FIELD SERVICES TECHNICIAN LEVEL II - OUTSIDE PLANT

Job Description

Job Description

FIELD SERVICES TECHNICIAN LEVEL II – OUTSIDE PLANT

Outside Plant Construction, Testing and Network Restoration

Department

Outside Plant (OSP) Operations

Reports to

OSP Manager

FLSA status

Non-exempt

Supervises

None; may provide field guidance to Level I technicians and contractors

Network scope

POP, feeder, LCP, distribution, service drop, NID, and customer-premises handoff

Schedule

Full-time; on-call, overtime, weekend, holiday, and emergency-restoration work as required

Position Summary

The Field Services Technician Level II maintains, tests, troubleshoots, repairs, and supports construction of Waterloo Fiber's outside-plant network. Reporting to the OSP Manager, this position works across the optical path from the point of presence (POP), through feeder facilities and local convergence points (LCPs), distribution plant, service drops, and the customer handoff at the home or business. The technician uses optical test equipment, network records, and field observations to isolate faults, restore service, verify construction quality, and reduce network downtime.

Level II is an experienced field role requiring independent judgment, advanced fiber handling and testing skills, safe work in aerial and underground environments, and effective coordination with Network Operations, Engineering, Service Delivery, contractors, excavators, and customers. The technician may lead defined field activities, provide technical guidance, and communicate restoration status, while escalating design changes, major damage, capacity concerns, and conditions outside assigned authority.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

OSP Maintenance, Repair and Restoration

• Respond to network alarms, outage tickets, damage reports, low-light conditions, intermittent service issues, and customer-impacting faults; establish the affected scope and work safely toward restoration.
• Trace the optical path from the POP through feeder fibers, splice points, LCPs, distribution terminals, service drops, NIDs, and customer equipment to isolate the fault domain.
• Perform fusion splicing, enclosure entry, fiber preparation, connector inspection and cleaning, fiber replacement, temporary restoration, and permanent repair in accordance with approved methods and splice plans.
• Repair or replace damaged aerial and underground fiber, service drops, closures, terminals, jumpers, splitters, cabinets, slack-storage components, and associated passive hardware within assigned authority.
• Complete pole transfers, cable relocations, small plant extensions, terminal additions, and other minor OSP modifications using approved prints, materials, clearances, and construction standards.
• Verify restoration end to end, confirm affected services have recovered, remove temporary conditions when appropriate, and document the final repair, optical results, materials, and remaining risks.
• Protect the network during emergency excavation, storm response, construction conflicts, and third-party damage events; preserve evidence and promptly report suspected damage.

Optical Testing and Troubleshooting

• Measure and interpret optical power at the POP, LCP, terminals, drops, NIDs, and ONTs using calibrated power meters and approved reference levels.
• Use optical time-domain reflectometers (OTDRs), visual fault locators, fiber identifiers, inspection scopes, light sources, and related tools to locate breaks, excessive loss, reflections, macro-bends, contamination, poor splices, and connector faults.
• Compare measured loss against the engineered optical budget and baseline records; distinguish OSP impairments from electronics, provisioning, customer-premises, or Wi-Fi issues.
• Capture, label, save, and interpret OTDR traces and test results; provide complete evidence when escalating to Engineering, Network Operations, or contractors.
• Troubleshoot Calix ONT light levels and status when needed to verify the network handoff, while coordinating customer-premises work with Service Delivery.

Construction and Plant Support

• Read and apply construction prints, splice diagrams, fiber assignments, GIS records, route maps, and as-built documentation; report discrepancies and field changes promptly.
• Support or inspect contractor work involving conduit, handholes, pedestals, cabinets, aerial strand, fiber placement, splicing, testing, restoration, and traffic control.
• Verify routes, depths, separations, bend radius, slack, labeling, enclosure condition, cable placement, grounding/bonding, sealing, cleanliness, and test deliverables against Waterloo Fiber standards.
• Coordinate access to POPs, huts, cabinets, LCPs, handholes, manholes, poles, easements, and customer properties; remove and replace covers safely and secure facilities after work.
• Identify constructability concerns, conflicts, damaged facilities, capacity constraints, and deviations from plans; stop or escalate work when safety, service integrity, or acceptance standards are at risk.
• Assist with acceptance testing, punch-list completion, plant turn-up, cutovers, and migration activities.

Work Management and Documentation

• Use mobile, ticketing, GIS, monitoring, and work-management systems to receive, prioritize, update, and close outage, maintenance, locate, construction, and repair assignments accurately.
• Document fiber assignments, splice changes, enclosure work, optical readings, OTDR traces, materials, labor, route notes, photographs, damage information, temporary conditions, and follow-up actions.
• Mark field changes and submit redlines or as-built corrections so GIS, splice records, maps, and asset records remain accurate.
• Maintain assigned vehicle, fusion splicer, cleaver, test equipment, locating equipment, ladders, safety gear, and inventory in a clean, secure, calibrated, and serviceable condition.
• Provide clear field updates, estimated restoration times, test evidence, and escalation details to the OSP Manager and affected operational teams.
• Guide Level I technicians or contractors on defined field tasks when assigned, while promptly elevating personnel, scope, design, or safety issues to management.

Safety and Compliance

• Follow all Waterloo Fiber, City, OSHA, electrical, ladder, aerial-lift, traffic-control, excavation, confined-space, lockout/tagout, and jobsite safety requirements applicable to the work.
• Use required personal protective equipment and approved tools; stop work and notify supervision when conditions are unsafe or outside training and authorization.
• Follow Iowa One Call requirements, Waterloo Fiber locate procedures, and APWA color-code practices; use approved transmitter, receiver, and marking methods to protect buried facilities.
• Establish safe work zones and coordinate traffic and pedestrian control when working in rights-of-way or around active construction.
• Maintain a valid driver's license and operate City vehicles safely and responsibly.
• Protect customer information, network information, access credentials, and company assets.

Performance Expectations

Performance will be evaluated using a balanced set of service-delivery measures, including:

• Safety performance and compliance with OSP construction, splicing, locating, and testing standards.
• Mean time to isolate and restore service, repeat-failure rate, and quality of permanent repairs.
• Accuracy and completeness of optical testing, splice records, GIS updates, redlines, photographs, and work-order closure.
• Construction acceptance quality, punch-list completion, asset protection, and reduction of preventable rework.
• Tool, vehicle, test-equipment, material, and inventory accountability.
• Effective coordination and timely escalation with OSP, Network Operations, Engineering, Service Delivery, Customer Service, contractors, and public agencies.

Minimum Qualifications

• High school diploma or GED.
• Two or more years of fiber-optic OSP, telecommunications construction, maintenance, splicing, locating, or advanced field-service experience, or an equivalent combination of relevant education and experience.
• Demonstrated experience using optical power meters and OTDRs to troubleshoot fiber facilities and interpret results.
• Valid Iowa driver's license with an acceptable driving record.
• Ability to use computers, mobile devices, ticketing systems, email, and basic productivity software.
• Ability to distinguish colors used in fiber, cabling, labeling, and status indicators, with or without reasonable accommodation.
• Ability to pass required pre-employment screening, which may include a background check, drug screen, and job-related physical, consistent with applicable law.
• Availability for scheduled on-call duty, emergency call-out, extended outage restoration, overtime, nights, weekends, and holidays when operationally required.

Preferred Qualifications

• Formal fiber-optic training or certification in fusion splicing, OTDR testing, fiber characterization, or OSP construction.
• Experience with GPON/XGS-PON networks, splitters, Calix ONTs, fiber distribution hubs/LCPs, and passive optical network troubleshooting.
• Experience with aerial and underground construction, pole transfers, cable placement, closures, cabinets, handholes, manholes, and emergency restoration.
• Working knowledge of GIS, splice-management systems, utility locating, Iowa One Call requirements, and the APWA color code.
• Commercial driver's license, aerial-lift qualification, traffic-control certification, confined-space training, OSHA training, or first-aid/CPR certification, as applicable to assigned duties.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Advanced knowledge of fiber construction, connector care, fusion splicing, optical loss, reflectance, events, split ratios, link budgets, and common causes of PON impairment.
• Ability to operate and care for fusion splicers, cleavers, inspection scopes, optical power meters, light sources, OTDRs, VFLs, fiber identifiers, locating equipment, and hand and power tools.
• Ability to read and reconcile work orders, construction prints, splice diagrams, fiber assignments, OTDR traces, GIS maps, as-builts, equipment instructions, and acceptance-test packages.
• Ability to diagnose complex problems methodically, separate symptoms from root causes, establish restoration priorities, and escalate with complete facts and test evidence.
• Strong attention to detail, workmanship, organization, time management, and follow-through.
• Ability to work independently during routine and emergency conditions while remaining accountable to plans, standards, schedules, and change-control requirements.
• Clear written and verbal communication and the ability to coordinate effectively with customers, coworkers, contractors, excavators, public agencies, and members of the public from diverse backgrounds.
• Sound judgment regarding network risk, public safety, restoration strategy, temporary repairs, and when to stop work or request engineering or management direction.

Physical Demands and Working Conditions

The physical demands and work environment described below are representative of those encountered while performing the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

• Regularly lift, carry, position, and use tools, ladders, cable, and equipment weighing up to 50 pounds.
• Frequently stand, walk, climb, bend, stoop, kneel, crouch, reach, twist, push, pull, and perform work above shoulder height or in restricted spaces.
• Use fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, visual acuity, hearing, and verbal communication to prepare, splice, inspect, test, install, locate, and troubleshoot fiber facilities.
• Work indoors and outdoors at POPs, huts, cabinets, LCPs, handholes, manholes, poles, easements, customer properties, and construction sites in heat, cold, rain, snow, wind, dust, damp conditions, uneven terrain, and typical jobsite hazards.
• Travel between assignments and work near traffic, aerial and buried utilities, excavation, heavy equipment, insects, vegetation, and other variable field conditions.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Waterloo Fiber is an equal opportunity employer. Employment decisions are made without unlawful discrimination and in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local law. Qualified individuals are encouraged to apply.

Benefits:  

• IPERS 

• Incentive Pay 

• Health, Dental, Vision, and Life Insurance 

• Paid Vacation, Holidays, Personal, and Sick Time 

A.A./E.E.O.  

Minority, female & disabled individuals are encouraged to apply.