Having its opening on 11th November last year and with construction fully completed this year, Al-Hamra Tower located at Kuwait City, Kuwait had finally made it to the list of the current world’s top ten tallest buildings this year. Standing at a height of 412.6 metres with total of 77 floors, Al-Hamra Tower stands proud over its neighbouring buildings in the city. The building has now achieved the ‘completed’ status, and joins the other 13 completed skyscrapers around the world that exceeded 400 metres in height at the moment.

Al-Hamra Tower is designed by the famous architecture firm, Skidmore, Owings and Merrill which is very experienced on designing skyscrapers. The building is also the tallest stone clad structure and the tallest sculpted tower in the world, and is very iconic due to its unique form and appearance. The lighting illumination on the exterior facade of the building is also very impressive. Nowadays, buildings tend to depend on lighting for a sparkling presence at night. I like this design personally, which is also designed in response to the climate and views besides than only focusing on aesthetic purpose. It’s a very unique and different design that stands out among the other masterpieces that Skidmore, Owings and Merrill had produced before. It looks quite bold in the day but appears quite ‘light’ (in opposite to heavy) at night. A great addition and truly a new landmark to the city.

Al Hamra is a tower whose innovative design includes a facade with a 130-degree sweeping turn and two fins that sprout from the top and bottom of the structure in opposite directions. In a construction first, they will attempt to build the upper-most flared wall a seven-story structure that juts out 45 m from the building while suspended a quarter of a mile in the air. It consists of two ‘wings’ which are connected by a sky bridge on each floor providing what is promised to be ‘dramatic views’.

The building isn’t only aesthetic; it also serves a practical form. The twisting shape ensures optimum views, while the opposite stone clad wall acts a protective skin from the desert sun where temperatures top 55 degrees. The 80 story tall concrete wall insulates the building. The south wall conceived as a tall protective stone element, forms the structural spine of the building and contains a sky bridge connecting the east and west office wings on each floor. The sky bridges present a unique spatial experience with deeply sculpted openings in the south. Strategically located south wall openings allow for dramatic views towards the city, and the infinite desert beyond, while controlling the strong solar radiation from south.

On the ground floor, Al Hamra’s transparent north façade opens up and welcomes tenants with a soaring 20m-tall highly articulated lamella structure inside the lobby. The geometry of the lobby area is generated by applying the principles of lamella structures. The continuous structure acts as a completely integrated strengthening component in the lobby, while creating a dramatic lobby experience for Al Hamra’s visitors. Hmm…overall, the building looks nice, elegant and ‘right’ in respond to the surrounding as well as been beautifully crafted out with the facade appears sweeping down gently in curve that is balanced in proportion. And don’t forget it’s impressively tall too!

(Those lovely images from this post are from the forum thread of this building in skyscrapercity.com)

The construction of the iconic building that is famous for architectural marvel and engineering breakthrough has finally came to an end with official completion today after so many years. The construction of this highly-acclaimed and also badly-reviewed building started way back in 2004 so that it would be completed right on time in conjunction with Beijing 2008 Summer Olympic Games.

Things don’t go on the easy way or in the scheduled track;  the engineering milestone of the building contributes to never-ending problems in the construction. Hence, by 2008, only the exterior of the building is completed with the interior not ready for use yet. An official opening ceremony of the building was still organized in 2008 to give an impression to the public that things go on as planned, but indeed the building would never be ready until years later.

Even before the building is officially completed, the structure had already left a bold impact to the visual of the skyline of city of Beijing, the capital of China. Its appearance is unique and I had the opportunity to see the building myself in 2009 on a trip to Beijing that year. My first impression of that building is ‘wow!’…’what a cool building!’. For your information, the building is designed by OMA, with the primary architect being the famous Rem Koolhaas. The design combines the entire process of TV-making – formerly scattered in various locations across the city – into a loop of interconnected activities. That is why it is a skyscraper of loop as perceived by the public.

Rising from a common platform, two towers lean towards each other and eventually merge in a perpendicular, 75-metre cantilever. The cantilever is the main feature of the building and also the main aspect that gives headache to engineers most probably. The structure of the CCTV Headquarters, and the forces at work within it, is visible on its façade: a web of diagonals that becomes dense in areas of greater stress, looser and more open in areas requiring less support. The façade itself becomes a visual manifestation of the building’s structure. Rem Koolhaas commented: “I am very happy, after years of intense collaboration, that the CCTV building will soon begin to perform its role in the way it is intended.”

Finishing touches are given to the iconic 44-storeys building today that stands tall at 234 metres. It is officially completed today, four years after its first opening back in 2008. Well, the building is only fully ready for London 2012, and not for Beijing 2008. Haha…By the way, it is reported that the building would only truly be opened for use by end of this year. Still have to wait if you want to enter the building. I think it would be fascinating not only from its exterior appearance but also from the interior. Wow, look at the picture below. I can see through what’s down there from inside of the building. That would be a little scary.

(All the images and some information from this post are from http://www.archello.com/en/project/china-central-television-cctv-headquarters)

The annual international architecture, interior design and building exhibition is held currently at the usual place; Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre. Shortly and famously known as ARCHIDEX, this is the exhibition not only targeted for architects and interior designers, but also to contractors, property developers, facility managers, distributors, marketing consultants, manufacturers, store buyers, government departments and agencies, lecturers and university or college students.

(Image above is from http://www.asiabuilders.com.my/asiabuilders/NewsListing.aspx?ind_ctry_code=conMY)

For this year’s exhibition, it is going to held from 4th July 2012 (started yesterday) till 7th July 2012 (would ends this Saturday). Registration is required and the admission fee is free, open from 10am to 7pm to people of 16 years old and above. ARCHIDEX is the biggest event, congregating for the architecture, interior design and the building industry professions and industry leaders, giving them this opportune platform to keep abreast of the developments in the built environment, mingle and network with captains of the industry, besides sourcing for innovative products, designs and services.

I have been to this exhibition once few years ago when I was still a university student studying in architecture. I find the exhibition is not really that suitable for students because what is shown in the exhibition is basically more to industrial-based products. That would be much more relevant and suitable for people working in the industry, so that they can learn of new or latest advanced products useful in construction and design. Now, I am working as an architect, but my company never tell us anything about it. I think we should all go and check it out, and we might find some interesting products that can be applied or used to our future or current design projects.

Before that, I thought that this architecture exhibition would features interesting or iconic design works through presentation boards, digital projection or models. That is why I went to this exhibition few years ago as recommended from my lecturers and friends. But I was wrong. Like what I said earlier, it is all about products, from wall finishes to variety of latest designs in framing, curtain, tiles, etc. It would be good for architects to explore from this exhibition on what are the latest stuff available now that would made designs to be more interesting or high-end. There are also some conferences or talks going on these four days but I think payment is needed for that.

If I’m going to go for this ARCHIDEX 2012, then Saturday (the last day) would be the only day for me. First two days are gone, and tomorrow I have to work and that wouldn’t give me enough time to attend the exhibition. So, Saturday is the only day that provides me the time. But I’m still unsure to go or not. What’s confirmed this Saturday is that I would be going for movie, and not this exhibition.

You know what is ARCHIDEX? If you have read my previous post, then you would know it already. If you are an architect/ interior designer/ contractor, then you would know of this event. ARCHIDEX stands for architecture and interior design exhibition, which is held annually in Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre. This year, which is the 13th ARCHIDEX, over 100 booths are set up promoting various advanced industrial products useful in construction industry, accompanied with series of other events like DATUM KL (design conference) and forums.

Admission to the conference and forums requires payment, which is quite expensive for me. But then, I think the price is reasonable for the ‘rich’ architects. I went just for the exhibition along with my colleagues after registration which is very quick for me as I go for ‘architect’ section without the need to wait in long queue. Cool…extra privilege for architects! And I absolutely like that. There are several halls we need to get in for the exhibition, and we went to all of them in quite a short period of time, as my colleague needs to rush back home soon after.

There are a lot of people attending this exhibition, as today is Saturday and it is also the last day of the exhibition. Everything seems to be quite busy inside, with people promoting their products or company to the visitors, visitors asking for brochures and information, people exchanging ideas and discussion, visitors taking pictures of cool stuff visible from the booths or products, etc. What we do? We had a quick walk all around and covered many booths by taking only brochures. We had a longer stop at some booths that attracted our attention. There is even a booth that has a small pool inside with a people in there demonstrating and explaining (so it’s obvious on what the booth is promoting; pool system). I didn’t manage to take a picture of that.

Too bad, we can’t stay any longer for the exhibition, as we came by one car, and we had to go. Before we left, we saw some works (presentation panels) displayed that are awarded and shortlisted for competitions. Some are impressive. This year, there are also a display of several small-scale design models which I believe are from student works. Some are good, but some are too simple to the point that those do not deserved to be showcased over there. There must be a lot of experienced or professional architects out there looking at all that. Too bad, I didn’t join the DATUM KL conference. If I did, I would have the chance to meet Daniel Libeskind, a very famous international architect who participates on this year’s DATUM that sets the theme of ‘reflection’.

We left with not only a single bag, but several bags full of variety of brochures and some small gifts like pens. So heavy to carry. Basically, now, I have been to this exhibition twice, first time in few years ago when I was still a university’s student and this time around is my second time, as an ARCHITECT. Cool…Since this exhibition gathers people of the similar industry together and is very much beneficial to people like us who need to know more on new products and suppliers on which we can apply or use those in our design projects, and so I think starting from now, I would be going for ARCHIDEX every year.  (Image below is from http://www.asiabuilders.com.my/asiabuilders/NewsListing.aspx?ind_ctry_code=conMY)

Dubai is home to the current world tallest building, Burj Khalifa which is also the world tallest man made structure ever constructed. Known as the jewel in the desert in United Arab Emirates, Dubai had also built quite a number of other highrises as well as other large-scale developments like man-made islands and over-luxurious hotels. But wait a second, when you look further east to Asia, then you would realize how great also China is doing on building skyscrapers.

Well, I didn’t mean to compare Dubai to China in competition to build skyscrapers as it would be quite unfair to Dubai as only a small city as opposed to China as a huge country with multiple developing cities. The point now is do you know how many skyscrapers taller than Petronas Twin Towers (452 metres) are under construction in China now? You would be shocked when you know the answer. It’s five buildings. Yes, it’s 5. And that is only counting the ones in construction, not including the ones already built that are higher than the twin towers. If that are included, then the final figure would be 7 (492m Shanghai World Financial Center and 484m International Commerce Centre).

Out of the five supertall skyscrapers under construction now in China, two are over 600 metres tall, one in around 600 metres, another one over 500 metres, and another one above 450 metres. Now, there are only two buildings that surpassed that height, Burj Khalifa (828m) and Macca Royal Clock Hotel Tower (601m). I think it’s seriously the time for my capital, Kuala Lumpur to build new supertall to catch up on the ranking since Petronas Twin Towers (the tallest in Malaysia) are already quite far behind, currently placed 6th (and 7th) in world tallest buildings’ list.

The highest one currently under construction in China as well as in the world is the Pingan International Finance Centre. It contains 115 floors and the height would be around 650 metres. Once completed in 2015, it would be the second tallest in the world, and of course tallest in Shenzhen, the city this building is located. Shenzhen is also home to another two supertall skyscrapers, the recently-completed Kingkey 100 (442m) and Shun Hing Square (384m).

(Image above shows the night rendering of Pingan International Finance Centre which would be a new supertall to the city of Tianjin. Image is from http://i52.tinypic.com/30mmqdd.jpg)

The next building in the list would be the famous Shanghai Tower that would fulfills the early ambition of having three supertalls in Pudong District, Shanghai, China when it is first planned back in early 1990s. The tower would reach 632 metres high with 128 floors, much taller than its neighbouring skyscrapers, Shanghai World Financial Center (492m, current tallest in China) and Jin Mao Tower (421m). It is to be completed in 2014, and the construction progress of the tower now has been very good and fast.

(Image above shows the rendering of Shanghai Tower (tallest) with the already-built Shanghai World Financial Center and Jin Mao Tower as its neighbouring supertalls. Image is from http://ewcg.dreamhosters.com/wp-content/gallery/g_shanghaitower/e_shanghaitower1_600.jpg)

The next building under construction would be the much lesser heard Goldin Finance 117 Tower. It is to reach 597 metres (most probably 600m in the end) and would contains 117 floors as already suggested from the building’s unofficial name itself. It is to be built in Tianjin, China. There isn’t any report over the expected year of completion for this tower, as I think there must be some kind of delay to this mega project. But if the construction went well, then it is predicted to be completed by 2016 or 2017. Well, there isn’t any much update or news coverage over this project, and I couldn’t say any further regarding it.

(Image above shows the rendering of the Goldin Finance 117 Tower looking from the ground level. Image is from http://media.photobucket.com/image/goldin%20finance%20117/z0rgggg/others2/others3/goldin_900x600.jpg)

The next tower on the list would be the Chow Tai Fook Center. The building would reach 530 metres high with 116 floors, almost a hundred metres taller than the current tallest building in the city of Guangzhou (438m Guangzhou International Finance Center) where this building would be situated. The other supertall in Guangzhou now is the CITIC Plaza of 391 metres high. Chow Tai Fook Center is expected to be completed by 2016 and that would adds up another beautiful skyscraper to the city of Guangzhou that has been fast developing, thanks to the positive impact of the very successful Guangzhou 2010 Asian Games.

(Image above shows the rendering of Chow Tai Fook Center (tallest) with the already-built Guangzhou International Finance Center. Image is from http://archrecord.construction.com/news/2011/03/110302skyscrapers_climb_higher/8_CTF_Centre_Guangzhou.jpg)

The last on the list, considered to be a very tall skyscraper to be built in Tianjin also is the R&F Tower. It would be completed in 2014 ad that the tower contains 91 floors and would rise up to the height of 468 metres. It appears that Tianjin now joins in the list of cities in China (the others; Shanghai, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Nanjing) that sees vibrant economy and fast developing rate that would eventually contributes to increment of tall buildings to showcase the strength of a particular city.

(Image above shows the rendering of R&F Tower to be built at Tianjin, China. Image is from http://media.photobucket.com/image/r%2526f%20tianjin/z0rgggg/233244dmuulmdamymdm26d.jpg)

Well, if you want to include buildings currently under-construction in China that exceeded 300 metres to be qualified to be known as supertall skyscrapers, then the list is no doubt would not ends here. I think now the definition of supertall should be restricted to only buildings above 400 metres, since it is already too common to have buildings over 300 metres in these years.

(Information from this post regarding data of the skyscrapers mentioned are known from http://www.skyscraperpage.com)

Today after a meeting on drive back to office, I spotted two very interesting new buildings in a part of KL that I have not explored before. The area is somewhere behind Bank Negara Malaysia (National Bank of Malaysia) building nearby the Dataran Merdeka (Independence Square) and the DBKL Building. From that part of the city, what you can see mostly are trees surrounding and not highrises. The Memorial to Tun Hussein Onn (former Prime Minister) is also located there.

The first building I spotted is a tall highrise under construction. What attracted my attention from the building is its’ twisting form. I thought I would only see this kind of building in Western countries or in Singapore (as seen from The Reflections at Keppel Bay by Daniel Libeskind). I didn’t expect that KL would have its own twisted building too. Fantastic. Even the gigantic columns at the lobby area are tilted too. Cool…Then, from the detail provided from the information board, I found out that this iconic building is designed by GDP Architects, one of the leading architecture firms in Malaysia.

(Image above showing the rendering of the KKR2 Tower from http://www.gdparchitects.com/img/projects/KKR-tower/kkrtower_photo02.jpg)

(Image above showing the tower under construction and is expected to be completed by next year. Image from http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c224/dengilo/DSC09621.jpg)

The building would be used for Ministry of Public Works (Kompleks Kerja Raya 2) and would have 37 floors. The building would reach up to 175 metres. That’s quite tall. Would be much more impressive if it’s taller (over 25o metres), but it’s current height now is already sufficient enough to express its interesting form as compared to mostly bland-looking buildings in that old part of the city. The tower is also targeted to be the first Green Building Index (GBI) Platinum ranked building in Malaysia. (Info from http://www.gdparchitects.com/projects/current/KKR-tower.html)

The next appealing building nearby would be a much lower structure. Sometimes, height isn’t a matter on determining how striking a building can be. The building is called Sasana Kijang under Bank Negara Malaysia and it functions as a museum/gallery or better known as Financial Services Resource Centre as stated by the architecture firm behind it; Hijjas Kasturi Associates, another famous architecture company in Malaysia. The very interesting cladding caught my attention while the overwhelming use of steel and glass at the lobby area is fascinating. It clearly showcases the beauty of materials and striking contemporary design but I find the building would be better if it’s situated at Putrajaya.

(Image above from http://www.flickr.com/photos/oshhisham/4280937608/sizes/z/in/photostream/)

(Image above from http://fc01.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/355/9/a/sasana_kijang_bnm_by_ciinx-d35daoq.jpg. Click on it for larger view)

According to the website of Hijjas Kasturi Associates (http://www.hijjaskasturi.com/) regarding this project, it is mentioned that ‘the plan, the building and the expression of the facade are inspired by traditional monetary and cultural forms’, but to be honest, I hardly see the link.  It is inspired from the shape of the Cowrie shell, a popular form of money in the Malay Peninsula during the 3rd century with its building façade derived from the geometric patterns of traditional Malaysian songket motifs, reflecting the hand woven fabric designs. (Info from http://www.bnm.gov.my/index.php?ch=8&pg=14&ac=2326)

Finally, I can see increasing number of buildings with amazing architecture in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia. The city seriously needs more beautiful buildings like these!

Yes, yes….It’s no joke. A company called ‘Broad Sustainable Building’ has announced to the media and public that it is going to build the new world tallest building, 10 metres higher than the current world tallest, Burj Khalifa which is also the current world tallest man made structure ever erected. And a much crazier thing about the plan is that the new world tallest building would be built in only 90 days! That is what I call total ‘madness’. Can they really do it?

(Image source: http://www.gizmodo.de/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/skycity1.jpg)

Here is an article I have read regarding the news to build the new world tallest building at China in only 90 days. There are many news spreading about it, and it’s not a rumour as confirmed. Here it is below, obtained from the following source: http://rt.com/art-and-culture/news/sky-city-china-skyscraper-534/.

China has embraced the challenge of putting up the world’s tallest building in only 90 days. The 838-meter skyscraper, dubbed Sky City, is set to house 17,400 people as well as a hotel, a hospital, several schools, offices and apartments. Construction workers from the Broad Sustainable Building company are expected to build at a rate if five stories a day to meet the deadline. To speed the process up, they will reportedly use the ‘prefabrication’ technique in which blocks of the building are constructed offsite and then pieced together. 

The skyscraper, located in Hunan Province’s capital Changsha, will feature over 100 high-speed elevators, and is expected to be able to withstand a magnitude 9.0 earthquake. When completed, the building will be 10 meters taller than the Dubai landmark Burj Khalifa, the world’s current tallest building, which took five years to build. China’s Sky City is set to cost half as much as the Burj – about $630 million. China-based Broad Sustainable Building will employ several thousand workers for the ambitious project. The company has already built 16 structures in China, including a 30-story hotel constructed in 15 days.

(Image source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2236300/Chinese-company-plans-build-worlds-tallest-skyscraper–just-THREE-MONTHS.html)

What do you think of this project? I find it too ambitious, and that the city, Changsha (which is much less popular than other famous growing cities in China)’s economy does not need such a tall and huge building. It is quite inappropriate to build it. I think the aim is just to challenge something without thinking of its impact and that this new building would gives not much benefit. Building the 220-storey building in 90 days? Seriously? I am questioning its stability and strength. Really, China don’t need to do this to show off. And furthermore, it’s not a distinctive or appealing design. It’s only a very plain and massive building.

I have also read some news that this project has been approved by the government, and the construction would probably commence by December, and according to the crazy schedule, the tower would be completed by March 2013. If this thing really gets a go, then Burj Khalifa will lost its title of world tallest very soon, which is quite unexpected. I thought earlier that the iconic Burj Khalifa would at least stays with the title for a decade. Now, China pose a challenge. If this Sky City One project really is to get built, then I would get myself updated over its construction progress, and anticipating for its completion. A crazy idea to a crazy building with a crazy record of 90-days time frame for completion. Usually, it would gets at least five years to get such a tall and massive building like this done.

Eventhough Kuala Lumpur (KL) has much lesser buildings compared to other mega cities like Hong Kong, New York, Shanghai or Tokyo, but the city stands out due to its impressive skyline (ranked no. 8 in the world) and is home to the world tallest twin buildings, Petronas Twin Towers. Besides that, the city has also a number of highrises, having over 10 buildings that reach above 200 metres in high. However, there isn’t much beautiful buildings or structures with amazing design found in this capital of Malaysia.

Ilham Baru Tower ( New Inspiration Tower) would be certainly an exception to that.

The design is striking and visually appealing. It is a skyscraper project comprises of office and residences under construction along Jalan Binjai near KLCC. Once completed, the building would have 58 floors and would rise to 274 metres. It is also speculated that the tower would goes up to 300 metres. The estimated year of completion would be on 2014 and if completed, the building would be the fourth tallest in Malaysia. It is designed by Foster and Partners (lead by famous architect, Norman Foster) whom have previously designed a tall and iconic residential towers (Troika) located nearby too.

I am in awe by the renderings of the building, and now I wish that the building once built would look much the same with what’s appear in the renderings. It’s a cool building, and at one point, I find the design of the building resembles a bit like the much taller Bank of China at Hong Kong. It would be much better and outstanding if the building is taller, since height plays a role too. But anyway, this is also considered tall already. I will share some of the renderings here from skyscrapercity forum, but not much. For more beautiful renderings of the building, you can go to the skyscrapercity forum discussing on this topic: http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1119813. From there, you can check on its up-to-date construction progress too. 

Not only the exterior looks stunning, the interior looks very contemporary and good too. I would love to have a visit to this building once built, but usually I won’t be allowed to do so unless I’m a staff or resident in there. KL seriously needs more buildings with outstanding design like this one. Currently, the construction progress of this building is quite slow, but I think by next year, the building would rise very fast and then, the city’s skyline would be changed again.

JW Marriott Marquis Dubai opened at the end of February this year as the world’s new tallest hotel building. It overtakes Rose Tower which is also located in Dubai by 22 metres as the world’s tallest building solely functioning as hotel. JW Marriott Marquis Dubai is a twin-tower skyscrapers that reach the height of 355 metres with with respective 77 floors of hotel rooms. It offers over 1600 rooms, up for demand to increasing number of tourists to the jewel city in the desert; Dubai.

However, the true leader in sky-high accommodations remains the Ritz Carlton Hotel inside the International Commerce Centre in Hong Kong, China. All the rooms in this world’s highest hotel (not tallest hotel building) are located on floors in three-digit numbers (that’s mean at least 100th floor and above).  To be exact, the Ritz Carlton occupies 102th to 118th floor of the International Commerce Centre that stands at 484 metres. This allows for overwhelming panoramic view over the beautiful skyline of Hong Kong from well above 400 metres. I would love to stay in this hotel since I love to view the picturesque city of Hong Kong from such an incredible height. But it must be very expensive for a night stay.

In fact, now, there are many hotels that each occupies several number of top most floors of a skyscrapers which offers beautiful views of its surrounding. And most of these hotels are located in Asia (top ten of the list are all in Asia). The other hotels that are with rooms of at least 400 metres above the ground are the Park Hyatt in the Shanghai World Financial Center (79th to 93rd floor), St. Regis in KK100 Tower at Shenzhen (75th to 100th floor), and Four Seasons Hotel in Guangzhou International Finance Center (68th to 103rd floor). And all of that hotels are in China alone (in major cities of the country that offers outstanding panorama views). Fantastic.

Nevertheless, JW Marquis Dubai should not be left off. It is the current world’s tallest hotel building. That means its whole building of 77 floors are for hotel purpose unlike those hotels I mentioned earlier that each only occupies several floors of a particular skyscraper. None of the rooms in JW Marquis Dubai are located above 400 metres but it’s height is sufficient to provide excellent view to the surrounding, including the world’s tallest building, Burj Khalifa. While usually hotel rooms in a building would occupies the top most floors, but that is not the case for Makkah Royal Clock Hotel Tower where the hotel occupies 22nd to 60th floor only. See below the list of the world’s highest hotels by Emporis. (click on the table to view the larger version)

(Major information in this post are from http://www.emporis.com. Images are from various sources throughout the world wide web)

On May 10th, 2013 (that’s few days ago), the One World Trade Center officially topped out to its final height of 541 metres or 1776 feet. The figure (1776) is in reference to the year of American independence, hence making the height of the this iconic tower very symbolic to the nation. Construction started in 2006 after all the clearing works had been completed on the site where the 911 tragedy struck that brought down the twin towers of the World Trade Center in 2001.

One World Trade Center, or famously known as Freedom Tower, is designed by David Childs from Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. It is to contain 104 floors of office space with a three-storey observation deck occupying the top portion of the tower alongside with mechanical levels which will goes up to 110th floor,  in another symbolic reference to the 110 stories of the original Twin Towers. Its roof stood at a height of 417 metres, which resembles the roof height of the former Twin Towers too.

The building has a square foot base, nearly identical to the footprint of the original Twin Towers, and from the 20th floor upwards, the square edges of the tower’s cubic base are chamfered back, transforming the building’s shape into eight tall isosceles triangles, or an elongated square antiprism. Near its middle, the tower forms a perfect octagon in-plan, and then culminates in a glass parapet whose shape is a square oriented 45 degrees from the base. A 408-foot (124 m) sculpted mast containing the broadcasting antenna – designed in a collaboration with lighting designers and engineers – is secured by a system of cables, and rises from a circular support ring. At night, an intense beam of light will be projected above the spire into the sky above.

Like I said before, on 10th May 2013, the final component of the spire was installed atop the skyscraper, making 1WTC the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere and the third tallest building in the world by pinnacle height. Now, let’s take a look at the current progress of the building’s construction from these very recently taken images from the others. The building is now at its final stage of construction, and is expected to be completed before end of this year.

The elevation of the tower looks very similar to Shanghai World Financial Center as you can see from the last image above. Previously, there was a change in the design of the tower at its base and on its spire even when it is already under construction at the time of the revision. But the part that affects my impression to the tower is its spire’s design now. Previously, there should be a glass radome below the spire which gently acts as a beautiful transition from the massive building block to the thin and slim pinnacle above. Now, that is omitted, and it leaves the building in quite an awkward feeling. The fully glass-clad building that ends ‘suddenly’ with a long spire. Ehh…Luckily, the circular ring at the roof is still there. I’m looking forward to the lighting design to the tower. Hmm…this building looks massive to me, but not that impressive. Anyway, it’s a very clean, bold and symbolic tower to United States. Now, it towers above all of its neighbouring buildings in Lower Manhattan, New York City.

(Images and information in this post are from various reliable sources throughout the world wide web).

Shanghai Tower, is a supertall skyscraper currently under construction in the Pudong district of Shanghai, China. Designed by Gensler, it will be the tallest of a group of three supertall buildings in Pudong, the other two being the Jin Mao Tower (421 m) and the Shanghai World Financial Center (492 m). Shanghai Tower is slated for a height of 632 metres with over 120 floors. When completed, it would become the tallest building in Shanghai, tallest building of any kind in China, and the world’s second tallest building, only behind Burj Khalifa.

Construction of the tower started on late 2008 and is expected to be completed by next year (2014). Looking from its current construction speed, I believed this tower would be completed on time without any major issues. Thanks to the impressive efficiency shown by the construction workers, the tower now reaches around the height of 530 metres, only around 100 metres left from its final peak. Its central core had almost reached its final level already, and the construction had approximately reached above 110th floor. What’s left would be only structures of several floors above, interior works, external cladding, services installation, and extension of its cladding to the top to reach full height. There is no spire in this design which I’m happy for it as such design is not suitable for an addition of pinnacle to raise its height.

The tower is now expected to top out by end of this year. But from even now, it is the tallest building in China already, towering above its two neighbouring supertalls. Let’s move on to a bit of its design. The tower take the form of nine cylindrical buildings stacked atop each other, totalling 121 floors, all enclosed by the inner layer of the glass facade. Between that and the outer layer, which twists as it rises, nine indoor zones will provide public space for visitors. The transparent façade is a unique design feature, because most buildings have only a single façade using highly reflective glass to lower heat absorption, but the Shanghai Tower’s double layer of glass will eliminate the need for either layer to be opaqued.

This building looks impressive to me. I like how the idea of twisting form which symbolises something like a dragon flying up to the sky as reported by Chinese media and also the double-glass concept. Then, came a number of sustainability approach I have learnt from my previous research towards this building which is very good and helps to make it an efficient green building, a very essential element in buildings nowadays. The height is crazy, and I’m looking forward to visit the building if I am given the opportunity. What’s more impressive to me now is its construction progress. I was shocked just now when I checked on its progress. Too quick! Crazy! The tower now stands so huge and tall even when it’s not even finished yet. Marvelous! A massive architectural piece is coming up!

Shanghai is so beautiful especially at night. It has one of the best skylines in the world. Too bad, I have had not been there before. Perhaps, I would choose to only visit the city once this Shanghai Tower is completed and opened to the public. It would be an impressive trip to me observing so many modern skyscrapers in the city. China is now in a massive construction boom. Even not long after Shanghai Tower is completed, its title of tallest building in China would quickly be overtaken by 660 m tall Pingan International Finance Center in Shenzhen by 2016.

(All images in this post are from skyscrapercity forum on topic of this particular building. Information in this post are from various credible sources throughout the world wide web)

ARCHIDEX 2013 is Malaysia’s 14th international architecture, interior design and building exhibition that is taking place in Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre from 19 to 22 June 2013. It’s an annual event which will features exhibition booths or kiosks from various suppliers in building industry, design conference and forum, displays of outstanding works by university students major in architecture. Today would be the last day of ARCHIDEX 2013, and so hurry up if you are interested, before you have to wait for a year. The official website of the event: http://www.archidex.com.my/.

(Image source: http://smartform.greenreg.org/cis/archidexprereg2013/images/archidex_header1.png)

I went to this exhibition this morning together with one of my working colleagues. This is my 3rd time attending ARCHIDEX, and also my second time in a row. Two weeks earlier, I have received an express tag which doesn’t requires me to register and I can just straight walk in for admission without any more procedures. I think I have the tag because I have registered and attended the event last year, and so the organiser presented this express tag to facilitate our admission, and keep us coming every year.

We walked around all the exhibition halls and that took us around 3 hours. We stopped by for a minute or two on several booths that display interesting products, and we were given excellent briefing by the booth operators. If we were to do this for every booths, we wouldn’t be able to finish visiting all of them by 7pm when it will be closed. Hence, we cut short our time at several booths when their operators show very much interest on explaining briefly to us. Sorry for that. At many other booths, we just take a glimpse of what they offer, and just get their brochures as fast as possible. Things we have taken from the exhibition:

After three hours of visiting all the halls, we were very tired, not because of walking, but because of carrying so many bags containing brochures, books, magazines, small product samples, and name cards (we actually to take as much as possible from them since it’s free and we can read after the visit). They are so heavy, and we didn’t have the mood to go any further. However, we still feels like ‘let’s finish visiting all, that’s very little left’. At the last section of the final exhibition hall, we just walked by quickly without any intention of asking for things anymore. At last, we finished touring all the halls. What an amazing experience of having able to see new advanced products, learn new technologies or systems, and meeting new people in building industry which are all essential to us in architectural works. It’s good to have this kind of exhibition which will definitely broaden our knowledge in the vast building industry especially to me, considered a newbie to this field.

This is just amazing! I already expected that this building; Shanghai Tower is going to rise fast, but not to such awesome speed! The construction of the tower began in end 2008, and on this day, the tower’s construction achieved a milestone by having the structure of the tower topped out. Shanghai Tower, designed by Gensler is a supertall skyscraper of 632 metres high with 121 stories. It would be located next to the other two Shanghai’s supertall, Shanghai World Financial Center (492 metres) and Jin Mao Tower (421 metres), and also accompanied with nearby icon, Oriental Pearl Tower (468 metres).

Today, the final beam of the tower is placed at a height of approximately 580 metres above ground. That impressive height is already way beyond the highest point of Taipei 101, the tallest completed building in Asia currently (not including Middle East). Well, that is just the structure. What’s left would be the finishing glass cladding to the top of the tower to bring its full height to 632 metres and this is expected to be observed by end of this year. And yes, this tower doesn’t requires any spire or pinnacle to add up to its already-impressive height. Wonderful. Wow, my first two words to describe the tower still under-construction now right after I looked at the image below is ‘massive’ and ‘wow’.

Now, this is fast speed construction. When completed, the tower would be the world’s second tallest building (only behind Burj Khalifa at 828 metres). It will also be the tallest structure of any kind in China (surpassing Canton Tower in Guangzhou at 600 metres), and tallest building in Asia. However, I believe the building will not hold those records very long due to impressive demands for supertall buildings particularly in China. Hence, in few years time, it will be overtaken by some other skyscrapers as expected. But it will still stands proud, tall and amazing over the city of Shanghai. Impressive smooth twisting design with double-glass layer concept.

Wow. What a fantastic aerial view of Shanghai shown above. You can definitely spot the Shanghai Tower. (click on the image for large version) What’s left for the tower now would be the interior design, testing and running of services, exterior cladding and finishes. It will be opened to public next year. I’m looking forward to visit Shanghai soon so that I can have the opportunity to go up to the tower’s observatory and enjoy the breathtaking view of Shanghai skyline.

(Images in this post are from skyscraperpage forum website discussing on this particular building.)

Galaxy Soho is a huge complex comprising of retail, office and entertainment spaces under four domed structures, which are fused together by bridges and platforms around a series of public courtyards and a large central “canyon”. The massive 330 000 square metre complex is opened last month in Beijing, China and is designed by Zaha Hadid. She had designed many impressive masterpiece like Bergisel Ski Jump (Austria), BMW Central Building (Germany), Bridge Pavilion (Spain), Guangzhou Opera House (China), London Aquatics Centre (UK), Riverside Museum (UK), etc which cemented her position as one of the world’s most famous architects in the present.

Galaxy Soho’s design is quite fascinating. It has the futuristic look, and its fluidity is very much apparent on its form and circulation. Things are smooth and soft, which stays away from her usual fascination with sharp corners or forms. From what I can see from the images, I believe visitors would have the impression of walking into another much advanced world, which is actually only a few steps away from the Beijing’s ‘hutongs’, narrow alleyways of the densely populated surrounding traditional neighbourhoods.  ’Hutongs’ have been typical of Beijing’s urban fabric for hundreds of years, but have been in decline as the city’s development continues to increase.

The architect claims that the buildings respond to and are respectful of China’s historic building typologies, with courtyards and “fluid movement” between spaces. ”The design responds to the varied contextual relationships and dynamic conditions of Beijing,” said Hadid at the time of the opening. “We have created a variety of public spaces that directly engage with the city, reinterpreting the traditional urban fabric and contemporary living patterns into a seamless urban landscape inspired by nature.” What a fantastic description provided by Zaha Hadid.

Well, I have to agree that architect has to be very good on his or her English proficiency to describe things in a much beautiful way to impress the clients. But be reminded, what you are saying should truly conveys the clarity of design intent and the honesty of outcome, No bullshitting. And so, I would like to say sorry to Zaha Hadid that what she said are all just fantasy in her mind. The building is now criticized for lack of acknowledging the surrounding context or built environment.  It would be nice if it is placed in the modern part of the city. But now, it’s at the historical heritage areas which makes the state-of-the-art complex looks awkward.

She had the idea, quite a brilliant one. But she had been driven too much in contemporary approach until forgetting the roots, to a level that people outside of architecture profession will find it hard or even impossible to get it. This is what left people guessing now on how that massive complex relates or corresponds to the site. And yes, that is one very important aspect in design process for every architects that Zaha didn’t pull through for this building. A lesson to learn for all architects including myself. Nevertheless, Galaxy Soho is still an awesome-looking structure. 

(Information and images in this post are from the following source: http://www.dezeen.com/2012/11/15/galaxy-soho-by-zaha-hadid-architects-photographed-by-hufton-crow/)

From now on, I think I couldn’t get my eyes off the updates on the under-construction Shanghai Tower at least for once in a month. I have been frequently visiting the Skyscrapercity forum websites to check on construction progress of several supertalls and Shanghai Tower now got the most of my attention. The tower has recently had its structure topped out at an approximate height of 600 metres above ground, but it will few months later that the glass crown will finish the tower to final astonishing height of 632 metres.

I think I had written quite a lot of posts regarding this very impressive-looking tower on this year alone. In previous years, the building’s construction was still at early stage and was no where to be seen in the midst of Pudong skyline, Shanghai. However from this year onwards, the building started to get noticeable even from very far distance as it continues to rise up quickly and towering all other surrounding buildings including its’ two neighbouring supertalls; 492m Shanghai World Financial Center and 421m Jin Mao Tower. Even when it’s now not completed yet, but Shanghai Tower had already bring about a strong visual or impact to Shanghai’s breathtaking city skyline.

The skyscraper which is designed by Gensler, is now already the tallest building in China, and once fully completed next year, it will be officially the tallest structure in China too (surpassing Canton Tower, Guangzhou which stands at a height of 600 metres) and also becoming the world’s second tallest building (only behind 828 metres tall Burj Khalifa, Dubai). When completed, the Shanghai Tower will join the Jin Mao Tower and Shanghai World Financial Center to form the world’s first adjacent grouping of three supertall buildings. Three supertalls in one area alone plus the Oriental Pearl Tower nearby too. Awesome!

Shanghai Tower will consists of 12 floors of Class-A office space, retail, a luxury hotel and cultural venues. The uppermost floors will feature the world’s highest non-enclosed observation deck which will then surely offers wonderful panoramic views of the city while making things on the ground level appear as tiny as an insect. The luxury hotel in the tower will be called Jin Jiang Hotel and is located between the 84th and 110th floors, which will then also be the tallest hotel in the world at the time of its completion. The tower will also hold records for the fastest single-deck and double-deck elevators, as well as world’s furthest-travelling single elevator at 578.5 metres, surpassing record held by Burj Khalifa.

Besides than its awesome height that could easily pierce the clouds (I think so)- (from the image above, you can see even the tower’s shadow crosses over  the river to the other side of the city too, proving its impressive height), it is also the tower’s smooth flowing design that caught my interest. Well, Chinese symbolism regards it as a dragon twisting and flying to the sky. Hmm…a blue dragon then. Its’ double layer glass concept is also interesting and is already visible in one of the images shown in this post. Now, after looking at those beautiful images of the tower, I felt like I couldn’t wait any longer to visit the city soon so that I could be there on my own and enjoy looking and visiting the tower once it is completed and opened to public. Shanghai Tower has now been one of my most favourite skyscrapers in recent years.

(All images in this post are from skyscrapercity forum website pages discussing on this particular tower.)

Today marks the 20th anniversary of the infamous collapse of Highland Tower, one of the three apartment blocks in Taman Hillview, Ulu Klang, Selangor. The collapse which occurred on 11th December 1993 is the worst structural disaster in Malaysia that claimed 48 lives and had been in a shocking memory to most Malaysians even until these days; two decades after the tragedy.

There are several events or causes that led to the structural failure of the 12-storeys apartment building. Before the tower’s construction, there was a small stream of water running directly behind the site and a piping system was constructed to divert it to bypass the three towers. Not long after, there was a new housing development on hilltop behind the towers that contributed to land-clearing, hence putting high risk to land erosion and landslides. Water from this new construction site overloaded the existing pipe system and the heavy monsoon rainfall at the end of the year worsened the situation.

Shortly after, excessive water in the area caused landslip and destroyed the constructed retaining wall. The foundations snapped, and the most unfortunate tragedy finally occurred, when the whole Block 1 collapsed to the ground (it leant and fell off to one side) at 1.35 pm, 11 December 1993. A huge number of rescue teams including those from overseas came to assistance, and in the end, and only three people were pulled out alive from the rubble (one was later pronounced dead in hospital). 48 innocent lives were lost, including the son of former Deputy Prime Minister, Tun Musa Hitam.

I was only two years old when the tragedy occurred, hence not knowing anything that time. In my past several trips to Genting Highlands, I was always reminded by my parents of this tragedy as the site could be seen from the highway leading to Genting Highlands. But till now, I still couldn’t find exactly where the site is where the two remaining apartment blocks are still standing. However, both were abandoned and overwhelmed by jungle (undergrowth). Instead, now the site has been a popular source of haunted stories. Curious people or those in paranormal investigation whom have had visited the area generally responded that it was really eerie, cold and spooky there. I have not been there before and I personally don’t like that kind of feeling.

Learning from this tragedy, I do hope that nothing like this will occur again. As I myself is involved in architecture and construction, I do think that it is very important for our country’s building construction and planning to be done in much proper and in non-careless way to prevent such thing to happen in the future. On the other hand, recently, there is a local horror film released which is based on the paranormal encounters (fictional) in the remaining blocks. I won’t watch it, because it is local production. I think you understand what I mean.

(Images in this post are from various sources throughout the world wide web)

I believe many of you have seen the video above right? If you didn’t see it, it’s about two masked men filming how they trespassed the construction site of Shanghai Tower and climb to the top of the highest crane for a breathtaking view looking down below. It has been widely shared throughout Facebook. The video had just been published on Youtube for two days and had now garnered over 7 million views already. It’s a big hit. It would be weird if this clip didn’t get your attention.

The two in the video are Russian adventurers; Vitaliy Raskalov and Vadim Makhorov. They can easily sneaked into the construction site with no people around noticing. I guessed they did this during Chinese New Year when all the construction workers were in holiday and that they enter during midnight, hence no one saw them. But the most daring thing they have done was that they climbed to the crane located at the top of the tower with bare hands. No safety gear or rope. No safety measures at all. If they made a small careless step, they could have fall down over 600 metres to the ground and died. Furthermore, strong wind up there could easily makes them off balance too.

If I was them, I would have been very satisfied reaching the top of the building. They did one step further by climbing the crane too, till the top end of it where they were approximately 650 metres above ground. I would have fainted. This video is not for those fear of height. They were truly daredevils. Some may call them insane too. But the panorama offered from that point of view is truly magnificent! Amazing bird-eye view. Really cool! They were smart to have brought high-definition camera to capture some amazing views to share to the world. Even the neighbouring skyscrapers; Shanghai World Financial Center and Jin Mao Tower look small here. Shanghai Tower is really a massive supertall building. Once completed (expected completion next year), Shanghai Tower will be the second tallest building in the world (just behind Burj Khalifa) with a height of 632 metres. I always love this skyscraper and I do keep in touch with its construction progress over the years.

On the other hand, it’s both Valentine’s Day and Chap Goh Meh today! Chap Goh Meh, the fifteenth day (last day of celebration) of Chinese New Year festival is also regarded as Chinese Valentine’s Day. It’s also my last day to collect angpows! And coincidentally, for this year, it falls on 14th February, the same day as the Valentine’s Day. This occurrence only happened once every 19 years. Next will be on year 2033. Anyway, Happy Valentine’s Day to all the loving couples and Happy Chap Goh Meh to all Chinese!

(Images in this post are from various sources throughout the world wide web)

The Emporis Skyscraper Award for the year 2013, which is considered the world most renowned prize for skyscrapers, goes to London’s ‘The Shard’. The tallest building in western Europe, ‘The Shard’ was chosen by an international panel of experts from more than 300 skyscrapers of at least 100 metres in height and which were completed during the previous calendar year. The award, given by Emporis (www.emporis.com), the international provider of building data. is now in its 14th year.

The 306m tall building designed by Renzo Piano, won over the jury, thanks to its unique glass fragment-shaped form and its sophisticated architectural implementation. Hmm…I had seen this building on my trip to Europe last year. I find that it is just a tall full-glass building that ends sharply at the top. Nothing special or worthy to be awarded the top honour for this skyscraper prize. That’s my personal opinion. Perhaps I didn’t know in detail of how the design is that great or maybe that last year’s competition isn’t strong, and so ‘The Shard’ stands out.

Second place went to DC Tower 1 at Vienna. The building at 250m high, is now Austria’s tallest building. The interesting feature of the building is one of its four sides that came with folded glass facade (creating ‘in’ and ‘out’ effect). In contrast with the other three typical flat sides of the building, the faceted facade creates a shifting pattern of light and shadow that animates the surface and lends it a rippling quality.

Coming in third place is Sheraton Huzhou Hot Spring Resort at Huzhou, China. It is a luxury hotel and resort by a lake with a height of 102m. It is not a very tall building, but is bold enough, thanks to its massive glowing light at night, striking reflection, and also particularly its torus/ ring-shaped form that leads to several nicknames given to the building like ‘Horseshoe Hotel’ or ‘Doughnut Hotel’.

For the full list of the top 10 winners of 2013′s Emporis Skyscraper Awards, go to this link: http://www.emporis.com/press/press-releases. Hmmm…I don’t think Malaysia (my country) has any buildings that have won this prize before since its inception. If this prize is started out earlier (before 1997), then I’m sure Petronas Twin Towers will win.

(Information and images in this post are from various sources throughout the world wide web)

The 15th International Architecture, Interior Design and Building Exhibition (ARCHIDEX) 2014 took place at Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (usual spot every year) this year from 25th to 28th June. Organized together with the exhibition are the DATUM Design Conference, Eco-Building Exhibition, some forums and also a newly held congress themed ‘Rejuvenation’. This is the annual event I have been continuously attending, and this is my fourth time visiting the exhibition.

So, I’m quite familiar with what I shall do in the exhibition; going around all the booths in the exhibition halls and getting all brochures and catalogues, and if possible, together with goodie bags and some free gifts like pens or note books. It has also been made easier for me to enter as I do not need to complete any registration as I already received express tag earlier. This year, I think there are more companies involved in the event, and hence the greater number of booths and also bigger areas of halls covered for the exhibition. Here’s the official website of the exhibition: http://www.archidex.com.my/.

As usual, there are booths promoting doors, windows, glass, hardwares, softwares, outdoor and indoor elements, tiles, finishing, wood, roofing, paints, sanitary fittings, books, and all the other related products or technologies related to architecture, interior design, building construction and engineering fields. Me and my colleague were getting tired as time passes as we took more and more bags and brochures. Now, I’m taking some time to read through those catalogues we have taken and to check on which ones are interesting. However, the most delighted thing would still be the free gifts we can find from those bags.

We spent about two hours for the exhibition. Hmm…many booth’s staff approached to us trying to brief us on their products but we just don’t have time for most of them. Sorry…Lastly, we also managed to glance through some of the presentation works (finalists of some kind of architecture competitions) displayed outside several exhibition halls before leaving. Then, only after that, we thought of going for movie ‘Transformers 4′ (just out yesterday) at Suria KLCC. You can check out my movie review of that particular film in my previous post. And for all that, the worst thing is that I have spent RM30 alone for the parking fee. That’s shockingly high and unreasonable. I’m not like parking my car there for whole day!

On the other hand, tomorrow marks the beginning of Ramadhan, the fasting month for the Muslims before celebrating Hari Raya. Here, I would like to take this opportunity to wish all Muslims (particularly my Malay friends and colleagues) a wonderful Ramadhan! Raya is coming soon….

To all skyscrapers’ fans, this is a great news. After nearly six years of construction, the Shanghai Tower has finally topped out officially when it reached its full height on its construction early this month. It has topped out a year ago, but only reached its final height when the last part of the roof is secured in place. And its final height now stands at 632 metres (2 073 feet).

If you are still unsure of how high that is, then imagine it’s double the height of Paris’ Eiffel Tower. Only behind Burj Khalifa (828 metres), Shanghai Tower is now the world’s second tallest building. It is also China’s tallest building, and is one of the three buildings in the world (not including TV towers) that stood above 600 metres mark. Looking up to the top of the building may break your neck.

So, what isn’t better than showing here some most recent images of the tower.

Spectacular building in a spectacular city. Shanghai Tower’s impressive height made it stood out easily above the rest of the many buildings in Shanghai that are already tall including its neighbours, the Shanghai World Financial Center (492m) and Jin Mao Tower (421m). I’m not only amazed by its height, but also by its free-flowing undulating design as the building’s form rises from the ground to the top. Clean, neat and fluid facade.

Here’s some interesting data regarding Shanghai Tower:

Height, architectural: 632 metres.

Height, to top of roof / tip: 632 metres.

Height, to highest occupied floor: 561 metres. 

Floors above ground: 128.

Floors below ground: 5.

No. of elevators: 106.

Tower’s General Floor Area: 420 000 metre square.

Building function: Hotel, office.

Energy Label: LEED Gold.

Architect: Gensler (Marshall Strabala as Chief Architect)

More data here: http://www.skyscrapercenter.com/shanghai/shanghai-tower/.

Also not to forget that I like how this building addresses multiple ‘green’ / sustainability issues on its design (hence certified as LEED Gold) which should be seen as an example by others. Set to be completed and opened next year, I’m looking forward to visit this building soon. Going up to its observatory which will be the world’s tallest observatory (even taller than the one in Burj Khalifa that is only at about 400m level) would be certainly an overwhelming experience especially the opportunity to view the city’s skyline from this crazy height.

Shanghai Tower is going to be epic when the lighting is on soon. Looking from this angle (image above), the city can still cater for more supertall skyscrapers in near future since its economy is rapidly booming and the escalating interest on building big and tall in China.

(Images in this post are from skyscrapercity.com)