Sustainability cannot be generalized, but should integrate histories, geographies and traditions, including contemporary building aspects, and Dubai is a perfect example for these trends that professionals need to emulate and share at all practical levels, according to Elizabeth O’Donell, Associate Dean, Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture, The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, US.

O’Donell’s remarks came during her address at The Dubai Forum on Architecture for Sustainable Societies’, held on 5 January under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

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A fountain on the 157th floor

Described as both a ‘Vertical City’ and ‘A Living Wonder,’ Burj Dubai, developed by Dubai-based Emaar Properties PJSC, is the world’s tallest building.

Rising gracefully from the desert, Burj Dubai honours the city with its extraordinary union of art, engineering and meticulous craftsmanship.

The focal point of Downtown Burj Dubai, the flagship community project of Emaar Properties, Burj Dubai stands as the world’s tallest building and its highest man-made structure.

At over 800 metres (2,625 ft), Burj Dubai has 160 storeys, the most of any building in the world. The tower will be inaugurated on January 4, 2010, to coincide with Accession Day, the fourth anniversary of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum becoming Ruler of Dubai.

Arguably the world’s most prestigious address, Burj Dubai is responsible for a number of world-firsts.

The tower became the world’s tallest man-made structure just 1,325 days after excavation work started in January 2004.

Burj Dubai employs a record-breaking 330,000 cubic m (11.6 million cubic ft) of concrete; 39,000 m/t of reinforced steel; 103,000 sq m (1.1 million sq ft) of glass; and 15,500 sq m (166,800 sq ft) of embossed stainless steel. The tower took 22 million man hours to build.

With a total built-up area of 5.67 million sq ft, Burj Dubai features 1.85 million sq ft of residential space and over 300,000 sq ft of prime office space. That is in addition to the area occupied by the Armani Hotel Dubai and the Armani Residences.

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In January 2004, Dubai announced Burj Dubai to the world with the claim, ‘History Rising’. Six years on and history has most certainly ‘risen’.

Burj Dubai will soon be transformed into a vibrant community for thousands of residents, employees, hotel guests and tourists. Up to 12,000 people will live, work and play inside the world’s tallest building.

The tower is the focal point of the 500-acre master planned community Downtown Burj Dubai, which is widely described as the most prestigious square kilometre on earth.

Burj Dubai is the development’s crowing glory in every sense, a building that has pushed the boundaries of design and engineering further than many thought possible.

Excavation work for the tower began soon after the announcement of its launch, with more than 60 contractors and consultants joining forces on a project of unprecedented scale and ambition.

When construction work was at its most intense, more than 12,000 people from over 100 countries were working every day at the Burj Dubai site. In total, Burj Dubai took 22 million man hours to build.

Mr. Mohamed Alabbar, Chairman, Emaar Properties, said Burj Dubai was a shining example of global collaboration. “Burj Dubai shows just what can be achieved when people from all over the world come together to strive for a common purpose.”

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Burj Dubai, at over 800 metres (2,625 ft) and more than 160 storeys, holds the following world records:

• Tallest building in the world – surpassing Taipei 101 in Taiwan, which at 508 metres (1,667 ft) held the title since it opened in 2004.
• Tallest man-made structure in the world – surpassing the height of the KVLY-TV mast in North Dakota in the United States, which stands at 628.8 metres (2,063 ft)
• Tallest free-standing structure in the world – breaking the 31-year-old record of the CN Tower, which stands at 553.33 metres (1,815.5 ft)
• Largest number of storeys in the world – more than 160
• Highest occupied floor in the world – Level 160
• Highest outdoor observation deck in the world – Level 124
• Vertically pumping concrete over the greatest distance – 600 metres, beating the previous record of 448 metres (1,470 ft) set by Taipei 101
• Highest service elevator – 504 metres (1,654 ft), higher than Taipei 101’s service lift, which reaches 448 metres, and nearly one-and-a-half times higher than the elevator in the Empire State Building in New York, which travels as high as 381 metres
• Highest installation of an aluminium and glass façade
• Highest swimming pool – the pool on Level 76 at Burj Dubai is more than 260 metres (853 ft) above ground

Call it vertical travel with a difference. Burj Dubai, the world’s tallest building by Emaar Properties, set to be inaugurated on January 4, 2010 to mark the fourth anniversary of the Accession Day of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum as the Ruler of Dubai, is setting new trends as well as world records in elevator and escalator installation and operation.

In what is described as the ‘intelligent elevator installation,’ Burj Dubai will have 57 elevators and eight escalators streamlining the travel needs of the residents and visitors to the tower. These elevators also mark the highest installation in any building.

“Burj Dubai is envisaged as a work-live-play environment – a vertical city for all practical purposes, with homes, offices, corporate suites, a luxury hotel, retail outlets and fitness facilities. The advanced elevator technologies used in Burj Dubai are designed for seamless performance with a focus on safety, efficiency and the convenience of users,” said Abdulla Lahej, Executive Director, Dubai Project Management, Emaar Properties.

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Journey to observatory on Level 124 takes visitors through the evolution of Dubai and Burj Dubai

For years now, poets and singers have spun their yarns to describe the ‘top of the world’ feeling… and perhaps never got it right.

Now, At The Top of the world is becoming a reality, at Burj Dubai, the world’s tallest building, developed by Emaar Properties.

One of the world’s highest public observation decks, At The Top – located on Level 124 – will not only offer visitors majestic, sweeping vistas of Dubai, but will also be an evocative and interactive journey through the history and evolution of Dubai and Burj Dubai.

Ushering in an unparalleled experience, Burj Dubai’s At The Top is a tribute by Emaar to mankind’s quest to push higher, harder and faster, and scale new horizons.

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1. Reflects an aesthetic confluence of the best in the world and the region
2. Award-winning designer to create unique concepts and a new design vocabulary

Work on the interiors of Burj Dubai, the world’s tallest building developed by Emaar Properties, is progressing alongside the tower’s exterior cladding. Currently over 800 metres (2,624.7 ft) high, the tower’s interiors are an aesthetic confluence of the best of the architectural influences from around the world and the region.

Complementing the external architecture of the tower that is inspired by the geometries of the desert flower Hymenocalis and regional patterning systems, the interior design of Burj Dubai was conceptualised and led by award-winning designer Ms Nada Andric of Chicago-based Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM).

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Organisers report 85% space already sold for Cityscape Abu Dhabi 2009

The economic slowdown and the corrections to global property prices are failing to dampen industry enthusiasm for an international real estate exhibition and conference to be staged soon in the United Arab Emirates.

According to the organisers IIR Middle East, available exhibition space at Cityscape Abu Dhabi 2009 – which takes place at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre from 19 – 22 April – is already more than 85% sold and the event has the support and sponsorship of some of the region’s biggest real estate players.

Cityscape Abu Dhabi will bring together regional and international investors, architects, designers, developers, government authorities, key decision makers and senior executives involved in the design and construction of both public and private real estate developments.

Running alongside the exhibition is the Real Estate Finance and Investment Conference, featuring more than 100 speakers from the world’s leading finance, investment and real estate companies. The conference will be an exciting forum for in-depth discussion on the current market challenges and for formulating cutting-edge strategies during these turbulent times.

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Architectural Group International (AGI), a leading architectural and interior design firm headquartered in Covington, KY, announced the opening February 2nd, 2009, of a new office in Abu Dhabi.  The strategic location, along with the addition of Senior Project Architect, LeDoux “Ty” Provosty will allow AGI to better serve its current and future project developments in this region.

“After careful consideration regarding the  opening  of a branch office in other parts of the world including South America and Asia, we determined after having completed projects and currently executing architectural work in the UAE, that this would be the best opportunity for AGI to expand,” said David Thiel, Principal.

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