Burj Khalifa (Khalifa Tower) is a mixed-use skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The exterior structure was completed on 1 October 2009 and the building had its official opening in January 2010.

Burj Khalifa was designed to be the centrepiece of the large-scale mixed-use development known as Downtown Dubai. The building´s architectural style is neo-futurism, with inspiration drawn from old Islamic architecture present in the region, such as the Great Mosque of Samarra. The tower´s distinct Y-shaped tripartite floor geometry was designed to optimize residential and hotel space, and the buttressed central core and wings support the height of the structure.

The tower´s primary structure is reinforced concrete, and some of the structural steel for the building was previously a part of the parliament building of East Germany; the Palace of the Republic.

Since Dubai has a very hot climate, Burj Khalifa has a protective cladding system in place to reduce energy consumption for air conditioning.

World records

The Burj Khalifa has set several new world records, including:

– Tallest existing structure, tallest structure ever built, tallest free-standing structure, tallest structure that includes residential space (2,722 ft)

– Tallest skyscraper on top of spire (2,717 ft) and tallest skyscraper on top of antenna (2,722 ft)

– Building with the most floors (163 floors)

– Longest travel distance elevators (1,654 ft)

– Highest elevator installation (inside a rod at the top of the building)

– Highest vertical concrete pumping for a building (1,988 ft)

– Highest installation of an aluminium and glass façade (1,680 ft)

– Highest nightclub (at 144th floor) and highest restaurant (122nd floor)

How tall is Burj Khalifa?

• The total height is 2,722 (829.8 m) which is almost half a mile.
• The roof height (architectural height) is 2,717 ft (828 m) excluding the antenna but including a 244 m tall spire.
• The top floor is located at 1,921 ft (585.4 m).
• The floor count is 154 + 9 maintenance. Parking is available on two subterranean levels.
• To transport people and goods throughout this very tall building, there are 57 elevators and 8 escalators.

Where is it located?

Burj Khalifa is located in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. It is a part of the 2 km2 Downtown Dubai development at the First Interchange along Sheikh Zayed Road.

Address: 1 Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Boulevard

C oordinates: 25°11′49.7″N 55°16′26.8″E

Design and construction

Owner: Emaar Properties

Chief architect: Adrian Smith

Architecture firm: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (based in Chicago, USA)

Structural engineer: Bill Baker

Supervising engineer: Hyder Consulting

Supervisor of architecture: NORR Group Consultants International Limited

Main contractor: Samsung C&T (based in South Korea)

Construction started in January 2004, the building topped-out in January 2009 and construction was completed in October 2009. The formal opening ceremony took place in January 2010.

Why is it named Burj Khalifa?

Burj means tower. During development, the building was simply called Burj Dubai (Dubai Tower). When the developers (Emaar) ran into financial difficulties, Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan came to their aid, and the building was renamed in honour of him. He is the current president of the United Arab Emirates, the hereditary ruler of Abu Dhabi, the supreme commander of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces and the chairman of the Supreme Petroleum Council.

Controversy

Foreign workers from South Asia made up the bulk of the labour force during the construction of Burj Khalifa, and the project was criticised for unsafe working conditions and the practise of confiscating passports and keeping workers in debt bondage.