DTW Architects & Planners

What DTW Architects & Planners does

DTW Architects & Planners, Ltd. is a privately held, locally-owned architectural design firm founded in 1978 by DePasquale, Thompson, and Wilson, headquartered at 3333 Durham Chapel Hill Blvd, Suite D100 in Durham, North Carolina. The firm operates with a small team of approximately 9 to 11 employees and serves government, institutional, educational, religious, community, and nonprofit clients across North Carolina's Research Triangle and Central North Carolina. Its practice spans seven service areas: Community Projects, Historic Preservation and Renovation, Public/Governmental Projects, Master Planning, Educational Facilities (Pre-K through university level), Religious Facilities, and Interior Design, with particular depth in adaptive reuse of historic structures and sustainable design evidenced by LEED Silver and Gold certified projects.

The firm's underlying technology consists of conventional architectural design and CAD-based workflows executed by a dedicated CAD Technician, supplemented by domain expertise in federal historic preservation guidelines and LEED certification processes. Notable technical differentiators include the firm's "Comprehensive Programming Phase" methodology, its four-time Environmental Awards recognition, and its membership in the U.S. Green Building Council. The firm has delivered landmark projects such as the Neuse River Resource Recovery Facility (the City of Raleigh's first LEED-certified building, 2009), Sandy Ridge Elementary and Lucas Middle School (both LEED Gold), and the adaptive reuse of the historic Durham Arts Council building.

DTW generates revenue through project-based professional services fees for architectural design, renovation, master planning, and interior design, with no public pricing, no disclosed revenue figures, and no external investors. Its go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven, anchored in four decades of local presence and direct engagement with clients, NC contractors, and review agencies. Customer work is distributed across multiple named clients including Carol Woods Retirement Community, Westminster Baptist Church, KIPP Durham, Duke School, the Durham Arts Council, and the Durham County Utilities Administration Building.

Name

DTW Architects & Planners

Legal name

DTW Architects & Planners, Ltd.

Website

https://dtwarch.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1978

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

DTW Architects & Planners is a small, privately held architectural firm founded in 1978 and based in Durham, NC. It provides design, historic preservation, master planning, and interior design services to government, educational, religious, and community clients across North Carolina's Research Triangle.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architectural Design Services

NAICS

Architectural Services (54131), Architectural Services (541310), Interior Design Services (54141), Interior Design Services (541410), Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413)

akta.pro primary industry

Architectural Design Services (BPAHAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Interior Design Services (BPAHAKAB)

Keywords

• Architectural design services
• Historic preservation design
• Master planning services
• LEED certified design
• Educational facility design

Headquarters

HQ city

Durham

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Architectural Design Services: Professional architectural services including design, renovation, master planning, and interior design for community, historic, public, educational, and religious projects. Revenue is generated through project-based fees for architectural services.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

DTW Architects & Planners is a small, locally-owned architectural design firm providing full-service architectural design, renovation, master planning, and interior design across community, historic, public, educational, and religious projects. Founded in 1978 in Durham, NC, the firm guides clients through the design and building process from start to finish, with particular expertise in historic preservation and LEED-certified sustainable design. The firm serves government agencies, educational institutions, religious organizations, and community clients in North Carolina's Research Triangle region.

Product overview

DTW Architects & Planners is a single-service architectural design firm offering comprehensive design services across seven specialized areas: Community (small businesses and organizations), Historic Preservation & Renovation, Public/Governmental (institutional and infrastructure), Master Planning, Educational Facilities (Pre-K through university), Religious Facilities (multiple denominations), and Interior Design. The firm, founded in 1978 by DePasquale, Thompson, and Wilson, provides end-to-end architectural services from programming through construction administration, specializing in sustainable design and historic preservation. Notable projects include Carol Woods Retirement Community, Kent Corner commercial development, Forest History Society headquarters, and multiple LEED-certified educational and public buildings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Architectural Design Services Full-service architectural design covering community, historic, public, master planning, educational, religious, and interior design projects. The firm guides clients through the entire design and building process from start to finish, serving government agencies, educational institutions, religious organizations, and community clients.
• Community Projects Design services for small businesses and organizations including commercial developments, retail spaces, and community facilities such as Carol Woods Retirement Community and Kent Corner.
• Historic Preservation & Renovation Renovation and adaptive re-use of historic buildings in accordance with federal historic preservation guidelines, including the Durham Arts Council, Hayti Heritage Center, and Kimbrell Building.
• Public/Governmental Projects Governmental, institutional and infrastructure projects including the Durham County Utilities Administration Building (2019-present), EMS stations, stadiums, and utility facilities.
• Master Planning Comprehensive campus planning services addressing current and long-range needs including expansions, renovations, and way-finding for retirement communities, commercial developments, and educational institutions.
• Educational Facilities Design for educational spaces from Pre-K through university level, including elementary schools, middle schools, and charter schools such as KIPP Durham Middle School and Lucas Middle School (LEED Gold).
• Religious Facilities Design services for religious buildings across multiple denominations, including sanctuaries, fellowship halls, education wings, and complete campus renovations such as Westminster Baptist Church.
• Interior Design Interior design services for commercial and office spaces, including renovations and tenant fit-outs such as the Cognitech project.

Quantifiable outcome

• First LEED-certified building for the City of Raleigh (Neuse River Resource Recovery Facility, LEED Silver, 2009)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Fielding-Nare InternationalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDTW Architects worked with Fielding-Nare International (architects) to create a Master Plan for Duke School. Together, over the course of many meetings, principals of the two firms led a group of Duke School administrators and staff in thinking about space usage for educating pre-K to 8th-grade students.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• LS3P Associates: Multi-office architecture firm with a strong NC presence serving education, civic, and cultural clients across the Southeast. Comparable in segment focus but larger in scale than DTW.
• Stewart Cooper Newell Architects: NC-headquartered architecture firm with strong education, government, and commercial practice serving public-sector clients in the Carolinas. Closely comparable client base.
• Walter Robbs Callahan & Pierce: Winston-Salem-based architecture firm serving education, healthcare, and community clients across North Carolina. Comparable regional institutional practice.
• BBH Design: Raleigh-headquartered mid-sized architectural firm with similar education, healthcare, and community practice areas serving NC institutional clients. Closely comparable business model and target market.
• Smith Sinnett Architecture: Raleigh-based architecture firm focused on education, civic, and community projects across North Carolina. Closely comparable scale, segment focus, and regional market.

Broad incumbents

• HKS: Large national architecture firm with significant education and civic practice and NC presence. Represents the upper bound of competitive pressure on DTW's institutional RFPs.
• Perkins&Will: Global architecture firm with an active NC practice serving education and healthcare institutional clients. Competes with DTW on larger institutional projects while offering broader capabilities.

Regional players

• Cline Design Associates: Raleigh-based architecture and planning firm offering community, education, and municipal projects in NC. Similar size and practice mix, with adjacent urban planning capability.
• Tise-Hiner Associates: Smaller NC-based architecture firm with comparable community and institutional practice in the Research Triangle region. Directly competes at the smaller end of the same RFP pool.
• Clearscapes Architecture: Durham, NC-based architectural firm of comparable size focused on community, civic, and adaptive reuse projects in the Research Triangle. Direct geographic and segment overlap with DTW.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dtw-architects-planners

Compliance8 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 DTW Architects & Planners