Skyscraper

MetroPlace is a 342 unit, 46-storey development in Burnaby’s Metrotown neighbourhood. The residential tower component sits on top of a 4-storey commercial podium on Beresford, a 5-storey stacked townhouse podium component on Telford, and a series of 2-storey townhouses along the site’s southern property line. The project incorporates up to sixteen thousand square feet of city-owned community amenity space, granted in exchange for an additional amenity density bonus.MetroPlace is the first high density development to take advantage of the new “supplemental community benefit density bonuses” for Burnaby’s town centres. The project aims to integrate the adjacent Maywood neighbourhood into the town centre. It includes pedestrian and cyclist-fri... More

Ever walk in a bamboo forest? As sunlight filters through the mist, the towering bamboo, arching overhead like a cathedral, clacks in the breeze, waving back and forth. Walk and breathe in any forest and feel the gratitude for your good fortune and remember the future of your children’s generations breathing in the vast forests of our blue-green planet. Sustainability and answers to global warming issues cannot come from just the top down. Africa is at the bottom and is not being listened to. The planet is a global eco system and like any system it is no better than its weakest link. Africa is that weak link, it is at the bottom and must be part of the solution. We need more equal parts of top down and bottom up. A healthy ecological glo... More

The ArcelorMittal Orbit is a collaboration between renowned sculptor Anish Kapoor and Cecil Balmond. The Orbit engages with a new language of ‘tower’. Instead of going up, in a straight line, their creation is an ‘orbit’ - a continuous loop that goes around and comes back on itself. Balmond has described the ArcelorMittal Orbit as a “narrative in space” that “stretches the language of the icon.” Height: 114.5m Material: 1,500 tonnes of steel (57% recycled), 35,000 bolts and 19,000 litres of red RAL 3003 paint. Client: ArcelorMittal & Greater London Authority Location: London, U.K. Completion: May 2012 Program: Public Art Sculpture The ArcelorMittal Orbit is the tallest sculpture in the UK. It can receive up to 770 visitors per hou... More

The winning entry in an international design competition, KPF’s design for Tour First presents a complete refurbishment of one of France’s first skyscrapers, creating a welcoming symbol to La Défense and a strong new architectural image for the Paris skyline. Located on a prominent site near the Neuilly Bridge, the transformed Tour First retains the integrity of the original 1970s tower while providing a modern interpretation of the concept and improving the integration with its urban context.   KPF’s design solution increases the rentable area by extending the floor slabs to make the dimensions meet current market needs. Opaque gable walls are replaced to bring natural daylight into the office spaces and op... More

Burj Khalifa, formerly Burj Dubai, at the center of a large-scale development, is the tallest building in the world. The design combines cultural influences with cutting-edge technology to achieve a high-performance building. Its massing is manipulated in the vertical dimension to minimize the impact of wind on the tower's movement. The design for the 270,000 square meter Burj Khalifa (formerly Burj Dubai) combines historical and cultural influences with cutting edge technology to achieve a high-performance building. Some of these technologies are: * High performance glazing with Low E coating: A low-emissivity glass provides Burj Khalifa with enhanced thermal insulation against high ambient temperatures of Dubai. *... More

London Bridge Tower, which is also known as the Shard, is a 72 storey mixed use tower located besides London Bridge Station on the south bank of the river Thames. The station, which combines train, bus and underground lines is one of the busiest in London with 200,000 users per day. The project is a response to the Mayor’s policy of promoting high density development at key transport nodes. The form of the tower was determined by its prominence on the London skyline. Unlike other cities such as New York or Hong Kong, the Shard is not part of an existing cluster of high rise buildings. References included the masts of ships docked in the nearby Pool of London and Monet’s paintings of the Houses of Parliament. The slender pyramidal f... More

THE INSPIRATION Luca Curci architects studio presents Vertical City, a project proposal for a vertical city-building settled in the water. The project combines sustainability with population density and it aims to build up a zero-energy city-building. Starting from the analyses of the contemporary skyscraper, conceived as a compact element, smooth and alienated from the surrounding space, the project has re-interpreted it in an opened structure, equipped with green areas on each level, natural light and ventilation. This new interpretation allows its residents to get into an healthier life-style, in connection with natural elements, re-thinking the traditional concept of community and society. The building’s structure is based on a m... More

The refurbishment of the Besiktas Fish Market is not a design and realization process that was prosecuted in an accustomed manner. It is not intended to be carried through to an incomputable state. On the contrary, the aspiration is to initiate a dynamic outset by the gradual functional supplements and substitutions and even with the immediate effects of artistic approaches. The architectural decisions were constituted with a simplistic approach to form and solutions, in order to allow and welcome revolution in this 26x23/2 triangular space which can subsist with temporary art installations and elements that, only in the course of time, generate themselves through the medium of color, texture and light. The space mimics a piece of clo... More

The D2 Tower, the first high-rise building with concrete core and steel exoskeleton in France, is once again distinguished. After the ArchiDesignClub Award 2015, the Trophée du Bien-Etre 2015, and a third rank at theEmporis Skyscraper Award, the jury for the Eiffel trophies rewarding Steel Architecture acknowledges the character and skills put into the work signed by architects Anthony Bechu and Tom Sheehan. A unique place and a human adventure Creating a live link between the Esplanade of La Défenseand the adjoining Courbevoie district, the D2 Tower rises above the ring road, contributing to transforming it into an urban boulevard. The refreshing modernity it brings to the surrounding towers, along with the 30% savings on materials gra... More

In the shade of the towers of the Vertical Forest, Billiani dresses up the Bio.it restaurant in the heart of the Isola district of Milan Commissioned by Ristoro Bio srl, architect Ingrid Fontanili chose Billiani’s Gradisca and Tracy chairs to fit out the new Bio.it restaurant in Milan. The restaurant is located beneath the two towers of the Vertical Forest designed by Studio Boeri, inaugurated last October and honoured the following month with the International Highrise Award, an international competition that awards prizes to the world’s most beautiful skyscrapers. Many Billiani seats have been used in this restaurant, totalling around 130. These include solid beech wood Gradisca chairs and stools designed by Werther Toffoloni, and Trac... More

200 Greenwich Street/2 WTC is the capstone in the redevelopment of the World Trade Center and the final component of the revitalization of Lower Manhattan. Located at 200 Greenwich Street and bounded by Church Street to the east, Vesey Street to the north and Fulton Street to the south, the tower will rise to ~1,340 feet, respectfully framing the 9/11 Memorial Park alongside One WTC, 3 WTC and 4 WTC. The design of 2 WTC is derived from its urban context at the meeting point between two very different neighborhoods: the Financial District with its modernist skyscrapers and TriBeCa with its lofts and roof gardens. The design combines the unique qualities of each, melding high-rise with low-rise and modern with historical. From the 9/11 Me... More

"Lying-Down" Skyscraper at Frankfurt Airport One of Europe's most spectacular buildings, “The Squaire,” was recently built at the Frankfurt Airport. On just nine levels, this imposing building features 140,000 m² of useful space. The WAGO-I/O-SYSTEM was used for the electrical building automation. By Martin Hardenfels, Head of Project Sales, WAGO Kontakttechnik GmbH & Co. KG In a large building such as The Squaire, the building technology used and its control and automation present a great challenge. Especially with respect to room automation, the operators wanted to guarantee great flexibility. Thus, for example, it should be easy to redesign office spaces without requiring work on the electrical installation or new programming within... More

Concept As a first outdoor installation, Emmanuelle has transformed the space in Shinjuku Central Park in Tokyo using full spectrum of floating colors. Having high rise buildings in the background, the 100 colored strands dance in the breeze, as if they are breathing in and out, creating a dynamic motion. This is the 2nd exhibition of the '100 colors' series, which she plans to exhibit in different cities around the world. “When I first arrived in Tokyo, I was fully fascinated by the colors overflowing on the street. In that very moment, my mind decided to move to Japan. Overwhelming number of store signs, flying electrical cables, and flashes of blue sky framed by various volumes of buildings, created three dimensional “layers”... More

Al Jazeera Media Network (AJMN) has unveiled its new UK headquarters and broadcast studio in the iconic Shard skyscraper in London. The scheme, designed by Vienna based architects Veech x Veech, has created a pre-eminent broadcast production facility, with a multi-purpose newsroom and revolutionary studio, which breaks the mould of the ‘black box’ studio and re-imagines how broadcast facilities are designed. Broadcast design specialists Veech x Veech had the complex task of configuring a fully functioning TV studio within the confines of a predetermined floorplate. Creating such media hubs is highly specialised and requires precision design, using the camera as an additional tool as part of the process – the perspective of the studio ap... More