Taipei 101

Identification

Map

Structure in general

Usage

Facts

• Taipei 101 is the world's tallest building, surpassing the height of the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur in late August 2003.
• Taipei 101 holds the world record in three of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat's height categories: tallest to the structural top, tallest to the roof, and highest occupied floor.
• The outdoor observation deck is the highest in the world. It is expected to be surpassed by the outdoor deck in the Shanghai World Financial Center.
• This was the first world's tallest building completed in the 21st century. The next will most likely be Burj Khalifa in the United Arab Emirates.
• The 89th floor holds an indoor observation area, and an outdoor observation deck is located on the 91st floor.
• The highest section of the spire was installed on 9 October 2003. At the official ceremony on 17 October, Taipei's mayor Ma Ying-Jeou fastened a golden bolt to signify the official topping-out.
• Before the spire was installed there was a separate topping-out ceremony on July 1st, 2003 for completion to the roof level. The president of Taiwan and the mayor of Taipei participated in the event.
• The design is inspired by traditional Chinese architecture, with a shape resembling a pagoda. The sectioned tower is also inspired by the bamboo plant, which is a model of strength, resilience, and elegance.
• The tower's design specifications are based on the number "8", a lucky number in traditional Chinese culture; it features 8 upward-flaring sections, and is supported by 8 supercolumns. The Jin Mao Tower in Shanghai also employs this numerology in its design.
• Most aspects of the design, layout and planning were reviewed and approved by a Feng Shui master.
• The elevators are the fastest in the world, rising at 1008 meters per minute (60.48 km/hour) and descending at 610 m/min (36.6 km/hour). The top speeds are 34 percent faster than the previous world's fastest elevators in Yokohama Landmark Tower.
• This is one of the few buildings in the world equipped with double-deck elevators.
• Each elevator is designed with an aerodynamic body, pressurization and emergency braking systems, and the world's first triple-stage anti-overshooting system. The cost for each elevator is over $US 2 million.
• Exterior construction elevators and the construction elevator shaft were fully disassembled in late February of 2004.
• The Taiwan Stock Exchange rents 7 floors in the building.
• Inside the base of the tower is the large Taipei 101 Mall, which opened before the tower on November 13th, 2003.
• The main damper is visible from the restaurant and bar which encircles the space around the ball.
• Taipei 101 was the world's first skyscraper to break the half-kilometer mark in height.
• The tower's spire contains two, 4.5-tonne tuned mass dampers to reduce wind-induced fatigue.
• Contained within is a circular 660-tonne tuned mass damper to counter seismic and wind-induced movement. It is constructed from 41 steel plates, is suspended from eight steel cables, rests on eight viscous dampers and can move five feet laterally in any direction. It is the largest and heaviest of its type in the world.
• At the time of construction, the building held the record for the greatest height to which concrete had been pumped.
• The lift brakes are ceramic rather than steel (as found in high-performance cars) for greater efficiency.