Accelerator Technician

Job Description Summary

Maintain, Operate and Repair the two Cyclotron particle accelerators at Arlington Heights. Operates and monitors multiple nuclear particle accelerators and conducts routine maintenance and safety procedures. The role involves close interaction with Engineering, Health Physics and Manufacturing. Inter-departmental communication, teamwork and strict compliance to all state/federal/local procedures and regulations are critical due to the time-sensitive nature of radioactive products.

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Job Description

Key Responsibilities

• Startup and shutdown operations on nuclear particle accelerators on site. This requires intimate knowledge of the current operating parameters, manufacturing requirements, safety regulations and equipment setup.

• Monitor routine accelerator parameters requiring constant monitoring of the performance of the accelerator throughout each production run.

• Respond to out-of-tolerance situations.

• Prepare, setup and safely deliver radioisotope targets to the production hot cell.

• Handle various chemicals for the preparation of targets.

• Perform mechanical setup of the targets prior to bombardment.

• Must stay current on training in Contamination control, chemical safety and radiation exposure awareness.

• Perform routine scheduled maintenance while maintaining acceptable dose levels.

• Ensure compliance with all radiation safety procedures related to cyclotron operations, including but no limited to, monitoring, dosimetry, radiation area access control and decontamination procedures.

• May perform diagnosis and/or repair of the following: Electronic equipment, electro-pneumatic systems, high vacuum systems, deionized chilled water systems, high voltage and high-power RF systems.

• The senior level Accelerator Technician is responsible for setting up new irradiation parameters, involving re-tuning the accelerators to best-performance in order to optimize internal and external beam intensities.

• The senior level Accelerator Technician will facilitate adjustments in the cyclotron magnets, ion source and RF systems.

• The senior level Accelerator Technician will lead teams in routine scheduled maintenance on a daily basis, focusing on minimizing the amount of downtime and radiation exposure to the work team.

• Must become a Licensed User of Radioactive Material where required by law.

Required Qualifications

• Specialized training in an electronics-related field plus a minimum of 6 months of experience working in a healthcare or related manufacturing environment; or High School diploma/or GED/local equivalent plus a minimum of 1 year working in a healthcare or related manufacturing environment. 

• Basic knowledge of mechanical functions, soldering, assembly and troubleshooting. 

• Ability to read simple electrical schematic drawings. 

• Must be willing to perform shift/weekend work. 

• Must be able to lift 35 lbs. or more. (Anything above 35 lbs. requires assistance.) 

Desired Characteristics

• Military Service School, Technical School, Associate's degree or specialized training plus 2.

• years of experience working in a manufacturing environment.

• Experience with particle accelerators or Nuclear Reactors.

• Experience working with radioactive materials.

• Experience with assembly/CAD drawings.

• Working knowledge of PLCs and programming.

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We will not sponsor individuals for employment visas, now or in the future, for this job opening.

While GE HealthCare does not currently require U.S. employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19, some GE HealthCare customers have vaccination mandates that may apply to certain GE HealthCare employees.