We're not your typical architecture studio

Honestly, we got tired of seeing beautiful old industrial buildings get torn down just to throw up another glass box. There's gotta be a better way, right?

Heritage restoration project

How we started

Back in 2012, our founder Sarah Chen was working on yet another cookie-cutter condo project when she drove past this incredible 1920s foundry being demolished. Something just clicked - or broke, really.

She quit two weeks later and started Pyrelith Forge with a simple idea: what if we could blend the bones and character of old industrial spaces with genuinely sustainable modern design? Not just slap some solar panels on a roof and call it green.

Turns out, a lot of folks were thinking the same thing. We've grown from Sarah and her drafting table to a team of 18 architects, engineers, and designers who actually give a damn about both history and the future.

What drives us

Look, we could fill this with corporate speak about "synergy" and "paradigm shifts." Instead, here's what actually matters to us when we show up on Monday morning.

Buildings have stories

Every old structure we work with has this whole narrative - the people who built it, worked in it, walked through it. Tearing that down to start from scratch? That's lazy. We'd rather dig into that history and give it a new chapter.

Green isn't a gimmick

Sustainability's gotten so watered down it barely means anything anymore. For us? It's passive solar orientation, reclaimed materials, actual LEED certification - the stuff that makes a measurable difference, not just good PR.

Function over flash

Yeah, our buildings look good - we're not gonna pretend aesthetics don't matter. But if a space doesn't actually work for the people using it? Who cares how many design awards it wins. We design for humans, not Instagram.

Honest conversations

We're gonna tell you when your budget doesn't match your vision, or when that feature you saw on Pinterest won't work structurally. It's not about saying no - it's about finding better solutions together.

Our journey so far

From a one-person operation to where we are now - here's the highlights reel.

2012
Studio founding

Started from scratch

Sarah opens Pyrelith Forge in a shared workspace on Queen West. First project: converting an old print shop into artist lofts. Budget was tight, but we learned a ton about working with existing structures.

2015
Heritage restoration

Breaking through

Landed the Distillery District brewery restoration - our first major heritage project. Took forever dealing with historical societies and permits, but man, seeing that 1890s brick come back to life was worth every headache.

2018
Team expansion

Growing pains

Moved into our current space on King West and hired our first full team. Added structural engineers, sustainability consultants, and enough coffee makers to fuel late-night rendering sessions. Got our LEED certification too.

2021
Recognition

Getting noticed

Won the OAA Award for Excellence in sustainable design for the Junction warehouse conversion. Also started getting calls from developers who actually cared about doing things right - not just checking boxes.

2025
Present day

Today and tomorrow

We're 18 people now, working on everything from residential retrofits to major commercial restorations. Still in Toronto, still focused on the same mission - just with better tools and a lot more experience under our belts.

Want to work with us?

Whether you've got a historic building that needs some love or you're planning a new sustainable project, let's grab coffee and talk about it. No pressure, just honest conversation about what's possible.

Get in touch