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Affordable, Low Income, and Transitional Housing
SSF is a passionate and committed partner for your affordable housing projects. Whether your project serves communities and households earning less than the area’s median income, seniors, veterans, housing-insecure, or those with chronic behavioral health needs, we have the experience to support your team. Contact your favorite SSF team member.
Eleanor Apartments
Bellingham, WA
Ethiopian Village Senior Apartments and Community Center
Seattle, WA
LIHI Dockside Apartments
Seattle, WA
Good Shepherd Senior Housing
Lynnwood, WA
Pallet Shelters – Rapid Shelter Solution for the Unhoused
Multiple Locations
Pride Place
Seattle, WA
The Southard
Tukwila, WA
Expertise
Every project benefits from our cumulative structural engineering experience.
Existing Buildings
We are passionate about existing structures. We give them the respect they deserve. Whether you need structural engineering for earthquake retrofits, historic preservation, adaptive reuse, PML studies, or building assessments, SSF is here for you.
Special Projects
Bring us your unique structural challenge. We dare you. Art installations. Climbing gyms. Fire escape testing. Float homes. Folding buildings. Mechanical upgrades. Park structures. Roof anchor testing. Seismic retrofits. Shipping containers. What else do you have?
PROJECTS
Projects Are What Inspire Us
Residential
Residential. Any Shape. Any Size.
Single Family
New or existing, we do it all. Half of our business is single family residential structural design. Earthquake evaluations. 2nd story additions. Remodels. New construction. A simple beam.
Multi-Family
Whether it’s 5-over-2, mid-rise, or renovating existing buildings, SSF has provided structural design for multi-family projects since 1995.
Testimonials
Why do you choose to work at SSF? "Flexibility, Flexibility, Flexibility! Also, a great group of engineers."
What makes SSF different from other engineers? "SSF is more concerned with keeping clients (and employees) happy than trying to make a quick buck. We push for quality in every job we do."
“I love getting up in the morning to go to a place where I love the people I work with. I am fascinated with the young, smart minds that work here and feel that I learn as much from them as they learn from me; and at the same time privileged to work with those that have been with us for many years. I have often heard that we 'don’t seem like engineers,' well that is just fine with me. We are 'engineers-for-the-people' - we can work with anyone.”
"We challenge our staff to push their own limits as much as they can."
"I get paid to do what I love to do, what I believe I have been made to do, for my friends and with my friends. If that isn’t motivation, I don’t know what is!"
"SSF is equitable and truly values the happiness of their employees. This is evident in the retention rate…people that work here stay here! We get great bonuses, time and a half for overtime, 401k contributions and pay nothing for health care."
Why do you choose to work at SSF? "We get to work on a wide range of interesting and meaningful projects with fantastic coworkers and clients. At SSF you're provided support and encouragement to grow in your career in a way that is most suited to you and your specific interests and passions."
"At SSF, the entire team is valued, from support staff, to IT and CAD, to technical staff. We provide a fun and relaxed atmosphere in which to excel. And most importantly ... who wouldn’t like a dog-friendly office?"
"Here's a quote I saw recently. 'God made structural engineers so architects can have heroes too.' "
"I like working here because of the great people, great leadership, fun projects, project variety, Tacoma location…great atmosphere. I keep working here for the same reasons. SSF's casual corporate vibe results in very productive, innovative and timely projects."
"It is rare to find a company that doesn’t pigeon-hole employees into a certain project type for the sake of 'efficiency'. SSF promotes diverse work experiences to help employees grow in their careers."
"I appreciate the company's community involvement, not only through our radio sponsorships with KUOW and KEXP, but our commitment to AIA, Design In Public, Washington Trust for Historic Preservation, Historic Seattle, SMPS Seattle, Food Lifeline, The BLOCK Project, and more!"
"When I was in grad school, I had a few classes with an SSF employee. He and I had similar personalities and he thought I would be a good fit. I love the work and the opportunity to design almost every project type you could imagine, from residential to retrofits to climbing gyms. I've been here since 2004 and am fortunate enough to be a shareholder. I think he was right!"
"I’m given the autonomy to do what I was hired to do: be an engineer and work with great colleagues and clients!"
Why do you choose to work at SSF? "Working at SSF is great because of the attentive mentorship, casual work environment, and variety of projects I work on every day. SSF has provided me with the tools and guidance to grow as a young structural engineer ten times over since my first day."
Why do you choose to work at SSF? "My desire was to be a part of a team that worked on cool projects, valued life outside of work, and had a happy and healthy work environment. I found just that (and more) with SSF!"
"I like working here because I have the freedom to explore my ideas. I came here because the opportunities for growth are unparalleled, and the atmosphere is relaxed and welcoming. I stay here because my coworkers are awesome, you can’t beat the perks and there’s a constant effort by SSF leadership to make things even better. Shareholders wholeheartedly support my volunteer efforts – and I get volunteer PTO!"
Why were you drawn to join the SSF Team and why do our clients choose to work with us? "SSF works on interesting and diverse projects, and values and invests in the employees. I wanted to be a part of that. For our clients, SSF brings creative solutions and a willingness to think outside-the-box to achieve project goals."
Why do you choose to work at SSF? "I love working at SSF! We get to work on interesting projects, my coworkers are fantastic, and I feel valued and supported as an employee. We do have great benefits, which is awesome, but it's the culture and work environment that have kept me here since 2013."
"SSF hits it out-of-the-park with communication and creative design. For all projects, we provide a personal commitment and a fun, collaborative experience."
"SSF Engineers all work on a variety of wood, steel, masonry and concrete projects. It is pretty special to get that kind of breadth of experience."
What makes SSF different from other engineers? "The variety of design philosophies, our appreciation for aesthetics, a building’s historical significance, and its impact on the community."
Why do our clients choose to work with us? "We value architectural character in both historic buildings and new construction and believe that the structure should work in concert with the architecture."
"Alternate Transportation Supported! SSF has bike racks and a shower for bicycle commuters!"
"SSF Engineers have a high level of responsibility on projects and are empowered to make important decisions and come up with creative solutions. We are not just plugging and chugging through calculations we’ve done 100 times."
Why do our clients choose to work with us? "We have a large range of project types that we work with regularly, and we are flexible when it comes to working out the specific needs of each client."
Why do our clients choose to work with us? "I think our clients like that we prioritize answering the phone and responding to emails even when things are busy. From what I hear, that's less common than you would expect!"
"SSF offers engineers the rare combination of diverse project types and scales with great clients in a fun, collaborative work environment. We enjoy thinking creatively and generating new approaches to resolve structural challenges."
"I look forward to going to SSF every morning. Our efforts are targeted toward producing the best work product possible for our clients. To do that, we focus on creating a work environment that fosters creativity and happiness among employees. That may mean wearing shorts and a t-shirt to work or bringing your dog. Being as comfortable and happy as we can be allows us to produce the best work possible. I believe this shows in our product."
What drew you to work at SSF, and why do our clients choose to work with us? "The SSF team is made up of genuine people who value aesthetics. We communicate well with our clients and work hard to find solutions to support their design - within the limits of Newtonian physics!"
What drew you to work at SSF, and why do you think our clients like to work with us? "I enjoy SSF's casual work environment, extra-large work spaces and the opportunity to work very independently. I think clients like to work with us because of our quick response time."
"We allow people to be themselves. I’m proud of the people we have and the work that we do every day."
What makes SSF different from other engineers? "SSF tends to have a “can do” attitude and we are quick to respond when contacted." Why were you drawn to join the SSF team? "I was recommended by another employee. I was immediately attracted to what I perceived to be a well-run company with competent leadership. Luckily this perception proved to be true!"
Why were you drawn to join the SSF team, and why do our clients choose to work with us? "SSF is a leader in local historic preservation AND we genuinely care about the communities where we work. From a client's perspective, we approach each project with an appreciation for what makes it unique. We don’t rely on “one size fits all” type solutions."
"I think clients like the fact that we have both talent and personality. We’re a smart group of individuals with varying interests, tons of character and stories to tell. We’re engaging, not stuffy."
Why do our clients choose to work with us? "We tend to say yes more than we say no, and we don’t always act like typical engineers."
