Sears T0wers

by NymphAngel Mon 06 Jun 2011, 3:30 am

Sears Towers which is located in Chicago, USA is the third largest building of the world. Before the construction of Petronas Towers, Malaysia, Sears was the largest tower of the world. It was constructed for four years from 1970 to 1974. It stands super tall at the height of 1450 ft and has 110 stories. The total height of the building increases with the height of the antennas and it stands tall at 1725 ft. Its floor area is 4.56 million square feet and it has 16 double decker elevators which can accommodate 104 people at one go. This massive tower has been constructed by Skidmore firm for the company called Sears, Roebuck and Company. The tower weighs 222,500 tons.

This tower was originally build to house the 350, 000 employees of Sears, the then the largest retailer in the world. It was decided that they would rent out the remaining space which was left idle after housing the huge army of the employees. The rest of space would be rented out to law firms as well as banking firms. Keeping this aspect in mind the size of the floor was small which helped in constructing a skyscraper. This also lent an attractive exterior to the building. After the completion of the tower, it eventually surpassed the World Trade Centre in New York. The total construction charges of this tower were $175 million. The tower is held by squared shaped tubes which have floors suspended in it. This is one of the technological innovations by the architect. It was devised especially for this tower. It has an exterior look black aluminum and bronzed cut glass with black bands.

However Sears faced huge losses when retail magnates over took his place to the throne and had to shut down the firm. However Sears Tower, after lying vacant for sometime was handed over to the City of Chicago and now is the address to some of the elite banking firms, aw firms and 100 odd offices. It has 160 car executive car parking.

To attract the tourists, an observation deck has been opened on the 103rd floor of the tower. It provides a pretty view on a windy day. One can look at the pristine beauty of Lake Michigan. Sears Tower has been a backdrop in lot of Hollywood movies as well as Tele series.

The interesting fact about antenna is that its color changes according to the festive season. The people having their offices in this tower can also get the lightning done according to their company’s color with some extra cost. The tower has seven restaurants. The bathrooms on the skydeck of the tower are boosted to be the highest bathrooms in the world at the height of 1353ft. It takes about 50 seconds to reach from the ground floor to the skydeck in the elevator.

Although Sears Tower is the third tallest building n the world, it remains the tallest building in North America and with its antennas, it boosts to be taller then even the tallest building, Petronas Towers.

by NymphAngel Mon 06 Jun 2011, 12:58 am

Eiffel Tower situated in Paris, the capital of France is truly one of the wonders of the modern world. The Eiffel Tower is an iron tower built on Champs De Mars, near the River Siene in Paris, and must be at the top of any worlds tallest buildings list The tower was built by an engineer called Gustave Eiffel and has subsequently been named after him.

The tower was built between the period of 1887 and 1889 as a part of Exposition Universelle to celebrate French Revolution. This tower was used as an observation tower, Radio Broadcasting tower and as an Advertising Space but in the modern times it’s more as of a tourist attraction. The whole tower weighs about 7300 tons. This tower has been named as one of the frequently visited tourists spot. The tower was created from 18, 038 pieces of iron.

The first and the second levels of this tower can be reached by lift as well as stairs. A ticket, available at the ticket booth near the south base of tower, is required to access these levels. To reach the third floor, ones needs to use lift. After this level one can sue steps or lift to reach the top. When using lift, an indication of the count of steps in given at every floor. The tower boosts of two restaurants called Altitude 95 on the first floor of the tower. Altitude 95 is more like a café and a hang out during the day whereas the other restaurant called Jules Verne is an expensive restaurant, highly frequented by the rich and famous and something to go during the evenings. Jules Verne is on the second floor and has a private lift connecting it. This elite restaurant boosts of one star in Michelin Red Guide.

A very surprising fact is that every seven years, it is painted, and 50 tons of brown paint is required to paint this structure. A different kind of palate is used to give a uniform color to the tower. The shape, when it was built was constructed in such a way that it could withstand the wind and storm and thus emerge as the highest tower in the world. Due to its height, the tower is a very good source of radio transmission.

The Eiffel tower has been a backdrop to lot of movies made in the Hollywood as well as the Bollywood. Some of the English movies that include this massive tower are A View to Kill( a James Bond Movie), Superman II, 28 Weeks Later. The Eiffel Tower is also shown in a tele series called Sex and The City. Recently an ice-skating rink was also installed in the first floor of the tower which is accessible free of charge. Recently one of the most exotic terraces has been opened on the 1st floor of the tower. It has recreated the the Mediterranean beauty by placing olive trees, cypresses, lavender and boxwood. It also has a small café which serves refreshments.

by NymphAngel Mon 06 Jun 2011, 12:50 am

Petronas Towers is located in Kuala Lumpur, Capital of Malaysia. They are also known as Twin Towers and were hailed as the world’s tallest building until in 2004 Taipei 101 succeeded it. The Towers stand tall at the height of 1486ft. It has 88 floors and has 78 elevators. Although as of now Taipei 101 is the tallest building, Petronas are the tallest twin buildings in the work. This building was constructed by Cesar Pelli.

The Petronas Tower reflects the Islamic values of Malaysia. One can find the Islamic motifs on the face of the tower. This building is made with massive amounts of concrete, glass and steel. It was constructed on the race course of Kuala Lumpur. The foundation of this site is known as the deepest in the world, hence massive amount of concrete was required to fill it. The floor area of the towers is 4.25 million sq. ft.

Petronas is Malaysia’s Oil Company and had the towers commissioned. Petronas has its offices in the Tower One. The Tower Two has lot of other giants like IBM, Accenture, Bloomberg, Mckinsey, Boeing, Microsoft, Reuters, etc. The offices have been leased out to these companies whereas there is a mall below these towers called Suria KLCC as well as there is also a Philharmonic club also below the towers.

The USP of this tower is its Skyway. It has been constructed connecting the two towers on the 41st and the 42nd floors. The skyway is a two storey bridge and is supposedly world’s highest two storey bridge. This is bridge is open for the visitors. In fact this bridge also serves as a podium for the people willing to go to the higher floors as people have to change the elevators at this floor. However visitors can only access the 41st floor as from 42nd floor onwards there are corporate offices.

The towers have been a prime backdrop for a lot of Hollywood and Bollywood movies. A sequence has been shot in the Hollywood movie Entrapment in the towers. Tom Cruise actually climbs these towers in the movie Mission Impossible 3. The skyway of these towers has been featured in the Bollywood movie Don, 2006 sequel of the movie Don.

A surprising fact about these towers is 60% of material used to construct them has been local. If looked at closely the tower’s floor plate is largely based on the Islamic principles of ‘unity within unity, harmony, stability and rationality’. The whole concept of the towers is based on the classic architectural value. The strange thing about the skyway is that it can also be used as an evacuation mode in case of an emergency. This skyway has been kept intact by a three round bearings which are 51 meters in length. The interiors of the towers have been done up in the traditional Malaysian style. There are traditional motifs everywhere as well as glass paintings which depict the culture. The Towers are amalgamation of technology as well as rich tradition.

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