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DOS Design Group Profiles: Nicholas Petrie

DOS Design Group Profiles Nicholas Petrie- vancouver home designer - draft on site services inc - draft on site design group

DOS Design Group Profiles: Nicholas Petrie

Passionate, outspoken, innovative and knowledgeable are just a few terms that describe Nicholas Petrie, co-founder, Chief Business Development Officer, and Managing Director of DOS Design Group. This blog features a truly unique and inspiring individual, who is leading the building and construction industry.

 

How Nick Petrie’s interest in Custom Home Design was born

With a natural penchant for solving puzzles, one of Nick’s favourite activities is combining a client’s list of unique wishes, with the possibilities that a home or property presents. He revels in the task of designing a home that meets all of the specified requirements, while also being beautiful, comfortable, and complementary to its environment.

Character homes have a special place in Nick’s heart. One of his primary joys these days is looking at ageing character homes and figuring out how to restore them to their former glory, whether that entails restoring them completely to a period-appropriate finish; updating them yet maintain the original lines as much as possible; or mixing in a little modern elements to create a juxtaposition of features that shows a love of history with a desire for innovation.

 

Why Nick founded DOS Design Group

Originally interested in launching a different startup, Nick’s entryway into what was then called Draft On Site Services Inc. started with some research into the real estate industry. This led him to realize that there was a shift in thinking in building and design, that people were starting to realize that the quality and longevity of a building was important since building something to last for only 10 to 20 years didn’t make sense for an asset that was so expensive. Nick deduced that quality plans, which resulted in fewer deficiencies on a project, would start to be valued by the industry. And so they were.

Alongside his partner Shira Rosenberg, Nick launched what is now DOS Design Group, with his focus being as-built site documentation, interior design, 3D renderings, space planning and much more. 

Since then, Nick and Shira, along with the rest of the DOS Design Group team, have constantly tried to learn more and continuously improve our work and the services we provide.

 

Nick’s role at DOS Design Group

As Chief Business Development Officer, Nick decides on how the company will evolve as an organization and determines the path the company will take to get there. He leads the company’s sales team and is involved in networking events in order to develop relationships with other organizations, companies and governments.

Nick’s daily activities include researching potential projects to do our due diligence prior to producing a proposal for a project; writing proposals; and overseeing the initial research, concepts and designs for some of the projects. 

He is also often the Government Relations contact if there is a portion of a project that needs to be discussed with the City prior to submitting for Permit.

A voice leading the local building industry, Nick attends a number of councils, panels, workshops or other sessions with regard to the construction and design industries, especially to consult on how to maintain a culture of improvement and promote high-performance design standards like Passive House, Net-Zero and Zero Emissions. 

He sits on the Advisory Design Panel for the City of North Vancouver as the Construction Representative where he provides input on the functionality of a design, and its energy efficiency, as well as voting on whether the project should be allowed to continue on the Development Review Process or if it should be reworked before being allowed to have another review.

The uniqueness of each new project and finding solutions to problems are what keep Nick’s excitement and passion for his work ignited day after day – finding solutions when there are regulations that can impact a project and even when governments need solutions to how to regulate a matter and need an elegant solution.  

DOS Design Group Profiles Nicholas Petrie- vancouver home designer - draft on site services inc - draft on site design group

 

Nick’s design background and philosophy

Initially drafting designs on paper for his father’s renovation company, Nick learned design from the ground up, by calculating the materials take-offs, figuring out in advance what would be needed to complete a project, and if there was going to be any special construction details needed. 

Since then, he has taken many courses on a number of design topics ranging from Building Code, thermal comfort, windows, building envelope, lighting design, interior design, Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) and Passive House Design. He graduated from UBC in Project Management, with a 4.0 GPA.  

Today, Nick oversees and provide input on over 100 projects in a given year.

 

“No ego” design philosophy

“The design is about the Client not about me, so long as their objectives align with the regulations then it doesn’t matter what those objectives are. 

It’s the most important thing because at the end of the day they are going to be using it every day, so their needs and wants are the most important.

This philosophy also aligns with my belief that all styles of buildings can be beautiful if you can just find the right details, accents and contrasts.” 

 

What about Integrated Design? 

According to Nick, Integrated Design is all about making sure that everyone involved in a project has all of the information they need and he believes that asking questions early is fundamentally important. 

As such, part of DOS Design Group’s process on every project is to advise the Client up-front on which Professionals we should engage and what point in the project it is essential to do so.  

 

The intrinsic values that make Nick a leader in the industry 

The weight Nick places on long-term durability and functionality in design, as well as energy efficiency and self-sufficiency, are some of the core values that position him as a thought leader in the design and construction industries. Waste is a concept he doesn’t see any need for; as the cost of energy is due to rise in coming years, demand for high-performance homes will only increase. This is a move that will improve the industry, the lives of homeowners, and the environment for years to come.

Learn more about Nick and the rest of the DOS Design Group team on our Team page.

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