Samsung C&T Corp. has started construction of a multi-use tower that is slated to become the tallest building in Singapore, at 290 meters, when completed in 2016.The South Korea-based contractor won the design-build contract in March for GuocoLand Ltd.’s Tanjong Pagar Center. By late July, secant piling work was complete and preparations for first-floor construction had begun. The project is using top-down construction methods to speed the work.The center is located in the city’s commercial business district, above the Tanjong Pagar MRT station. When completed, the complex will feature 158,000 sq m of space and three basement levels.The center comprises
Structural fire engineering is heating up in the U.S. and Europe, thanks in large part to the "traveling fires" observed on Sept. 11, 2001, at the World Trade Center.
In the U.S., the Federal Aviation Administration owns, builds and operates most control towers and provides air-traffic-control services at 264 airports.In contrast, air-traffic control in some countries is privatized. For example, Nav Canada, a private non-profit corporation, has been responsible for air traffic control since 1996 in Canada, and other countries in which private air-navigation-service companies operate include Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Norway, Poland, the Ukraine and Indonesia.Air-navigation technology
Related Links: Urban Green Council Building Resiliency Task Force Reasoning that existing buildings will improve naturally over time when they undergo renovations, a task force on building resiliency in New York City, formed after last October's Superstorm Sandy, is recommending building-code changes mostly for new construction and substantial renovations."Recommendations are intended to minimize interruptions to building functionality while allowing the market to dictate the need to implement resiliency measures," says the Building Resiliency Task Force in its 42-page report to Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg (R) and City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn (D).The task force's 33 proposals for commercial and
Elevator and design consultants are lauding a new elevator system from KONE Corp. that drastically reduces the weight of the hoisting cables—the bane of tall-building experts.
By replacing heavy steel ropes with special carbon-fiber belts that are lighter in weight, Finland's KONE Corp. believes it has altered the course of high-rise elevator systems.
Photo Courtesy of FEMA Plaza Tower Elementary School, which was reduced to rubble after an EF-5 tornado raked Moore, Okla., did not have a safe room. Seven children died. Some argue that safe rooms are too costly. Related Links: Joplin Rebuilding Stymied by Dispute Over Wage Rates Tuscaloosa Grapples With Reconstruction From April Twister's Wreckage As emergency workers address the aftermath of an EF-5 tornado that struck Moore, Okla., on May 20, lawmakers and industry members are grappling with whether regions vulnerable to EF-4 and EF-5 events should require safe rooms in schools and other non-residential facilities.The Moore tornado, which
Africa's tallest tower planned to rise 99 stories in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, by 2017. Ethiopia’s capital city, Addis Ababa, may boast Africa’s tallest building by 2017. While a 58-story building had been announced, plans unveiled by a private Chinese developer now call for a 99-story office-hotel tower. Guangdong Chuanhui Group has not revealed the building's estimated cost or other details, including financial arrangements or the names of the architect and engineer.The site for the Chuanhui International Tower is at the new Addis Ababa Exhibition Centre. The developer says it has acquired the 41,000 sq meter site and the building plans
Related Links: Boston Building Uses a Little Of Everything to Gain Foothold CEO John Fish Has 'Big, Audacious' Goals For Suffolk Construction Construction of two high-rises is expected to revitalize the 14.5-acre Christian Science Plaza, Boston's largest privately owned public space.The First Church of Christ, Scientist announced on Jan. 23 that it has chosen Carpenter and Co., Cambridge, Mass., as master developer of a 20-story and a 50-story tower. Upon topping out, the taller tower would be one of the tallest structures in Boston.The two project sites are situated on Belvidere and Dalton streets in Back Bay, south of the
Related Links: ENR Building News The World's Tallest Building The essential function of all tall towers is to enable broadcasters to transmit line-of-sight signals to their customers."Broadcasting is a big stick industry, where one tower can cover a whole market," according to Kelly Williams, senior director of Engineering for the National Association of Broadcasters. "You put up a tower to facilitate broadcasting wirelessly."Towers host a wide variety of antennae, which transmit over the air (analog) television signals, AM and FM radio, telco long lines (which transmit data), pager signals and emergency service channels (including two-way radio).But tower owners have long