DAODanielson Architecture Office
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Flattened 360-degree photo looking up through the glulam frame of a DAO mass timber building under construction
Danielson Architecture Office · Sudbury + Ottawa

Architecture for industrial, commercial and residential buildings in Ontario.

DAO designs new buildings, additions and renovations. We specialise in mass timber, and we model cost while a design is still flexible, so owners can compare options before they commit.

Discuss a project See selected projects
  • OAA Certificate of Practice since 2017
  • Offices in Sudbury and Ottawa
  • Projects across Ontario

Trusted by

  • Bloomington Developments
  • Pandora
  • Habitat for Humanity
  • Dalron
  • Glamour by Krystal Beauty
  • Plumbing Warehouse
  • CAMX
  • Float Pod Spa
  • SNOLAB
  • Conrad Grenier CPA
  • Vale

Research funding from

  • Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC)
  • NORCAT
  • Mitacs
  • FPInnovations
  • Domtar
What we do

Three sectors, one way of working.

We take projects from site review and approvals through design, permit and construction administration, for owners, developers and families.

Double-height interior of the Cambrian Heights warehouse with glulam columns, beams and diagonal braces

Industrial

Warehouses, multi-tenant industrial buildings, additions and re-cladding. Built mass timber industrial work in Greater Sudbury, documented by the Canadian Wood Council.

7 projects
Long salon interior with styling stations, pendant lights and an exposed white ceiling

Commercial

Retail, salon, spa and office fit-ups and renovations, including fast-tracked approvals for tenants with an opening date to meet.

5 projects
Solarium framed in timber, open on three sides to autumn maple trees

Residential

Custom homes, additions, cottages and outdoor living, often phased so owners can stay in their homes and build over time.

7 projects
Specialty

Mass timber

Glulam and CLT structures for industrial, commercial and residential buildings, from first sketch to site.

Mass timber Specialty

Algorithmic costing

Spatial statistical models that show how cost moves as a design changes, while change is still cheap.

How it works Framework

Lantern Box

A method for adding a home above an existing house on its own independent frame.

Lantern Box Research

Material science

Applied research into cast smelter slag, folded paper structures and high-performance concrete.

Research
Algorithmic costing

See what a design change costs before you make it.

We build spatial statistical models of a project: the site, the structure and the building's main components, each linked to an approximate cost.

Change a storey height, add a bay, move the building on its site, and the model shows roughly how the cost responds. Some costs rise smoothly. Others jump in steps, like an extra row of footings or a larger mechanical unit. Seeing both early helps owners choose a direction while change is still inexpensive.

At Cambrian Heights, for example, a model of bedrock, fill and foundations was used to compare building positions and elevations on a rocky site before the layout was fixed.

On one project, early modelling identified more than $1 million in potential construction savings.

How our cost models work
Estimated construction cost
$2.48M
Starting point
10,800 ft² · 3 × 2 bays · 2 storeys at 14 ft
Illustrative ballpark figures for a simple timber-frame building on a 30 ft grid. A real model uses project-specific quantities and current local rates.
Rendering of a Lantern Box: a metal-clad, glazed upper storey supported on its own columns above an existing brick house
Lantern Box · one property, one idea

More home.
Same land.

Add a dwelling above an existing house, on its own frame.

Lantern Box places new living space over a house, supported by independent columns and foundations, so the existing home keeps carrying itself and can stay in use. It starts as a one-storey loft and can grow to two storeys.

  1. New frame firstColumns and foundations go in along the outside of the house.
  2. House stays intactThe addition is designed to touch the existing structure as little as possible.
  3. Shell before fit-outA closed, connected shell comes before any interior work.
  4. Plan for changeFloors, access and services are allowed for from the start.
Explore Lantern Box
Selected projects

Built work, current work and proposals.

Every project states what it is: completed, in design, a proposal or a concept. All 27 projects

Unhindered field access

A small practice with a large practical radius.

DAO has a company aircraft flown by our principal, Patrick Danielson. Our Sudbury and Ottawa offices are about an hour and a half apart by air.

  • Same-day site visits are possible across much of Ontario, weather permitting.
  • Lower travel time and cost on projects far from either office.
  • Easier scheduling of reviews and construction administration visits.
Aircraft
Pipistrel Virus
Cruise
273 km/h
Range
1,450 km
Flying range from DAO's Sudbury and Ottawa offices Map of Ontario and southern Quebec with rings at 200 and 400 kilometres around Sudbury and around Ottawa. The two offices are 426 kilometres apart in a straight line. Together the rings cover Toronto, Barrie, London, Kingston, North Bay, Timmins, Sault Ste. Marie and Montréal. 426 km, about 1 h 30 min Sudbury Ottawa Toronto Kingston London North Bay Timmins Sault Ste. Marie Montréal Québec City Barrie 200 km 400 km 200 km 400 km
  • 200 and 400 km from Sudbury
  • 200 and 400 km from Ottawa
Straight-line distances. Flights depend on weather and airfield access.
Evidence

Experience you can check.

“Their ability to translate our vision into practical, innovative, and aesthetically pleasing designs has ensured that all projects not only meet but often exceed our expectations.”
Bloomington Developments
Publication

Canadian Wood Council case study

DAO's industrial mass timber work is featured in Exploring the Role of Mass Timber in Industrial Buildings and Warehouse Construction.

Licensing

Ontario and British Columbia

OAA Certificate of Practice since 2017. Principal licensed with the OAA and AIBC, and a member of the RAIC.

Research

Patents and applied research

Two US patents for the Formid seat, applied research grants from Mitacs, NOHFC and FPInnovations, and a 2022 paper in Sensors.

The DAO team standing against a white wall: Jason Presse, Katherine Morawietz, Jeremy Upward and Patrick Danielson

Left to right: Jason Presse, Katherine Morawietz, Jeremy Upward, Patrick Danielson. Photo Amanda Thirkill.

Who we are

The people behind the work.

DAO brings together architecture, technical design and project coordination. We work closely with owners, engineers and builders from early options through approvals and construction.

  • Patrick DanielsonFounder and principal architect, OAA, AIBC, MRAIC
  • Jeremy UpwardChief technology officer, intern architect
  • Katherine MorawietzArchitect, OAA
  • Jason PresseArchitectural designer, intern architect
About the practice
Working with us

From first call to construction.

Most projects start with a short conversation and a look at the property. If the next step isn't clear yet, we start with a feasibility review.

  1. Property

    Site review, existing records, 3D scans and a map of the constraints.

  2. Planning

    Feasibility, rezoning, minor variances, site plan and other approvals.

  3. Design

    Concept options, cost modelling where useful, visualisation and documentation.

  4. Delivery

    Consultant coordination, building permit and construction administration.

Contact

Tell us about your project.

Send a few lines about the property and what you want to build. We'll reply to arrange a call.

Useful to include

  • The property address and what is there now
  • What you want to build or change, and roughly when
  • A budget range, if you have one
  • Any survey, drawings or photos you already have

Base office

217 Maki Avenue
Sudbury, ON P3E 2P3

Ottawa office

Ottawa, Ontario

Service area

Projects across Ontario, with most work in Greater Sudbury, Northern Ontario and the Ottawa region.