The World’s Tallest Building

The Burj Khalifa is the world’s tallest building and can be found in downtown Dubai. The city is located on the coast of the Persian Gulf and is one of seven emirates (political territories) that make up the United Arab Emirates. Dubai’s wealth was historically based on the oil industry, like much of the Middle East, but now has a thriving economy based on tourism, aviation, real estate, and financial services.

The Burj Khalifa was inspired by the vision of Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who is the country’s Vice President and Prime Minister. He wanted to make Dubai the center of business and commerce for the Middle East and develop a world class city. The construction of the Burj Khalifa was an integral part of his plan.

The building is 828 meters (m) tall and has 163 stories. Inside you’ll find room for everything:

• 1,044 private residences
• 37 floors for corporate offices
• 160 hotel guest rooms

Outside the world’s tallest building, a park covering 11 hectares (110,000 m²) has six fountain water features. The most famous of them is choreographed to music and lights.

Design and Construction

To construct the building there was competition among architects from all over the world. Finally the Chicago office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill won the competition and prepared for a long project.

You may be surprised to know that the design of the Burj Khalifa was inspired by nature. The architects used the local Hymenocallis desert flower’s symmetrical structure to organize their designs. The tower is composed of three elements arranged around a center core that form a Y-shaped structure.

The construction of the Burj Khalifa started in January 2004 and was completed six years later. The foundation alone required 45,000 m³ of concrete weighing more than 110,000 tons. In total, raising the world’s tallest building took many resources:

• 330,000 m³ of concrete
• 39,000 tons of steel rebar
• 22 million person hours

At the very top, the spire, which helps give the building its world-record height, is made of 4,000 tons of steel. It was built inside the building and lifted to its final height of 200 m using a hydraulic pump.

World Records

According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the Burj Khalifa holds four awards:

• tallest building
• tallest man-made structure on land
• most floors in a building
• highest occupied floor (585 m)

More Than a Building

The grounds of the Burj Khalifa were designed to impress with beautiful gardens and fountains. The gardens are partially irrigated by water that is collected through the condensate collection system, created by the hot and humid Dubai air and the building’s air conditioning system. It provides about 15 million gallons of water per year.

If you are able to visit this unique structure, you can stay in its hotel, shop in its mall, and eat at its many restaurants (some are the same as ones you’d find in the US). You can get a glimpse of all of Dubai from the observation deck on the 124th floor. You’ll see construction cranes erecting more high rises, with nothing but sand beyond the city limits.

Standing outside the Burj Khalifa in downtown Dubai, you get the feeling that the city is unreal, similar to standing on the Las Vegas strip. All the buildings are architectural wonders, everything is first class, and the Ferraris and Lamborghinis zip by. It is truly an oasis in the desert.

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