Industrial Design Co-op

Come As You Are

Your gender, your beliefs, your love life, your skin, your abilities — all of it belongs here.

At Fittes, we celebrate diversity of background and diversity of thought. We are progressive, open-minded, and intentional about building a team that reflects different perspectives. That’s what pushes us to think differently and outperform our competitors.

If you’re excellent at what you do and committed to doing the work well, we welcome you, exactly as you are.

Don’t meet every single requirement? Research shows that women and people of colour are less likely to apply unless they meet 100% of the qualifications. If you’re excited about this role but don’t check every box, we encourage you to apply anyway. Tell us why you’re the right fit. You might be exactly who we’re looking for.

Compensation

$18/hour

Term

Winter 2027: January – August (8 months)

Hybrid Model

4 days in (Mon, Tue, Wed, Fri) + Thursdays WFH, 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM

About Fittes

At Fittes, we’re on a mission to make the mundane exciting. We elevate unloved products with fresh design, bringing a new-school approach to an old-school industry. We’re a dynamic, female-owned-and-led product design company in Toronto experiencing exciting growth. We’re a team of disruptors driven by ambition, creativity, and accountability.

Collaboration, humility, and intentionality define our work environment, and our team’s results speak for themselves.

Curious about our work? We started with the first modular air register designed to customize to any surface, and have since expanded into multiple product categories. We’re a team focused on building something extraordinary and long-lasting, for both our customers and our people. See more on our Instagram, Glassdoor and website!

The Opportunity

This is a hands-on, high-ownership co-op for an industrial design student who wants to see their work become real products—not sit in a portfolio folder.

Our Product team is bringing new and improved interior products to market, and we need another set of skilled hands to help us move faster. You’ll work closely with our Product Development Manager and Product Innovation Designer, supporting market research, 3D modelling, prototyping, rendering and testing, and making sure everything you hand off is accurate, on time and true to the Fittes brand.

You’ll also own two things outright. First, a key project: a product expansion or improvement that you’ll take all the way to a final design ready for launch. Second, a turnkey, automated process for generating product renders that our team will keep using long after your term ends.

This is a startup environment. Priorities shift, and you’ll pivot from task to task as they do. We need someone who is comfortable with ambiguity, flags issues early and brings options, not someone who waits to be told what’s next.

Learning Objectives:

• Get real-world design for manufacturing experience with sheet metal fabrication and plastic injection molding
• Work side by side with engineering to take a product from idea to final manufactured product
• Learn the Fittes 3 Fs methodology—Form, Function and Fabrication, and how to weigh each one when making design decisions
• Use automation and AI to streamline repeatable workflows and boost your productivity
• Grow toward your own career goals, with a manager invested in getting you there

What you’ll be doing:

Design & Prototyping Support [70%]

• Support our Product Innovation Designer with 3D modelling, prototyping, rendering and testing
• Create detailed, accurate 3D models and drawings in SolidWorks
• Build prototypes through simple craft methods and operate our 3D printer
• Iterate concepts with the 3 Fs in mind: Form, Function and Fabrication
• Test prototypes and flag quality issues early, before they ever reach a customer
• Bring ideas to Product team brainstorms
• Own your key project: take a product expansion or improvement to a final design ready for launch

Product Launch & Knowledge Support [20%]

• Help get products launched on time and on budget, and make sure your tasks are never the choke point
• Create product renders for teams across the company
• Build and roll out a turnkey, automated render process that the team actually uses
• Help create install guides, specification sheets and marketing materials
• Answer product questions from other departments

Research & Documentation [10%]

• Gather, organize and summarize market research that supports new product opportunities
• Research product technologies, materials and competitor products
• Document all testing and development data clearly for SR&ED

Leadership + Brand + Values [Every day]

• Bring every issue with at least two options and a recommendation
• Keep moving through shifting priorities and uncertainty
• Over-communicate—nothing left unsaid
• Fail forward: surface mistakes early and openly
• Take feedback well and act on it

You’re a good fit if you:

• Are enrolled in an Industrial Design bachelor’s degree or diploma (or a similar program) and are eligible for a co-op term from January to August 2027
• Have a portfolio that shows your design process: sketches, 3D models, prototypes and renders
• Have at least one year of SolidWorks (or similar CAD) modelling experience, school projects included
• Have done sketch prototyping and rapid prototyping with 3D printing
• Have compiled research and presented your findings
• Are creative, curious and detail-oriented, and comfortable pivoting as priorities change

Bonus points:

• Photorealistic rendering experience (KeyShot preferred)
• Exposure to designing for ergonomics and user experience
• A basic understanding of designing for manufacturing (sheet metal, injection molding, extrusion)
• Scripting or automation experience, especially for render workflows
• You already use AI design and productivity tools in your work

Tech stack

• SolidWorks (must-have)
• KeyShot or a similar rendering program
• 3D printing
• Adobe Creative Suite
• Google Suite and Microsoft Office

Your Superpowers:

• Attention to detail
• Creativity
• Curiosity
• Quality focus
• Visual communication
• Collaboration
• Adaptability

What’s in it for you?

We’re not for everybody – and we like it that way. If mediocrity isn’t your jam, here’s what we can offer you in return for your hard work and discipline:

• Real projects with real impact: work that ships, not busywork
• Joining a high performing, fast-growing team driven by ambition
• Super-immersive learning environment and the opportunity to develop your career with us, if you can keep up
• A key project you own from concept to launch-ready design, plus hands-on exposure to sheet metal and plastic manufacturing
• Hybrid work structure: 4 days in office, Thursdays from home
• Open concept, bright, dog-friendly office vibe (our furry friends can’t wait to meet you!)
• Strict “No email/slack on phones” policy and “No email/slack outside of office hours” policy — we value our personal time and are committed to protecting this for our team members.
• Fully stocked kitchen with snacks and fresh fruit