Product Design Engineer

About this role

Chuck is an outdoor gear company building modular hitch-mounted racks that make it easier to transport bikes, skis, and future adventure gear. Our products combine mechanical function, thoughtful design, and real-world durability.

We’re looking for a part-time contract Product Design Engineer to help turn product concepts and prototypes into refined, production-ready designs.

This is a hands-on role focused primarily on design for manufacturing, prototyping, and testing. You’ll work directly with the founder to improve existing products and develop new additions to Chuck’s modular rack platform.

We need someone who can do more than create clean CAD. The right person understands how products are actually manufactured, assembled, tested, shipped, and used. You should be comfortable identifying weak points, simplifying designs, building and evaluating prototypes, and working through manufacturing constraints without losing sight of the customer experience.

Projects may include hitch-mounted bike racks, ski racks, cargo products, locking mechanisms, structural components, molded parts, hardware, and accessories.

What you’ll do

• Develop new outdoor and automotive product concepts from early ideas through production-ready designs
• Improve existing products for strength, usability, manufacturability, assembly, and cost
• Create and maintain detailed SolidWorks models, assemblies, drawings, and bills of materials
• Design components using processes such as sheet-metal fabrication, tube bending, welding, CNC machining, casting, molding, and extrusion
• Apply design-for-manufacturing and design-for-assembly principles throughout development
• Build, source, or coordinate prototypes and use them to validate design decisions
• Create practical test plans for strength, fatigue, vibration, fit, weather exposure, and real-world use
• Analyze prototype and field-test results, identify failure points, and make fast design iterations
• Evaluate materials, manufacturing processes, tolerances, fasteners, and finishes
• Solve fitment, tolerance-stack, movement, wear, and anti-wobble challenges common to hitch-mounted products
• Prepare clear technical documentation that manufacturers can accurately quote and produce
• Review supplier drawings, samples, and production feedback
• Work through manufacturing questions and quality issues with suppliers
• Balance product performance with tooling cost, unit cost, weight, packaging, and production complexity
• Help create a repeatable product-development process as Chuck expands its product line
• Communicate progress, risks, decisions, and next steps clearly without requiring heavy project management

What we’re looking for

• Strong proficiency in SolidWorks, including parts, assemblies, configurations, and production drawings
• Professional experience designing outdoor, automotive, powersports, transportation, or similarly rugged physical products
• Strong understanding of design for manufacturing and assembly
• Hands-on experience building, testing, and improving physical prototypes
• Ability to translate rough concepts, customer problems, and functional requirements into practical mechanical designs
• Working knowledge of materials, tolerances, fasteners, finishes, and common manufacturing processes
• Sound mechanical judgment around load paths, leverage, fatigue, vibration, wear, and product safety
• Ability to design products that feel simple and intuitive while handling demanding real-world use
• Comfort operating in a fast-moving small business where priorities evolve as products are tested and customer feedback comes in
• Ability to work independently, take ownership of open-ended problems, and recommend a clear path forward
• Clear written and verbal communication
• Reliable availability for ongoing part-time contract work

Helpful, but not required:

• Experience with hitch-mounted racks, trailers, vehicle accessories, bikes, skis, or other outdoor equipment
• Experience working with overseas manufacturers
• Knowledge of structural analysis or finite element analysis
• Experience preparing inspection criteria, test fixtures, or quality-control documentation
• Personal familiarity with biking, skiing, camping, road trips, or vehicle-based outdoor recreation