Nuclear Stock Assistant Edinburgh, Scotland
Job description
SASA is the certifying authority for seed potatoes in Scotland and, working in conjunction with RPID, is responsible for the management and administration of the Seed Potato Classification Scheme. The Scottish seed potato industry is an important part of the rural economy, generating a direct income of over £80 million and SASA produce and maintain the starting material for all seed potato crops grown in Scotland.
As the Nuclear Stock Assistant, you will assist the Nuclear Stock Manager in overseeing the production and storage of initial pathogen-free microplants in two distinct work areas; the Nuclear Stock Initiation unit (NSIU) and the Nuclear Stock Maintenance unit (NSMU). The NSMU, which holds over 900 varieties of potato microplants, is recognised worldwide and it is imperative that both production and freedom from disease are maintained to satisfy demand of starting material for both domestic and export seed potato markets.
This work is mainly laboratory and glasshouse based but some field work may be required.
- Undertake testing and diagnosis for plant pathogens including carrying out serological testing (ELISA), bioassays and sampling for other pathogen tests as detailed in Standard Operating Procedures.
- Using aseptic techniques, initiate microplants and undertake micropropagation to maintain and supply material to the Pre-Basic TC minituber production units in the UK and supply material for trial and experimental purposes for a range of customers in the UK and overseas.
- Propagate healthy potato plants and produce virus free tubers in the NSIU glasshouse to be used for field monitoring of clones and supply to SASA’s Variety Testing section for the virus tested field collection.
- Undertake the day to day running of the NSMU/ NSIU laboratories in keeping with good practice including ensuring that labs and growth rooms are kept clean and tidy, maintaining sufficient stocks of media and consumables, and recording QA temperature checks.
- Keep accurate records of all work and ensure that all duties are carried out in compliance with the quality management system.
- Undertake other duties as required.
Competencies:
Self-Awareness
Teamwork
Communication & Engagement
Essential Criteria:
1. Proven experience of working within Quality Assurance system in a laboratory environment, with the ability to carry out work accurately and to a high standard.
2. Excellent record keeping skills and a good working knowledge of IT packages such as Microsoft Word, Excel or Access.
3. Strong communication skills, both written and oral, and in the capacity to develop and maintain strong working relationships
4. The ability to work with a high degree of autonomy, identify priorities and work flexibly to accommodate these.
Location: Rodding Road, Edinburgh, EH12 9FJ
Interview and Assessment: Dates to be confirmed
Minimum time in post:
You will be expected to remain in post for a minimum of three years unless successful at gaining promotion to a higher Band or Grade.
In the event that further posts are required, a reserve list of successful candidates will be kept for up to 12 months.
HOW TO APPLY & ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
You must fully complete and submit an online application via the website before the closing date using evidence based examples to demonstrate your knowledge/skills (300 words). Remember, your answers should be clear, concise and reflect what actions you undertook. You may want to use the STAR(R) approach to respond to each criterion.
Additional information:
The post is a full-time role, but staff with different working patterns are invited to apply, and we will assess proposed working patterns against the business requirements for this post.
Scottish Government's ambition is to be a world leading, diverse employer where people can be themselves at work. We want to help you demonstrate your full potential whatever type of assessment is used. If you require any adjustments to our recruitment process, please let us know via [email protected]
As part of any recruitment process, Scottish Government and associated public bodies collects and processes personal data relating to job applicants and applicants for public appointments.
Personal information you provide in the recruitment process will be made available to Scottish Government and our additional data processors.
