Looking For CAD Design Help

I’ve reached the point where it probably makes sense to bring somebody on to help expand this ecosystem.

One of the really cool things about these products is how many directions they can go:

• different sizes

• different themes

• different accessories

• new attachment systems

• new lid systems

• compatibility updates

• adjacent product ideas

• etc.

The challenge is that there’s only so much bandwidth one person has.

I’m actually extremely fast on the design side and iterate very quickly, but what I’m finding is that I’m getting bottlenecked by all the expansion and iteration work that follows each new system.

For example, I may spend a bunch of time engineering and refining a brand new system like the new twist-lock lid for the standard 12oz version. Once I get that core design finalized, I’d really like to move directly into the NEXT new concept or adjacent product idea.

But realistically, that twist-lock system then needs:

• skinny versions

• larger size versions

• themed versions

• compatibility updates

• accessory integration

• ecosystem-wide rollout

…and that’s where I think there’s a real opportunity to expand my bandwidth by bringing somebody else in to help carry those systems across the platform.

For some background, my day job is engineering management within aerospace product development, where I manage a team of design engineers. So I’m very familiar with this type of talent search and understand how difficult it can be to find the right combination of:

• strong CAD fundamentals

• attention to detail

• clean modeling practices

• communication

• understanding design intent

• and the ability to work within scalable systems

This would be flexible contract-style side work and would NOT need to be local to me. The focus is results and output, not rigid schedules or corporate bureaucracy.

The ideal candidate is somebody already proficient with professional parametric CAD software. The exact software platform matters far less to me than the underlying skillset, but experience with platforms such as:

• Siemens NX

• CATIA

• SolidWorks

• Fusion 360
  or similar software is going to be extremely important.

These designs are built using structured parametric CAD workflows from scratch — not mesh editing, sculpting, or simply manipulating primitive geometry. A strong understanding of feature-based modeling, design intent, constraints, and scalable CAD structure is essential.

Huge bonus if you also already understand:

• 3D printing

• printability

• tolerances and fitment

• support avoidance

• modular systems

• compatibility between components/accessories

I’m also completely open to purchasing software licensing if needed so the focus can stay on productivity rather than learning a new CAD platform.

If this sounds like you — or somebody you know — send me an email at tom@animul67.com with some information about yourself along with examples of your work, screenshots, portfolio links, or anything else relevant.

Really excited about where all of this is heading, and I think this is probably the logical next step in scaling things properly.