Jobs

Technical Instructor

Position Overview: 

The Department of Architecture’s Technical Instructor will be responsible for managing a combined digital and traditional academic fabrication facility as a safe and effective learning environment. The individual will be expected to provide instruction and supervision to faculty and students to support their academic design and research projects, to participate in educational initiatives, to manage day-to-day operations, maintenance, repair, and advise on materials and techniques as well as on the process of fabrication and assembly to ensure safe and successful outcomes. 

More specifically, the N51 Technical Instructor is responsible for day-to-day management of the Department of Architecture’s N51-160 academic shop facility, providing technical instruction and supervision to users, overseeing shop staff and student-staff, overseeing daily operation and maintenance of the facilities to departmental and MIT EHS safety standards, and other duties as needed. 

Principal Duties and Responsibilities (Essential Functions): 

● Build strategy for shop growth and development in coordination with the senior technical instructor and department HQ/faculty. 

● Coordinate with the senior technical instructor and faculty to assist in development of fabrication exercises and provide instruction to support educational program. 

● Serve as the primary point of contact for users in N51, providing information about resources, schedules, training, and policies. 

● Provide ongoing technical instruction to users in all areas of fabrication. 

● Ensure that shop facility, equipment, and practices are kept in compliance with MIT EHS SOPs, shop SOGs and that all health and safety guidelines are met; assist MIT staff as needed to ensure policy compliance. 

● Perform routine and advanced repair on all equipment, perform or train staff to perform minor, routine maintenance; make service calls when necessary. 

● Manage hiring, training, task schedules for, and supervision of, professional shop staff and student staff with the seniortechnical instructor, both hourly and TA positions; maintain records. Prepare them for their jobs (Level II trainings, health and safety training, etc. in preparation for safely monitoring shop use, and assisting shop managers in teaching, organization and cleaning). 

● Manage all levels of shop user training with direction of senior technical instructor, their levels of space/machine access, and supervision; maintain records. 

● Serve as Principal Investigator (PI) for N51 shop in the EHS Management System; communicate relevant MIT, EHS and shop policy and other significant announcements to shop users. 

● Collaborate with faculty on research projects; develop shop-based curricula in collaboration with other faculty. 

● Attend pinups and studio crits upon invitation for fabrication-related projects. 

● Develop projects to highlight capabilities and drive staff professional development. 

● Teach shop-related courses and advise independent studies. 

● Furnish construction materials and/or coordinate purchasing and delivery of construction materials for faculty and student projects, manage inventory and sales records, adhere to university credit card policies. 

 ● Manage day to day organization, use, and cleanup of N51-160 yard space shared with other DLCs. This will be done in coordination with the senior technical instructor.

● Perform other duties as needed. 

Supervision Received: 

The technical instructor reports to the senior technical instructor along with Architecture HQ and faculty shop committee, but the manager is expected to function independently, with limited supervision. 

Supervision Exercised: 

Non-student shop staff report directly to the technical instructor 

The student-staff hired as Shop Monitors report directly to the technical instructor.  

REQUIREMENTS: Bachelor's degree in a related discipline, and three to five years’ experience managing a fabrication facility for a college or professional-level educational program utilizing manual, mechanical, and digital methods, and teaching and supervising safe shop practices. 

Must have demonstrated experience instructing on, maintaining and repairing as well as operating manual wood and metalworking equipment. Must have demonstrated CAD/CAM experience as a primary operator and maintainer of CNC machinery. 

Must have strong interpersonal, organizational, and time-management skills, strong written and verbal communication.Must have familiarity and experience with university shop/lab safety programs (EHS, OSHA). Must have ability to enforce safety rules while supporting students, faculty, and researchers in a teaching shop. 

PREFERRED SKILLS: A Master's or professional degree in design or a technology-related discipline. Experience programming and operating Kuka industrial robot arms is (a plus).