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# Data Engineer

- **Company:** Electro Soft Inc
- **Location:** Gaithersburg, MD, United States
- **Experience:** Experienced
- **Contract:** Permanent contract
- **Skills:** Microsoft Word, XML Schema, Spreadsheets, Data Conversion, Information Engineering, Data Normalization, Github, JSON, Python (Programming Language), Software Engineering, Systems Integration, Web Applications, Extensible Markup Language (XML), Openapi, Metis, Automated Data Processing (ADP), Software Modules, Pandas, Information Technology, Restful APIs, Text Files, Microservices
- **Published:** November 13, 2026
- **Apply:** https://dejobs.org/x/x/68A9266568914DCF93C1B626F73BF548/job/

## About the Role

* Bachelor's degree (four-year) in Computer Science, Data Engineering, or a related field.
 * Four (4) years of advanced Python programming experience, specifically with Pandas and OCR libraries.
 * Four (4) years of experience with OCR pipelines and table extraction logic.
 * Four (4) years of experience with data format normalization and schema validation.
 * Four (4) years of experience integrating microservices into web applications.
 * Experience developing and maintaining automated data processing and transformation pipelines.
 * Knowledge of OCR and document processing technologies such as Tesseract, PaddleOCR, pdfplumber, Camelot, LayoutParser, or comparable tools.
 * Familiarity with JSON Schema, XML/XSD, controlled vocabularies, and ontology-based metadata tagging.
 * Experience with REST APIs, GitHub, and software development and deployment practices.
 * Strong analytical, problem-solving, technical documentation, and communication skills.
 * Must be able to successfully complete a federal background investigation appropriate for an IT-Low Risk position and meet applicable HSPD-12/PIV credentialing requirements.
 * Must be able to work on-site at the NIST campus in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
 * This position is contingent upon contract award.

## Description

* Design and implement automated OCR and document layout analysis pipelines to extract scientific figures, charts, and tables from PDF and Microsoft Word documents.
 * Develop algorithms to identify and extract figure captions, axis labels, measurement units, and associated scientific metadata.
 * Implement table extraction capabilities that preserve row and column structures, headers, and data relationships.
 * Integrate extracted metadata with established controlled vocabularies and ontologies within the Controlled Vocabulary Curation System (CVCS).
 * Develop and enhance user interfaces that enable scientific domain experts to validate extracted content and correct OCR errors.
 * Develop Python-based parser libraries to convert proprietary instrument outputs, legacy spreadsheets, and non-standard text files into standardized CSV formats.
 * Implement automated data normalization, schema validation, and quality assurance procedures to ensure compliance with METIS data schemas.
 * Develop heuristic data-cleaning capabilities to address missing values, merged cells, inconsistent headers, and extraneous metadata.
 * Integrate extraction and standardization tools as microservices or software modules within the existing CVCS web application architecture.
 * Develop data export capabilities to support integration with the METIS Discovery Portal.
 * Prepare design documentation, implementation guides, API specifications, and deployment procedures.
 * Develop, test, and maintain documented source code within GitHub repositories, including code intended for public release.
 * Prepare and deliver technical demonstrations of extraction workflows, data conversion capabilities, and system enhancements.
 * Monitor and report technical performance metrics, including document processing volumes, OCR accuracy, data conversion success rates, and system integration status.
 * Collaborate with government scientists, developers, and technical stakeholders to identify requirements, troubleshoot technical issues, and improve system functionality.