Shanghai Tower is the tallest building in Shanghai and third in the world. This megatall skyscraper towers over Shanghai’s iconic skyline at 632-metre and 128 storeys in Lujiazui, Pudong. The tower takes the form of nine cylindrical buildings stacked atop each other, totalling 128 floors, all enclosed by the inner layer of the glass façade. It is an icon of how far China’s economy has come, as has the city itself. This tower not only holds titles for its height but its interior features. It has the world’s second fastest elevators moving at a top speed of 74 km/h. It also attracts many visitors for having the highest observation deck within a building or structure at 562m. It is even higher than the observation deck at the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building.
The Shanghai Tower is a wonder of design and architecture. It was built to ‘embrace and stimulate the life of the city’. Instead of the usual parks spread horizontally across the city, the tower provides gathering spaces that are stacked vertically with innovative sky gardens. The tower was designed by American architectural firm Gensler led by Shanghainese architect Jun Xia. The tower has a unique asymmetrical form of a tapering profile and rounded corners that allow the building to withstand the typhoon-force winds that are common in Shanghai.
One of the biggest reasons for the tower’s reputation is pushing as one of the most sustainably advanced towers in the world. Its owners have received certifications from the China Green Building Committee and the U.S. Green Building Council for sustainable design. Some of its sustainable features include capturing rainwater for internal use, the design itself which saves cost on construction materials and 10% of the building’s electrical needs provided by the wind turbines located near the top of the tower. A central aspect of its design is the double-layered insulating glass façade which warms up the cool outside air in the winter and dissipates the heat from the interior in the summer. In addition, the building also uses geothermal energy sources. Rain and waste water are recycled to flush toilets and irrigate the tower’s greenspaces.
Shanghai Tower’s elegant cylindrical shape towers over Shanghai, adding much more to the place that has become a potent symbol of thriving China. Its design blends elements of traditional aesthetics with modern utility and elements. Shanghai Tower fits the very definition of ‘timeless’ architecture.