2008
BEST TALL BUILDING
ASIA & AUSTRALASIA
SHANGHAI wORLD fINANCIAL CENTER
sHANGHAI, cHINA
foot-wide portal carved through its upper
101 stories, is a symbol of commerce and
levels relieves the enormous wind pressures
culture that speaks to the citys emergence
on the building. The project activates the
as a global capital. It is recognized by the
ground plane through function-specific
council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat
entrance volumes (e.g., hotel, office and
as the worlds tallest building in two of its
retail) that extend from its stone-clad base.
four categories, height to top of roof (487
To further connect the activities of the
meters/1,599 feet) and highest occupied
building to the city, the retail volume is
floor (474 meters/1,555 feet) (see page 116
oriented toward a public park planned for
for more on CTBUH Height Criteria). Located
an adjacent site.
in shanghais Pudong District, the mixed-
-Tim Johnson, NBBJ
AwArds Jury / Editor stAtEMENt
This is a building that
inspires an impression
of its place. The building
structure is nothing short
of genius.
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The Shanghai World Financial Center, at
used sWFc is a vertical city, containing 62
Optimizing
office floors, conference facilities, urban
paramount to the design, integrating the
retail and dining spaces, and a 174-room
structure, mechanical systems, and exterior
five-star Park Hyatt Hotel at the topthe
envelope in a modular system that repeats
worlds highest hotel from the 79th to 93rd
every 13 floors to facilitate the fabrication
floors. Above the hotel, at the 94th to 100th
and installation of components, and, in
floors, is a visitors square and observatory,
turn, reduce construction time, material
which is the highest publicly accessible
waste, and structural inefficiencies. The
built space in the world.
purity of the towers design belies the
form
and
function
was
inherent complexity of the various building
shaped by the intersection of two
systems within, and is readily adaptable to
sweeping arcs and a square prismshapes
the changing programmatic requirements
representing ancient chinese symbols of
that often arise during the long timeline
heaven and earth, respectivelythe towers
of such a large project, as well as to the
tapering form supports programmatic
changing needs of building users.
efficiencies, from large floor plates at its
base for offices to rectilinear floors near the
The project was put on hold in 1995 after
top for hotel rooms (see floor plan diagram
the completion of the foundations. When
on page 39). Its boldest feature, the 164-
revived in 1999 the height and base
PROJECT DETAILS
Completion Date
August 2008
Height
492 meters/1,614 feet
Total Area
377,300 square meters/
4,061,223 square feet
Use
Office, Hotel, Retail,
conference Facilities,
Observation Deck
Owner / Developer
Mori Building company Ltd.
Architect
Kohn Pedersen Fox
Associates Pc/
Irie Miyake Architects and
Engineers
Structural Engineer
Leslie E. Robertson
Associates, R.L.L.P.
MEP Engineer
Kenchiku setubi sekkei
Kenkyusho
Contractor
China State Construction
Engineering Corporation/
Shanghai Construction
General Company
View from the north with Jin Mao Tower standing across the street at right
WINNER | AsIA & AUsTRALAsIA
35
SHANGHAI WORLD FINANCIAL CENTER
SHANGHAI, CHINA
dimensions were both increased from the
original design. Reinforcing the existing
piles to accommodate these changes
would have been possible but costly. The
new, taller structure would not only have
to be made lighter, but would need to
resist higher wind loads, which increase
exponentially with height.
The projects structural engineer developed
a new system, employing composite megacolumns, diagonal mega-braces, steel outriggers, belt trusses, and core wall trusses
(see right), the pile loads were redistributed
to accept increased lateral loads from wind
and earthquake. The stiffness of the lateral
force-resisting system of the perimeter wall
was increased, and as such, the original
design for the perimeter framing was
abandoned in favor of a diagonal-braced
frame with added outrigger trusses coupled
to the columns of the mega-structure. This
enabled the weight of the building to be
reduced by more than 10% and resulted in
a reduced cost for the structure, provided
for speedier construction, and significantly
reduced the material that went into the
building and thus made the building even
more environmentally friendly.
Viewed from the southeast
36
Structural diagram showing how the various components of structure work together
Construction photo showing exposed structural elements before cladding
WINNER | AsIA & AusTRAlAsIA
Model showing the buildings structure system of mega-columns, diagonals and
belt trusses along with concrete core walls and outrigger trusses
37
SHANGHAI WORLD FINANCIAL CENTER
SHANGHAI, CHINA
AwArds Jury / Editor stAtEMENt
The Shanghai World
Financial Center now
completes the twodecade dialogue with its
Jin Mao neighbor, both
different but confident
interpretations of the
Chinese skyscraper.
Awards Jury Statement:
Asia is a region with half the worlds
population, and currently undergoing
unprecedented development. With the
greatest rate of migration in the history of
humankind from rural to urban areas there
is an explosion of high rise development
everywhere. Density is key, as well as the
craving for a recognizable and modern
identity.
High rise buildings play an
essential role in achieving these desires.
The Asia region had a significant amount of
-Antony Wood, Editor
very high quality submissions for a CTBUH
Architectural model of tower
award this year and fostered a wonderful
debate about selecting the best. In the
end the Shanghai World Financial Center
was selected the winner. First of allthis
structure is a lesson in endurance having
been started in the 1990s and now just
being finished. As one juror commented
it takes six miracles for anything great
to happen. This project has become the
icon of Shanghai and potentially China.
Its simple and clear form is dramatic at all
scales through a connection metaphorically
of the earth and sky. Its structural design
is revolutionary. The building is profound
it speaks to where tall building design is
today.
Viewed against the Shanghai skyline
38
Color coded section and series of floor plans showing the progressive change in form
WINNER | AsIA & AustRAlAsIA
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