The recently completed Gensler-designed Shanghai Tower in China, at 2,073 feet, lays claim to being the world’s second-tallest building, behind the 2,717-foot-tall Burj Khalifa in Dubai, according to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH).
The completion of the $2.4 billion Shanghai Tower also bumps from the ranks of the 10 tallest buildings the 1,451-foot-tall Willis Tower in Chicago, which had been a mainstay on that list for more than four decades.
The twisty-shaped Shanghai Tower, with 121 stories above ground and five beneath, and a total area of 538,000 square meters, is one of three supertall buildings—the others being the Jim Mao Tower and the Shanghai World Financial Center—in the Lujiazui neighborhood in the Pudong commercial district.
Its podium features 50,000 sf of floor area for retail, as well as 19,000 sf that can be divided into three separate rooms for large-scale events, according to Gensler’s website.
The building took six years to complete, and required 1,079 concrete and steel piles to be driven into the ground for support, according to gizmag.com To get to the building’s highest point, occupants can use one of 106 Mitsubishi-desiged elevators that travel up to 40 miles per hour.
Shanghai Tower’s position among the world’s tallest buildings, however, could be shortlived, as the 3,303-foot-tall Jeddah Tower in Saudi Arabia is scheduled to open in 2020. Both the Jeddah Tower and Burj Khalifa were designed by Adrian Smith.
Photo: Ermell via Wikimedia Commons
Related Stories
| Feb 17, 2013
Pakistan to get world's tallest tower in $45 billion deal
Newly signed mega deal will fund construction of several massive developments in Karachi, including a mixed-use tower that will dwarf the Burj Khalifa.
| Feb 13, 2013
'Vegetative tower' apartments to revive NYC site
A Manhattan site formerly slated for development with a "tower of cubes"—a now-defunct project by Santiago Calatrava—will be revived with a 998-foot, 300,000-sf apartment building by Morali Architects.
| Jul 9, 2012
Modular Construction Delivers Model for New York Housing in Record Time
A 65-unit supportive housing facility in Brooklyn, N.Y., was completed in record time using modular construction with six stories set in just 12 days.
| Jul 2, 2012
San Francisco lays claim to the greenest building in North America
The 13-floor building can hold around 900 people, but consumes 60% less water and 32% less energy than most buildings of its kind.
| Jun 13, 2012
Thornton Tomasetti founding principals receive CTBUH Fazlur R. Khan Lifetime Achievement Medal
This is the first time the CTBUH Board of Trustees has awarded the prize to two individuals jointly.
| Jun 8, 2012
Thornton Tomasetti/Fore Solutions provides consulting for renovation at Tufts School of Dental Medicine
Project receives LEED Gold certification.
| Jun 6, 2012
KPF designs tower for Yongsan IBD
The master plan, created by Studio Daniel Libeskind, is a dynamic urban environment containing contributions from 19 different architects practicing in diverse locations around the globe.
| Jun 6, 2012
SOM urges Chicago tenants to partner with landlords to cut energy use
Tenants can exceed building energy challenge targets recently announced by Mayor Emanuel.
| Jun 1, 2012
New BD+C University Course on Insulated Metal Panels available
By completing this course, you earn 1.0 HSW/SD AIA Learning Units.
| May 29, 2012
Reconstruction Awards Entry Information
Download a PDF of the Entry Information at the bottom of this page.
