Timber Frame Designer

Automated Architecture (AUAR); Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 45,000 - 60,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Sizeable share options

28 bookable days

Health and dental insurance

R&D facility access

High autonomy and accountability

Job summary

Automated Architecture (AUAR) is looking for a skilled professional in London to join their Design & Delivery team. The role focuses on reviewing and preparing timber frame designs for production using their proprietary software, MasterBuilder. Ideal candidates have experience in timber frame design, production engineering, or DfMA, and are comfortable working across various regional codes and conventions.

The position offers significant autonomy and accountability as well as opportunities to impact the building process. The company promotes diversity and emphasizes the importance of different perspectives in achieving its mission.

Qualifications

• 3+ years in timber frame design, production engineering, or DfMA.
• Strong understanding of timber frame construction.
• Ability to read and critically assess architectural and structural drawings.

Responsibilities

• Review incoming designs against production specifications.
• Prepare designs for production-ready panel data.
• Support panel pack coordination and production preparation.

Skills

Timber frame design

Production engineering

DfMA

Revit/BIM proficiency

Tools

Revit

hsbCAD

Job description

Construction is one of the least automated industries in the world. We're on a mission to change that and to make high-quality homes easy and affordable to build.

Our platform, MasterBuilder, takes a building design and generates executable robot code for every panel. Our robotic MicroFactory deploys directly onto building sites and produces those wall, floor and roof panels on demand - faster with less waste, and at lower cost. No large factory. No trucking. No delays. It moves with builders as their pipeline grows, putting production and cost control back in their hands.

Our technology works. It's deployed with real homebuilding partners across the US and Europe today. Backed by Planet A, PT1, Shadow Ventures, ABB Robotics, we're a small team about to take our biggest step yet towards changing how the world builds homes.

We're searching for people who want to have outsized impact, ship fast and see their work in the real world: real panels, in real homes, for real people. #forpeopleandplanet

The Role

Our Design & Delivery team takes our partner’s home designs and, using our software MasterBuilder, turns them into timber frame designs that can be produced in our MicroFactories. You’ll produce high-quality timber frame BIM models that are validated, sequenced, and ready for manufacture. We've delivered against this process across multiple deployments, and we're scaling it as our partner pipeline grows.

This role adds depth to the team and to the process. The right hire brings industry experience from timber frame design, production engineering, or DfMA - and applies it directly to the panelisation and QA work we already run. You'll use MasterBuilder to take a partner's design from incoming drawings through to an execution-ready panel pack, catching the details that don't translate cleanly and resolving them before they reach our MicroFactories.

With live deployments and a growing partner pipeline, you'll work alongside our Design & Delivery team lead, building cross-cover and resilience as we scale.

This might be you if

• You've worked in timber frame panel design, production engineering, or DfMA - including panel or module design in a factory-adjacent or offsite/MMC context - and you know the difference between a detail that looks right on a drawing and one that works in the factory and on-site
• You read architectural & structural drawings, models, and bills of material carefully and critically - you notice what's missing, what's ambiguous, and what will cause a problem downstream
• You're comfortable working across different regional contexts - US, UK, EU - and adapting to different codes, conventions, and partner expectations without losing rigour
• You understand building code compliance in a timber frame context - nailing distances, sheathing, structural implications of detailing decisions
• You care about accuracy and you're uncomfortable letting something through that isn't right
• You're a clear communicator within the team - you can flag a problem, explain why it matters, and suggest a path forward

What you'll do

Reviewing designs - Review incoming partner design packages against the MicroFactory production specification. Identify details that fall outside what the system can deliver today, and work with the team and our tools to resolve them before they reach production.

Pre-production preparation - Using our tools and processes, you’ll take incoming designs through to production-ready panel data - generating panel models, delivering drawings and panel schedules, performing QA checks. You'll be trained on MasterBuilder, our proprietary design-to-production software - prior exposure isn't expected, but strong Revit/BIM fundamentals and a fast learning curve are. You will apply the specification with precision and a laser-focused attention to detail and take ownership of the accuracy of what is released for production.

Delivery support - Work alongside our Delivery Lead on production preparation, sequencing, and panel pack coordination. Build enough familiarity with the delivery function to provide cover and resilience as we grow.

Standards and industry knowledge - Bring real familiarity with how timber frame delivery works on the ground - partner expectations, compliance requirements, and the constraints that shape what's achievable.

Who this is for

You've worked in timber frame panel design, production engineering, or DfMA, whether at a panel manufacturer, panelised homebuilder, specialist contractor, or in a factory-adjacent offsite/MMC environment designing panels or modules. You know the difference between a detail that looks right on a drawing and one that works in the factory and on site, because you've seen the gap between the two cause real problems downstream.

You read architectural and structural drawings, Revit models, and bills of material critically, not just accurately. You notice what's missing, what's ambiguous, and what will cause an issue three steps later. You're comfortable working across different regional codes and conventions (UK, US, EU) without losing rigour, and you understand what genuinely changes between them versus what's just different terminology for the same requirement.

You're methodical enough that your work doesn't need checking before it leaves your desk, and you're uncomfortable letting something through that isn't right, even under time pressure. You can flag a problem clearly, explain why it matters, and suggest a way through it, both to your team and to a partner.

This role suits someone who wants ownership of a production spec, not just a seat inside a design process. You'll be trusted with real accountability early.

You must have:

• 3+ years in timber frame design, production engineering, or DfMA (5+ ideally)
• Strong understanding of timber frame construction: structural behaviour, panel composition, connection details, tolerances
• Ability to read and critically assess architectural and structural drawings, Revit models, and bills of material
• Experience in Revit or a BIM environment

Bonus:

• Familiarity with NHBC, STA Assure, or equivalent quality and compliance frameworks
• Experience with hsbCAD or similar framing tools
• Panel or module design experience in a factory-adjacent or offsite/MMC context
• Exposure to more than one regional code base (UK, US, EU)

What We Offer

• Sizeable share options so we all grow together
• 28 bookable days + bank holidays + seasonal office closure
• Health and dental insurance via Bupa
• An 11,000 sq ft R&D and demonstration facility in E17, where you work alongside the machines you're helping to sell
• High autonomy, high accountability, and a team that takes the mission seriously

Our Values

• #ownyourmission - we take responsibility and execute with focus and urgency.
• #forpeopleandplanet - we strive to do the best for people and planet.
• #buildtogether - we succeed through deep collaboration with our team, partners, and customers.
• #gooddesign - we centre good design in everything we do, holistically.
• #beboldberadical - we think creatively; we are ambitious, bold, and radical.

This is a London role, 3+ days a week in our E17 office. You'll need the right to work in the UK. We can sponsor visas if you're a standout candidate. If this is a fit, tell us, we'd rather hear from you than not.

We're proud that 50% of our technical team and 50% of our leadership are women. We believe great work comes from diverse perspectives, and we hire on potential as much as experience. If part of this role speaks to you, apply. Let's make housing better, together.

We are committed to creating an equitable, inclusive and diverse workplace. If you feel there is any area we could improve, please let us know at [e-mail].