One of the most environmentally friendly convention centres in North America, designed by Edinburgh-based international architects RMJM, has opened its doors to the public. The Las Colinas Convention Centre in Texas, designed by RMJM Hillier’s New York Studio, is wrapped in copper cladding designed to generate a changing patina as it ages over time – a striking and timeless icon for a Western boomtown in the heart of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.

Unlike the typical horizontal orientation of most convention centres, the £82m, 275,000 sq ft multi-functional facility at Las Colinas incorporates a stacked 50,000 sq ft column free exhibit hall, a 20,000 sq ft ballroom and 20 large meeting rooms in a vertical interplay of copper, glass and steel. The facility's highly flexible open interior design affords it the functionality to simultaneously host several different types of events and meetings, while the vertical form maximises useable space in a minimum footprint to foster self-shading and boost energy efficiency.