Burj Khalifa (“Khalifa Tower”), known as Burj Dubai during construction, was formally named after the ruler of the neighbouring emirate of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khalifa ibn Zayed Al Nahyan. Although the tower was officially launched on January 4, 2010, the interior was not yet completed. The tower, which was built to host a variety of commercial, residential, and hospitality activities and whose intended height was a tightly guarded secret throughout its construction, was completed at 162 floors and a height of 2,717 feet (828 metres).
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, a Chicago-based architectural firm, designed it. Adrian Smith was the architect, and William F. Baker was the structural engineer.
The modular structure is put up on a three-lobed footprint that represents an abstract portrayal of the indigenous Hymenocallis flower. The Y-shaped layout is essential in reducing wind forces on the tower.
A succession of wings, each with its concrete core and perimeter columns, buttress a hexagonal centre core. As the tower rises in height, the wings step back in a spiral pattern, changing the contour of the building at each tier and thereby lessening the effect of the wind on the edifice.
The central core emerges from the summit of the tower and is capped with a spire that rises more than 700 feet (201 metres). The spire was built inside the tower and raised to its final place with the help of a hydraulic pump.
The tower is supported at the fundamental level by a reinforced concrete mat about 13 feet (4 metres) thick, which is itself supported by concrete piles 5 feet (1.5 metres) in diameter. The skyscraper is held in place by a three-story pedestal; the podium and two-story basement alone total around 2,000,000 square feet (186,000 square metres).
Burj Khalifa easily eclipsed the Taipei 101 (Taipei Financial Center) building in Taipei, Taiwan, which measured 1,667 feet (508 metres), as the world’s tallest structure when it opened in January 2010. At the same time, the Burj Khalifa shattered multiple other records, including the tallest freestanding structure in the world, the highest occupied floor in the world, and the highest outdoor observation deck in the world.
