Fabrication Designer

Fabrication Designer (Design Lead)

Pay: $80,000 - $100,000 per year

Location: Cokato, MN (On-Site Only)

About Outshaped

Outshaped designs and manufactures custom architectural displays, molds, patterns, fiberglass components, and sculptural structures for clients across a wide range of industries. Our projects often begin as sketches, scan data, customer concepts, or rough CAD files and evolve into highly detailed physical structures produced through CNC machining, fabrication, and finishing processes.

We specialize in bringing complex ideas to life, combining creative problem-solving with practical manufacturing expertise.

Position Overview

Outshaped is seeking a Fabrication Designer to lead our design team and serve as the critical link between sales, design, and production. This role focuses heavily on Design for Manufacturing (DFM), ensuring customer concepts are transformed into efficient, manufacturable solutions while maintaining design intent.

The Fabrication Designer will work closely with our sales team during project development, helping evaluate concepts, identify manufacturing challenges, and develop solutions that align with project goals, budgets, and production capabilities. Once projects move forward, this individual will guide the design process and collaborate directly with machinists, fabricators, programmers, and project managers to ensure successful execution.

This is an ideal opportunity for someone who enjoys solving real-world manufacturing challenges, leading design efforts, and working in a hands-on custom fabrication environment.

Responsibilities

• Lead and oversee the design team throughout project development and production
• Collaborate with the sales team to review incoming opportunities, evaluate feasibility, and provide manufacturing input during quoting and project planning
• Apply Design for Manufacturing (DFM) principles to optimize designs for fabrication, machining, assembly, transportation, and installation
• Evaluate customer CAD files, scan data, sketches, and concept models
• Repair, rebuild, and refine geometry to create clean, manufacturable models
• Design assemblies, structural features, alignment systems, reinforcement methods, and connection details
• Determine machining and fabrication strategies for complex or large-scale projects
• Plan part splits and assemblies to fit equipment capabilities and facilitate efficient production
• Work closely with machinists, programmers, and fabrication teams to ensure designs translate successfully into production
• Review and approve production drawings and documentation
• Maintain CAD standards, workflows, and best practices across the design department
• Support continuous improvement of design and manufacturing processes

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate combines strong CAD and fabrication knowledge with leadership and communication skills. You understand that successful design goes beyond creating models—it requires thinking through how parts will be built, assembled, transported, and installed.

You enjoy collaborating with customers, sales teams, and production personnel to develop practical solutions for unique manufacturing challenges.

Candidates with experience in custom fabrication, CNC machining, mold making, tooling design, architectural fabrication, composites, or prototype manufacturing environments are strongly encouraged to apply.

Required Skills

• Advanced proficiency in SolidWorks
• Strong 3D modeling, assembly, and surfacing experience
• Demonstrated understanding of Design for Manufacturing (DFM)
• Experience working within CNC machining and fabrication environments
• Ability to interpret, repair, and optimize customer CAD files
• Strong understanding of assembly methods and manufacturing processes
• Leadership and project coordination skills
• Excellent communication and collaboration abilities
• Strong problem-solving mindset and attention to detail
• Preferred Experience
• Team leadership or design management experience
• Working with scan data and mesh cleanup
• Complex surface and organic shape modeling
• Reverse engineering and model reconstruction
• Large-format machining or fabrication
• Mold, pattern, fiberglass, or composite manufacturing
• Custom manufacturing or prototype development environments

Why Join Outshaped?

Every project is different. You'll work on unique, custom-built structures and products that require creative thinking, technical expertise, and close collaboration across departments. This role offers the opportunity to shape the design process, lead a talented team, and play a key role in turning ambitious concepts into reality.

Education:

Associate Degree or equivalent experience preferred

Experience:

4 years in fabrication design, manufacturing, engineering, or related fields preferred

Work Location:

Cokato, MN (In Person)