New Mexico Highlands University Student Centre Responds to Desert Climate with a Sun-Tracking Louvered Facade

<a href="http://ww.dsai.ca/" target="_blank">Diamond Schmitt Architects</a> just completed the new <a href="http://www.nmhu.edu/tour/campustour.aspx" target="_blank">Student Centre at the New Mexico Highlands University</a>. The three-story building provides much needed dedicated space for students and creates a central meeting spot to connect the campus and the rest of the community of Las Vegas, New Mexico. Aiming for LEED Gold certification, the project features a highly innovative and energy efficient design. Most notably is the motorized sun tracking <a href="http://inhabitat.com/coffee-plaza-striking-oval-building-features-an-innovative-louvered-facade/" target="_blank">louver system</a> on the south side to shade the interior but maximize daylight. This system is thought to be one of the first of its kind in North America.

Work began on the new Student Centre in 2010 and it was just recently completed this summer under the guidance of <a href="http://www.dsai.ca/" target="_blank">Diamond Schmitt Architects</a> and aided by <a href="http://www.studioswarch.com/" target="_blank">Studio Southwest Architects</a>. Located at an important intersection on the edge of campus, the <a href="http://www.nmhu.edu/tour/campustour.aspx" target="_blank">NMHU Student Centre</a> bridges the gap between the town and the rest of the school.

Inside, there is a mix of programatic, study and meeting areas for the students and includes a versatile ballroom/conference facility, theatre, bookstore, café, post office and cafeteria that opens onto a sheltered courtyard.

The upper floors provide space for a computer lab, student offices, meeting rooms, dining rooms and a dramatic student governance chamber. A bridge on the second floor connects directly to the neighboring library.

The building was designed to respond to the <a href="http://inhabitat.com/tag/desert-architecture" target="_blank">desert climate</a> the southwest, which includes hot summers, monsoons, cooler nights and even cold winters.

The building was designed to respond to the <a href="http://inhabitat.com/tag/desert-architecture" target="_blank">desert climate</a> the southwest, which includes hot summers, monsoons, cooler nights and even cold winters.

n addition to the louvers, the Student Centre also makes use of <a href="http://inhabitat.com/tag/green-roof" target="_blank">green roofs</a> and a geothermal well field to help its mechanical energy system.