Regional Tours, CTBUH 8th World Congress
2 March 2008 - Building Tour
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Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the architectural top of the building, including spires, but not including antennae, signage, flag poles or other functional-technical equipment. This measurement is the most widely utilized and is employed to define the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) rankings of the "World's Tallest Buildings."
Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the highest point of the building, irrespective of material or function of the highest element (i.e., including antennae, flagpoles, signage and other functional-technical equipment).
Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the architectural top of the building, including spires, but not including antennae, signage, flag poles or other functional-technical equipment. This measurement is the most widely utilized and is employed to define the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) rankings of the "World's Tallest Buildings."
Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the highest occupied floor within the building.
The number of floors above ground should include the ground floor level and be the number of main floors above ground, including any significant mezzanine floors and major mechanical plant floors. Mechanical mezzanines should not be included if they have a significantly smaller floor area than the major floors below. Similarly, mechanical penthouses or plant rooms protruding above the general roof area should not be counted. Note: CTBUH floor counts may differ from published accounts, as it is common in some regions of the world for certain floor levels not to be included (e.g., the level 4, 14, 24, etc. in Hong Kong).
The number of floors above ground should include the ground floor level and be the number of main floors above ground, including any significant mezzanine floors and major mechanical plant floors. Mechanical mezzanines should not be included if they have a significantly smaller floor area than the major floors below. Similarly, mechanical penthouses or plant rooms protruding above the general roof area should not be counted. Note: CTBUH floor counts may differ from published accounts, as it is common in some regions of the world for certain floor levels not to be included (e.g., the level 4, 14, 24, etc. in Hong Kong).
The number of floors below ground should include all major floors located below the ground floor level.
The current legal building name.
Other names the building has commonly been known as, including former names, common informal names, local names, etc.
A complex is a group of buildings which are designed and built as pieces of a greater development.
CTBUH collects data on two major types of tall structures: 'Buildings' and 'Telecommunications / Observation Towers.' A 'Building' is a structure where at least 50% of the height is occupied by usable floor area. A 'Telecommunications / Observation Tower' is a structure where less than 50% of the structure's height is occupied by usable floor area. Only 'Buildings' are eligible for the CTBUH 'Tallest Buildings' lists.
The CTBUH follows the United Nations's definition of Country, and thus uses the lists and codes established by that organization.
The CTBUH follows the United Nations's definition of City, and thus uses the lists and codes established by that organization.
A single-function tall building is defined as one where 85% or more of its usable floor area is dedicated to a single usage. Thus a building with 90% office floor area would be said to be an "office" building, irrespective of other minor functions it may also contain.
A mixed-use tall building contains two or more functions (or uses), where each of the functions occupy a significant proportion of the tower's total space. Support areas such as car parks and mechanical plant space do not constitute mixed-use functions. Functions are denoted on CTBUH "Tallest Building" lists in descending order, e.g., "hotel/office" indicates hotel function above office function.
Steel
Both the main vertical/lateral structural elements and the floor spanning systems are constructed from steel. Note that a building of steel construction with a floor system of concrete planks or concrete slab on top of steel beams is still considered a “steel” structure as the concrete elements are not acting as the primary structure.
Reinforced Concrete
Both the main vertical/lateral structural elements and the floor spanning systems are constructed from concrete which has been cast in place and utilizes steel reinforcement bars.
Precast Concrete
Both the main vertical/lateral structural elements and the floor spanning system are constructed from steel reinforced concrete which has been precast as individual components and assembled together on-site.
Mixed-Structure
Utilizes distinct systems (e.g. steel, concrete, timber), one on top of the other. For example, a steel/concrete indicates a steel structural system located on top of a concrete structural system, with the opposite true of concrete/steel.
Composite
A combination of materials (e.g. steel, concrete, timber) are used together in the main structural elements. Examples include buildings which utilize: steel columns with a floor system of reinforced concrete beams; a steel frame system with a concrete core; concrete-encased steel columns; concrete-filled steel tubes; etc. Where known, the CTBUH database breaks out the materials used in a composite building’s core, columns, and floor spanning separately.
Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the architectural top of the building, including spires, but not including antennae, signage, flag poles or other functional-technical equipment. This measurement is the most widely utilized and is employed to define the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) rankings of the "World's Tallest Buildings."
The number of floors above ground should include the ground floor level and be the number of main floors above ground, including any significant mezzanine floors and major mechanical plant floors. Mechanical mezzanines should not be included if they have a significantly smaller floor area than the major floors below. Similarly, mechanical penthouses or plant rooms protruding above the general roof area should not be counted. Note: CTBUH floor counts may differ from published accounts, as it is common in some regions of the world for certain floor levels not to be included (e.g., the level 4, 14, 24, etc. in Hong Kong).
The number of floors below ground should include all major floors located below the ground floor level.
You must be a CTBUH Member to view this resource.
You must be a CTBUH Member to view this resource.
Construction Start
Completed
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Wind
Elevator
2 March 2008 - Building Tour
19 September 2012 | Manama
In sharp contrast to traditional motion control devices, this session presents a unique method of converting vibration energy into electricity while concurrently providing structure response...
The Bahrain World Trade Center integrates large-scale wind turbines into its design; and together with numerous energy reducing and recovery systems, this development shows an unequivocal commitment to raising global awareness for sustainable design. This building is pioneering a new direction for designers and owners acting as a technological precedent. The BWTC has shown that commercial developments can be created with a strong environmental agenda and addresses the needs of our future generations. The BWTC encapsulates the essence of a sustainable philosophy engaging all of the social, economic and environmental impacts of the project. As well as making significant strides in environmentally balanced architecture, the building is now considered a source of national pride for Bahrain residents, and is attributed with generating economic prosperity within the capital of Manama.
The BWTC forms the focal point of a master plan to rejuvenate the 30-year-old existing hotel and shopping mall on the site. The planning of the site became constrained by the existing buildings and the road network around the site. By extending the main axis of the existing shopping mall towards the sea and creating a secondary axis from the Hotel, “Retail Streets” were established. The twin towers’ natural location was therefore positioned on the main axis, facing the Arabian Gulf and creating the entrance for the development.
The inspiration for the twin towers originated from regional “Wind Towers” and their ability to funnel wind, and the vast sails of the traditional Arabian Dhow as they harness the breeze in driving them forward. After careful Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modeling and extensive wind tunnel testing, the towers’ shape was literally carved out by the wind to create optimum airflow around the buildings. The elliptical plan forms act as aerofoils (see plans on page 91), funneling the onshore breeze between them, creating a negative pressure behind, thus accelerating wind velocity between the two towers. Vertically, the sculpting of the towers is also a function of airflow dynamics.
As they taper skywards, the aerofoil sections reduce. This effect, combined with the increasing onshore wind velocity at higher altitudes creates a near equal regime of wind speed on each of the three turbines, irrespective of height, allowing them to rotate at the same speed and generate the same energy levels. The three 29-meter (95-foot)-diameter, 11 ton wind turbines are supported on 31.5-meter (103-foot), 70 ton bridges between the towers. Each turbine generates 225kW. The buildings have been sculpted to funnel the uninterrupted on-shore breeze onto the turbines and create a perpendicular slip stream that corrects the wind direction to take advantage of 70% of Bahrain’s wind energy.
The premium on this project for including the wind turbines was less than 3% of project value. Based on the energy savings and the increased value of the building having wind turbines, the payback period is extremely favorable. The initial energy yields during the design phase was approximately 15%, therefore 1300MWh per year; however, from early commissioning results the turbines are estimated to generate substantially more energy due to the reduced occupancy profile of the building and the wider operational period of the turbines.
19 September 2012 | Manama
In sharp contrast to traditional motion control devices, this session presents a unique method of converting vibration energy into electricity while concurrently providing structure response...
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