Frontend Systems Developer (contract)

About The Role

In this role you will help maintain and extend a web-based visual graph editor for manufacturing workflows. Users create and connect nodes representing materials/workpieces/tools and manufacturing steps (processes/inspections), validate the resulting workflow against catalogs and strict data contracts, and export a schema-compliant JSON representation for downstream tooling.

This role blends UI engineering with data integrity work. The editor must stay responsive on large graphs, preserve correctness (IDs, validation, export format), as well as support collaboration workflows through version control integrations.

This is a part-time, hybrid, freelance/contract role. Hours:

• 1st 60 days: 20-40 hours per week


• Ongoing: 10-20 hours (minimum) per week

What You’ll Do

• Build and maintain a React + TypeScript UI for a graph editor (node/edge creation, selection, multi-select, drag/drop, property panels)


• Implement schema-driven validation and export (JSON Schema / AJV), ensuring stable, backwards-compatible outputs as schemas evolve


• Improve performance and reliability for large graphs (rendering, minimizing re-renders, preventing UI jitter, safe persistence)


• Support workflows around identity/ID rules, including ID generation, transformations on copy/paste/import, and “minting/locking” behaviors that freeze certain fields once finalized


• Maintain integrations used in real production workflows: 




• GitLab API (branching, committing files, MR workflows)


• Methods API (catalog sync, offline fallback, validation that blocks pushes when API is down)


• Authentication (Okta)




• Ship small-to-medium features end-to-end: UI, state changes, validation, tests, and docs


• Triage bugs from real users (manufacturing/process engineers), reproduce quickly, and implement safe fixes


• Add/maintain unit tests (Jest + TS) around tricky logic (ID transformation, export validation, API sync behavior)


• Keep the build/lint/test pipeline healthy (Vite, TypeScript, ESLint, Jest) and handle dependency upgrades carefully


• Collaborate asynchronously with a cross-functional team (process, production, AI) through clear PRs, strong commit hygiene, and pragmatic technical decisions


• Tools/Stack You’ll Work With: React 18, TypeScript, Vite, Tailwind CSS, ReactFlow, AJV (JSON Schema), Jest, ESLint, GitLab API, OpenAPI, Okta

What You’ll Need

• Experience building complex, stateful UI systems (not CRUD/dashboard apps)


• Strong React + TypeScript with state management + performance optimization


• Experience with graph/diagram editors or similar interaction-heavy UIs


• Experience with large in-memory data + UI/data synchronization


• Experience with validation systems + deterministic outputs (schema, exports)


• Strong debugging in complex systems + ability to explain tradeoffs


• Experience leading complex, ambiguous problems across cross-functional teams with multiple stakeholders

Bonus Points For:

• Manufacturing background (MES, process planning, CAD/CAM adjacent tooling, “recipes/methods/catalog” concepts)


• JSON Schema / AJV experience and comfort with strict data contracts


• GitLab API experience, auth systems (Okta/OIDC), or “internal tool” deployment constraints