MGR FIRE SAFETY ENGINEERING 2

The Role

Plans, organizes and manages the fire protection engineering function under senior management direction. Responsible for directing all activities associated with fire protection engineering, including the development and implementation of a comprehensive program to ensure effective monitoring of each operating site's activities to assess fire protection and life safety implications. Responsible for the review of all building construction designs, fire protection oversight and audity programs, fire loss control methodologies, fire safety inspection reports, property damage investigation reports and fire prevention training activities. Develops short and long range plans to maintain the highest standards of fire protection. Maintains state-of-the-art knowledge in areas of responsibility through contacts with industry peers and involvement with fire protection engineering associations. Develops new policies and procedures to incorporate fire protection standards promulgated by NFPA, OSHA, EPA, DOE, DOD and other Federal, State and local agenices. Guides the establishment of monitoring and control procedures. Directs all investigation and analysis of all facets of any major fire within the organization to determine the origin, cause, and what, if any breakdown in the fire protection plans and procedures may have occurred. Develops remedial plans for approval by senior management. Provides leadership direction to supervisory and professional staff in the functional unit.

Provides leadership and management of Fire Safety Engineering, Fire Safety Analysts, and Safety Technicians responsible for execution of Newport News Shipbuilding’s fire prevention and deck-plate surveillance programs. Maintains oversight of shipboard and facility fire safety conditions through field engagement, inspections, assessments, and surveillance of hot work, combustible loading, housekeeping, fire protection systems, and other fire and life-safety hazards. Ensures identified deficiencies are appropriately evaluated, corrected, documented, trended, and communicated to responsible organizations and shipyard leadership.

Provides leadership for a portion of the site-wide implementation and sustainment of NAVSEA 8010 requirements, including development and implementation of enhanced fire prevention measures across shipboard and facility operations. Maintains ownership and technical oversight of fire safety and fire prevention processes and implementing procedures, including applicable Health and Safety Manual requirements, hot work controls, fire prevention practices, and associated inspection and compliance programs. Provides technical interpretation of applicable requirements and supports engineering reviews of facilities, projects, designs, and operational conditions for compliance with applicable fire protection and life-safety requirements.

Leads or supports investigations, causal evaluations, and team learning activities associated with fires, near misses, adverse trends, and other unplanned fire safety events. Analyzes fire events, near misses, surveillance findings, inspection results, corrective actions, and other performance data to identify trends, emerging risks, recurring deficiencies, and systemic issues. Develops and delivers recurring fire safety assessments and management presentations that provide an integrated evaluation of the shipyard’s current fire safety posture, program performance, areas of elevated risk, and recommended actions or priorities for improvement. Ensures findings, lessons learned, and performance trends are effectively communicated to senior leadership and translated into corrective actions, preventive measures, and sustained improvements to shipyard practices.

Must Have

Bachelor's Degree and 6 years of progressive technical experience in research, engineering and design; Master?s Degree and 4 years of relevant experience

Newport News Shipbuilding requires a Bachelor's Degree in engineering from an ABET accredited program.

Nice to Have

• Fundamentals of Engineering (FE), Professional Engineer (PE), or other applicable engineering credentials.
• Fire Inspector, Fire Plans Examiner, Certified Fire Protection Specialist (CFPS), or comparable fire protection certification.
• Experience leading engineers, analysts, technicians, inspectors, or other technical personnel.
• Experience with fire protection engineering, fire prevention, hot work, combustible loading, or industrial fire safety programs.
• Working knowledge of NFPA standards, OSHA requirements, building/fire codes, and other applicable fire protection and life-safety requirements.
• Experience interpreting regulatory, contractual, or consensus-standard requirements and translating them into implementing procedures and field controls.
• Experience conducting facility, industrial, or shipboard inspections, assessments, audits, or surveillance activities.
• Experience reviewing engineering designs, construction projects, or facility modifications for fire protection and life-safety compliance.
• Experience conducting fire, safety, or unplanned-event investigations, including causal analysis, corrective-action development, and lessons learned.
• Experience analyzing safety, compliance, inspection, or operational data to identify trends, risk areas, and opportunities for improvement.
• Experience developing recurring program assessments, performance metrics, dashboards, or other methods of evaluating organizational safety performance.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including experience developing and delivering technical or programmatic presentations to management and senior leadership.
• Familiarity with NAVSEA requirements, particularly NAVSEA 8010, or comparable Navy/DoD fire safety requirements.
• Familiarity with shipbuilding, ship repair, naval vessels, or other complex high-hazard industrial environments.