Petronas Towers

Petronas Towers (German Petronas towers, sometimes. Menara Petronas ) ( also often called Petronas Twin Towers ) is the name of a built by the oil company Petronas pair skyscraper in Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia. With a total of 452 meters above sea level the twin towers tower over the city.

The highest skyscraper of its time

From 1998 until the completion of Taipei 101 in 2004 ( 508 meters) towers with the striking bridge in many rankings were due to their structural height as the tallest building in the world; This classification, however, is highly controversial, as the highest floor is located only 375 meters high, the roof 378 meters. The Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower ) ( 442 meters roof, 412.7 meters high floor, 108 floors) in Chicago and the former World Trade Center had ( 417 meters roof, 413 meters highest floor, 110 floors) in New York City more roofs and floors higher up than the Petronas Towers. Similarly, both in the total height ( with poles ) significantly higher ( Willis Tower 527 meters ( since 2000, previously 520 meters), WTC 526.7 meters). In addition, it is argued that the Willis Tower still have a lot more stories and a larger floor space. Until the opening of the Burj Khalifa ( 828 meters) in 2010, the Willis Tower still held the record for the tallest building by the total height ( 527 meters, thus also higher than the Taipei 101).

Comparison table of the highest building in the world in 1998:

In 2014, the Petronas Towers remain as eight tallest building in the world.

Building

Your design owe the towers the architects César Pelli & Associates Architects. The office processed here his experiences they have had with other, very similar towers, such as the Miglin - Beitler Skyneedle in Chicago, which was never built. Both towers have the same characteristics. The architect of the towers is César Antonio Pelli, who designed the towers in a modernist composition of steel, aluminum, concrete and glass with a borrowed from Islamic architecture polygonal structure. The layout of each tower corresponds to the shape of an eight -pointed star, whose edges are again arched outward.

Materials utilized

During the construction of the towers approximately 36 910 tons of steel were used. In Malaysia Since too little steel was available and imports were too expensive, many steel parts were replaced by reinforced concrete, which doubled the weight of the towers. 80,000 cubic meters of concrete were used with a mass of 196,000 metric tons per tower. There are a further 13,200 cubic meters, or 32,550 tons of concrete for the foundations of 4.5 meters, in which the 104 60-115 meters long piers are concreted under the building. The concrete to withstand loads of over 15,000 newtons ( colloquially " 1.5 tons ") per square centimeter, or in other words 150 megapascals or 1,500 bar, stood.

The facade consists of 83,500 square meters and 77,000 square meters of glass stainless steel that make up the 32,000 windows of the two towers. The two towers contain 1,800 doors.

All in all, a tower weighs about 300,000 tons.

Skybridge

In height of 172 meters ( between the 41st and 42nd floor ) both towers with a steel bridge ( the so-called Skybridge ) are interconnected. The bridge was opened to the public in 2000. It is 58.4 meters long and weighs around 750 tons. In order not to be damaged by slight rocking motion of the two halves of the building, the walk-in cross brace is attached to giant ball bearings. It represents the world's first walk-in connection between two buildings at such high altitudes dar. tickets for visiting the bridge and the 86th floor will be available from 80 ringgit on the same day from 8:30 in the morning. In general, all 1600 tickets for the day after about two hours are sold out. However, it can also be purchased until the afternoon tickets for the following day.

Equipment

The towers can accommodate multiple shopping centers, the Natural Science Museum " Petrosains ", a concert hall with 865 seats for the Philharmonic Malaysia, an art gallery and several hundred offices. In addition, an affiliated Suria KLCC exists with its luxury boutiques of all kinds and numerous restaurants. A 5 - level underground parking garage with 5,400 parking spaces provides enough parking space.

Each floor is 4 meters high, the ceiling height is 2.65 meters. The highest occupied floor is the 86th floor, which lies at an altitude of 367 meters and has an area of ​​494.3 square meters.

Elevator system

Since the floor area of the towers is smaller than the other, lying in the same order of magnitude skyscrapers, the elevator system was presented as a problem as this still should have a large capacity and short travel times at a low use area.

One solution was the use of two-storey high-speed elevators, so that 58 of a total of 78 lifts of two superimposed fitted cabins are made, 29 per tower. The cabin of a double-deck elevator can hold 26 people, shared with another together a shaft and moves with a speed of between 12,6 und 21.6 km / h on. Who wants to go with a two-storey elevator to a floor with an odd number, gets in on the ground floor, who wants to be transported to a floor with an even number rises one level a higher. ( Double-deck elevators are used in the Burj Khalifa, a 828 -meter-high skyscraper in Dubai. )

The remaining ten lifts per tower consist of six for the transport of material and four together for the direct transport of visitors from the car park or from the ground floor up to the top. These four elevators need just 90 seconds to their range and they operate in the longest stock locations of an office building in Malaysia.

A sky lobby in the middle of the skyscraper in the 41st and 42nd floors, to which one comes with an express elevator, saving again a lift because it is used as a " transfer station ".

In addition, in each tower are ten staircases available.

Sharpen

The two minarets modeled peaks are each 73.5 meters high and weigh 176 tons each. They were produced in different countries of the tower 1 in Japan, the tower 2 in South Korea. The production of a peak required 19 weeks. The tops of the towers can not be visited.

Construction

In 1991, Petronas decided to develop a new building and to build, that should be the highest in the world after its completion. In January 1992, we began planning the new skyscraper, in March 1993 began with the foundation work and dug initially a 30-meter deep pit, 500 truckloads of earth were removed every night.

In April 1994, could then be started with the above-ground construction of the two towers. To attract even before the completion of a stir and around the construction work to advance as quickly as possible, it was decided here to make two construction teams are working around the bet. One should try as quickly as possible to pull up tower 1 and was led by Bob prett. The other, the second team was in charge of the tower 2 and later for the heaving of the Skybridge and was headed by Jon Dunsford. It also got 30 days starting residue. And so worked up to 2,000 people in mind to design the new landmark of Malaysia. Here we tried to reach the pillars on the top floor finished to then set up the bottom of the next floor always first. Then the exterior walls came off last interior. Building a floor lasted four days by what is relatively short. During construction, some problems occurred. Thus, the false concrete was used, for example, at a level which does not withstand the required 15,000 Newton per square centimeter. The entire floor had to be subsequently demolished and re- built, located below floors and the other tower did not affect this problem. It was also found at tower 1 in the 72nd floor, the tower was slightly askew and in the 72nd floor deviated 25 millimeters from the perpendicular straight line. This one tried to compensate by each built above it, yet to be built floor on one side of 2 millimeters higher.

Mid-1995 was started with the interior design, in July 1995 mounted to the Skybridge. In this case, it was decided to completely assemble the bridge first at the bottom and then move up by 16 hydraulic jacks between the towers. This process took 36 hours and was interrupted three times by lightning strikes, which disrupted the entire power supply. In December of the same year the 88th floor of both towers was completed. To make the Wettbauen between the two construction teams once again exciting, a decision was made that the installation of the tips should start at the same time. However, the team of the tower 2 did not stick, it built inside "his" tower, the top secret together and pushed it at the end of the building up and out, similar to the Chrysler Building. Thus, the team won 2, Tower 1 followed by reaching the final level a week later, but still in March 1996. On 31 August 1999, the double - skyscraper was officially opened.

Security

The security is another reason why the Skybridge was built. Thus, the adjacent tower can also serve as escape. For safety as well as the 5-storey underground car park was not built into the foundation of the towers, but built in a different place. A further contribution to the stability of the skyscraper provide 16 underground mainstays per tower, anchor the Petronas Towers firmly in the ground. Even if three of the pillars would be destroyed in both towers, the stability would still be not at risk. The heavy weight of the two towers, due to the partial replacement of steel by reinforced concrete, reduces the vibrations caused by wind. The Petronas Towers are among the most stable skyscrapers ever built.

Use

The Petronas Towers have been designed primarily as a commercial building and stand with her ​​twin architecture in the tradition of the former World Trade Center ( WTC) in New York City.

Collection of facts

For clarity and ease of comparison with other skyscrapers all the numbers are here again gathered in note form.

• Tip: 452.0 m
• Structural height: 452.0 m
• Floors: 88
• Roof ( the top floor ): 378.6 m
• Top Floor: 375 m
• Usable floors: 86
• Highest usable floor: 367 m ( 494.3 m² )
• Tip: 73.5 m

• Overall mass: the 300,000 tons 750 tons Skybridge (a total of 601,000 tons )
• Concrete ( above ground): 80,000 per m³ / 196,000 tons per
• Concrete (foundation ): a total of 13,200 m³ / total 32,550 tons
• Concrete: holds loads of over 15,000 N / cm ² was
• Steel: a total of 36 910 tons
• Steel ( outer facade ): a total of 83,500 m²
• Glass ( facade ): a total of 77,000 m²
• Window: a total of 32,000
• Doors: 1,800
• Mass of a peak: 176 tons

• Main pillars: the 16
• Pillars: a total of 104
• Pillar length: 60 to 115 m

• Floor height: 4 m
• Ceiling height: 2.65 m
• Underground parking: 5 levels, 5,400 parking spaces
• 1 concert hall with 865 seats
• The sky lobby and the sky bridge located in the 41st and 42nd floor

• Stairways: each 10
• Lifts: 39 Double-deck lifts: 29
• "Executive lifts ": 4 ever

Film

• Entrapment of 1999, among other plays in the Petronas Towers
• Don - The game begins in 2006 also plays among others in the Petronas Towers
• Petronas Twin Towers. Mega Towers in Malaysia. Original title: Megastructures: Petronas Towers, Documentary, 2005 55 min, Director: Thomas Viner, production: National Geographic Channel, first broadcast on n-tv: November 11, 2008 20:05 to 21:00; Stream video on Youtube in English and low quality video stream on Youku in English and higher quality