Framing Carpenter

This is Precision Carpentry

Would you like to work on projects where construction quality and precision are prioritized over cost and speed? Where health, durability, and sustainability are uncompromised features of every finished project? Would you like to make a genuine difference in the built environment?

Most carpenters know how it goes. Value engineering drives most residential build projects to code minimum for everything you can’t see. But Kala works differently.

We design and build custom high-performance homes, sizable renovations, and deep-energy retrofits across the greater Kansas City region, and every Kala home has a performance target that depends entirely on the structure our framing team builds. Conventional framing is what the inspector checks. Kala framing is what the homeowner notices every morning for the next fifty years. At Kala the standard isn’t “good enough to pass inspection.” It’s an envelope that consistently tests under 1.0 ACH50 and often exceeds the Phius certification target of 0.6 ACH50.

One team, end to end

Kala is a unique, in-house team of architects, designers, framing and finish carpenters, and Phius Certified passive house specialists fully committed to redefining how the built environment can positively impact our world. When a window rough opening or an air-barrier transition doesn’t work in the field, you don’t send an RFI and wait. You solve it with the architect and Phius consultant who designed it.

What you’ll build

We are not looking for production carpenters. You will be on an industry-defining framing team responsible for the most critical component of a high-performance structure: the building envelope, where performance is won or lost. You’ll execute air-sealing strategies targeting 0.6 ACH50, apply continuous exterior insulation, vapor control, and rainscreen and cladding systems that add decades to a building’s life, and install thermally broken, high-performance windows and doors detailed to keep air and water out for the life of the house.

Every detail — every transition, every penetration, every fastener pattern — is intentional. You will work from construction drawings, shop drawings, and specs, and you will understand why each detail exists, not just how to execute it. Along the way, you’ll train on and work with the latest tools and techniques in the industry.

Who we’re looking for

You’ve spent years framing, and you’re ready for work that asks more of you than plumb, level, and square. You see high-performance building as a creative discipline, and you’d rather stop and get an air-barrier transition right than bury a detail you know is wrong. You adapt to field conditions without compromising standards, and you problem-solve in real time alongside your fellow Framing Carpenters.

You communicate clearly with your crew and subcontractors, and you keep the record straight with daily documentation of work performed, inspections, deliveries, and progress photos in our project management software. You own your part of a clean, safe, organized jobsite.

Most of all, you want to get better. Kala will train you on passive house principles, Phius certification standards, advanced building science, and the tools and techniques most framing carpenters will never touch. You bring hard-earned experience; we’ll invest in turning it into mastery. A willingness to learn how to build to passive house standards isn’t optional — it’s the whole point.

The basics

• 5+ years of carpentry or framing experience
• Genuine curiosity about high-performance and passive house construction — no formal training required
• Ability to read and interpret construction drawings and specifications
• Comfortable using a smartphone and basic field technology for daily documentation and communication
• Valid driver’s license, clean driving record, and current auto insurance
• Ability to work outdoors year-round in variable Kansas City weather conditions
• Ability to use ladders, operate hand and power tools, and lift a minimum of 50 lbs
• Strong communicator who works well in a collaborative, problem-solving environment
• Reliable, detail-oriented, and takes ownership of their work

Perks + Privileges

• Kala offers health, dental, and vision insurance
• Kala offers a 401K matching program that adds to your own tax-deferred retirement savings
• Kala offers every employee personal paid time off in addition to the standard US holidays
• Kala pays quarterly bonuses for hitting high-performance ACH and production targets
• Kala provides all major tools and supplies required to perform effectively