Dubai Towers Over The World

One floor a week into the sky. That’s Burj Dubai for you. And in 2008, the Burj Dubai tower will be the new jewel on the skyscraper of booming Dubai and is expected to be more than 800 meters high, dwarfing Taiwan’s Taipei 101, a skyscraper that reaches 509 meters into the sky and is currently the highest building in the world.

Taipei 101 is also the first building in the world to cross the half-kilometer mark in height.

Dubai likes to create new records. It is ready to set a new paradigm in tower construction in the region. The iconic tower, to be the tallest in the world when it is completed by 2008, is a byword for sheer luxury, human ingenuity and vaulting ambition.

The $20 billion building is to be the centerpiece of Downtown Dubai and will be a combination of residential and commercial space, inluding a 160-room hotel, recreational facilities and entertainment venues, serviced residences, apartments and an observatory. The 500-acre project will have open green spaces dotted with lakes and dancing fountains.

According to Issam Galadari, managing director of developers Emaar International, the Burj Dubai will be an international wonder. The tower will be surrounded by The Old Town, The Dubai Mall, Burj Dubai Business Hub, Burj Views, Burj Dubai Boulevard, The Residences, restaurants, hotels, residential facilities and much more.

The latest game among locals is guessing how many storey the tower will have.
The estimates vary from 150 to 180, but there is no official word yet. Unofficial report says the tower will have 162 floors.

Developed by Emaar Properties, the Burj Dubai project is executed by ETA with joint venture partners - Hitachi Plant Engineering and Construction Co, Ltd, Japan and Voltas Ltd of India.

The challenges ahead of the joint venture will be to meet the highest quality standards required for such skyscrapers and to meet the scheduled completion date of December 2008, according to a statement issued by Emaar recently.

Currently growing at a rate of one floor per week, the Burj Dubai is located off Sheikh Zayed Road at the heart of the mixed use development which when completed will create an elegant new downtown for Dubai. As of this week the tower has scaled 122 floors.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (eTN)

15 April 2007