July 30, 2007
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| The Burj Dubai in the Persian Gulf
state of Dubai is predicted to be more than 690m tall
when completed in 2008. |
Dubai skyscraper world's tallest building
by Gulliver
A skyscraper still under construction in the oil rich Persian
Gulf state of Dubai has become the world's tallest building,
say its developers.
The 512m (1,680ft) Burj Dubai has now overtaken Taiwan's Taipei
101 which has dominated the global skyline at 508m (1,667ft)
since 2004, say Emaar Properties.
The Burj Dubai is expected to be completed in 2008. While
its planned final height has been kept secret it will stop
somewhere over 693m (2,275ft) tall.
When finished, the skyscraper will feature more than 160 floors,
56 elevators, luxury apartments, boutiques, swimming pools,
spas, exclusive corporate suites, Italian fashion designer
Giorgio Armani's first hotel, and a 124th floor observation
platform.
"It's a symbol of Dubai as a city of the world,"
Greg Sang, the project director for Emaar Properties, told
news media.
Mohammed Ali Alabbar, chairman of Emaar, said it will be an
architectural and engineering masterpiece of concrete, steel
and glass. Dubai has "resisted the usual and has inspired
to build a global icon," he said.
"It's a human achievement without equal."
Building began on September 21 2004. The skyscraper's spire
is expected to be able to be seen from 100km (60 miles) away.
Previous skyscraper record-holders include New York's Empire
State Building at 381m (1,250 ft); Shanghai's Jin Mao Building
at 421m (1,381 ft); Chicago's Sears Tower at 442m (1,451 ft)
and Malaysia's Petronas Towers at 452m (1,483 ft).
The CN Tower, in Toronto, Canada, is the world's tallest freestanding
structure, at 553m (1,815.3 ft).
The Burj will let the Middle East reclaim the world's tallest
structure. Egypt's Great Pyramid of Giza, built around 2500
B.C., held the title with its 481 feet (147 meters) until
the Eiffel Tower in Paris was built in 1889 at a height of
985 feet (300 meters), or 1,023 feet (312 meters) including
the flag pole.
While the tower's architects and engineers are American and
the main building contractor is South Korean, most of the
4,000 laborers are Indian. They work around the clock in Dubai's
sizzling summer and they have no set minimum wage. There are
regular protests against labor abuse in Dubai by human rights
groups.
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