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Job Description

Overview

Austin Awning Company, based in Lockhart, TX, has been creating custom awnings and shade structures since 1996. They are seeking an experienced lead fabricator to oversee metal fabrication in their shop, focusing on hands-on leadership and training the next generation of fabricators.

Responsibilities

  • Perform day-to-day fabrication, problem solving, and inventory management of tubes.
  • Read and interpret shop drawings and blueprints, collaborating with drafting and sales teams to resolve questions.
  • Fabricate and weld aluminum and steel structures using MIG, spool gun, and stick methods.
  • Inspect finished work for accuracy, fit, and weld quality before it leaves the shop.
  • Train and mentor entry-level fabricators and helpers as needed.
  • Maintain a safe, organized, and well-maintained shop, including tools and safety gear.
  • Track material usage and job progress to stay on budget and reorder stock on time.
  • Load and unload material and finished frames using a forklift and other equipment.
  • Support installation crews as needed.

Requirements

  • 5+ years of welding and fabrication experience in both aluminum and steel.
  • Ability to weld everything from thin-wall tubing to 1/2" plate.
  • Ability to build skeleton frames out of 1" square tubing.
  • Ability to solve complex junctions and compound miters.
  • Experience rolling or bending tubes (1"-2" square) for arched structures.
  • Strong blueprint reading and layout skills.
  • Experience leading, training, or directing others in a shop setting.
  • Forklift experience.
  • Reliable, self-motivated, and able to solve problems independently.
  • Valid driver’s license preferred.

Benefits

  • Competitive pay based on experience
  • Paid vacation and holidays

Additional Information

  • Stable, family-owned company with an employee-first culture.
  • Opportunities for growth and a real voice in shop operations.

Benefits

Competitive pay based on experience
Paid vacation and holidays
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How this job compares in Lockhart, TX

Pay in context

At roughly $24/hr, this posting lands within a few percent of the $25/hr median for welder fabricator jobs across Texas, whose middle half runs $20–$28/hr across 38 postings with published pay. Put another way, it pays more than about 45% of the comparable postings we have wage data for. In other words it is a market-rate offer, so benefits, overtime, and shift schedule are where the real difference between this and the next posting on the list shows up.

The local market in Lockhart, TX

This is the only active welding job we're currently tracking in Lockhart, TX, which makes it worth moving on quickly — there is no local competing offer to weigh it against. Across Texas as a whole we're tracking 999 other active welding openings from 453 employers. Browse welding jobs across Texas.

The most active employers in Texas at the moment, by number of open welding reqs, are Austin Industries (30), Welding Shop in Austin, TX (25), and Zachry Group (21). Volume like that usually means either a genuine expansion or a staffing agency working several client sites — worth knowing which before you apply.

Within Texas, the best-paying metros we track by median hourly rate are Pasadena at $36/hr, Channelview at $32/hr, and Dallas at $31/hr. If you can relocate or commute, that spread is worth factoring in.

What you'll be running

This posting calls for MIG and Stick work. MIG (GMAW) feeds a continuous wire electrode through a shielding-gas nozzle. It lays down metal fast and is forgiving on clean material, which is why it dominates production and light fabrication work. Stick (SMAW) burns a flux-coated consumable rod and needs no shielding gas, so it works in wind, rain, and on dirty or rusted steel. That tolerance for bad conditions keeps it the default for field, structural, and repair work.

See all welder fabricator openings if you want to compare this against similar roles.

Similar openings near Lockhart, TX

Pay figures are medians computed from live postings in the Welding Pros index, not from survey data, and they move as employers post. Fabricator figures were last recalculated when this page was built.