Breaking a world record, Gensler architects have officially completed the world’s second tallest building. Known as the Shanghai Tower, it is also the tallest skyscraper in China. Outdoing the Makkah Royal Clock Tower in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia by 31 meters, Shanghai’s new landmark reaches a height of 632 meters. Having begun construction in 2008, the Shanghai Tower is now finally open to the public.
Courtesy of Gensler
Interestingly, this title is only one out of three Guinness world records broken by this building. Not only has the Shanghai Tower’s elevator broken the record for the largest number of floors passed, but also its elevator is officially the fastest in the world.
At this moment, the only building taller than the Shanghai Tower is Dubai’s Burj Khalifa which is 828 meters high.
Courtesy of Gensler
Situated in Shanghai’s Lujiazui financial district, the building occupies 121 stories. This district is considered one of the leading financial hubs in East Asia.
Courtesy of Gensler
The Shanghai Tower includes a variety of different utilities; from offices, commercial shops, and hotels, to cultural facilities. It even includes observation decks at the top where people see a stunning aerial view of the busy city of Shanghai. With all these diverse activities being performed in the tower, the project idea is to perceive the building as a ‘self-contained city.
The twisting form of the building is a result of many experiments of wind tunnel tests. Accordingly, it is expected to reduce wind load by approximately as 24 percent during typhoons.
Courtesy of Gensler
With China witnessing an architectural breakthrough in the construction of high rise buildings, such an achievement was highly anticipated. Gensler architects, one of the leading firms in the US have used BIM technology in the Shanghai tower for the coordination process.
Additionally, Gensler architects have been designing many high rise buildings in the past years. These include The Tower at PNC Plaza, the Los Angeles” Gateway” Tower and King Abdullah Financial District Parcel.
Read more:
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The 5 Tallest Skyscrapers in The World : Completed by 2015
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