Written Report on Skyscrapers

8/10/2019 Written Report on Skyscrapers

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SKYSCRAPER DEFINED

A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many floors, usually designed for office,commercial and residential use. There is no official definition or height above which a buildingmay be classified as a skyscraper and at which height it may not be considered a high-riseanymore. For buildings above a height of 300 m (984 ft), the term Super tall can be used;

skyscrapers reaching beyond 600 m (1,969 ft) are classified as Mega tall.A relatively small building may be considered a skyscraper if it protrudes well above its builtenvironment and changes the overall skyline. The maximum height of structures has progressedhistorically with building methods and technologies and thus what is today considered askyscraper is taller than before.

High-rise buildings are considered shorter than skyscrapers. There is no clear definition of anydifference between a tower block and a skyscraper though a building lower than about thirtystories is not likely to be a skyscraper and a building with fifty or more stories is certainly askyscraper.

The term "skyscraper" was first applied to buildings of steel framed construction of at least 10

stories in the late 19th century, a result of public amazement at the tall buildings being built inmajor cities like Chicago, New York City, Philadelphia, Detroit, and St. Louis. The structuraldefinition of the word skyscraper was refined later by architectural historians, based onengineering developments of the 1880s that had enabled construction of tall multi-storybuildings. This definition was based on the steel skeletonas opposed to constructions of load-bearing masonry, which passed their practical limit in 1891 with Chicago's Monadnock Building.

The Emporis Standards Committee defines a high-rise building as "a multi-story structure between35100 meters tall, or a building of unknown height from 1239 floors and a skyscraper as "amulti-story building whose architectural height is at least 100 m or 330 ft." Some structuralengineers define a highrise as any vertical construction for which wind is a more significant loadfactor than earthquake or weight. Note that this criterion fits not only high-rises but some othertall structures, such as towers.

The word skyscraper often carries a connotation of pride and achievement. The skyscraper, inname and social function, is a modern expression of the age-old symbol of the world center oraxis mundi: a pillar that connects earth to heaven and the four compass directions to oneanother.

A loose convention of some in the United States and Europe draws the lower limit of a skyscraperat 150 m or 490 ft.

How is the height of a building determined?

The original design height of One World Trade Center (Freedom Tower) was a symbolic 1776feet. David Childs' redesign of 1WTC accomplished this height with a spire and not with

occupied space. Does the spire count? How is height measured? The Council on Tall Buildingsand Urban Habitat (CTBUH) defines height in three ways:

Architectural Top: Includes permanent spires, but not functional or technical equipment, such asantennae, signs, flag poles, or radio towers that can be removed or replaced

Highest Occupied Floor: Height to the top space used by occupants, other than areas forservicing mechanical equipment


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Highest Point of the Building: Height to the tip of the top, no matter what it is. However, thestructure has to be a building. A tall building must have at least 50% of its height occupied asusable, habitable space. Otherwise, the tall structure may be considered a tower forobservation or telecommunications.

When ranking the height of skyscrapers, CTBUH considers architectural height and measures a

building's height from "the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance." Other people ororganizations may argue that buildings are to be used by people and should be ranked by thehighest Occupied Space. Still others may say that height is simply from the bottom to the topbut then do you exclude underground floors?

Tall, Super tall, and Mega tall

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) has established definitions that can beused as a starting point for discussing skyscrapers:

Tall: "a building of perhaps 14 or more stories or over 50 meters (165 feet)"

Super tall: a building over 984 feet (300 meters)

Mega tall: a building over 1,968 feet (600 meters)


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Contributing Factors

Combination of several innovations: steel structure, elevators, central heating, electricalplumbing pumps and the telephone.

To dominate American skylines at the turn of the century.

The disastrous fire of 1871 coupled with a resurgence of civic pride. the city's population was rapidly expanding the introduction of the electric motor for Elisha Otis's safety elevator The price of steel tumbled - from $166/ton in 1867, to $32/ton in 1895 - which greatly

facilitated the adoption of steel-frame designs, which in turn enabled the erection oftaller buildings.

Contributing Persons

Henry Bessemer (1813-1898) invented first process for mass-producingsteel inexpensively, essential to the development of skyscrapers.

Bessemer patented "a decarbonization process, utilizing a blast of air" in1855. Modern steel is made using technology based on HenryBessemer's process.

William Kelly, had held a patent for "a system of air blowing the carbonout of pig iron" another method of steel production. Bankruptcy forcedKelly to sell his patent to Henry Bessemer, who had been working on asimilar process for making steel.

George A. Fuller (1851-1900) worked on solving the problems of the "loadbearing capacities" of tall buildings. The "invention" of the skyscraper lieswith George Fuller. George Fuller built the Tacoma Building in 1889, thefirst structure ever built where the outside walls did not carrying theweight of the building. Using Bessemer steel beams, Fuller created steelcages that supported all the weight in tall buildings or skyscrapers.

The Flatiron Building was one of New York City's first skyscrapers(Broadway and 23rd), built in 1902 by Fuller's building company. Daniel H.Burnham was the chief architect.


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The world's tallest building when it opened in 1913, architect Cass Gilbert's 793-foot WoolworthBuilding was considered a leading example of tall building design.

Louis Henry Sullivan (September 3, 1856 April 14, 1924) was anAmerican architect, and has been called the "father ofskyscrapers".He is considered by many as the creator of themodern skyscraper, was an influential architect and critic of theChicago School, was a mentor to Frank Lloyd Wright, and aninspiration to the Chicago group of architects who have come tobe known as the Prairie School.

The technical limits of weight-bearing masonry had alwaysimposed formal as well as structural constraints; those constraintswere suddenly gone. None of the historical precedents were anyhelp, and this new freedom created a kind of technical andstylistic crisis. Sullivan addressed it by embracing the changes thatcame with the steel frame, creating a grammar of form for thehigh rise (base, shaft, and cornice), simplifying the appearance ofthe building by breaking away from historical styles, using his ownintricate floral designs, in vertical bands, to draw the eye upwards

and emphasize the building's vertical form, and relating the shape of the building to its specificpurpose. All this was revolutionary, appealingly honest, and commercially successful.

Sullivan himself, however attributed the idea to Marcus Vitruvius Pollio the Roman architect,engineer and author who first asserted in his book De architectura that a structure must exhibitthe three qualities of firmitas, utilitas, venustas that is, it must be solid, useful, beautiful.[8] Thiscredo, which placed the demands of practical use above aesthetics, would later be taken byinfluential designers to imply that decorative elements, which architects call "ornament", weresuperfluous in modern buildings. But Sullivan himself neither thought nor designed along suchdogmatic lines during the peak of his career. Indeed, while his buildings could be spare andcrisp in their principal masses, he often punctuated their plain surfaces with eruptions of lush Art

Nouveau and something like Celtic Revival decorations, usually cast in iron or terra cotta, andranging from organic forms like vines and ivy, to more geometric designs, and interlace, inspiredby his Irish design heritage. Terra cotta is lighter and easier to work with than stone masonry.Sullivan used it in his architecture because it had a malleability that was appropriate for hisornament. Probably the most famous example is the writhing green ironwork that covers theentrance canopies of the Carson Pirie Scott store on South State Street. These ornaments, oftenexecuted by the talented younger draftsmen in Sullivan's employ, would eventually becomeSullivan's trademark; to students of architecture, they are his instantly-recognizable signature.


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Another signature element of Sullivan's work is the massive, semi-circular arch. Sullivan employedsuch arches throughout his careerin shaping entrances, in framing windows, or as interiordesign.

All of these elements can be found in Sullivan's widely-admired Guaranty Building, which hedesigned while partnered with Adler. Completed in 1895, this office building in Buffalo, New York

is in the Palazzo style, visibly divided into three "zones" of design: a plain, wide-windowed basefor the ground-level shops; the main office block, with vertical ribbons of masonry risingunimpeded across nine upper floors to emphasize the building's height; and an ornamentedcornice perforated by round windows at the roof level, where the building's mechanical units(like the elevator motors) were housed. The cornice crawls with Sullivan's trademark Art Nouveauvines; each ground-floor entrance is topped by a semi-circular arch.

William Le Baron Jenney (September 25, 1832June 14, 1907) wasan American architect and engineer who is known for buildingthe first skyscraper in 1884 and became known as the Father ofthe American skyscraper.

Jenney is best known for designing the ten-story Home InsuranceBuilding in Chicago. The building was the first fully metal-framedbuilding, and is considered the first skyscraper. It was built from1884 to 1885, enlarged in 1891, and demolished in 1931. In hisdesigns, he used metal columns and beams, instead of stone andbrick to support the building's upper levels. The steel needed tosupport the Home Insurance Building weighed only one-third as

much as a ten-story building made of heavy masonry. Using this method, the weight of thebuilding was reduced, thus allowing the possibility to construct even taller structures. Later, hesolved the problem of fireproof construction for tall buildings by using masonry, iron, and terracotta flooring and partitions. In the years from 1889 to 1891, he displayed his system in theconstruction of the Second Leiter Building, also in Chicago.

During the second half of the 19th century in the United States, it was the possibilities of cast ironand steel in the building of multi-storey unit constructions that were most effectively exploited.After the installation of the first safety elevator by Otis, it became possible to use as well as buildtall buildings. Skyscraper architecture was first seen in New York, but the genre was mastered bythe Chicago School of architecture during the late 1880s and 1890s, thanks to pioneer architectssuch as William Le Baron Jenney (1832-1907), Daniel Hudson Burnham (1846-1912), DankmarAdler (1844-1900), Louis Sullivan (1856-1924), Cass Gilbert (1859-1934).

Home Insurance Building & Second Leiter Building


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The American Surety Building, designed by Bruce Price and completed in 1896, gave New Yorkthe title of tallest building for many years.

The ideas of structural engineer Fazlur Khan were also influential in this movement, in particularhis introduction of a new structural system of framed tubes in skyscraper design andconstruction. The first building to apply the tube-frame construction was the DeWitt-ChestnutApartment Building which Khan designed and was completed in Chicago by 1966.

Advent of the steel-frame skyscraper

Jenney is best known for designing the ten-storyHome Insurance Building in Chicago. The buildingwas the first fully metal-framed building, and isconsidered the first skyscraper. It was built from 1884to 1885, enlarged in 1891, and demolished in 1931. Inhis designs, he used metal columns and beams,instead of stone and brick to support the building'supper levels. The steel needed to support the HomeInsurance Building weighed only one-third as muchas a ten-story building made of heavy masonry. Usingthis method, the weight of the building was reduced,

thus allowing the possibility to construct even taller structures. Later, he solved the problem offireproof construction for tall buildings by using masonry, iron, and terra cotta flooring and


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partitions. In the years from 1889 to 1891, he displayed his system in the construction of theSecond Leiter Building, also in Chicago.

According to popular story, one day he camehome early and surprised his wife who wasreading. She put her book down on top of a bird

cage and ran to meet him. He strode across theroom, lifted the book and dropped it back onthe bird cage two or three times. Then, heexclaimed: "It works! It works! Dont you see? Ifthis little cage can hold this heavy book, whycant an iron or steel cage be the framework fora whole building?" Jenney applied his new ideato the construction of the Home InsuranceBuilding, the first skyscraper in the world, whichwas erected in 1884 at the corner of LaSalle andMonroe Streets in Chicago. The Home Insurance

Building was the first example of a steel skeleton building, the first grid of iron columns, girders,beams and floor joists ever constructed.

Evolution of Skyscraper

Montgomery Schuyler (1899)

the eminent critic of the Architectural Record, wrote an article on the subject of progressiveAmerican Architecture called "The Skyscraper Up-to-Date," in which he lamented that theelement of experiment seemed to have disappeared from the design of the skyscraper.

He recalled the early days, especially in the first half of the 1880s, when much "wild work" wasdone. But now, he said, architects seemed to have settled down to a tripartite formula involving

a base, shaft, and capital composed of certain groupings of stories. This formula, he went on tosay, may be clothed in a variety of historic styles.

in Scribner's Magazine, Schuyler reported again on "The Evolution of the Skyscraper"

In the article, Schuyler explained the advances in technology that made possible the rapid riseof building heights. These included the elevator, cage and skeleton construction, fireproofprotection for columns and beams, isolated footings and caisson foundations, and the rest.

He further suggested that these changes of shape resulted from the increasing size and heightof the skyscraper and were made possible by technological advances under the pressure of astrong surge for profits. He made it clear that change in form was not basically a matter of style.Once the frame was formulated, the exterior details could be borrowed from Romanesque or

Baroque architecture, or neoclassical architecture, or any one of a number of other historicalstyles.

While recognizing the impact of technology and the presence of revival styles, Schuyler wasaware of an underlying set of conditions that produced a sequence of solutions.

The first he identified with the "wild work" being done in the 1880s.

The second was a tripartite pattern beginning about 1890.


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The third, in the form of a tower, evolved largely in the pre-World War I period.

Schuyler seemed aware that the size and height of buildings and their relationship to urbanrequirements would of necessity produce a new form or forms that could be viewed historicallyas distinct phases.

View of skyscraper divided into seven chapters or phases .Phase 1

A pre-skyscraper phase, dated roughly between 1849 and 1870, composed of buildingscontaining the essential elements of the skyscraper but not as yet assembled into a singlestructure.

Phase 2

Starting with the Equitable Life Assurance Building, of 1868-70, which contains the necessaryingredients for the early skyscraper but where the compositional features of Phase 1 still persist.

Phase 3

Beginning about 1878, when the French mansardic mode gives way to a flat-roofed formulainvolving a free and varied grouping of stories producing, in Schuyler's words, much "wild work."

Phase 4

Starting in the late 1880s and characterized by a tripartite system of composition correspondingto the parts of a classic column with its base, shaft, and capital.

Phase 5

Dealing with the skyscraper in tower form. In this category three variants are recognized: the"isolated" tower, conceived as early as 1888 but not realized until 1894-95; a "mounted" tower,

dating about 1911, as exemplified by the Woolworth Building; and a "set-back" tower, resultingfrom the rights provided by the revision of the zoning codes from 1916 onward.

Phase 6

Associated with the "setback" form of skyscraper, dictated by the zoning-code revisions effectiveafter 1916.

Phase 7

Dating from 1930 and represented by Rockefeller Center, features a solution with limited spacedevelopment, park-like setting, and often of multiblock dimensions.

Chronology of Important Skyscrapers (c.1850-1970)

Phase 1

Jayne Building (Philadelphia) (1849-52) by William L. Johnston.

Harper Brothers Building (NYC) (1854) James Bogardus.


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Haughwout Store and Elevator (NYC) (1857) by John P. Gaynor, Elisha Otis.

Phase 2

Equitable Life Assurance Building (NYC) (1868-70) by Gilman & Kendall.

Western Union Building (NYC) (1873-5) by George B. Post.

Tribune Building (NYC) (1873-5) by Richard Morris Hunt.

Evening Post Building (NYC) (1854) by Charles F. Mengelson.

Phase 3

Mills Building (NYC) (1881-3) by George B. Post.

Produce Exchange (NYC) (1881-4) by George B. Post.

Home Life Insurance Building (Chicago) (1884-5) by William Le Baron Jenney.

Rookery (Chicago) (1885-6) by Burnham & Root.Tacoma Building (Chicago) (1889) by Holabird & Roche.

Marshall Field Warehouse (Chicago) (1885-7) by H. H. Richardson.

Chamber of Commerce Building (Chicago) (1888-9) by Baumann & Huehl.

Phase 4

Union Trust Building (NYC) (1897) George B. Post.

Wainwright Building (St. Louis) (1892-3) Adler & Sullivan.

Havemeyer Building (NYC) (1891-2) George B. Post.Washington Life Building (NYC) (1897) by Cyrus L. W. Eidlitz.

Broadway-Chambers Building (NYC) (1899-1900) by Cass Gilbert.

Flat-iron Building (NYC) (1902) by Daniel H. Burnham & Company.

Phase 5

Guaranty Building (Buffalo) (1894) by Adler & Sullivan.

American Surety Building (NYC) (1894-96) Bruce Price.

Singer Building (NYC) (1906-8) Ernest Flagg.

Metropolitan Tower (NYC) (1909) Napoleon Le Brun & Sons.

Woolworth Building (NYC) (1911-13) Cass Gilbert.

Empire State Building (NYC) (1929-31) Shreve, Lamb & Harmon.

CBS Building (NYC) (1965) Eero Saarinen & Associates.


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Phase 6

Daily News Building (NYC) (1929) Howells & Hood.

Indemnity Building (NYC) Buchman & Kahn.

Chanin Building (NYC) (1929) Sloan & Robertson.

Lincoln Building (NYC) (1930) J. E. Carpenter & Associates.

Phase 7

Rockefeller Center (NYC) (1930-40) Hofmeister, Hood, Godley & Fouilhoux.

World Trade Center (NYC) (1969-70) Yamasaki & Assoc; Emery Roth & Sons.

Embarcadero Center (San Francisco) (1971-89) John Portman & Associates.

Lever House (NYC) (1952) Skidmore, Owings & Merrill.

Seagram Building (NYC) (1954-58) Van der Rohe and Philip Johnson.

Tripartite Pattern

The tripartite division associated with the classic column, which Schuyler noted in 1899. This canbe considered Phase 4. As stated earlier, Schuyler felt that an early example of this formula wasGeorge B. Post's Union Trust Building.

The facade not only has the base, shaft, and capital but also a transitional story between thebase and the shaft and a similar one between the shaft and the capital. An equally earlyinstance is George H. Edbrooke's Hammond Building, Detroit's first skyscraper, which features thethree-part system.

A more successful solution, because of its height, can be seen in the Havemeyer Building.

Here, the shaft is given greater emphasis by being seven stories tall rather than five. The base isthree stories, as is the capital, while the transitional stories are one each.

Substantially the same method was employed in Robert Maynicke's building at 715-727Broadway. The two-story base carries the transitional story leading to a six-story shaft surmountedby another transitional story with heavy cornice and topped by a two-story capital. Thedifference between this solution and that of the Havemeyer Building is that in the former, theshaft is composed of a colonnade instead of an arcade.

A Chicago version of the Phase 4 formula without the upper transitional story is to be seen in abuilding for the New York Life Insurance Company. A St. Louis variant is the Union Trust CompanyBuilding, where the arcade is used in the shaft and where there are no transitional stories, merelya base and capital elegantly articulated.

Into this category one should also put Adler & Sullivan's Wainwright Building. In his book on LouisSullivan (1856-1924), Hugh Morrison says that Sullivan's composition was dictated by function andthe desire to achieve a "soaring" effect in a building of such height.


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Apparently, the tripartite concept played little or no part in determining the design of theelevation. A rental plan of the Wainwright Building discovered recently in the St. Louis FreeLibrary shows, however, that the second floor was identical with the floors above, excepting thetop story, so that the heavy molding that appears to separate the second story from the thirdwas introduced not for a functional but an aesthetic purpose. The ten-story facade obviouslylooked better with a two-story base, a seven-story shaft, and a taller-than-average capital

housing various services.

The tripartite pattern is repeated in the Schiller Building, where there is little indication on thefacade that the structure houses a theatre. It occurs in the Marquette Building, which has a two-story base, a transitional story, an eleven-story shaft, and a one-story transition and capital.

A final aspect of the tripartite phase needs noting. This is well illustrated by the American SuretyBuilding. Here we have a three-story base with Ionic order and a caryatid story, an eleven-storyshaft, and then an extremely elaborate and tall capital.

Just when this practice began it is difficult to say. But it appears to have been popular in the

late 1890s and was used well into the twentieth century. A good example, with highly decoratedbase, capital, and transitional stories, is the Washington Life Building, where the simple eight-storyshaft offers an effective foil for the ornament above and below.

At the very end of the nineteenth century, Cass Gilbert designed the Broadway-ChambersBuilding, which offers one of the best examples of this shaft treatment of the tripartite formula.Not only do we have a decorous capital with base and transitional stories but the three essentialparts are distinguished by a difference in material and colour. The shaft is dark-brown brick, thecapital a warm marble, and the base a gray granite. When Daniel H. Burnham & Company wascommissioned to do the Flatiron Building in New York between 1901-3, the firm's design provedthat the tripartite arrangement was still fashionable. It was without question the most widely usedsolution for the design of a skyscraper in the United States at that time, being practiced in allregions of the country.

Tower Designs

The concept of a tower had been associated with the skyscraper. We have seen it used byHunt in the Tribune Building. Earlier, in pre-skyscraper days, William L. Johnston (181149) hadused a two-story Gothic version in the Jayne Building. In both examples, the towers were mereappendages, essentially expressive symbols. Height had an economic value, and a tower atopa business building was the cheapest way to achieve it.

When Bradford Gilbert (1853-1911) was commissioned to do an office structure in 1887 for anarrow site at 50 Broadway, he was successful in having the building code revised to permit theuse of skeleton construction. The 21-foot-6-inch-wide facade was designed as a Romanesquetower, and it was thought appropriate to call it the Tower Building. But, in fact, it was not atower. The structure was about 108 feet deep and when seen from the side its form was actuallyslab-like.

Philadelphia had an earlier version of this form in the Tower Building by Samuel Sloan (1815-84)of 1855. Thus, it appears that a reference to towers had an appeal that was aesthetic andexpressive. How widespread was its use may be realized by its employment in religious, civic,domestic, and exhibition architecture, railway stations, and the like. Its appearance, incommercial buildings, is, therefore, to be expected.


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It is thought that the first free-standing tower to be erected was the American Surety Building byBruce Price, because the architect expressed his preoccupation with the tower conceptverbally.

Composition of Facade: Windows, Stories

Most characteristic, however, is the method of grouping the stories as a means of achieving asense of order in a facade involving so many windows, piers, spandrels, mullions, and so on.

In the Boreel Building, of 1878-79, Stephen Hatch follows Mengelson's lead in dividing hiselevation vertically and horizontally. The piers create a composition of five bays with thewindows arranged in a 3-2-2-2-3 pattern, while broad-banded moldings and cornice group thestories in a 2-3-3-1 scheme. As in the Evening Post, decoration is minimized, with a central accentprovided by a two-story entrance and a Queen Anne pediment over the attic story.

The ten-story Morse Building is a variation on this theme. The roof-line is fiat. The piers make for athree-bay, 4-2-4 solution. And the stories are grouped 2-1-2-1-2-1 by double-string coursesrunning past the piers. The tenth story is in the form of a corbeled arcade topped off by amodest cornice.

The Mills Building is larger in size but follows the same principle of design. Here, two wings flank acentral entrance and light court. These are subdivided on the Broad Street facade into four bayseach, two windows wide. The horizontal division is 1-1-2-3-2-1. Of interest is an earlier solution of1880, which presented an unbroken facade of eight bays, each three windows wide, with thestories grouped in a 1-1-3-1-1-2 pattern. The terminating stories are in the form of a mansard withcolossal dormers. The formula shown in the rendering reflects the transition from Phase 2 to Phase3, with a flat-roofed scheme replacing the mansard.

The Produce Exchange introduces the other way of achieving unity during this time. In thisinstance, horizontal grouping is 1-4-2-1-1. But the four-story arcade, the two-story arcade aboveit, and a single floor below the cornice and the attic story are arranged in a vertical geometricprogression of 1-2-4 windows. The architect must have felt the need of a solution of this sort to

attain a sense of order in a structure of so many parts and of such massive size. By employing thisprogression, he managed to avoid monotony and to relate the elements in a most agreeableway.

In the Auditorium building, Sullivan again makes use of this solution in the upper seven floors butvaries the vertical composition to a 4-2-1 and the horizontal into a 1-2-3 progression.

The more typical design system, however, during this period was the one described earlier,namely, an arbitrary and seemingly capricious grouping of stories designed to produce the mostattractive composition. The Rookery by Burnham & Root uses a 1-2-3-3-1 pattern. Cobb & Frost inthe Chicago Opera House prefer a 2-2-4-2. Baumann & Huehl employ a 2-3-3-4-1 formula in theChamber of Commerce Building, and Shepley, Rutan & Coolidge favour a 1-2-5-3-1-1 for theAmes Building, of 1889-91, in Boston.

Zoning Codes: Revision of the N.Y. Building Code (1916)

It is necessary to note one other factor that played a part in producing the tower-with-baseformula. This was the revision of the N.Y. building code in 1916.

Brought on by the ill effects these gigantic buildings were having on the city and the public, thecode introduced a zoning ordinance that necessitated a set-back system based on the width ofthe street.


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Most dramatic examples are the Art Deco skyscrapers the Chrysler Building by William Van Alen(1883-1954), of 1929-32, that rose 67 stories and 808 feet, and the Empire State Building byShreve, Lamb & Harmon, of 1930-31, which tops all others at 102 stories and 1,250 feet.

The introduction of zoning codes in New York and other cities produced a new form ofskyscraper, constituting Phase 6. The period began in 1916 and continues to the present, though

its heyday was in the 1920s, between the end of World War I and the depression of 1929.Multi-Block Sites

Current examples of the multiblock formula include the pre-9/11 World Trade Center in NewYork by Yamasaki & Associates and Emery Roth & Sons, with its two gigantic towers placed in anopen plaza and surrounded by far smaller structures. Another is John Portman & Associates'Embarcadero Center in San Francisco, which is composed of a series of thin slab towers ofvarious heights, set in an irregularly shaped green belt studded with low units.

Less spectacular, but a part of Phase 7, is the kind of solution, represented by Lever House,where a more limited site is involved, often of block size or less.

This category would include the Seagram Building, of 1956-57, by Mies van der Rohe and PhilipJohnson (1906-2005), with plaza and reflecting pools.

It would also include Pittsburgh's U.S. Steel Corporation Building, of 1967, by Harrison,Abramovitz & Abbe, which features a triangular tower on stilts set on a terrace flanked by shrubsand a pool, and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill's Hartford Plaza, completed in 1967 in San Francisco.

Period 1850-1970

Advances in technology can, in large part, explain the growing height of the skyscraper up toabout 1900, when the skeleton frame was widely accepted, but it cannot account for thedramatic changes that took place afterwards.

New construction methods, such as bolted, riveted, then welded frames had virtually no effecton skyscraper appearance. Faster, smoother, and, finally, automatic elevators improved servicebut did not influence form.

The electric light, better plumbing, more dependable heating systems and the telephonemade life more comfortable and business easier to conduct, but these had virtually no effect onthe shape of the structure.

Mid/Late 20th Century Skyscrapers

If the First Chicago School is associated with the earliest types of skyscraper towers, theSecond Chicago School of architecture is closely linked to the minimalist International Style,championed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.

Chicago-born firms like Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, and C.F.Murphy & Associates, later 20thcentury architects have adopted a series of new construction techniques for supertall buildings.Although non-load-bearing curtain walls are used in all skyscraper towers, tubular designs havebeen introduced for the supporting steel frame, in order to reduce the amount of steel used. The108-story Willis Tower (1970-4), for instance, uses one third less steel than the 102-story Empirestate building. Tube-frame structures were first used by Fazlur Khan (1929-82), a partner inSkidmore, Owings and Merrill, in the building of the DeWitt-Chestnut Apartment Building,Chicago (1963).


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Thereafter it was employed for the 100-story John Hancock Center and the World TradeCenter. Variants of the tube frame include the "framed tube", "trussed tube" and "bundled tube"systems. The bundled tube system, for instance, in which a number of interconnected tubeframes are used, was used in the Willis Tower in Chicago (still commonly referred to as the SearsTower) used this design. The bundle tube design also permitted a more flexible formulation ofarchitectural space.

Skyscraper towers were no longer obliged to be box-like; the tube-units could form differentshapes. The trussed tube system was employed by Khan in the Onterie Center, Chicago (1986).For more about contemporary trends,Postmodernist Art (1970 onwards).

ADVENT OF SKYSCAPER IN 19TH CENTURY

In the 19th Century, a new kind of structure was developed, using an iron or steel internalstructure (instead of the outer walls) to bear the building's weight. The taller of these buildingsare called skyscrapers.

Skyscrapers have always represented the rising industrial age of American society in the

1900s, and when people think of the skyscraper they imaging massive, fifty stories plus, high-risestructures. However, the term skyscraper was first applied to the first ten to twenty story buildingsthat began to rise in New York in the 1880s. While in contemporary culture these building maynot compete with the high-rising giants that line the skyline of New York and Chicago, during thetime they were built very few building could go up beyond 8 stories without facing seriousstructural issues.

The skyscrapers themselves served two major historical functions: they were a symbol forAmericas rising social, global, and industrial power and they solved geographical and socialissues that were rising in the early 1900s. In the late 1800s and early 1900s America was rising asone of the major world powers in the world. Socially and economically they were becomingworld leaders, and in the area of technology they were leading the world with newadvancements. The skyscraper was a monumental symbol of Americas technological triumphs,as the system of supports that skyscrapers are based off of was developed in America, and inNew York the major international gate of America during this time skyscrapers were heavilyornamented with this in mind. The skyscraper served in all respects as massive monumentalsymbols to Americas rising power and glory in the world. However, skyscrapers also served apractical purpose as they solved the issues of over population in major metropolitan areas andthe issue of the vulnerability to the elements that prior building had.

SKYSCRAPERS IN NEW YORK AND CHICAGO

Since the early days of the skyscrapers invention, New York and Chicago have been twoof the worlds premier skyscraper cities.

With the rise in American success the issue of overpopulation began to develop,particularly in cities like New York and Chicago that were major hubs in America at the time.With the advent of the skyscraper, however, this problem became controllable as city designerscould now develop buildings that could hold hundreds of office spaces and apartments all in acompact area, thus conserving and utilizing as much space as possible. Moreover, skyscraperscould be built far sturdier and more resilient than previous building, as their materials andstructural design could withstand the destructive effects of the elements, and after the Chicagofire of 1871 this attribute became a major focal point.


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Tribute Building, Chicago

Cities in the United States were traditionally made up of low-rise buildings, but significanteconomic growth after the Civil War and increasingly intensive use of urban land encouragedthe development of taller buildings beginning in the 1870s. Technological improvementsenabled the construction of fireproofed iron-framed structures with deep foundations, equippedwith new inventions such as the elevator and electric lighting. These made it both technicallyand commercially viable to build a new class of taller buildings, the first of which, Chicago's 138-

foot (42 m) tall, Home Insurance Building , opened in 1884. Their numbers grew rapidly and by1888 they were being labeled skyscrapers . Chicago initially led the way in skyscraper design,with many constructed in the center of the financial district during the late 1880s and early1890s. Sometimes termed the products of the Chicago school of architecture, these skyscrapersattempted to balance aesthetic concerns with practical commercial design, producing large,square palazzo -styled buildings hosting shops and restaurants on the ground level andcontaining rentable offices on the upper floors. In contrast, New York's skyscrapers werefrequently narrower towers which, more eclectic in style, were often criticized for their lack ofelegance. In 1892, Chicago banned the construction of new skyscrapers taller than 150 feet(46 m), leaving the development of taller buildings to New York.

After an early competition between Chicago and New York City for the world's tallestbuilding, New York took the lead by 1895 with the completion of the American Surety Building ,leaving New York with the title of the world's tallest building for many years.

STYLES OF EARLY SKYSCRAPER

Early skyscraper design relied on a variety of inspiration from centuries past, includingClassical, Gothic and Renaissance models.

GOTHIC REVIVAL STYLE (1830-1860)

Gothic style was extremely popular throughout the1800s and a derivative of the style dubbed, Victoriangothic also became popular in the late 1800s.

The term Gothic Revival refers to a literary and aestheticmovement of the 1830s and 1840s that occurred in Englandand later in the United States.`

Gothic Revival became popular in the United States afterthe Civil war. It can be characterized by contrasting brickcolor patterns, asymmetry, large pointed arches, steeplypitched roofs, curvilinear trim, towers and battlements. Theearliest skyscrapers were typically a rectangular shape witha flat roof, a tripartite division of the faade, and werereminiscent of Gothic and Roman architecture. The base

was usually two stories, the shaft consisted of multiple floorswith a repeating window pattern and a capital wastypically capped with some terra-cotta decoration.

Gothic Revival is characterized by:

Asymmetry Pointed arches Large pointed windows with tracery and colored glass


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Steeply pitched roofs A curvilinear gingerbread trim along the eaves (on houses) Towers Battlements (a fortified wall with alternate solid parts and openings; used for defense or a

decorative motif) An overall picturesque quality

VICTORIAN GOTHIC (1860-90)

A derivative style called Victorian Gothic (1860-90) became popular after theCivil War. Influenced by the writings of English theorist John Ruskin (1819-1900),this style is distinguished by contrasting colors of brick and stone in boldpolychromatic patterns and decorative bands. This more freewheelinginterpretation of the Gothic was well suited to the florid decorative approachof the late 19th century.

Other features of the early skyscrapers include:

A rectangular shape with a flat roof Tripartite division of the facade, similar to that of a column, with a base (usually of two

stories), shaft (midsection with a repetitive window pattern), and capital (typically anelaborate, terra-cotta cornice)

Exterior expression of the building's interior skeleton through an emphasis on horizontaland vertical elements

Use of terra cotta, a light and fireproof material that could be cast in any shape andattached to the exterior

New York's early skyscrapers relied heavily on historical decoration.

SKYSCRAPER BUILT IN 19TH CENTURY

The buildings that were the tallest skyscrapers but still shorter than the tallest church orcathedral.

Built Name Location Height Current Status1870 Equitable Life Building New York 40 metres

(130 ft)Destroyed byfire in 1912

1884 Home Insurance Building Chicago 42 metres(138 ft)

Demolished in1931

1890 New York World Building New York 94 metres(308 ft)

Demolished in1955

1894 Manhattan Life Insurance Building New York 100 metres(330 ft)

Demolished in1963

1895 Milwaukee City Hall Milwaukee 108 metres(354 ft)

Standing

1896 American Surety Building New York 103.02 metres(338 ft)

Standing

1899 Park Row Building New York 119 metres(390 ft)

Standing


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EQUITABLE LIFE BUILDING

The Equitable Life Assurance Building was theheadquarters of the The Equitable Life AssuranceSociety of the United States. Construction wascompleted on May 1, 1870 at 120 Broadway in

New York City and under the leadership of HenryBaldwin Hydewas the first office building to featurepassenger elevators. At a then-record 130 feet(40 m), it is considered by some the world's firstskyscraper. The architects were ArthurGilman and Edward H. Kendall, with George B.Post as a consulting engineer and hydraulicelevators made by the Elisha Otis company.

The building, described as fireproof, wasdestroyed by a massive fire on January 9, 1912. Extremely cold weather caused the water fromthe fire trucks to freeze on the building. Six people died.

HOME INSURANCE BUILDING

The so-called Father of the Skyscraper

The Home Insurance Building is generally noted as the first tall building to besupported, both inside and outside, by a fireproof metal frame. Oftenconsidered the world's first skyscraper. The Home Insurance Building inChicago, opened in 1884, is, however, most often labeled the firstskyscraper because of its innovative use of structural steel in a metal framedesign.

The Home Insurance Building was a 138-foot (42 m) tall, 10-story skyscraperdesigned by William Le Baron Jenney, who had been trained as anengineer in France and was a leading architect in Chicago.

NEW YORK WORLD BUILDING

A skyscraper in New York City designed by early skyscraperspecialist George Browne Post and built in 1890 to house the now-defunct newspaper, The New York World . It was razed in 1955. Theclaimed height of the building was 20 stories, comparable to 16 or 18stories by current standards

The New York World Building was also known as the PulitzerBuilding after the paper's owner, Joseph Pulitzer (1847-1911), whocommissioned it. Pulitzer's private office was on the second level ofthe dome and looked down on other buildings along the street. Andthe winner of this competition and the tallest building in New YorkCity for about five years. It was the city's first building to surpass the284-foot spire of Trinity Church which, at the time, dominated thecity's skyline.


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MANHATTAN LIFE INSURANCE BUILDING

The Manhattan Life Insurance Building was a 348 ft (106 m) tower at64-66 Broadway in New York City completed in 1894 to the designs ofthe architects of Kimball & Thompson and slightly extended north in1904 making its new address 64-70 Broadway. It was the

first skyscraper to pass 330 ft (100 m) in Manhattan.

MILWAUKEE CITY HALL

The Milwaukee City Hall is in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S. It was finished in1895, at which time it was the tallest habitable building in the UnitedStates. The city hall's bell tower, at 353 feet (108 m), also made it thesecond tallest structure in the nation, behind the Washington. The Hallwas Milwaukee's tallest building until completion of the First Wisconsin

Center in 1973. It was designed by Architect Henry C. Koch inthe Flemish Renaissance Revival style, based on both Germanprecedent (for example, the Hamburg Rathaus or city hall), and localexamples (the Pabst Building, demolished in 1981). Due to Milwaukee'shistoric German immigrant population, many of the surroundingbuildings mirror this design. The foundation consists of 2,584 white pinepliers which were driven in to the marshy land surroundingthe Milwaukee River. The upper part of the tower was rebuilt after a firein October 1929. The bell in City Hall was named after Solomon Juneau,

Milwaukee's first mayor. It was designed and crafted by the Campbells, who were early pioneersin creating diving chambers and suits near the Great Lakes area during that time.

PARK ROW BUILDING

The Park Row Building is a building on Park Row in the FinancialDistrict of the New York City borough of Manhattan also known as 15Park Row . The building was designed by R. H. Robertson, a pioneer insteel skyscraper design, and engineered by the firm of NathanielRoberts.

In 1999, the New York City Landmarks PreservationCommission designated the Park Row Building a landmark.

At 391 feet (119 m), it was the tallest office building in the world from1899 until 1908, when it was surpassed by the Singer Building.


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LIST OF TALLEST BUILDINGS IN THE WORLD (TOP 10)

1. BURJ KHALIFA,DUBAI, UAE.


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2. ABRAJ AL-BAIT, MECCA, SAUDI ARABIA


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3. ONE WORLD TRADE CENTER, NEW YORK, NY, USA


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4. TAIPEI 101, TAIPEI, TAIWAN


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5. SHANGHAI WORLD FINANCIAL CENTER, SHANGHAI, CHINA


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6. INTERNATIONAL COMMERCE CENTER, HONG KONG


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7 & 8. PETRONAS TOWER, KAULA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA


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9. NANJING GREENLAND FINANCIAL COMPLEX, NANJING, CHINA


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EVOLUTION OF STRUCTURAL SYSTEM

Structural development of tall buildingshas been a continuously evolving process.There is a distinct structural history of tallbuildings similar to the history of theirarchitectural styles in terms of skyscraperages (Ali & Armstrong, 1995; Huxtable,1984). These stages range from the rigidframe, tube, core-outrigger to diagridsystem. Over the year as steel andconcrete production technologies reacha higher level, architects use these newmaterials to reach greater height in thedesign of skyscrapers.

TYPE 1: SHEAR FRAMESSemi-Rigid Frame and Rigid Frame

The earliest skyscrapers utilized a semi-rigid steel frame , where the steel members were bolted orrivetted together. Heights were limited to about 10 to 15 storeys , above which the flexiblebuilding would distort in high winds. And Rigid Frame are steel frames with rigid connections thatallowed skyscrapers to rise to about 20 to 40 storeys , by the 1930s.

BUILDING EXAMPLE Reliance Building Chicago, USA, in 1895, (15 stories) Lever House building, New York, 1952 (24 stories) 225 West Washington building,Chicago, 1986 (40 stories)

TYPE 2: INTERACTING SYSTEMFrame with Shear Truss and Frame with Shear Band and Outrigger Trusses

Adding vertical shear trusses at the core of the building and/or horizontal trusses in a belt withframed shear truss around the perimeter allowed heights of about 60 stories.

BUILDING EXAMPLE Chicago Civic CenterBuilding, 1965 (UP TO 40 stories)

First Wisconsin Center Building,1974 (60 stories)

TYPE 3: PARTIAL TUBULAR SYSTEMSEnd Channel Framed Tube with Interior Shear Trusses and End Channel And Middle I FramedTubes

Modern skyscrapers often have a tubular structure, and are designed to act like a hollowcylinder to resist lateral loads (wind, seismic, etc.). With their structural efficiency as a variedversion of the tubular systems, diagrid structures have been emerging as a new aesthetic trendfor tall buildings in this era of pluralistic styles.


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BUILDING EXAMPLE

Water Tower Place Chicago, USA,( 74 stories) Aon Center Chicago, USA, (83 stories)

TYPE 4: TUBULAR SYSTEMSExterior Framed Tube, Bundled Framed Tube and Exterior Diagonalized Tube

The technique of using a lattice of closely interconnected columns and beams, in steel orconcrete, to create a tall, very rigid "tube" allowed post-World War Two skyscrapers to soar up to100 stories ; exterior cross-bracing to further stiffen the rigid tube was added in the 1960s.Bundling a number of rigid tubes together, as in the Sears Tower, pushed the height limit wellbeyond 100 stories . "Superframe" structures, with rigid tubes one on top of another, andextremely strong "supercolumns" at the building corners are now being explored. Alternatives torigid structures are also being developed; damping the movement of tall buildings with apendulum-like counterweight inside shows some promise.

BUILDING EXAMPLE Exterior framed tube World Trade Center Building, 1972 (90-100 stories)

Exterior diagonalized tube John Hancock Center building, Chicago,1969 (100 stories)

Bundled framed tube Sears Towers Building, Chicago, 1974 (Up to 120 stories)

Super-frame Yokohama Landmark Tower Building, (150 stories)


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TOP 10 TALLEST BUILDING IN THE PHILIPPINES

1. PBCOM TOWER, MAKATI

PBCom Tower6795 Ayala Avenue corner V.A. Rufino Street, Salcedo Village,

Makati City, Philippines

Type: Office BuildingConstruction Started: 1998opened: 2000Owner: Philippine Bank of Communications

Height

Antenna spire 259 m (849.7 ft)Roof 241 m (790.7 ft)

Technical details

Floor count 52 aboveground, 7 belowgroundFloor area 119,905 m2 (1,291,000 sq ft)Lifts/elevators 17

Design and construction

Architect Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, LLP; GF &Partners Architects

Developer Philippine Bank of Communications& Filinvest DevelopmentCorporation

Structural engineer Aromin & Sy + Associates, Inc.

Main contractor Samsung Construction CompanyPhilippines, Inc.


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3. DISCOVER PRIMEA, MAKATI

Discovery Primea6749 Ayala Ave, Makati, 1226 Metro Manila

Type: ResidentialConstruction Started: 2010Opened: 2014Owner: JKTC Land developer

Height

Roof 238 m

Technical details

Floor count 68


Architect Kenzo Tange Associates, incollaboration with

Jorge Y. Ramos & Associates

Developer JKTC, Inc.


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BSA Twin TowerOrtigas Center, Mandaluyong, Metro Manila

Type: Mixed useConstruction Started: 1999Opened: 2000Owner: St. Francis Square Group of

Companies

Height

Antenna spire 221 m (725 ft)

Roof 197.0 m (646.3 ft)

Top floor 196.80 m (645.7 ft)

Technical details

Floor count BSA Twin Towers: 55 floors

St. Francis Square Mall: 4 floors

Floor area 78,600.93 m2 (846,053.4 sq ft)

Lifts/elevators 10


Architect R. Villarosa Architects

Developer St. Francis Square Group ofCompanies

Structural engineer D.M. Consunji, Inc.[5]

Main contractor D.M. Consunji, Inc.

4. BSA TWIN TOWER, MANDALUYONG


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One Shangrila Place TowersOrtigas Center, Mandaluyong, Metro Manila

Type: ResidentialConstruction: On-GoingOwner: Kuok Group

Height

Roof 217 m

Technical details

Floor count 64


Architect (Consultant) : Palmer & Turner, HongKong

Architect : Casas + Architects

Retail and Interior Design : BTR Workshop Limited,Hong Kong

Landscape Architect : LDI Design Limited,Hong Kong

Superstructure : Sy^2 + Associates

Substructure : Aecom

MEPF : Meinhardt Phils. Inc.

5. ONE SHANGRI-LA PLACE TOWERS, MANDALUYONG


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6. GT INTERNATIONAL TOWER, MAKATI

GT INTERNATIONAL TOWER6813 Ayala Avenue corner H.V. dela Costa Street,

Makati City, Philippines

Type: Office BuildingConstruction Started: 1999opened: 2001Owner: Philippine Securities Corporation

Height

Antenna spire 217.3 m (712.93 ft)Roof 181.1 m (594.16 ft)

Technical details

Floor count 47 above ground, 5underground

Floor area 82,773 m2 (890,961.16 sq ft)

Lifts/elevators 15


Architect GF & Partners Architects, Recio+ Casas Architects,Gozar Planners Phils.Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates

(design consultant)

Developer Federal Land, Inc.

Structural engineer Aromin & Sy + Associates, Inc.

Main contractor C-E Construction Corporation


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7. ST. FRANCIS SHANGRI-LA PLACE, MANDALUYONG

ST. FRANCIS SHANGRI-LA PLACEShaw Blvd. cor. St. Francis St., Ortigas Center,

Mandaluyong City, Philippines

Type: ResidentialConstruction Started: 2005opened: 2009Owner: Kuok group

Height

Antenna spire 212.88 m (698.4 ft)

Technical details

Floor count 60 aboveground, 5belowground

Lifts/elevators 7


Architect Wong Tung International Ltd., in

cooperation with Recio +Casas Architects

Developer Shang Properties, Inc.

Structural engineer Ove Arup & Partners Hong KongLtd. in cooperation with Magnusson

Klemencic Associates

Main contractor EEI Corporation


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8. KNIGHTSBRIDGE RESIDENCES, MAKATI

The Knightsbridge ResidencesCentury City, Kalayaan Avenue, Makati City,

Philippines

Type: ResidentialConstruction Started: 2009opened: 2014

Owner: Century Properties

Height

Roof 220 m (721.8 ft)

Technical details

Floor count 60 aboveground, 4 belowground


Architect ASYA Design Partners

Developer Century City DevelopmentCorp.

Structural engineer Aromin & Sy + Associates


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9. PETRON MEGAPLAZA, MAKATI

Petron Megaplaza358 Senator Gil Puyat Avenue, Makati City,

Philippines

Type: Officeopened: 1998Owner: Megaworld corporation

Height

Antenna spire 210 m (689.0 ft)

Technical details


Lifts/elevators 18


Architect Skidmore, Owings & Merrill,LLP

Developer Megaworld Corporation

Structural engineer Aromin & Sy + Associates,Inc. in cooperation withOve Arup & Partners

Main contractor D.M. Consunji, Inc.


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10. UNIONBANK PLAZA, PASIG

UnionBank PlazaMeralco Avenue corner Onyx & Sapphire Streets,

Ortigas Center, Pasig City, Philippines

Type: Officeopened: 2004Owner: Union Bank of the Philippines

HeightRoof 206 m (675.85 ft)

Technical details


Lifts/elevators 15


Architect Recio + Casas Architects,RTKL Associates (designconsultant)

Developer Union Properties, Inc.

Structural engineer Ove Arup & Partners, G.E.Origenes & Associates


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Documents

Written Report on Skyscrapers