precision parts and specialized laboratory equipment.
• Acts as a resource person for advanced level programming and operation of CNC machine tools-machining centers, mills, lathes, EDM Wire. Draws and edits parts using SolidWorks computer-aided design software to prepare for CNC machine programming. Uses CAM software to write code for CNC machines. Uses MIG and TIG welders to fabricate parts.
• Ensures the availability and use of safety equipment by monitoring and ensuring compliance with safety regulations in the student or main workshops. Instructs teaching assistants in the proper use of laboratory and demonstration equipment and ensures that proper safety procedures are followed.
• Keeps track of jobs submitted, schedules the jobs and maintains the jobs database for reporting purposes. Provides estimates of time required, completion date, and materials required when job is submitted.
• Maintains inventory. Following approval from the Chair, makes recommendations and purchases of shop tools and other supplies to ensure a smooth operation of the machine shop.

Skills

Bilingualism – French and English

Education

College diploma in Mechanical Engineering Technology or equivalent

Certified General Machinist

Tools

SolidWorks

MasterCam

CAD/CAM

CNC machine programming

MIG welding

TIG welding

Job description

Follow us on LinkedIn

Posting Reason:

Replacement of a regular position

Job Type:

Employee

Anticipated Duration in Months (for contracts and temporary assignments):

N/A

# of Open Positions:

1

Faculty/Service - Department:

Department of Mechanical Engineering Technical Officers

Campus:

Main Campus

Union Affiliation:

SSUO

Date Posted (YYYY/MM/DD):

2026/10/19

Applications must be received BEFORE (YYYY/MM/DD):

2026/11/02

Hours per week:

35

Salary Grade:

SSUO Grade 09

Salary Range:

$76 104,00 - $96 135,00

About The Faculty Of Engineering

The Faculty of Engineering strives to provide a learning environment that promotes excellence and innovation, ethical practice and responsibility towards society. Our workplace will challenge, energize and motivate you to be your very best while providing opportunities for career growth and professional development. Our work makes a world of difference in the lives of our students, who will become the next generation of leaders and change makers of our society. Our dynamic community is dedicated to building innovations that will not only help the advancement of technology, but solutions that will revolutionize the industry. We look forward to making the future TOGETHER!

• This position may require evening work.

Position purpose:

To support the activities of students and researchers in the labs and workshops, the incumbent fabricates, assembles, and repairs specialized research and undergraduate laboratory equipment and assists in the design and fabrication of machine components and prototypes. Acts as resource person by offering technical advice for CNC machining, precision machining and welding to ensure the safe use of machines and the manufacturing of parts.

In this role, your responsibilities will include:

• Provides detailed design assistance for student project teams (e.g. supermileage and Baja teams, others), design courses (product design, etc.), and research based projects by offering technical advice on the manufacturability of parts
• Assists with training workshops for Mechanical Engineering students and supervises everyone working with machines and tools in the student or main workshops. Ensures that they have appropriate knowledge of machine operation and safety practices before being allowed to work by providing instruction in shop safety and machine tool operation and monitoring and ensuring compliance of all safety and other regulations.
• Supervises the student workshops and teaching laboratories by managing all machine maintenance, implementing upgrades to tooling and machining technology, inspecting laboratories to determine maintenance and repair needs. Responsible for assembly, calibration, maintenance and repair of laboratory equipment to ensure proper functioning and diagnose causes of malfunction.
• Assists in the design and fabrication of machine components, prototypes, precision parts and specialized laboratory equipment.
• Acts as a resource person for advanced level programming and operation of CNC machine tools-machining centers, mills, lathes, EDM Wire. Draws and edits parts using SolidWorks computer-aided design software to prepare for CNC machine programming. Uses CAM software to write code for CNC machines. Uses MIG and TIG welders to fabricate parts.
• Ensures the availability and use of safety equipment by monitoring and ensuring compliance with safety regulations in the student or main workshops. Instructs teaching assistants in the proper use of laboratory and demonstration equipment and ensures that proper safety procedures are followed.
• Keeps track of jobs submitted, schedules the jobs and maintains the jobs database for reporting purposes. Provides estimates of time required, completion date, and materials required when job is submitted.
• Maintains inventory. Following approval from the Chair, makes recommendations and purchases of shop tools and other supplies to ensure a smooth operation of the machine shop.

What you will bring:

• College diploma in Mechanical Engineering Technology, Certified General Machinist, or similar specialty or an equivalent combination of education and work experience
• Minimum 5 years of technical experience in an engineering environment with good knowledge of machine tool operation, CAD/CAM and CNC Machine programming and operation
• Knowledge about properties of metals, plastics, and other engineering materials and their fabrication and finishing techniques
• Knowledge of Occupational Health and Safety regulations and other applicable workshop safety procedures
• Experience with technical computer-aided design (CAD) drawings, with SolidWorks as an asset.
• Demonstrated skills and experience in conventional and CNC machining operations as well as welding, sheet forming and fabrication
• Computer skills: Good knowledge of programming software for CNC machine tools and of software for interfacing them with CAD (e.g. MasterCam)
• Bilingualism – French and English (spoken and written)

Key Competencies at uOttawa:

Here are the required competencies for all or our employees at uOttawa:

Planning: Organize in time a series of actions or events in order to realize an objective or a project. Plan and organize own work and priorities in regular daily activities.

Initiative: Demonstrate creativity and initiative to suggest improvements and encourage positive results. Is proactive and self-starting. Show availability and willingness to go above and beyond whenever it is possible.

Client Service Orientation: Help or serve others to meet their needs. This implies anticipating and identifying the needs of internal and external clients and finding solutions on how to meet them.

Teamwork and Cooperation: Cooperate and work well with other members of the team to reach common goal(s). Accept and give constructive feedback. Able to adjust own behaviour to reach the goals of the team.

The University of Ottawa embraces diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We are passionate about our people and committed to employment equity. We foster a culture of respect, teamwork and inclusion, where collaboration, innovation, and creativity fuel our quest for research and teaching excellence. While all qualified persons are invited to apply, we welcome applications from qualified Indigenous persons, racialized persons, persons with disabilities, women and LGBTQIA2S+ persons. The University is committed to creating and maintaining an accessible, barrier-free work environment. The University is also committed to working with applicants with disabilities requesting accommodation during the recruitment, assessment and selection processes. Applicants with disabilities may contact [e-mail] to communicate the accommodation need. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.

Note: if this is a union position:

The hiring process will be governed by the current collective agreement related to the union affiliation noted above; you can click here to find out more.

If this is a front-line position with responsibilities to interact with students, selected candidates must be rated at the Low Advanced proficiency level or higher for both oral comprehension and reading comprehension in their second official language. The rating is determined by a proficiency test designed by the Official Languages and Bilingualism Institute.

Prior to May 1, 2022, the University required all students, faculty, staff, and visitors (including contractors) to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 as defined in Policy 129 – Covid-19 Vaccination. This policy was suspended effective May 1, 2022 but may be reinstated at any point in the future depending on public health guidelines and the recommendations of experts.