HSB Turning Torso

Identification

Map

Structure in general

Usage

Facts

• The structure is made up of nine "cubes" of five stories each, stacked one above the other with one floor recessed between every two adjacent cubes.
• Inspired by a sculpture made by the building's architect, the tower twists 90º from top to bottom (hence the "Turning" in the name).
• Glazed panorama rooms with room for 20 people each are situated at the 49th and 43rd floors, between the 8th and 9th cubes and the 7th and 8th cubes respectively.
• The building holds the highest apartments in Europe.
• The building was constructed to restore the Malmö skyline after the 130 meter high Kockumskran crane was demolished.
• The two lower cubes contain offices and conference rooms, and the top two floors hold a conference center.
• Turning Torso was featured on an episode of the Discovery Channel's Extreme Engineering filmed in February 2004. It first aired in the US in July '04 and in Europe in the fall.
• Each apartment incorporates individual consumption monitors, allowing the residents to control their own energy costs.
• The building is visible from Copenhagen in Denmark, in the distance across the Öresund.
• On 31 October 2005 the Prime Minister of Sweden, Göran Persson, visited the roof of Turning Torso.
• In spite of its name, the tower does not actually "turn" in the sense of movement; it is engineered to sway a maximum of 30 cm at the top in a 44 meter per second wind, not enough to be noticeable.
• Apartment windows are parallelograms, with straight horizontals and diagonal vertical edges.
• Along with other Calatrava designs, Turning Torso was featured as a work of art in an exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City from October 2005 to January 2006.
• This is the first twisting skyscraper of its kind in the world, and has already inspired variations such as Infinity Tower in Dubai and Calatrava's own Chicago Spire in Chicago and Torres de Calatrava in Valencia.
• Because of the curving facade, it was impossible to install hoists during construction. Instead the main core elevators were used to lift construction materials, and were built in stages as the structure rose.
• Many people have asked the elevator company if Turning Torso has twisting elevator shafts. It does not; the elevators rise straight up through the core.
• The building is situated in the middle of a reflecting pool with two sculptures by Santiago Calatrava.