Some houses are designed to be smart. Others have smart designs. An example of the second type of house won an Award of Excellence from the American Institute of Architects. Located on the shore of Sullivan's Island off the coast of South Carolina, the award-winning cube-shaped beach house was built to replace one smashed to pieces by Hurricane Hugo 10 years ago. In September 1989, Hugo struck South Carolina, killing 18 people and damaging or destroying 36,000 homes in the state. Before Hugo, many new houses built along South Carolina's shoreline were poorly constructed, and enforcement of building codes wasn't strict, according to architect Ray Huff, who created the cleverly-designed beach house. In Hugo's wake, all new shoreline houses are required to meet stricter, better-enforced codes. The new beach house on Sullivan's Island should be able to withstand a Category 3 hurricane with peak winds of 179 to 209 kilometers per hour. At first sight, the house on Sullivan's Island looks anything but hurricane-poor. Its redwood shell makes it resemble 'a large party lantern' at night, according to one observer. But looks can be deceiving. The house's wooden frame. is reinforced with long steel rods to give it extra strength. To further protect the house from hurricane damage, Huff raised it 2.7 meters off the ground on timber pilings--long, slender columns of wood anchored deep in the sand. Pilings might appear insecure, but they are strong enough to support the weight of the house. They also elevate the house above storm surges. The pilings allow the surges to run under the house instead of running into it. 'These swells of water come ashore at tremendous speeds and cause most of the damage done to beach-front buildings,' said Huff. Huff designed the timber pilings to be partially concealed by the house's ground-to-roof shell. 'The shell masks the pilings so that the house doesn't look like it's standing with its pant legs pulled up,' said Huff. In the event of a storm surge, the shell should break apart and let the waves rush under the house, the architect explained. After the tragedy caused by Hurricane Hugo, new houses built along South Carolina's shoreline are required