Designer/Project Architect

METALAB is searching for a creative and motivated Designer and detail-oriented Project Manager with well-balanced office experience from design to production to work closely with the Director of Architecture and our team on small to mid-scale architectural projects. You will also be engaged with some of our Civic Art Project Management and Product Design projects as we maintain a dialogue between the different divisions of work in our office. You should be facile with 3D design software (we use Rhino primarily) and have experience generating and organizing construction documents in AutoCAD. When in doubt we prefer to sketch it by hand. You must enjoy working with a team dedicated to excellence and innovation in architecture and related disciplines. A working knowledge of architectural construction assemblies and systems coupled with an understanding of materials and fabrication techniques is required. Excellent communication skills are necessary to manage dialogues between our clients, your colleagues, consultants, contractors, fabricators, vendors and regulatory agencies to maintain overall project objectives. Managing schedules and budgets with tabular spreadsheets is essential for maintaining workflow, controlling quality and anticipating best-value while heading off problems in all phases of a project. Architectural licensure is not required but we support one’s path toward meeting that goal. METALAB fosters a professional work environment that is healthy and balanced with our personal lives with paid overtime, holidays and a generous paid personal time off policy.

What you will do

  • Work with Principals and Director of Architecture on conceptual designs, space planning and programming
  • Collaborate with team on projects, including programming client needs, concept design and budget/schedule.
  • Organize and co-direct project meetings with clients and consultants with published meeting notes
  • Provide innovative solutions to resolve complex technical and design challenges and work with project team on architectural detail integration  
  • Produce construction and technical documents, review and revise files as required.
  • Manage client, team and project coordination, including full documentation coordination with structural, MEP, lighting, AV, landscape and civil consultants
  • Support communication between project team, clients, consultants, vendors, contractors, fabricators and permitting officials
  • As required, you will generate and submit digital files for CNC fabrication and produce assembly and installation documents for specialty structures and public art projects.
  • Maintain project material library, fixture and equipment schedules and product specifications
  • Conduct and document site visits, process submittals, substitution requests, and RFI’s during construction

Qualifications

  • Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Architecture
  • 3-5 years of project experience in an architectural practice
  • Experience with AutoCAD, Rhino 3D (Grasshopper for parametric design), Sketch-up (in some cases), Adobe Creative Suite (Indesign), Microsoft Office (Excel)
  • Working knowledge of building codes, standards, construction assemblies, systems and structures
  • Understanding of project delivery sequence with foresight into when to engage colleagues and consultants on critical path coordination to meet project schedule milestones
  • Self-starters with good verbal and written communication skills

METALAB is a multidisciplinary design firm and licensed architecture practice located in Houston, Texas. We work in three distinct areas of practice: Architecture, Product Design, and Civic Art Project Management. We strive for elegant solutions to our client's challenges, enabled by technology and inspired by the relationships between these genres. We've been at it now for over 10 years, embracing Houston for its diversity, idiosyncrasies, and can-do attitude. Our studio is in the East End - Houston's original maker district - in a 77 year old Art Deco building with mid- century additions that we lease out to fellow creative businesses. The regional craftsmanship and capacity of our industrial city often informs our design process as we understand that the hands can sometimes see solutions more clearly than the mind. And while our practice was founded on the use of advanced 3D modeling and fabrication technologies we've always understood that craft and technology need each other, perhaps now more than ever.

METALAB Architecture pursues design-forward solutions to architectural commissions. Our work is focused on programmatic, cultural, and economic opportunities in the built environment, and our solutions are clever and unexpected. We believe that the uniqueness of our solutions translate directly into value and authenticity. We often work on old buildings or in historic contexts, but we design and build in our own time, celebrating the common thread of quality and community as lasting achievements. We are well versed in advanced 3D modeling and digital fabrication, while recognizing that these are simply tools in an ever expanding toolbox. Our projects are elegant and sometimes whimsical, sensing their place in a long continuum. We take great pride in understanding how buildings go together. If we don't know something, we want to learn. Listening and learning from those who make things is fundamental to our work. While our practice is focused on the following building types, we have always embraced the notion that the most creative work comes from an outlier’s perspective, one that we try to maintain even as we gather experience and momentum in these areas.

Our Architecture Work is focused on:

  • Pavilions and Park Buildings
  • Churches and Sacred Spaces
  • Renovation and Adaptive Re-use
  • Creative Commercial

If you are interested in working with us please send CV, Letter of Introduction and Portfolio (under 10MB) to andrew@metalabstudio and joe@metalabstudio.  No phones calls please.