{"id":21369,"date":"2016-11-28T09:55:15","date_gmt":"2016-11-28T14:55:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.constructionspecifier.com\/?p=21369"},"modified":"2016-12-13T10:21:23","modified_gmt":"2016-12-13T15:21:23","slug":"shanghai-tower-honored-as-worlds-best-tall-building","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.constructionspecifier.com\/shanghai-tower-honored-as-worlds-best-tall-building\/","title":{"rendered":"Shanghai Tower honored as world’s best tall building"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Shanghai
Shanghai Tower has been named Best Tall Building Worldwide by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) for its innovative fa\u00e7ade and atria. <\/span>
Photo \u00a9 Connie Zhou<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At this month\u2019s 15th<\/sup> annual Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) Awards Symposium in Chicago, CTBUH announced the winners of several awards. Most notably, Shanghai Tower<\/a>\u2014the tallest building in China\u2014was awarded the title of Best Tall Building Worldwide.<\/p>\n

Jury member Antony Wood (executive director of CTBUH) says the building\u2019s innovative fa\u00e7ade and unique use of atria played a significant role in its selection. In a design aiming to combine tradition and originality, Shanghai Tower plays off shikumen\u2014a traditional housing style blending indoor and outdoor space. It also features multi-story atria placed between its double-skin fa\u00e7ade. Further, the design reduces wind loads by 24 percent.<\/p>\n

\"Shanghai
Shanghai Tower was selected by the jury from among four regional winners, one of which\u2014VIA 57 West in New York City\u2014was the audience\u2019s choice for Best Tall Building Worldwide. <\/span>
Photo \u00a9 Nic Lehoux<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cShanghai Tower shows the greatest commitment to communal space in a tall building since Commerzbank Tower (Frankfurt, Germany) completed in 1997,\u201d says Wood. \u201cIt contains the world\u2019s first truly \u2018inhabitable\u2019 double-skin fa\u00e7ade on a skyscraper, which is not only remarkable for its intended greenery, but its incorporation into the tower\u2019s overall ventilation strategy. The sacrifice of valuable floor area to realize this social amenity proves that the aspirations for Shanghai Tower went far beyond mere commercial gain.\u201d<\/p>\n

The award was accepted by Jianping Gu\u2014general manager of Shanghai Tower Construction and Development\u2014along with several colleagues and the project architect, Gensler. The tower was selected at the end of a year-long process, from among 132 entries from 27 countries. It earned the worldwide title as the best of four regional winners.<\/p>\n

The other regional winners were VIA 57 West<\/a> (Best Tall Building Americas), the White Walls<\/a> (Best Tall Building Europe), and the Cube<\/a> (Best Tall Building Middle East and Africa). For more on VIA 57 West, see the August 2016 issue of The Construction Specifier <\/em>for \u201cProving its Long-term Mettle\u201d<\/a> by Catherine Houska.) Several other awards were given out as well, including:<\/p>\n