Industry executives like Bob Schroeder, Industry Director (Americas)
for Dow Corning’s construction business, echoes this sentiment and says, “Today, sustainable design has been recognized by the industry and the pub- lic as critical factors in achieving high quality architecture and benefiting the building owners - the companies that occupy these structures and the wider community.” Additionally, a substantial number of mergers and acqui- sitions are taking place allowing firms to reposition themselves in emerging markets and gaining added expertise while developing new relationships. Moreover even with a depressed economy, green design has become a fix- ture and is here to stay. It no longer suffices for owners/institutions/agencies to just talk about green. There is a strong incentive to implement elements of green design into new and existing construction projects. While most design professionals consider great architecture to be a delicate balance of form and function, we nevertheless find high-rise buildings being constructed on a global scale with increasing ferocity, often with little concern for due diligence, the environment, or aesthet- ics. What is transpiring from this unusual green building upheaval, is the emergence of several interesting trends such as the building of spectacular landmarks as exemplified by the Sydney Opera House (Fig. 1.6), and Burj Dubai (Fig. 1.7) which is the highest building in the world and which was recently awarded CTBUH’s Highest Award: “Global Icon”. It was also awarded the “Best Tall Building” award. Bill Baker, Chief Structural Engineer for Burj Khalifa and SOM Partner says, “Burj Khalifa is a game changer. This incredible team of architects, engineers, consultants and contractors has been able to create something that goes far beyond what has been done before.We are extremely grateful to the CTBUH for creat- ing this prize for the project and recognizing the Burj Khalifa’s impact on the art of tall buildings.” The towering Burj Khalifa skyscraper is the center of a large scale, mixed-use development comprised of residential, commercial, hotel, enter- tainment, shopping, and leisure outlets with open green spaces, water fea- tures, pedestrian boulevards, a shopping mall, and a tourist-oriented old town. The design of the tower combines historical and cultural influences with cutting-edge technology to achieve a high-performance building. Its massing is manipulated in the vertical dimension to induce maximum vor- tex shedding and minimize the impact of wind on the tower’s movement. Also of note, on New Year’s Eve, there was a huge fire which engulfed the 63-storey Address hotel which is located near the Burj Khalifa tower, ahead of a New Year’s Eve firework display.
Building a Strong Foundation: Pioneering Advances in Architecture and Civil Engineering for the Future (Foundations for the Future: Advances in architecture and civil engineering 2)