Senior Graphic/Industrial Designer, Soweto

Senior Hybrid Industrial Designer&Design Engineer Company:

Project Room / Tradeway Studio

Location:

Alberton, Johannesburg (Turnkey Manufacturing Factory)

Position Type:

Full-Time, Permanent

Industry:

Below-the-Line (BTL) Marketing, Retail Activations, Shopfitting&POS Displays

About Us Project Room is a premier, turnkey Below-the-Line (BTL) design and manufacturing business. We specialize in bringing bold brands to life through bespoke retail activations, custom shopfitting, permanent and temporary point-of-sale displays (POSDs), and high-impact exhibition stands. Our massive in-house factory floor bridges the gap between raw imagination and flawless physical execution, integrating state-of-the-art production lanes across wood, metal, plastics/acrylics, and large-format digital printing.

Because we control the entire process from concept to dispatch under one roof, we are looking for a true hybrid Industrial Designer / Design Engineer who is as creative as they are technically grounded.

Position Summary We are seeking a highly resourceful, multi-skilled, and experienced professional to bridge the gap between creative strategy and structural factory manufacturing. This is not a "pure concept" or siloed design role—it is a fast-paced, hands‑on position requiring a blend of 3D Industrial/Retail Design, Technical Engineering Drafting, and Graphic/Branding Design. You will own the lifecycle of a project's visual and physical layout. You will take a client brief, visualize a stunning 3D structural concept, apply the creative brand graphics, and then immediately translate that concept into detailed, millimeter‑accurate construction drawings ready for our CNC, joinery, metal, and plastic production lines.

Key Responsibilities&Duties 3D Industrial&Structural Design

Interpret client briefs to design highly creative, practical, and brand‑aligned retail environments, mall kiosks, exhibition stands, and free‑standing display units (FSDUs).

Utilize advanced 3D modeling and CAD software to construct structurally sound units that balance high‑end aesthetic appeal with real‑world budget and structural stability.

Generate photorealistic 3D renders that effectively communicate spatial layouts, lighting, material textures, and shopper interaction flow for client pitches.

Graphic Design&Brand Application

Apply a strong aesthetic eye to lay out, scale, and integrate client‑supplied brand artwork, logos, and campaign graphics seamlessly onto the 3D structure.

Prepare finished, production‑ready vector graphics, print‑ready files, and print layout specs for our in‑house large‑format digital printing department.

Detail Design Engineering&Production Drawings (Factory Readiness)

Translate approved 3D visual concepts into fully detailed, accurate, and optimized 2D/3D manufacturing drawing packs.

Account precisely for material tolerances, interlocking components, and structural weight distribution across mixed mediums ( wood/MDF, mild&stainless steel, acrylics/plastics, and integrated LED lighting/electrics ).

Produce flat‑pattern developments, DXF/DWG cutting profiles for CNC routing and laser cutting, and step‑by‑step assembly guides for our factory assembly lanes.

Factory Collaboration&Quality Assurance

Work directly alongside our Factory Managers, production teams, and craftsmen to troubleshoot prototype builds and optimize designs for efficient, cost‑effective manufacturing.

Help specify and select optimal materials, ironmongery, and hardware fittings to achieve a high‑end finish without blowing the client budget.

Required Qualifications&Experience

Education:

Degree or National Diploma in Industrial Design, Mechanical Engineering, Interior Architecture, or a closely related technical field.

Experience:

Minimum of 3–5+ years of proven experience specifically within the South African BTL retail marketing, shopfitting, display, or exhibition industry.

Software Mastery:

3D Design&CAD:

High proficiency in parametric or industrial modeling software (such as

Creo, Autodesk Inventor ).

Rendering:

Rendering engines capable of photorealism (e.g.,

KeyShot, V‑Ray, or Blender ).

2D Production Drawing:

Proficient in AutoCAD or software‑integrated drafting modules for technical output.

Graphic Design:

Advanced skills in the

Adobe Creative Suite

(Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign) for brand layouts and vector file prep.

Material&Process Knowledge:

Deep, practical understanding of manufacturing methods, including joinery construction, sheet metal bending, welding, plastic vacuum forming/bending, CNC nesting, and large‑format print media.

Core Competencies&Personal Attributes

Multi‑Skilled Adaptability:

The agility to pivot seamlessly from brainstorming a creative graphic brand concept to calculating the structural integrity of a heavy metal display bracket.

Turnkey Mindset:

Passionate about seeing a design transition from a digital screen into a physical product being fabricated on our factory floor.

Detail‑Oriented&Accurate:

Obsessive about millimeter accuracy to prevent costly structural failures or material waste during machine cutting.

Strong Communication:

Able to articulate design ideas clearly to corporate clients, and speak the technical language of our factory floor teams.

Thrives Under Deadline:

Comfortable managing multiple fast‑tracked projects simultaneously in a high‑octane environment.

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