The future world's tallest building has passed a major construction milestone. Saudi Arabia's JEC Tower has now reached 102 floors and is rapidly progressing toward its planned height of more than 1 km (0.62 miles).
Back in November of last year, we reported on the JEC Tower rising to 69 floors. With progress now moving at at extremely rapid pace, it surpassed 100 floors in recent weeks, becoming one of only around 25 buildings worldwide to do so.
Architects Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill (AS+GG) recently confirmed it will consist of at least 157 floors. It will also be significantly taller than the current world's tallest building, the 828-m (2,717-ft) Burj Khalifa and almost twice the height of the USA's tallest skyscraper, the 541-m (1,776-ft) One World Trade Center. This kind of immense height requires a carefully considered structural system.
"Concrete is king in the Middle East," says engineering firm Thornton Tomasetti, which is helping realize the project. "So why not take advantage of Saudi Arabia's local techniques to construct Jeddah Tower? We did just that, with an efficient concrete-based system that employs construction practices and concrete strengths common in the region.
"The structural system is simplicity itself – without columns, outriggers, floor beams, spandrel beams, and vertical transfers. Specifically designed to be built quickly and efficiently, all walls are interconnected, and each structural element resists both wind and gravity loads. Below, a massive concrete foundation system supports the weight of all that height – with a 5-meter [16.4-ft]-thick raft foundation supported on 270 bored piles, each 1.8 meters [5.10 ft] in diameter, that go to depths up to 105 meters [344 ft]."
Previously referred to as both the Kingdom Tower and Jeddah Tower, the JEC Tower is at the center of a new urban development in the bustling port city of Jeddah. Its interior will boast the world's highest observation point, plus a luxury hotel, office space, and palatial apartments.
The megatall skyscraper is just one of several "gigaprojects" announced for Saudi Arabia as it aims to transform into a major tourism destination. However, while others like the the Line and Mukaab have seen their ambitions reduced or been cancelled altogether, JEC Tower is now firmly on track after years of delays, and Saudi authorities seem intent on realizing the project's ambitious vision.
Check out the following video to see the current progress on this incredible project.
Sources: Thornton Tomasetti, AS+GG
