What makes this research centre in Arizona so suitable for its environment? The triple-glazed windows, the photovoltaics and the automated shades are all impressive. But the real kicker is the flood detention basin around which the building is designed. "The area gets incredible annual storms," says Mike Taylor, project architect at Hopkins Architects. "The detention basin avoids the forms of flooding that the area used to suffer from. Students have been known to take to canoes during the wet season." The other environmental features of the Northern Arizona University's Applied Research and Development Centre are not to be sniffed at. The $25m (￡12.6m) building stands on a concrete frame that stores heat in winter and solar gain in summer. The south-facing arc of the building captures winter sun and minimises solar gain through blinds and louvers.
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