Lab Systems Lead – Mission-Critical Rooms

Independent Software; Corridor North (MD); On-site; USD 110,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Independent Software seeks a System Engineer Level 5 (Lab Manager) to lead a two-person contractor team in supporting multiple machine rooms with mission-critical systems and associated lab spaces.

You will oversee day-to-day operations, coordinate with System Administrators, Network Engineers, Facilities, vendors, and leadership to ensure secure, compliant, and available infrastructure, including racks, cabling, power, cooling, and fiber support.

Qualifications

• Experience supporting agency machine rooms or similar mission-critical environments.
• Experience racking and cabling systems for operational deployments.
• Hands‑on experience with hardware from vendors such as HP, Dell, Cisco, Arista, or Juniper.
• Experience supporting and troubleshooting fiber connectivity.
• Experience creating and updating machine room drawings using Visio or similar tools.
• Strong communication, coordination, and problem‑solving skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead daily operations and support of mission-critical machine rooms, lab, and communications spaces.
• Maintain spaces and access lists in accordance with agency requirements.
• Monitor power, space, and cooling needs and coordinate infrastructure upgrades with Facilities.
• Support installation and decommissioning of racks, servers, network devices, and communications equipment.
• Work JIRA tickets for hardware replacements and coordinate vendor warranty support.
• Monitor machine room conditions and perform routine walkthroughs to identify equipment or infrastructure issues.
• Rack, cable, install, and troubleshoot systems supporting operational deployments.
• Maintain machine room drawings using Visio or similar tools.
• Support fiber connectivity, testing, and troubleshooting.
• Coordinate with customers, System Administrators, Network Engineers, Facilities personnel, leadership, and vendors.

Skills

Machine room ops

Racking & cabling

Hardware troubleshooting

Fiber connectivity

Visio drawings

Communication skills

Education

Bachelors in Engineering or related +15 years

HS Diploma/GED +19 years

Masters in Engineering or related +13 years

PhD in Engineering or related +11 years

Tools

Visio

Job description

Independent Software seeks a System Engineer Level 5 (Lab Manager) to lead a two-person contractor team in supporting multiple machine rooms with mission-critical systems and associated lab spaces.

You will oversee day-to-day operations, coordinate with System Administrators, Network Engineers, Facilities, vendors, and leadership to ensure secure, compliant, and available infrastructure, including racks, cabling, power, cooling, and fiber support.