1m 0s: Lenght
549View
2Rating

BURJ KHALIFA DUBAI Burj Khalifa (Arabic: برج خليفة‎ "Khalifa Tower"), known as Burj Dubai prior to its inauguration, is a skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and the tallest man-made structure ever built, at 828 m (2,717 ft). Construction began on 21 September 2004, with the exterior of the structure completed on 1 October 2009. The building officially opened on 4 January 2010, and is part of the new 2 km2 (490-acre) flagship development called Downtown Dubai at the 'First Interchange' along Sheikh Zayed Road, near Dubai's main business district. The tower's architecture and engineering were performed by Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill of Chicago, with Adrian Smith (now at his own firm) as chief architect, and Bill Baker as chief structural engineer. The primary contractor was Samsung C&T of South Korea. In June 2010, Burj Khalifa was the recipient of the 2010 Best Tall Building Middle East & Africa award by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. The total cost for the project was about US$1.5 billion; and for the entire "Downtown Dubai" development, US$20 billion. In March 2009, Mohamed Ali Alabbar, chairman of the project's developer, Emaar Properties, said office space pricing at Burj Khalifa reached US$4,000 per sq ft (over US$43,000 per m2) and the Armani Residences, also in Burj Khalifa, sold for US$3,500 per sq ft (over US$37,500 per m2). The project's completion coincided with the global financial crisis of 2007--2010, and with vast overbuilding in the country, led to high vacancies and foreclosures. With Dubai mired in debt from its huge ambitions, the government was forced to seek multi-billion dollar bailouts from its oil-rich neighbor Abu Dhabi. Subsequently, in a surprise move at its opening ceremony, the tower was renamed Burj Khalifa, said to honor the UAE President, Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan for his crucial support. CURRENT RECORDS BURJ KHALIFA HOLDS: * Tallest skyscraper to top of spire: 828 m (2,717 ft) (previously Taipei 101 -- 509.2 m/1,671 ft) * Tallest structure ever built: 828 m (2,717 ft) (previously Warsaw radio mast -- 646.38 m/2,121 ft) * Tallest extant structure: 828 m (2,717 ft) (previously KVLY-TV mast -- 628.8 m/2,063 ft) * Tallest freestanding structure: 828 m (2,717 ft) (previously CN Tower -- 553.3 m/1,815 ft) * Building with most floors: 160 (previously Willis Tower -- 108) * Building with highest occupied floor in the world: 160th floor * World's highest elevator installation, situated inside a rod at the very top of the building * World's fastest elevators at speed of 64 km/h (40 mph) or 18 m/s (59 ft/s) (previously Taipei 101 -- 16.83 m/s) * Highest vertical concrete pumping (for a building): 606 m (1,988 ft)[23] (previously Taipei 101 -- 449.2 m/1,474 ft) * Highest vertical concrete pumping (for any construction): 606 m (1,988 ft)[23] (previously Riva del Garda Hydroelectric Power Plant -- 532 m/1,745 ft) * The first world's tallest structure in history to include residential space * Highest outdoor observation deck in the world (124th floor) at 442 m (1,483 ft) * World's highest mosque (located on the 158th floor) * World's highest installation of an aluminium and glass façade, at a height of 512 m (1,680 ft) * World's highest swimming pool (76th floor) Credits: UggBoy♥UggGirl [ PHOTO // WORLD // TRAVEL ] More Information: http://www.flickr.com/photos/uggboy/4899872639/ Creative Commons License: Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0