Tallest Skyscraper in the World

Stray · Post by **Stray** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 2:19 pm

The Burj Dubai tower, the tallest skyscraper in the world, is about to be completed. To celebrate it, David Hobcote has taken a series of amazing high resolution pictures from the air which give an exact impression of the breathtaking, massive scale of this building. Inside, it looks like a set from Blade Runner or the interior of the Death Star.

[more pics]

DBoy · Post by **DBoy** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 2:47 pm

most unfathomable, incredible man made structure. I do not know what I think of this, but it certianly is impressive, most certainly.

gnat · Post by **gnat** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 2:52 pm

insane

how the hell do those cranes get hoisted up that level- 3/4 the way up???!

Post by **system** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 2:58 pm

verging on incomprehensible.

Post by **lynt** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 2:59 pm

This is a more recent image.

witty_pseudonym · Post by **witty_pseudonym** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:02 pm

that's a biiiiiig building.
the cranes are

imagine getting up there every day.

Stray · Post by **Stray** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:03 pm

Lil MiSbreaks · Post by **Lil MiSbreaks** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:05 pm

Crazy....simply crazy.

Makes me think men in Dubai have to over compensate.

deviant · Post by **deviant** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:12 pm

gnat wrote:insane

how the hell do those cranes get hoisted up that level- 3/4 the way up???!

they actually use smaller cranes to lift the parts of the larger crane up and down... then assemble on site.

The smallest crane is ascended in parts up the lift shaft first then it is used to lift up parts of the bigger ones. Some buildings can use up a 4 stage (4 different sized cranes) process (I think eureka used a 3 stage process).

flippo · Post by **flippo** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:25 pm

Lil MiSbreaks wrote:Crazy....simply crazy.

Makes me think men in Dubai have to over compensate.

oh, racist and sexist! nice!

that is fucking obscene though.

Stray · Post by **Stray** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:29 pm

Some Facts ::

Construction Data
Cost: US$800,000,000.00
Developer: Emaar Properties
Designed by: Skidmore, Owings, & Merrill
Type: Skyscraper
Location: No. 1, Burj Dubai Boulevard, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

deviant · Post by **deviant** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:36 pm

The Empire state is still one of the most impressive... it's still number 10 on the worlds tallest list... and it was completed in 1931! only 14 months after building commenced.

flippo · Post by **flippo** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:36 pm

an even bigger one planned...... Al Burj

deviant · Post by **deviant** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:38 pm

^^ yeah man, that thing is planned on being 1.4kms tall

fuck me

when will the maddness end!!?!?!

apophenian · Post by **apophenian** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:40 pm

Hasn't anyone ever seen 'The Towering Inferno'?

flippo · Post by **flippo** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:42 pm

I'm not affraid of hights by any means, but just looking at that simple drawing of Al Burj next to those other buildings and trying to comprehend it makes me want to hold onto my desk. lol

Lizkins · Post by **Lizkins** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:42 pm

have watched documentaries on this, its fricken out of control. everything in dubai is though. my boy's dad works there as an engineer. he worked on making the palm arms. crazy stuff

witty_pseudonym · Post by **witty_pseudonym** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:44 pm

what's the point? seriously. does a small country REALLY need a 1.4km tall building?

agree with lmb...DEFINITELY over-compensating for something.

flippo · Post by **flippo** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:51 pm

witty_pseudonym wrote:what's the point? seriously. does a small country REALLY need a 1.4km tall building?

agree with lmb...DEFINITELY over-compensating for something.

basically it's both the fact that they have a culture of more is better and bigger is better in these cities, and they have more money than they know what to do with right now.

They are also trying to build a massive tourist industry so that there is some way of making money once all the oil money dries up! Pretty fucking big gamble hey. Could end up being the worlds most archetetually impressive slum in 50 years time, especially if no one else can afford to even fly there due to peak oil.

Post by **breaksRbest** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 3:59 pm

flippo wrote:They are also trying to build a massive tourist industry so that there is some way of making money once all the oil money dries up! Pretty fucking big gamble hey. Could end up being the worlds most archetetually impressive slum in 50 years time, especially if no one else can afford to even fly there due to peak oil.

I'm tipping this is exactly what will happen

C.I.A. · Post by **C.I.A.** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:04 pm

Whatevs imo.

FFS, if they have too much money, try sending it to HIV orphans in Africa or cleaning up some of the environmental gong-shows in Asia, not building a big "check out MAH COCK" penis building.

Hung like a button.

Also, those spires on the top of the building are engineer cheat FA1L.

apophenian · Post by **apophenian** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:07 pm

Imagine the energy required just to keep that building cool during the day time. Ridiculous...

Lephrenic · Post by **Lephrenic** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:11 pm

I guess the fire escape is pretty much useless.

Lil MiSbreaks · Post by **Lil MiSbreaks** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:12 pm

Thats it Flippo, need income somewhere when oil dries up. Which makes a lot of sense - just their choice of income doesnt make any. Snow fields, moving buildings, islands of man made islands, fucking next you'll be able to go their and live as the opposite sex for a day!

Dunno if it needed to be that extreme though. Seriously. I wouldnt live on a man made island for quids - no offensive Lizzy, im sure my engineer is excellent, but the idea of it freaks me out. I just cant imagine in ten years it will be the same as when they made it.

at fire escape

Hardy · Post by **Hardy** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:20 pm

C.I.A. wrote:Whatevs imo.

FFS, if they have too much money, try sending it to HIV orphans in Africa or cleaning up some of the environmental gong-shows in Asia, not building a big "check out MAH COCK" penis building.

Hung like a button.

Also, those spires on the top of the building are engineer cheat FA1L.

You know, not everything a guy does is somehow related to his penis.

C.I.A. · Post by **C.I.A.** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:26 pm

Hardy wrote:
C.I.A. wrote:Whatevs imo.

FFS, if they have too much money, try sending it to HIV orphans in Africa or cleaning up some of the environmental gong-shows in Asia, not building a big "check out MAH COCK" penis building.

Hung like a button.

Also, those spires on the top of the building are engineer cheat FA1L.
You know, not everything a guy does is somehow related to his penis.

ORLY??

I find that a bit hard to swallow (pun intended)

What is a large building if not a way of demonstrating that you have favorable genes and that women who bore your children would be well catered for (financially... still hung like a button 'is it in yet?' imo).

/evolution and sexual selection rant over.

ghetto kitty · Post by **ghetto kitty** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:33 pm

C.I.A. wrote:Whatevs imo.

FFS, if they have too much money, try sending it to HIV orphans in Africa or cleaning up some of the environmental gong-shows in Asia, not building a big "check out MAH COCK" penis building.

no shit.

its fucking ri cock u lous.

SFW.

Stray · Post by **Stray** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:48 pm

Dubai's oil reserves account for less than 10% of Dubai's income. Dubai's known oil reserves are scheduled to run out by around 2010.

Dubai has the highest per capita income from tourism in the world.

"The travel and tourism sector in the Middle East earned some AED96.8 billion in economic activity in 2006 which is expected to increase to AED170.7 billion by 2016. Capital investment in the industry crossed the AED30 billion mark thus accounting for 28 percent of total investment,” said Ramadan. “In the UAE, the industry grew by 5 percent which is better than the overall growth internationally. In 2006, 28.7 million passengers passed through Dubai International Airport while 6.44 million guests stayed in Dubai’s hotels. Projections show that 15 million tourists will visit the city by 2010 and the number of hotel rooms will grow to 110,000 by 2016.”

It's ALL about tourism. So it would be stupid of them NOT to build this building.

Lizkins · Post by **Lizkins** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 4:59 pm

Lil MiSbreaks wrote:Thats it Flippo, need income somewhere when oil dries up. Which makes a lot of sense - just their choice of income doesnt make any. Snow fields, moving buildings, islands of man made islands, fucking next you'll be able to go their and live as the opposite sex for a day!

Dunno if it needed to be that extreme though. Seriously. I wouldnt live on a man made island for quids - no offensive Lizzy, im sure my engineer is excellent, but the idea of it freaks me out. I just cant imagine in ten years it will be the same as when they made it.

at fire escape

none taken, i dunno if i would live on it either.

in terms of money, you could say the same about most things huh. i mean why spend money on the military or going to space? fuck all that and put it into fixing the planet before blowing it up and exploring other planets.

Post by **lynt** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 5:02 pm

Where's CJ when you need him.

mrj · Post by **mrj** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 5:17 pm

I couldn't care less if this is a guy overcompensating ad nauseum, or some religious nut trying to reach the heavens.

in short, it looks cool, and the sheer scale blow my mind, so I like it.

isn't it the point though. why not try and build taller and taller buildings? don't we build tall bulidings for the same reason we went to the moon?

Its about discovery kids and I'm all for it.

Stray · Post by **Stray** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 5:34 pm

I think it looks mad.

I wonder how far it moves in the wind at the top!

a1studmuffin · Post by **a1studmuffin** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 5:43 pm

Just the photos of it alone give me vertigo. Crazy stuff.

If it's REALLY all about the tourism, they should stop locking away tourists for 4 years on account of minor drug posession FFS.

Feigan · Post by **Feigan** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 5:48 pm

is it the Eureka tower that has a built in pendulum style device to counter wind movement at the top or am I dreaming this up?

nic · Post by **nic** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 6:04 pm

yer eureka has teh pendulum.

dis gusting, inside the lift gets space station points though.
dubai fail

anytime we have to work on a dubai project everyone tries to go on holidays.

hope it falls over and they get covered in sand

deviant · Post by **deviant** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 6:18 pm

needs more katsilidis you reckon nic

nic · Post by **nic** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 6:25 pm

nah just less rascist arabs tbh

Post by **huge** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 6:54 pm

this was envisioned, designed and built entirely by womens

ulyssian · Post by **ulyssian** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 7:14 pm

Could not imagine being on top of that... get giddy on the 30th floor of buildings.....

Could not imagine when they build their spinning building... dizzyness to new levels!

Although I am impressed with the people that have the balls to go up there and put it all together... WOAH... how long would it take them to get to their job site???

Stray · Post by **Stray** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 7:19 pm

Sustainable Design

The Burj Dubai, currently the world’s tallest building, is the centerpiece of a large scale mixed use development comprised of residential, commercial, hotel, entertainment, shopping and leisure outlets with open green spaces, water features, pedestrian boulevards, a shopping mall and a tourist-oriented old town.

The design for the 270,000 sm tower combines historical and cultural influences with cutting edge technology to achieve a high-performance building that will set the new standard for development in the Middle East and become the model for the future of Dubai.

When designing the Burj Dubai, the design team looked to the sky for sustainable elements. In the extreme hot and humid climate of Dubai, the temperature between the ground (46.1ºC or 115 ºF) and the top of the building (38ºC or 100ºF) can vary up to 8 ºC (or 15º F). Satellite data was used to predict the humidity drop with altitude (up to 30% reduction in humidity between the top and bottom of the building), and analysis was performed to study the air density drop up the building (up to 10%). SOM’s “sky sourced” sustainability innovations will result in substantial energy savings.

The Burj Dubai also has one of the largest condensate recovery systems in the world, capturing up to fourteen Olympic size swimming pools of water per year, and one of the highest chilled water pressures ever used in a building to maximize efficiency. The tower is one of the first to utilize an active stack effect control in a super tall building to minimize energy loss.

[more info and pics]

quick · Post by **quick** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 8:34 pm

fukn sick... looks insane, me like.

Hardy · Post by **Hardy** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 9:33 pm

It may be stupid, pointless, and just some arabs wet dream ego stroker, but fuck it, it looks rad. And is big. So win.

cj the taniwha · Post by **cj the taniwha** » Thu Aug 21, 2008 11:46 pm

lynt wrote:Where's CJ when you need him.

I is here, MB's very own Dubai and Middle East corespondent.

This building is ridiculously tall, almost anywhere you go in Dubai you see this thing, it rises above any haze or sandstorm, and it was freaky to see it poking out of the clouds like some rude boner when we were flying in one morning, it is a very phallic symbol and statement.

i'm impressed with the people who bluffed there way up there to base jump, one got caught and one made it off there.

It is a bit of a pointless competition, and yes as far as I know the true leaders in oil wealth and wasting it, the Saudi's are building a mile high - 1.5km tall building, and they will find a way to do it, especially with oil prices the way they are. unfortunately given the extremely harsh and oppressive regime there it is unlikely that many people will be able to join the mile high club there without getting in a plane.

The next trend will have to be subterranean and how deep into the earth you can put a building or something.

At the top this thing can only house an office, the lift shaft, the duct for all the services (water, waste, etc) and a small office. It is designed to twist and there will be some sway at the top, and it is quite windy here quite frequently.

It's hideously tall, not that nice to look at, but it does attract a lot of attention, i just wonder what else could have be done with all that money (and yes all the nice charity projects sound good but they are unlikely to do that) in terms of solar projects or parks or many other things they need a lot more here and would be more tourist worthy than this great sky penis.

flippo · Post by **flippo** » Fri Aug 22, 2008 12:07 am

I think it's a bit rich to assume that tall buidings are necasarily phalic symbols. I mean they are tall, when you build tall buildings that's how they end up being shaped. It's not like they said "hey lets build a giant penis!" "YEah" *some months later in development* "you know, our giant penis is starting to look like a skyscraper, isn't it?" "hrmmm yeah.... maybe we should put some offices in there while we're at it?"

basically - If you made a building in the shape of a vagina it wouldn't be very tall, would it? I mean I've seen some tall vaginas but not that tall.

I guess you could make a building in the shape of a pair of tits? Might not be the tallest building in the world, but it would probably be the most awesome.

Hatsudai · Post by **Hatsudai** » Fri Aug 22, 2008 12:19 am

flippo wrote: I guess you could make a building in the shape of a pair of tits? Might not be the tallest building in the world, but it would probably be the most awesome.

deviant · Post by **deviant** » Fri Aug 22, 2008 2:10 am

lol flippo... but look at all that space around it.... sure the same amount of square meters of floor space could have been gained with a giant cube or some other shape.

flippo · Post by **flippo** » Fri Aug 22, 2008 9:47 am

or a pair of bresoms!

deviant · Post by **deviant** » Fri Aug 22, 2008 10:26 am

C.I.A. wrote:Also, those spires on the top of the building are engineer cheat FA1L.

umm, I don't think al burj or burj dubai need to "cheat".... fucken look at the size of 'em!

a1studmuffin · Post by **a1studmuffin** » Fri Aug 22, 2008 11:34 am

I love that when the Chrysler building was built, they kept the spire hidden inside a shaft in the center of the structure until the last minute, then lifted it out to make it the world's tallest building (in the 30s). All class.

Stray · Post by **Stray** » Fri Aug 22, 2008 12:01 pm

Ta da! My spire! Let me show you it!

I don't understand peoples aversion to tall buildings.
They have less impact on the environment and surrounding habitat than the same amount of rooms built into 1 story buildings.