By Gerhard Hope www.constructionweekonline.com
The official opening of the 828-metre-high Burj Khalifa has not marked the end of the era of tall buildings. This is according to the Council of Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH), which has released its list of projects anticipated to be completed in 2010.
These include the Nanjing Greenland Financial Centre (450 m), The Index (Dubai, 328 m), Wenzhou Trade Centre (322 m) and Capitol City Moscow Tower (302 m). The CTBUH’s list of the ten tallest buildings completed in 2009 also includes projects in Kuwait and Qatar.
The CTBUH reports that the tallest building completed in 2009 was the Trump International Hotel & Tower. Designed by architects Skidmore, Owings and Merrill LLP, and developed by the Trump Organisation, this is now the seventh-tallest building in the world, standing at a height of 423 metres, with 98 storeys.
Professor Sang Dae Kim, CTBUH Chairman commented: “There is much to herald in the new Trump Tower. It pushes technological boundaries to achieve its great height, making a powerful mark on the Chicago skyline. In doing so, it becomes the tallest building completed in the western hemisphere since the Willis (formerly Sears) Tower was built, also in Chicago, some 35 years ago.”
Data produced by the CTBUH suggests that over 100 buildings 200 metres or taller will be completed worldwide within the next 12 months. From 2012, it is expected that there will be a drop in the number of tall buildings completed due to the global recession, until the worldwide economy recovers.
The Ten Tallest Buildings Completed in 2009
1. Trump International Hotel and Tower, Chicago (423 m)
2. Bank of America Tower, New York (365 m)
3. China World Trade Centre III, Beijing (330 m)
4. Arraya Centre Office Tower, Kuwait City (300 m)
5. Aqua, Chicago (262 m)
6. Al Fardan Residences, Doha (253 m)
7. Shanghai IFC South Tower, Shanghai (250 m)
8. RunHua International Building, Wuxi (248 m)
9. Hongdu International Plaza, Wuxi (248 m)
10. Xinjiekou Department Store Phase 2, Nanjing (240 m)
“It is evident that the trend for tall continues onwards and upwards. Even with these precarious global economic conditions, the CTBUH reports that 2010 promises to be by far the most active in the history of the skyscraper,” reports World Architecture News.
