What Daedalus Structural Engineering does

Daedalus Structural Engineering is a boutique structural engineering firm headquartered in Saratoga, California with a secondary office in San Jose, providing structural design and engineering services for new construction, seismic evaluation, historic preservation, and specialty structures across the Bay Area and Northern California. The firm's core technical capabilities span five specialty niches: mass timber construction (CLT, GLT, and NLT systems), shoring design (deep soil mix, soldier piles with tiebacks, underpinning), BIM-driven 3D modeling using Revit, Tekla, ArchiCAD, and Rhino with 3D printing for connection prototyping, historic preservation and seismic renovation including base isolation technology, and structural engineering for sculptural and art installations. Two proprietary productized offerings — TimberQuest, the first pre-approved prefabricated CLT classroom system with over-the-counter permitting through the California Division of State Architecture, and the SAFE Foundation System co-developed with Arx Pax for climate-resilient foundations — extend the firm beyond pure project services into repeatable systems.

The firm's client base is concentrated among tier-one Bay Area architectural practices (Walker Warner Architects, Aidlin Darling Design, NBBJ) and their institutional, governmental, and private clients, including UC Berkeley, Apple, Quintessa Winery, City of Mountain View, and UCSB. Revenue is generated on a project-by-project professional services basis, with fees determined by scope and complexity; pricing is not publicly disclosed. The firm operates without outside equity capital and is led by principal Doug Robertson P.E., S.E. alongside a team of nine named engineers and business development staff, with partnerships extending capability in mass timber (Fast + Epp), composites (William Kreysler & Associates), and resilient foundations (Arx Pax). Distribution is direct and referral-driven, supported by an award-laden project portfolio and earned media coverage in Dwell, Architectural Record, Luxe Magazine, and AIA/SEAOC design awards.

Name

Daedalus Structural Engineering

Legal name

Daedalus Structural Engineering

Website

https://daedalus-eng.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Daedalus Structural Engineering is a Saratoga, California-based boutique structural engineering firm specializing in mass timber, shoring, seismic isolation, and historic preservation for Bay Area architects, institutions, and developers, with named offerings TimberQuest and SAFE Foundation System.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Structural Engineering Services

NAICS

Engineering Services (541330), Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Civil & Structural Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAA)

Keywords

• Structural engineering services
• Mass timber construction
• Seismic retrofit design
• Historic preservation engineering
• Building information modeling

Headquarters

HQ city

San Jose

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Structural Engineering Services: Professional engineering services for building projects including new construction, seismic evaluation, historic renovation, and specialty structures. Projects are typically billed on a per-project basis with fees based on scope and complexity.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Daedalus Structural Engineering is a boutique structural engineering firm providing professional structural design and consulting for new construction, seismic evaluation and strengthening, historic renovation and preservation, sustainable design, and implementation of energy dissipation technologies. Core niche specialties include mass timber construction (CLT, GLT, NLT systems), shoring design, BIM-driven modeling, sculptural/artistic structural engineering, and named proprietary offerings TimberQuest and the SAFE Foundation System.

Product overview

Daedalus Structural Engineering is a boutique structural engineering firm offering a portfolio of interconnected engineering services. The core offerings include Mass Timber Construction (CLT, GLT, NLT systems), Shoring Design (deep soil mix, soldier piles, tiebacks), BIM and 3D Modeling Services (Revit, Tekla, ArchiCAD), Historic Preservation and Seismic Renovation, and Structural Engineering Consulting for residential, commercial, civic, and educational projects. Notable named offerings include TimberQuest, a pre-approved prefabricated CLT classroom system, and the SAFE Foundation System developed with Arx Pax for resilient foundations. The firm also engineers architectural sculpt and art installations. The company operates from offices in Saratoga and San Jose, California.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• TimberQuest™: A proprietary prefabricated Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) classroom solution developed by Daedalus that received pre-checked approval status from the Division of State Architecture, allowing for over-the-counter permitting. First deployed at Sacred Heart Prep School in Atherton.

Quantifiable outcome

• TimberQuest enabled over-the-counter permitting and 11-week construction from ground to ribbon cutting
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Fast + EppcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTeamed with Fast + Epp, a Vancouver BC structural engineering firm with extensive mass timber expertise (90+ national and international awards), to pursue and deliver mass timber construction projects in California. Collaboration on projects including Ohana Montage Health Facility and Twin 12-Story Mass Timber Towers.
• Arx PaxminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with Arx Pax to develop the SAFE (Self Adjusting Floating Environment) foundation system - a resilient, sustainable precast concrete foundation for flood, sea level rise, and earthquake protection.
• William Kreysler & AssociatescoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerFabricator and contractor specializing in composite materials. Collaborated on Guastavino seismic strengthening (Hearst Memorial Mining Building) using epoxy-fiberglass composite ribs and on historic courthouse FRP restoration.
• XL ConstructionminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorConstruction partner for TimberQuest prefabricated classroom projects including Sacred Heart Prep School.
• Malcolm DrillingminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerShoring contractor for UCB Hearst Memorial Mining Building project, responsible for drilled pier installation.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• DCI Engineers: Mid-to-large US structural engineering consultancy with West Coast presence, covering residential, commercial, civic, and mass timber. Comparable in service mix, larger in scale and geographic reach.
• KPFF Consulting Engineers: Large West Coast-rooted structural and civil engineering firm with a San Francisco office and broad practice including mass timber, civic, and transportation work. A scaled incumbent competing for similar Bay Area commissions.
• Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates: National engineering firm specializing in investigation, rehabilitation, and preservation of existing structures. Strong overlap with Daedalus' historic preservation and seismic retrofit services at a larger scale.
• Arup: Global engineering consultancy with significant structural, seismic, and mass timber practices (e.g., SOM-adjacent timber towers). A broad incumbent that increasingly competes for high-end sustainable and seismic commissions.
• Simpson Gumpertz & Heger: National structural engineering and building envelope firm with strong seismic, historic preservation, and failure-investigation practices. A scaled peer in Daedalus' core seismic and preservation niches.

Direct peers

• Holmes Structures: San Francisco-based structural engineering firm with strong seismic, historic, and high-end residential portfolio. Comparable boutique-to-mid-scale peer serving Bay Area architects and developers.
• Fast + Epp: Vancouver-based structural engineering firm specializing in mass timber with 90+ national and international awards. Daedalus' explicit mass timber partner; directly comparable in CLT/GLT/NLT expertise and project profile.
• Rutherford & Chekene: Bay Area structural engineering consultancy with deep historic preservation and seismic retrofit practice. Doug Robertson's prior firm and a direct functional peer in seismic isolation and complex renovation work.
• Tipping Structural Engineers: Bay Area structural firm known for seismic engineering, mass timber, and innovative structural systems. Closely overlaps with Daedalus in residential, civic, and academic projects in Northern California.
• Maffei Structural Engineering: San Francisco boutique structural firm serving architects on residential, civic, and cultural projects with seismic expertise. Directly comparable boutique peer in Bay Area market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/DaedalusStructural
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/daedalus-structural-engineering

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Daedalus Structural Engineering