Gulf Construction Online - The Burj begins upward ascent

UAE Focus

The officials at the pour.

The Burj begins upward ascent

01 May 2005

Emaar Properties’ iconic building, the Burj Dubai, started its ascent last month following the pouring for the sheer walls of the core, which will hold the superstructure of the world’s tallest tower.

“This is a very significant moment in the construction of Burj Dubai,” said executive director Issam Galadari. “Over the next couple of years, Burj Dubai will rise one floor every week and people driving along Sheikh Zayed road will be able to witness its progress.”
The tower’s 192 piles have been constructed to depths of more than 50 m and are bound together by a 3.7 m thick concrete raft across 8,000 sq m, encompassing the tower’s entire footprint.
Nearly 18,000 cu m of concrete was poured for the tower piles while 15,000 cu m of concrete was used for the podium piles. The raft, in addition, comprises of 12,300 cu m of concrete, bringing the total concrete poured into the foundation to over 45,000 cu m weighing more than 110,000 tonnes.
The tower is composed of three elements arranged around a central core. As the tower rises from the foundation raft, setbacks occur at each element in an upward-spiralling pattern, decreasing the mass of the tower as it reaches towards the sky.
The project features a hotel, furnished apartments and over 600 unfurnished apartments, which will occupy the space between ground level and 112th level, and corporate suites from the 112th level onwards.
The tower is being constructed by Samsung Corporation and the project is managed by Turner International. The design created by world renowned architect Adrian Smith for Chicago-based Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM) draws inspiration from the geometrics of the desert flower and the patterning systems employed in Islamic architecture.
Groundwork on the tower stands completed with 18,000 cu m of cement having been poured for the foundation which itself is 80,000 sq ft. The foundation work for the superstructure was completed in record 12 months. The tower’s 192 piles are constructed to depths of more than 52 m and are bound together by a 3.7 m thick concrete raft across 8,000 sq m, encompassing the tower’s entire footprint.
The overall Burj Dubai master plan will feature 45 million sq ft of liveable space to accommodate 30,000 homes making the Burj Dubai site the biggest single construction site in the world. Total floor space of the Tower will be 3.7 million sq ft excluding the car park. More than 50 elevators will transport people up and down the superstructure, with separate elevators accessible only through the adjoining Dubai Mall. There will be three entrances to cater to the residents, hotel guests and office owners. The furthest distance that can be traveled in any one elevator is the 124 floors to the ‘sky lobby’ where visitors to the Burj Dubai Corporate Suites will have to change to ascend to their floors- one suite per floor.