Job Introduction
Serco has made significant contributions at ESA's European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) in Darmstadt, supporting a wide range of space missions and projects. Serco provides essential engineering, technical, and management services, playing a key role in logistics and operational support for missions. Their expertise in spacecraft operations, ground systems, and data processing has earned them recognition, including 'Best in Domain' awards from ESA. Their long-standing partnership with ESA reflects their commitment to excellence and innovation in the space sector, ensuring successful mission outcomes and advancing space exploration.
On behalf of our client, ESOC, we are looking for a skilled NOC (Network Operations Centre) Technician join our team distributed over the ESOC site, in Germany.
Main Responsibilities
The NOC Technician will be part of an integrated team which provides 24/7 monitoring and control of Telemetry, Tracking and Command (TT&C) stations of the ESTRACK ground station network, Operational IT and Operational Control Centre services at ESA's European Space Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany.
The team, located in the ESOC Network Operations Centre, provides support using a variety of computer and network hardware and software.
The NOC acts as the first point of contact for users, missions/projects and second line support teams.
As NOC (Network Operations Centre) Technician you will concentrate your activities on the following:
- Liaise with spacecraft and mission operations engineers as well as staff on duty at other support units, ground stations and external Agencies to establish and continuously maintain a comprehensive overview on the availability of and the demand for utilization of resources provided by the ground segment facilities.
- Supervise and coordinate scheduled support activities.
- Monitor the progress of station configurations for satellite passes through voice coordination or remote monitoring systems.
- Schedule Ground Stations and OCC facilities in real-time (outside normal working hours).
- Configure and monitor station configurations for satellite passes as well as data transmissions and performance.
- Respond immediately to any anomaly affecting operations; relevant procedures shall be initiated and 1st line maintenance activities executed as required in order to restore operations.
- Document and track anomalies, call out 2nd/3rd party support/escalate and follow-up on incident resolution.
- Reporting and documentation.
- Act as first line of contact for users of critical systems.
- Provide 1st line computer and network support to all eligible users – including incident, problem, change request and user request/complaints handling.
- Actively monitor all operational IT systems, applications and networks and react immediately on potential issues or outages by: Logging and escalating incident tickets according to procedure.
- Identify the impacted services/users and inform all relevant parties.
- Initiate incident resolution or mitigating actions to restore the service asap.
- Call out/escalate to 2nd line support or external providers according to procedure.
- Follow-up on incident resolution/progress and inform interested parties of the status.
- Prioritise work according to criticality of systems, schedules and targets.
- Operation, fault finding and repair on the network and on active network components (CISCO) using Ethernet and TCP/IP protocols and by logging on/commanding active network components.
- In line with procedures perform contingency and scheduled re-configurations, hardware and software maintenance, test and remedial activity, so as to minimise resource impact.
- Perform various housekeeping/administrative duties.
- Work to predefined schedules and service levels, actively participate in recommending technical and procedural improvements to benefit the service.
- Provide round the clock cover in a rotating shift pattern, with adequate information handover between shifts.
- Maintain a log of all relevant activities and events.
- Attend user meetings, briefings, user groups and workshops as required.
Successful Candidate
Do you think you are the person we are looking for? See below what experience or knowledge you should bring:
- Decisiveness and accountability.
- Fluency in English (spoken and written).
- A good understanding of IT networking: WAN/LAN concepts, technology and troubleshooting.
- Strong service ethic - responsive and courteous when handling user calls.
- Problem Solving aptitude.
- PC literacy: MS Office Products.
- Familiarity with operational environments.
- Team-player skills, ability to interface with technical and management personnel.
The following would be seen as an asset:
- Previous experience with remote operations of a network of unmanned satellite ground stations or with local operations and maintenance of a manned satellite ground station.
- Sound understanding of ESTRACK ground stations functionality, configurations requirements, and operations constraints.
- Interest in and ability to coach / train other staff.
- Some knowledge of VMS, Unix, Console Works, NetBackup, CD-ROM production, CiscoWorks, HP-OV, CISCO Firewalls, QIP, MS Windows operating systems, ITSM tools.
- A good understanding of IT security concepts, technology and best practices.
- Knowledge of ITIL, certification a plus.
- Knowledge of, or proven ability of linear fault-finding, diagnosis and resolution methodology.
Note: This is a 24/7 position - candidates must be able to work rotating shifts
ALL CANDIDATES MUST BE ELIGIBLE TO WORK IN EU.
On Offer:
- Relocation allowance: including a one-way flight ticket, transportation from the airport to a temporary hotel, and one month of paid accommodation while securing permanent housing
- Hybrid working model
- 30% subvention on Deutschland ticket
- Gym membership discount
- Participation in pension and health scheme
- 30 days of holiday
About the Company
Serco is a leading Space Services Provider with thousands of skilled resources that has supported over 50 space missions on behalf of more than 10 Space or Government agencies around the globe, including the ESA and NASA. Serco offers space capability across the full space lifecycle from satellite testing to launch services, LEOP to spacecraft operations, space surveillance to data management, and supporting downstream application development.
Why should you join Serco ?
At Serco not only is the nature of the work we do important, everyone has an important role to play.
Meaningful and vital work - You’ll contribute to methodologically intercepting challenges whilst achievements will also be recognised and celebrated.
A world of opportunity - You’ll be wholeheartedly supported with development and career progression
Great people - You’ll become an integral member of a well-defined and supportive team who believe passionately in the value of our work. We are a company passionate about diversity and inclusion.
We are diverse and inclusive organisation
At Serco, we see people first and foremost for their performance and potential and we are committed to supporting the needs of all our colleagues. It’s a mix of people from different backgrounds, experiences and opinion that keeps our culture strong and vibrant.
We believe in equity so we strongly encourage applications from a diverse range of candidates. Disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the job are encouraged to apply and demonstrate their abilities in an interview. We also welcome a conversation about any adjustments that would make the interview process more accessible for you. Wherever possible we are open to discussions around flexible working and we operate a hybrid work structure in many of our business areas.
In the UK we are proud to be a Disability Confident Leader in the government’s scheme and hold the Gold Inclusive Employer Standard; in Belgium we are partner of Diversicom and member of Charter der Vielfalt in Germany.
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to reach out to The Serco Europe Recruitment Team
Important
Any offer of employment is contingent upon you providing documents to verify your identity and employment eligibility, as required by law.
Please contact the recruitment team if needed
Data Protection:
For more information on how the personal data is processed, please see the link Data Protection policy here.