Freelance Prototype Build Engineer Jobs in Washington

Kform is a next-generation defense manufacturer helping leading defense and dual-use startups turn advanced technology into producible hardware. We work across design, engineering, prototyping, manufacturing, quality, and production readiness to move critical products from concept to fielded reality.

We are recruiting prototype machinists who want to build real hardware, solve practical manufacturing problems, and work on products that matter. The battlefield waits weeks, not years.

The right person for this role is a hands-on builder with strong machining fundamentals, practical judgment, and the ability to turn incomplete engineering information into high-quality physical parts. You should be comfortable working closely with engineers, technicians, suppliers, and production teams to move fast without cutting corners.

At Kform, you will not be operating in a narrow production lane. You will make prototypes, improve designs, troubleshoot manufacturability problems, build fixtures, support testing, and help transition hardware from one-off prototype to repeatable production.

This is one of the few places where machinists get to work directly with engineers, influence product design, and help strengthen American industrial capacity for defense.

The Role

You will support rapid prototyping, machining, fabrication, fixture building, and production readiness for complex defense and dual-use hardware products.

This is a hands-on shop role for someone who can work from CAD models, drawings, sketches, verbal direction, and evolving requirements. You should be comfortable making parts, identifying problems, communicating tradeoffs, and helping engineers improve designs before they become expensive production issues.

You should be comfortable moving between:

• CNC mills and lathes

• Manual machining equipment

• CAD models and drawings

• CAM workflows

• Inspection tools

• Prototype assemblies

• Fixtures and tooling

• Engineering conversations

• Production feedback

We want people who understand how parts are actually made. People who care about tolerances, finishes, setup strategy, workholding, material behavior, cutting tools, and the difference between a design that looks good on a screen and a design that can be made reliably.

What You Will Do

• Machine prototype and low-volume production components for defense and dual-use hardware systems.

• Program, set up, and operate CNC mills, lathes, and related shop equipment.

• Operate manual mills, manual lathes, saws, drill presses, grinders, and general fabrication tools.

• Work from CAD models, drawings, sketches, engineering notes, and verbal instructions.

• Review part designs and provide practical feedback on:

  • Manufacturability

  • Tolerances

  • Material selection

  • Setup strategy

  • Tool access

  • Fixturing

  • Surface finish

  • Cost and lead time

• Build, modify, and repair prototypes, fixtures, tooling, test articles, brackets, enclosures, panels, mounts, and mechanical assemblies.

• Collaborate directly with engineers to move quickly from design intent to physical hardware.

• Identify design issues early and recommend practical improvements before release to production.

• Inspect parts using calipers, micrometers, indicators, height gauges, thread gauges, surface plates, and other standard inspection tools.

• Verify that parts meet drawing requirements, functional requirements, and assembly needs.

• Support prototype assembly, fit checks, test setups, and troubleshooting.

• Document setup notes, machining issues, lessons learned, and recommended design changes.

• Maintain shop organization, tooling, machine readiness, and safe working practices.

• Support continuous improvement across Kform’s prototyping, machining, and manufacturing systems.

What We Are Looking For

We are looking for a machinist who can think, build, troubleshoot, and communicate.

You should be technically disciplined, but not rigid. Prototype work often starts with ambiguity. Drawings may be incomplete. Requirements may evolve. Engineers may need help understanding what is practical. Your job is to bring manufacturing judgment into the process and help the team create better hardware faster.

You should be able to:

• Read mechanical drawings and understand design intent

• Work from 3D CAD models

• Select tools, speeds, feeds, workholding, and machining strategy

• Make parts accurately and efficiently

• Inspect your own work

• Catch problems before they become expensive

• Explain manufacturability issues clearly

• Work with urgency while maintaining quality and safety

The best fit for this role is practical, precise, resourceful, and biased toward action.

Minimum Qualifications

• 3 to 5 years of experience in CNC machining, manual machining, prototype fabrication, toolmaking, model making, or a related hands-on manufacturing role.

• Strong ability to read and interpret mechanical drawings, dimensions, tolerances, notes, materials, and finishes.

• Experience setting up and operating CNC milling machines.

• Experience with manual machining equipment, including mills, lathes, saws, drills, and standard shop tools.

• Working knowledge of common engineering materials, including aluminum, steel, stainless steel, plastics, and specialty materials.

• Ability to inspect machined parts using standard measurement tools and basic quality practices.

• Ability to work from incomplete information and ask the right questions when requirements are unclear.

• Strong mechanical aptitude and practical problem-solving ability.

• Ability to work safely in a fast-moving prototyping and manufacturing environment.

• Clear communication skills and willingness to work directly with engineers, technicians, and production teams.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in a prototype shop, R&D shop, defense manufacturing environment, aerospace shop, robotics company, machine shop, or advanced manufacturing operation.

• Experience programming CNC machines using Fusion 360, Mastercam, SolidWorks CAM, HSMWorks, or similar CAM software.

• Experience with both CNC mills and CNC lathes.

• Experience machining tight-tolerance parts for complex mechanical assemblies.

• Experience with fixture design, soft jaws, custom workholding, and production tooling.

• Experience supporting low-volume production, engineering builds, EVT, DVT, or production readiness efforts.

• Experience with GD&T, inspection documentation, first article inspection, or AS9100-style quality systems.

• Experience with sheet metal, welding, finishing, coating, additive manufacturing, or assembly operations.

• Experience working with engineers to improve design for manufacturability and assembly.

• Demonstrated interest in manufacturing, American industry, defense technology, and hard technical problems.

Skills That Matter Here

• CNC setup, operation, and practical machining strategy.

• Manual machining and hands-on fabrication.

• Drawing interpretation, tolerancing, and inspection discipline.

• CAM programming and toolpath development.

• Workholding, fixturing, and setup planning.

• Prototype fabrication and rapid iteration.

• Materials knowledge and cutting tool selection.

• Design for manufacturability feedback.

• Shop organization, safety, and machine care.

• Communication with engineers, technicians, suppliers, and production teams.

• Practical judgment, attention to detail, and ownership.

Working Environment

This role operates in a fast-moving product development and manufacturing environment.

You should expect:

• Frequent hands-on work with machines, tools, materials, fixtures, prototypes, inspection equipment, and production hardware.

• Time spent standing, walking, lifting, setting up machines, deburring parts, inspecting components, and working near active manufacturing operations.

• Use of personal protective equipment depending on the task, equipment, and work area.

• Occasional support for customer projects, supplier coordination, testing, or production needs.

How We Work

Kform values continuous improvement, aggressive value creation, and extreme ownership.

We are building the infrastructure, technical capability, and execution engine required to bring advanced defense products into production faster. That requires people who understand physical hardware, respect manufacturing reality, care about details, and know how to turn ideas into working parts.

If you want to build real hardware, work directly with engineers, solve practical manufacturing problems, and help create defense products that matter, this is the work.

I can also make this sharper for a senior prototype machinist, CNC programmer, or shop lead version.

You should be proficient in:

• CNC Programming
• Design for Manufacturability (DFM)
• CNC Machine Setup & Changeover
• CAD/CAM Software

Machines & technologies you'll use:

• CNC Mill (3-4 axis VMC) (Doosan, Haas)
• 3D Modeling (Solidworks)
• CNC Lathe (2-4 axis) (Haas)
• CNC Mill (5+ axis VMC) (Haas)

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