Burj Dubai - Dubai
OverviewThe Burj Dubai برج دبي for "Tower of Dubai" is a skyscraper currently under construction, since April 15, 2005, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Its final height is officially being kept a secret due to competition; however, figures released by a contractor on the project have suggested a height of "around 810 m. The total number of habitable floors stands at around 160, in spite of numerous unofficial claims to other figures, which are unconfirmed and contradictory to official statements. As of 24 October 2007, Burj Dubai's official website reported its height to be 585.7 m (1,922 ft), with 156 completed stories. SizeUpon its completion in 2008 the Burj Dubai will likely become the tallest building in the world. It will beat out the current title holder, Taipei 101 in Taiwan, as well as numerous other proposals including the Freedom Tower in New York City's World Trade Center. In addition, it will assume the title of the world's tallest structure, surpassing the freestanding Toronto CN Tower and the guyed KVLY-TV mast in North Dakota, the latter setting a minimum height for the tower at almost 630 m. Though unconfirmed, Burj Dubai has been through several height increases since its inception. Originally proposed as virtually a clone of the 560 m Grollo Tower proposal from Australia, the tower was soon redesigned to an original Skidmore Owings and Merril design seen above and discussed below. This design stood approximately 705 meters tall. The lead architect, Adrian Smith, felt that the design of the top did not culminate very well, so he sought and received approval to increase it to the currently planned height. It has been explicitly stated that this did not include an addition of more floors, which is fitting with Smith's attempts to make the crown more slender. However, the top of the tower, from the 156th floor onward or from 575 meters to the top, will be a steel frame structure, unlike the lower portion's concrete. The developer, Emaar, has stated this steel section may be extended to beat any other tower to the title of tallest, however once the tower is complete the height cannot be changed.
Architecture and designThe tower is designed by Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill, who also designed the Sears Tower and the Freedom Tower, among numerous other famous high-rises. The design of Burj Dubai is derived from the geometries of the desert flower, which is indigenous to the region, and the patterning systems embodied in Islamic architecture. The tower is composed of three elements arranged around a central core. As the tower rises from the flat desert base, setbacks occur at each element in an upward spiraling pattern, decreasing the cross section of the tower as it reaches toward the sky. At the top, the central core emerges and is sculpted to form a finishing spire. A Y-shaped floor plan maximizes views of the Persian Gulf. The interior will be decorated by Giorgio Armani. An Armani Hotel (the first of its kind) will occupy the lower 37 floors. Floors 45 through 108 will have 700 private apartment in 64 floors (which, according to the developer, sold out within eight hours of going on sale). Corporate offices and suites will fill most of the remaining floors, except for a 123rd floor lobby and 124th floor indoor/outdoor observation deck. The spire will also hold communications equipment. An outdoor zero-entry swimming pool will be located on the 78th floor of the tower. It will also feature the world's fastest elevator, at 18 m/s (40 mph). The world's current fastest elevator is in the Taipei 101 office tower, Taipei, Taiwan, at 16.83 m/s (37.5 mph). PurposeThe Burj Dubai has been designed to be the center of a large-scale, mixed-use development that will include 30,000 homes, 9 hotels, 6 acres of parkland, 19 residential towers, and 12 hectare Burj Dubai Lake. The complete development will cost about US$ 8 billion. Once completed, the tower will cover a total of 2 million m² (22 million ft²) of development. The Burj Dubai will be the latest feather in the cap of Dubai, also home to the world's tallest hotel, the Burj al-Arab, the (soon to be completed) world's largest man-made marina, the Dubai Marina; the (soon to be completed) world's largest artificial island, The Palm, Deira which surpasses its sister 'Palm Islands' developments The Palm, Jumeirah and The Palm, Jebel Ali. There is also the (soon to be completed) Dubai Waterfront; and the (soon to be built) world's largest mall, the Dubai Mall. In addition, there is the planned world's first underwater hotel Hydropolis, as well as the exclusive island projects The World (archipelago) and The Lagoons. Developers say the silvery glass-sheathed concrete building will restore to the Middle East the honor of hosting the earth's tallest structure—a title lost circa 1300 when Lincoln Cathedral upset the 38-century reign of Egypt's Great Pyramid of Giza. |
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