CAD Mechanical Design Engineer -Concept Design for Proposal Work

CAD Mechanical Design Engineer (Robotics) — Concept Design for Proposal Work
Project type: Ongoing, part-time contract
Collaboration: Live sessions over Microsoft Teams
Location: Remote (UK/EU time zones preferred)
Start: ASAP

About us
We’re a UK robotics & automation integrator working with FMCG and consumer-goods manufacturers. We need rapid concept mechanical designs for proposal packs—layouts, envelopes, and early BOMs that help customers visualise solutions and support costing.

The role
Work directly with the founder/lead engineer in live Teams working sessions to turn ideas and constraints into clear mechanical concepts for robot-based systems (palletising, packing, end-of-line handling).
You’ll translate requirements into quick, tidy CAD that we can drop into proposals the same day.

What you’ll produce
2–3 concept options per project (as applicable), including:
Overall layout with key dimensions & working envelopes
Robot reach checks and cell layouts (bases, guarding, infeed/outfeed)
Early mechanical scheme for tooling, conveyors, and frames (no full detailing)
High-level parts list / rough BOM with assumptions
Exported views/renders and STEP for sharing
Light mark-ups for cost estimation (materials, bought-outs, risk notes)
Must-have skills
CAD: SolidWorks preferred (Inventor/Fusion acceptable if you can deliver STEP + clear source files)
Strong background in special-purpose machinery / packaging equipment / robotic cells

Competence with sheet-metal & fabricated frames, guarding, and bought-out components
Ability to work fast and clean at concept level; good judgement on what to simplify vs. model
Comfortable collaborating live on Teams (screen share, quick whiteboarding)
Excellent written English and clear drawing annotations

Nice to have
Experience with FANUC/KUKA cells (reach, payload, cycle-time considerations)
Basic pneumatics specification for EOAT/grippers
Awareness of CE/UKCA guarding principles (PLr, interlocks, access)
Basic electrical/mechatronics interfacing awareness (just enough for layout allowances)
How we’ll work
Short brief before each session (product, rates, target throughput, constraints)
60–120 min live design sprints on Teams to sketch, block-model, and converge on a concept
You tidy files off-call and deliver the agreed outputs (usually within 24–48h)
Deliverables & formats
Native CAD files + STEP
Dimensioned layout PDFs (A3/A1)
2–3 annotated renders or screenshots for proposals
BOM/assumptions list (Excel or PDF)

Budget
Hourly: open to proposals based on speed/portfolio
Typical mini-project: 6–12 hours per concept round

Compliance
NDA and IP assignment required (work-for-hire).
Please confirm you can keep client/product details confidential.
To apply (please include):
Portfolio: 3–5 examples of robotic cells/special-purpose machinery concept layouts you personally produced
Tooling note: Which CAD you use and version
Speed: Typical time to produce a dimensioned layout + STEP + basic BOM from a brief
Relevant experience: Robot brands, industries, and any EOAT you’ve designed
Availability: UK-hours availability
Mini prompt (optional but preferred): In 3–6 bullets, outline a concept for a single-robot case-packer cell handling 10 kg cases at 12 cpm with infeed conveyor and pallet outfeed—list key assumptions, envelopes, and obvious risks.