This is the third and last in a three part post on the
tallest buildings in China. The first post was about the Jin Mao Tower click here the smallest of the three, at 88 floors,
completed in 1988. The second post was
on the Shanghai World Financial Center click here the second tallest building in China, at
101 floors, completed in August 2008.
This post is about the Shanghai Tower when completed in the end of 2014 will
have 121 floors, will be the the tallest building in China and second tallest building in the world surpassed only
by the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.
The Shanghai Tower will complete a 20 year plan to have three imposing skyscrapers all located
in a city block of each other in Shanghai's Lujiazui district in Pudong. Also
known as the Three Brothers this will be the centerpiece of the first
super-high rise district of its kind in Asia and the symbol of China's growing
economic global influence.
The design of the Shanghai Tower has many unique features. It
will be organized internally as a series of nine indoor zones stacked one on
top of the other. Each zone will be 12-15 stories high with separate elevator
systems, shuttling people within that zone and then shuttling people within the
building
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There is a concrete core enclosed by an inner glass skin which
is circular in design and an outer glass facade that is cam-shaped. The space
between the two skins will form an atrium that will house a lobby with
landscapes and public gardens. These 9 sky
gardens will improve air quality and providing public space where users
can interact and mingle. Each sky lobby will contain cafes, restaurants, retail
shops and exhibition space and provide a 360-degree view of the city.
Most single façade structure have highly reflective glass to
lower the heat absorption. With the
Shanghai Tower both layers will be transparent and act like an insulating
blanket which will reduce energy costs. The indoor air will be circulated
through each atrium to temper the space, keeping the sun's heat out in summer
and the buildings heat in during the winter. At night the building will glow
translucent.
The cam-shaped exterior twists 120 degrees from bottom to
top, it has a tapering profile and rounded corners which will allow the
building to withstand typhoon winds forces common to Shanghai. The twist will reduce
wind loads on the building by 24%. The top of the tower will collect rainwater
to be used in the heating and cooling systems and will house 270 wind turbines
to generate electricity for lighting the building.
Because of the investors forward thinking vision, they were looking
to build an energy efficient super-tall building, they allowed the designers to
create a truly remarkable design and spend a little bit more money upfront to
build a better more efficient building which will use less energy in the long
run.
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There is still a year and a half to go before it is completed.
I started taking pictures of the towers when we first arrived and it has been
fascinating to watch the progress of the building. Someday, it would be great to
return to Shanghai and take a few more pictures of the completed tower.
Fun facts
1200 construction works are on the site at any one time,
working in shifts around the clock
Once opened the tower is expected to accommodate some 16000
people daily.
Located between the 84 and 110 floors will be the Jinjiang
Hotel the highest in the world.
The tower will have 106 elevators |
| this is one of my first pictures dated June 14 2012 |
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| this is the view from out apartment balcony June 28 2012 |
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| another view of the Shanghai skyline, just raising above the Aurora building June 2012 |
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| another early picture July 10 2012 |
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| from our apartment balcony October 2012 |
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| creeping above the Aurora building November 2012 |
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| zoom in, click on to enlarge |
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| view from our apartment balcony February 2013 |
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| cam-shape with wind groove, with atrium zones |
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| applying the translucent exterior skin |
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| well above the Aurora building |
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| full moon June 2013 |
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| last picture from apartment balcony July 15 2013 |
