The world once had abundant space to build buildings that serve as homes, hospitals, institutions and hotels. But with divided borders and an increasing population, the occupied landmass started increasing and only a little amount of construction-fit land now remains. To overcome the problem, the concept of multi-storey buildings was introduced. As civil engineering and architecture progressed and high-end tools were discovered, buildings started growing taller and we now see top cities across the world dotted with skyscrapers. Skyscrapers were deemed fit for societies that needed to provide shelter to more people in a limited area.
However, it didn’t take the world long to turn the construction of skyscrapers into a race between different economies. Skyscrapers are today one of the key points that are taken into consideration while assessing how much a city has progressed. Places like Dubai, Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo are leagues apart when it comes to the construction of skyscrapers. We’re going to look at 7 tallest buildings in the world.
- One World Trade Centre: The World Trade Centre in New York City is the seventh tallest building in the world. It is also known as Freedom Tower. The construction of the building started in July 2006 and ended in November 2014. The total height of the building is 1,776 ft. It is the tallest building in North America. The tower has a total of 109 floors and 5 of them are below ground. The World trade centre has 73 elevators and 11 escalators. The building has all emergency arrangements including emergency stairways. The footprint of the tower is equal to that of each of the original twin towers.
- Lotte World Tower: Seoul’s Lotte World Tower is the sixth tallest building in the world. It is the tallest building in South Korea and stands at a height of 500 metres. It got its name from a nearby recreation complex named Lotte World. The building has 123 floors in total. The construction of the Lotte World Tower started in 2011 and was completed in 2017. The tower won the Emporis Skyscraper Award in 2017. The building recycles rainwater and has solar panels installed over it. It also has wind turbines. The building has special facilities for handicapped and disabled people.
- Goldin Finance 117: Goldin Finance 117, which is also known as China 117 Tower is a towering skyscraper located in China’s Tianjin. It is a multi-purpose tower that has hotels, shopping areas, commercial offices and other amenities. The total height of the tower is 597 metres. It took China 12 years to complete the construction of the building. The construction started in 2008 and ended in 2020. Goldin Finance 117 has a total of 117 floors. Several parts of the building are still under construction.
- Ping An International Finance Centre: We have another entry from China. The fourth-tallest building on the planet is Ping An International Finance Centre in China’s Shenzhen. The skyscraper stands tall at a height of 660 metres. The structure of the building bears just 40% of its weight due to its design. It has several commercial offices and shopping complexes. The building’s construction was started in 2010 and ended in December 2017. It has a total of 120 floors that include 5 underground floors. The building has 80 elevators in total.
- Makkah Clock Royal Tower: The world’s third tallest building is in Saudi Arabia’s Makkah. The Makkah Clock Royal Tower is a multi-purpose building standing tall at a height of 601 metres. It is particularly famous for a glass mosaic that is studded at the front of the building. The building has a total of 123 floors and 3 of them are underground floors. The construction of the building started in 2004 and ended in 2012. It has 19 elevators and 16 escalators.
- Shanghai Tower: China is giving the Arab world a tough competition in building skyscrapers and the world’s second tallest building in Shanghai is proof of it. The Shanghai Tower in Shanghai, China has a total height of 632.11 metres. The construction of the building started in 2008 and ended in 2015. The Tower has a total of 133 floors and 5 of them are underground. There are 106 elevators in the tower. It is a multi-purpose building. The exterior of the building looks like a snake spiralling upwards.
- Burj Khalifa: This should not be hard to guess. Burj Khalifa is by far the tallest building in the world. It remains a centre of attraction for tourists who arrive in Dubai from across the world. The 829 metres tall building has residential flats, hotels, commercial places and restaurants. The construction of the building started in 2004 and ended in January 2010. The gigantic tower has 163 floors in total. It has 57 elevators and 8 escalators. The emergency arrangements in the building are world-class. Some key attractions of the building include double-decker elevators and roof-top pools.
