DRAMS has been fantastic to work with! From my first call with Coco, I felt supported, she offered a fair quote and really understood our small business needs. Al impressed me on-site with their 3D digital capturing and BIM modeling workflow, which ensured extremely precise measurements for our plans. Daniel, our project manager, was incredibly responsive and guided us through the entire city permitting process step by step. Thanks to their team, our plans are approved and construction is underway. If you need a reliable and transparent architectural firm that also offers interior design and construction, I highly recommend DRAMS! read more

I would give 100 stars if I could. Al and his team is awesome Very much trustworthy, easy and flexible to work with. They dealt with me with emapathy and made my project an easy brezzy for me. Very professional, yet caring and has cutting edge technology to create AutoCAD drawing. Reasonable price and you save lot of time because they are good and use technology to save time for us and them. You will feel so good by working with such a high quality people. I don't write reviews unless someone exceeded my expectations. Hire them...You will be glad you did. read more

I worked with Al, Lyn & Daniel at Drams Development. They are easy to work with, on time and well priced. read more

Great team to work with, from the initial call to finishing the project, they help my parents to do their project very smoothly

I wanted to update my review. I've started the process of working with this team and all I can say is WOW. Daniel is my PM/ POC, AL and Molly who did initial mtgs and assessment, are all extremely professional, efficient and overall good human beings. In this day and age it's hard to find people who just downright care about you as a person and not only the task at hand. Can't wait for the finished product and construction of this amazing bathroom for my disabled sister who is so excited to finally have her own functional space thanks to DRAMS!! read more

If you are doing an architecture project in California, I think you are making a big mistake if you go with anyone besides DRAMS Architects. I interviewed 9 different architects in-depth, and I initially did not choose DRAMS because they were the only firm using a fully 3D digital capturing and BIM modeling workflow. Since no one else we interviewed used that, it seemed risky. After wasting time with someone else for a year, we fired our first architect and started over with DRAMS Inc. It has gone so much better, and I wish we picked them in the first place. The first architect we tried (not DRAMS) was well-reviewed. 5 stars on all sites, great communicator, great portfolio, seemed very expensive but we were willing to pay for quality. But the drawings he generated had mistakes (e.g. side view not matching the front view), and when we asked for a set of changes, only half of them would actually get made. DRAMS Architects team scanned our house with an automated scanner. The model they built of our existing structure includes not only the walls and cabinets but even the wall switches and electrical outlets. They emailed us a link where we could see the whole house in 3D, and even walk through it like a videogame. This works for both the as-built and the new plans. Because the level of detail is so high, we are able to save money by reducing rework. For example, we wanted to add a closet to an existing room. DRAMS put the wall of the closet in a place that looks slightly strange from a top-view. But it looks great from the in-person view, and it reuses our existing light switch. Because DRAMS Architects uses technology that captures these details, we can tell the electrician to completely ignore this room, rather than needing to redo the light switch. Unless you're using a workflow with the DRAMS Architects level of detail, it's not possible to notice these things ahead of time. Our first architect definitely did not, and from my 9 interviews, DRAMS Architects is the only architect near San Francisco working from in-house laser scans. The other big difference with DRAMS Architects is that they used BIM modeling for the entire process. With our other architect, we were using just 2D drawings. It didn't emerge that the different levels of the house didn't match until we had already paid a structural engineer. The engineer figured out beams to cantilever one level out over the other, but the whole thing was an accident due to the manual process. With DRAMS' fully 3D digital BIM workflow, those mistakes never happen. With our other architect, if we asked for four changes, two of them would make it into the drawing. It was a lot of work to check and recheck that our feedback made it in. Eventually, we stopped asking for small changes that we wanted, in the hopes that at least the major changes would make it. With DRAMS, we have never had to ask a second time for a change, which means that we feel comfortable asking for small changes, or sometimes saying "never mind, for that part, go back to the old way". Because Al Dram is so responsive, and the BIM model makes it easy to visualize the design, we ended up at a design which is far more useful, far more beautiful, and *way* cheaper to build than we were able to achieve with our first architect. 6 stars out of 5, DRAMS Architects is using the workflows of the future and we are thrilled with them. read more

Al and his team did a great job with the drawings for our basement remodel. We are turning our basement into two bedrooms and a bathroom, and it also involved a kitchen remodel. Al came up with comprehensive blueprints for the whole project, and also developed some really great 3D renderings of the new kitchen for us. He also shepherded the process of getting permits from San Francisco. read more

Super nice and responsive. Very professional and thorough. Would highly recommend. Al Dram and his team at DRAMS Architects took a great care of our new construction permits in San Francisco. We found out Al is a planning commissioner himself which with his knowledge our use permit process was very smooth. read more

I have used DRAMS services for two of my projects. Al is great Architect and has a wonderful service mindset team. They understand your needs accurately and go above and beyond to meet your expectations. Al and team offered creative ways to solve issues we had during the process. I would highly recommend their services for all your architectural needs. read more

Al and Daniel are phenomenal architects, they were really easy to work with and offered reasonable prices!

Al is a very responsive architect and is always using the best technology to get the job done right. He has great insight and is always looking out for my interests and I really appreciate that about him and his team. His plans are very detailed and clear. It has been a pleasure working with Al on my project. read more

I'm working on an addition for my house and Al Dram and crew created the drawings to be used for the addition. My wife and I made many changes as we went along during the year and Al and his techs were extremely patient with all our changes! I can't say enough for all his help and tons of work they put into design changes we asked for. Storage was one of our biggest issues and they helped resolve design changes with us and the city. Thanks Al! Our next major design changes to the front of the house, we will go back to Al and group! read more

While we did not end up actually moving forward with Drams, Al was nothing short of amazing to work with. He was patient with us, walked us through the process, and was clearly very knowledgeable. We felt very comfortable with him and the team, and honestly were dying to work with him, but he was just a touch out of our budget. From everything I've seen of him and the team, you are in very good hands with him! read more

I am really satisfied with Drams services. Contacted them for our new multifamily project in SoMa. The city reviews went so smooth and we have all approvals in hand. read more

Al Dram worked with me on a home remodel project to add windows to a basement room. He was incredibly responsive and communicative throughout the process, presenting in-progress drawings to me to make sure it's what I had in mind and asking me for clarification throughout. He was thoughtful about what drawings would and wouldn't be needed as well so I didn't waste time or money on extra work. He was also super fast! The time between when he started work on the drawings to the time we went to submit the permit with the city of San Francisco was only two days. He also came to the building department with me prepared to make any adjustments or answer and questions, and the process was smoother than I could have hoped for. Al is also just enjoyable to work with. He is a young man who got his PhD in architecture and design outside the US and then started a business here, with other drafters and architects working for him. It was inspiring to hear his story and I am looking forward to working with him on my next project (some exterior stairs)! read more

I didn't end up working with DRAM but I contacted them about a small project I needed help on because a different company who was supposed to be working on it was taking forever and had bad communication and after 4 weeks told me they couldn't give me a timeline. I spoke with Al and he was incredibly nice and helpful! He was honest about timeline and even offered to give us some tips to try to get the submittal in to the city at no charge! Seriously nicest guy ever. read more

Al and his team are highly talented and trained professionals. I stumbled on their firm on Yelp and the team was quick to respond when I requested a site plan for my single-family property. Since I have a few pending applications with PG&E, East Bay MUD, and the city of Oakland Fire Department, the Drams team was able to tap into their extensive knowledge to draw up detailed plans for submission. The team employs drone technology and 3D-scanning, making their on-site presence light and safe; a real strength considering the ongoing pandemic. I'm very happy with the final plans and will absolutely reach out to the Drams team for future projects. read more

I called Drams one morning to get architectural "as builts" completed for a commercial warehouse, and an hour later they came with a scanner to gather data. They sent over files within 3 days. Incredible. read more

We were planning on doing a TI for our commercial space. I was browsing on Yelp when I found Drams Architects with perfect reviews and great ratings. I decided to venture out to Emeryville and meet up in their office with Al Dram and his team. While the contract I signed said the project would take two months, the project actually got done sooner and was done well. Thanks to their help, we got approved for all permits with lower estimated construction cost than our budget, and I would definitely recommend them for any kind of commercial space work. read more

Al Dram and company did a great job with the architectural drawings for our bathroom renovation. Al advised me on whether we needed full-house vs bathroom-only drawings based on the changes we were making, and shared reasonable quotes for each. Because he uses LIDAR to take interior measurements, the quoted turnaround time was 2 months faster than many other local architects, and he actually shared the first draft of the drawings 1 month earlier than I expected. I was impressed by how accurate it was just from that initial scan, as was our contractor! He was responsive in making modifications as we adjusted our renovation plan, and advised me on small changes that would suit the space better. His company was also really helpful in getting the permits finalized, explaining which forms the county needed and ensuring their part was done quickly. Highly recommend. read more

we needed to have a design and permit set for our new addition and we were so lucky to find Alto help us on this project. Fast, easy and nice design just took him 2 weeks to finish. read more

We just bought a house in Emeryville and Al was very helpful to advise us in a right direction for our addition. His design skills and drawings are amazing an we highly recommend him. read more

Al was super helpful and helped get my sketch done in a timely manner, definitely give him a call if you are looking for architectural work!

Al and his team were incredibly helpful and efficient in getting plans for a home remodel project drawn up quickly and with attention to detail. They even helped us submit the application to the city which saved us a ton of time and headaches. Al was responsive and professional and got back to us right away with all the details. We've had a lot of bumps with our project and so far, working with Al and his team was the easiest and most efficient part of the process. They really helped us in a pinch and were grateful for them. I would definitely hire them again and also refer friends and families. read more

Hired US Drafters for remodel very impressed with customer service everything was done in a timely manner and we're very pleased with the results definitely would refer to other contacts in need of assistance read more

We were really in a jam because the person who started our plans was unable to finish them. The thought of finding someone new, vetting them and then hoping they deliver was overwhelming. And then came Al! He was incredibly responsive and delivered our project super quick. He helped us with edits quickly. The whole time he was incredibly professional and got back to us right away. I would highly recommend his services. read more

Al is smart and very good listener, as out of half a dozen drafter I contacted before him he seemed the most suited for complex detail oriented revision work. I would highly recommend him and any drafting it design needs. read more

Best architecture firm ever! Drams Architects were the most professional architects I've worked with in over 10 years. I highly recommend to all my friends and family! They communicated effectively and were helpful throughout the whole permit process. read more

My husband and I are pleased to recommend US drafters who provided us recently with a complete set of structural and architectural drawings for an in-law cottage on our property in Alameda. Besides Al Dram's friendly and polite attitude, he also listened well and quickly understood our needs and desires. Al handled the work in a very efficient and professional manner. The project steps were completed on time and the cost estimates were reasonable and were adhered to at every step. The result was a beautiful and thorough set of drawings. We appreciated his recommendations, and we were completely satisfied with the results. We feel that we have gained a new friend in Al. We will definitely use him again and again. read more

Contacted DRAMS for the home project idea and planning...Al was very prompt, responsive, resourceful and informative on the subject and follow ups. Al provided good advice and suggestions on the project, but given some constraints, the project is on-hold, but when the scheduling is better, I will definitely consider DRAMS. Thank you! read more

DRAMS Inc. supported me to get my Accessory Dwelling Unit through zoning and building at the City of Oakland, which is no small feat. What I appreciated most about his service was how responsive Al was to all my communication: He replied to my emails promptly. He almost always picked up the phone, and if it went to voicemail, he called me back almost always on the same day. Al was very patient and supportive as he guided me through a process I've never been through before. Thank you Al and your amazing team. read more

Best company if you need a great architect. Al was very patient and explained all the steps. His drawings past the first time with no question asked. I highly, highly recommend them. read more

I've been really pleased with Al, his responsiveness and turnaround time. The project I'm working on is not a huge one, but Al has been very attentive. read more

They did a great job on our new house. Al helped us to design and build our dream house in a very short period of time and took care of all architectural and engineering parts. We have the permits now to start the construction and can't wait to move in. read more

I would highly recommend Al with US Drafters for your architectural needs. He did a fantastic job on drafting my master bedroom and bathroom addition. He listened to all my requests when we were designing the addition. As well he suggested ideas that I did not consider. Again, don't hesitate to contact US Drafters for your projects. read more