DiMella Shaffer
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1965
- HeadquartersBoston, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
DiMella Shaffer firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- DiMella Shaffer
- Legal name
- DiMella Shaffer
- Website
- https://dimellashaffer.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1965
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
DiMella Shaffer industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Architectural and Interior Design Services
- NAICS
- Architectural Services (541310), Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413)
- SIC
- Services-Engineering Services (8711)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Community Engagement & Participatory Planning (BPAHAKAO)
Keywords
Where DiMella Shaffer is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Boston
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
DiMella Shaffer business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Architecture and Interior Design Services: Professional architecture, interior design, and planning services for building projects across multiple sectors including academic, senior living, residential, science+tech, workplace, and interiors. Revenue generated through design fees for new construction, renovation, and adaptive reuse projects.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
DiMella Shaffer product offering
Product offeringCore offering
DiMella Shaffer is a full-service architecture, interior design, and planning firm delivering new construction, renovation, and adaptive reuse projects across academic, senior living, residential, science+tech, and workplace sectors. Services are integrated with deep expertise in sustainable, high-performance building design, including passive house certification (Phius CORE 2021), LEED-certified design, mass timber structural systems, Massachusetts energy code compliance, and early-stage energy modeling. The firm is engaged directly by institutional owners and developers on a project-by-project basis through negotiated professional services contracts.
Product overview
DiMella Shaffer is a full-service architecture, interior design, and planning firm based in Boston, MA. Their core offerings span architecture design services and interior design across five market sectors: Academic, Science + Tech, Senior Living, Residential, and Workplace. The firm's service architecture combines core design services with specialized modules including Passive House design consulting (via Phius CORE 2021), energy code compliance services (with energy code maps and decision trees), mass timber design (participating in BPDA/BSA Mass Timber Accelerator Program), and early-stage energy modeling using Sefaira. Projects range from new construction to adaptive reuse, with notable focus on sustainable, high-performance buildings targeting LEED certification and passive house standards.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Architecture Design Services Full-service architecture design for new construction, renovation, and adaptive reuse projects across academic, science+tech, senior living, residential, and workplace market sectors.
- Interior Design Services Interior design services integrated with architectural projects, covering space planning, finishes, furnishings, and tenant fit-outs for institutional and workplace clients.
- Planning Services Precinct planning and campus master planning for academic and residential communities, supporting long-horizon capital plans and multiphase developments.
Quantifiable outcome
- Crimson Hall uses 23% less energy and 30% less water than similar residence halls
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use DiMella Shaffer
Customer profileNamed customers15 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
DiMella Shaffer technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature6 records
DiMella Shaffer partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
16 partnerships are on record, tiered core, supporting and flagship.
- WSPcoreMechanical engineering partner for the first Passive House certified medical office building project in the U.S. WSP collaborated with DiMella Shaffer to determine building ventilation requirements and compliance pathways for the 4-story, 110,000 SF ambulatory care center in Quincy Center.
- Steven Winter AssociatescoreSustainability consultant guiding the core and shell and tenant fit-out for the Passive House certified medical office building. Partnered with DiMella Shaffer to navigate Phius CORE 2021 certification pathway.
- SwegonsupportingProvider of React Dampers for the Passive House medical office building project. These dampers reduce ventilation by 50% during unoccupied hours, contributing to energy efficiency goals.
- Boston Planning & Development Agency (BPDA)flagshipCo-creator of the Mass Timber Accelerator Program with Boston Society of Architects. BPDA provided grant funding and technical feedback for seven selected Boston-area projects including DiMella Shaffer's Project Q.
- Boston Society of Architects (BSA)flagshipCo-creator of the Mass Timber Accelerator Program with BPDA. Facilitated weekly group meetings, midpoint and final pin-up presentations, and final report development for participating architects, engineers, and contractors.
- Project Q CommunitiescoreDeveloper partner for Project Q mass timber LGBTQ-friendly senior housing at Suffolk Downs in East Boston. Project Q Communities partnered with OnePoint Partners and HYM Investment Group on this 205-unit development.
- OnePoint PartnerscoreDeveloper partner for Project Q mass timber senior housing development at Suffolk Downs, East Boston. One of three development partners including Project Q Communities and HYM Investment Group.
- HYM Investment GroupcoreDeveloper partner for Project Q mass timber senior housing at Suffolk Downs, East Boston. Part of the development consortium with Project Q Communities and OnePoint Partners.
- L.A. FuesssupportingStructural engineers for Project Q mass timber project who collaborated with DiMella Shaffer to develop typical bay spacing of 25', 16', 25' across the building width.
- Andropogon (Philadelphia)coreLandscape architecture partner for Phoebe Ministries 254-acre campus project in Wernersville, PA. Andropogon worked with DiMella Shaffer on design inspired by agricultural and spiritual history of the site.
- Holst ArchitecturesupportingArchitecture partner for Olympia Place project in Amherst, MA. DiMella Shaffer collaborated with Holst Architecture of Portland, OR on this 98,000 SF wood construction student housing building.
- Walsh BrotherscoreConstruction management partner for Marsh Hall project at Salem State University. Teamed with DiMella Shaffer to meet delivery, schedule, and budget requirements for the 535-bed residence hall.
- Cutler AssociatescoreConstruction management partner for Hawk Hall project at University of Hartford. DiMella Shaffer worked in association with Cutler Associates on the 210-bed undergraduate residence hall.
- MacRostie Historic AdvisorssupportingHistoric preservation consultants for Mystic Waterworks Pumping Station adaptive reuse project. MHA helped navigate Secretary of Interior's Standards and coordinated with Massachusetts Historical Commission and National Park Service for historic tax credit compliance.
- Pennrose CompaniescoreNational housing developer and repeat client on multiple projects including The Pryde (LGBTQ-affirming senior housing), Mary D. Stone Senior Apartments, and other affordable and market-rate housing developments.
- LGBTQ Senior Housing InccoreNon-profit partner founded in 2018 focused on providing safe and affirming housing for LGBTQ older adults. Co-developer with Pennrose on The Pryde, New England's first LGBTQ-affirming affordable senior housing.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
DiMella Shaffer competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- NBBJ: National architecture firm with significant higher education and healthcare/senior living practices. Competes for institutional mandates with broader geographic footprint and larger scale.
- CannonDesign: National architecture firm with deep senior living, healthcare, and academic expertise. Directly competes in senior living design with greater geographic reach and consolidated service offerings.
- Perkins&Will: Large global architecture firm with a strong Boston presence serving academic, healthcare, and senior living clients. Competes on sustainability credentials but offers broader geographic reach and service lines.
- HGA (Hammel, Green and Abrahamson): National architecture and engineering firm with deep senior living, healthcare, and academic practices. Comparable in scale and serves similar institutional client base across multiple geographies.
Direct peers
- Sasaki Associates: Boston-based planning, architecture, and landscape design firm with significant higher education and urban planning practices. Comparable in size and scope, serving academic and institutional clients in New England.
- EwingCole: Mid-sized architecture firm with comparable senior living, healthcare, and academic practices. Similar scale and direct competition in institutional design markets, including senior living.
- Payette: Boston-based architecture firm specializing in academic, healthcare, and science+tech facilities with strong sustainability credentials. Directly competes with DiMella Shaffer in the same New England higher education and institutional markets.
- Stevens & Wilkinson: Architecture and engineering firm with academic and senior living practices. Comparable mid-size firm competing for institutional projects with similar service offerings.
- SMMA (Symmes Maini & McKee Associates): Cambridge, MA-based architecture, engineering, and interiors firm with comparable academic and institutional client base. Similar employee scale and regional New England focus as DiMella Shaffer.
Regional players
- LLB Architects: Pacific Northwest architecture firm specializing in senior living, multifamily, and academic projects. Comparable in scale and senior living focus but operates in different regional geography.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
DiMella Shaffer social profiles
Digital presenceDiMella Shaffer compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
DiMella Shaffer financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
DiMella Shaffer leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
DiMella Shaffer funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
DiMella Shaffer M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about DiMella Shaffer
What does DiMella Shaffer do?
DiMella Shaffer is a full-service architecture, interior design, and planning firm delivering new construction, renovation, and adaptive reuse projects across academic, senior living, residential, science+tech, and workplace sectors. Services are integrated with deep expertise in sustainable, high-performance building design, including passive house certification (Phius CORE 2021), LEED-certified design, mass timber structural systems, Massachusetts energy code compliance, and early-stage energy modeling. The firm is engaged directly by institutional owners and developers on a project-by-project basis through negotiated professional services contracts.
Is DiMella Shaffer a public or private company?
DiMella Shaffer is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was DiMella Shaffer founded?
DiMella Shaffer was founded in 1965. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is DiMella Shaffer based?
DiMella Shaffer is headquartered in Boston, United States, in the North America region.
How does DiMella Shaffer make money?
One revenue line is on record: architecture and Interior Design Services.
Who are DiMella Shaffer's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are NBBJ, CannonDesign, Perkins&Will and HGA (Hammel, Green and Abrahamson). Direct peers are Sasaki Associates, EwingCole, Payette, Stevens & Wilkinson and SMMA (Symmes Maini & McKee Associates). LLB Architects is listed as a regional player.
Does DiMella Shaffer have an API?
No public API is recorded for DiMella Shaffer.
What industry is DiMella Shaffer in?
DiMella Shaffer's product category is Architectural and Interior Design Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHAKAO, Community Engagement & Participatory Planning. Its NAICS code is 541310 and its SIC code is 8711.