Dubai defies logic. Skyscrapers rear up out of the pitiless desert where, a generation ago, where there was only wind-blown litter. Thus, the city-state confected from subsistence has now witnessed the opening of the world's tallest building – the Burj Al Khalifa.
Burj Khalifa is a steel-ribbed and glass-clad skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and is the tallest man made structure in the world.
"The greatest satisfaction, I think is
when a building opens and the public possesses it.
There is no greater satisfaction."
- Moshe Safdie
Construction began on 21 September 2004, with the exterior of the structure completed on 1 October 2009. The 828 m skyscraper boasts the world's highest swimming pool and mosque. Stunningly designed by the Chicago firm of Skidmore, Owings and Merrell, the Burj Khalifa is inspired not only by minarets and desert flowers, but also by Frank Lloyd Wright's 1956 plans for the Illinois Sky-City in Chicago. Sadly, neither the technology nor the money existed then to build such a structure. Thus after a lot of hard work and effort the building officially opened on 4 January 2010.
So, what comes on your mind when you get a sudden liberty to explore a city like Dubai? Yes, there you go, exploring the Burj Al Khalifa- the world's tallest building. You would definitely strive to reach to the peak of the tower and take a glance at the city from that height. The view from that height would certainly remind you of the vivid scenario of Lilliputian city from Gulliver's Travel by Jonathan Swift. Ironical yet true it is to conclude that the native heritage of Dubai, its original identity and its true skin has also shrunk to the same size under the urge to make city visible on the map through iconic structures.
The building was built in order to attract visitors from every corner of the globe. The beautified structure stands boastful in the middle of a desert. The structure portrays itself to be an iconic one and stands as a separate entity drawing attention towards itself and its modern built up form totally putting the natural physical surroundings of Dubai out of focus. Thus, it is seen that the structure though stands steady yet does not harmonize and blend with its environment.
"Rome was not built in a day."
So was the Burj Dubai.
Burj Al Khalifa also known as Burj Dubai stretches 5.67 million square feet across and consists of 150 floors. The magnificent structure has 26 helical levels which decreases the cross section area of the tower as its spirals skyward. The tower consists of 37 offices, 900 residential apartment, 160 guest rooms, 144 private residences and a floor area of 3,34,000 square metres. As far as the power consumption is concerned the tower needs around 50 Mega Volt Ampere at its peak time which is equivalent of 5,00,000 100 watt light bulbs burning which is also an ample amount of electrical energy which can certainly power up a city easily. As the United Arab Emirates is a hot country with the world's highest per capita carbon footprint where the temperature goes upto 50 degree centigrade, the air conditioning system is said to be the equivalent of melting 12,500 tons of ice in a day. The requirement of water supply is 9,46,000 litres a day.
Dubai would like to see this audacious building as a metaphor for its role in the vanguard of globalisation, as a technocracy capable of yoking Islam and modernity. How justifiable do you think this building is when we are approaching an era where energy efficiency and resource management is necessity?
Raw materials used in this tower are nearly 330,000 tons of steel which is sufficient to connect quarter areas around the earth, contributing towards the carbon footprint. The gigantic tower is externally claded with 28,261 glass panel which is an ample amount to cover 17 football pitches. Concretes used for paving is 2065 kilometres long. The tower is arranged around a central core. In this concrete core wall construction the pump used, which is claimed to be the highest pumping ever done in history. Thus, heavy machinery pumps are used so more energy is burned. The excavation work started in 2004 and finished in 2010 which took 20 million man power hours, so we need to consider the transportation which also contributes carbon emissions. The sea water around Dubai is very saline. So they rely heavily on carbon dioxide emitting desalination plant for soft water.
Burj Khalifa is by no means a beacon of green design, its double-pane low-E glass panels make up a skin system that traps condensation that would otherwise evaporate and uses it for watering plants. Such resourcefulness is highly appreciable. But the building consumes almost a million gallons of water a day in a region where water is such a scarce resource. As we all know that 'everything comes with a price'. The use of the reflective glass panels has resulted in excessive glare leading to the creation of urban heat island. These high rise buildings have contributed in increase in sandstorm and local temperature in those adjacent areas.
We consume and put to use as much of resource as possible and are depleting the nature's reserve. We are utilizing the natural treasures of our environment yet in return basic morality lies if we to some extent try to replete these resources. Are we doing that? How would you like to justify this issue?
"I will plan anything a man wants from a cathedral to a chicken coop."
- Henry Hobson Richardson
Certainly this quotation justifies the method of planning done in the tower. No proper measures were taken in order to produce a proper utility of the spaces and managing them. Carelessness led to a massive drawback in the planning section of the tower.
The planning and utilization of the built up area portrays that the space utilization is very poor in this building where the top 30 floors are used as a storage due to lack of area as it gets steeper. The tall, spindly design showcases that the floor space is limited. Big companies would certainly recquire several storeys. Complication lies when it is found out that each level has its respective owner. The building being a tall gigantic structure yet does not possess enough accommodation. Infact, there are 20 floors which are still vacant and not occupied due to lack of one's respective requirements. What is the point of building such massive structure when one's basic needs are not met? Certainly needs a mention.
Despite of all the impressive accomplishments in order to portray itself as the world's most magnificent tower, the Burj Khalifa has a major problem when it comes to sanitation- 'Poop Problem'. Trucks have to take the excreta as well as the raw sewage out of underground holding tanks and hall it to waste treatment plant. These trucks then queue for upto 24 hours outside the treatment plant before unloading it. Thus it illustrates one of the paradoxes of modern life. We have these incredible structures that seem to reach the sky and then in a place as modernized as Dubai, you have a 24 hour long line of truck waiting to dispose of the waste from those buildings which certainly adds as another demerit. Spending additional money everyday just over waste disposal, doesn't serve justice to the building. Does it?
Dubai's new developments are no mere coincidence. Realizing that Dubai oil reserves would run out in a few decades, the Emirates ruler, aimed to diversify the economy by attracting businesses and manufacturing in addition to expanding the already sizeable tourist industry. Dubai's gleaming modern architecture along with it's various avant grade projects were to be the main basis for sparking global interest in all of these sectors. This was the true motive of the Burj Khalifa's creation.The result is top down approach to development and Dubai's differential economic growth leads inevitably to socio-spatial polarization between high and low income groups in society in other words exclusive developments such as the Burj Khalifa serve only a minority population-the elite. This has resulted in distinct upmarket portions of the city that practically segregate lower income groups with very little outlets to establish their position place in the city.The desire to craft a modern image for Dubai has been established, but an additional aspect worth noting is the possibility that the Burj Khalifa was built to prove the reputation Emaar, the largest development and real estate agency in the UAE.
The Burj Khlifa as a building has been as polarizing as the city it's built in. Yet the critics have called it "pointless" , "adolescent lunacy" and "vanity project". Burj Khalifa has thereby become an example of just "Hubris".
In an era of relatively new found priorities such as sustainability, the effect of the construction of "the world's tallest tower" was complete opposite to what purpose it was actually suppose serve.
The symbol though, was already tarnished it should be highlighted that before and during construction, the building was called the Burj Dubai (Dubai Tower). The surrounding area was to have been known as Downtown Burj Dubai. But on the day of launch, the name was abruptly changed to Burj Khalifa, in honour of the president of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of AbuDhabi, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan. It has been reported that this was because Abu Dhabi gave Dubai $10bn to stave off financial collapse.
In the space of one year, Dubai has gone from having the world's best performing property market to one of the worst. The aspiration to build up a strong future economy at the stake of present is quite unjustifiable, I suppose!
" We shape our buildings,
thereafter, they shape us. "
- Winston Churchill
The injustice can also be noticed when we look into the melancholic story of the lives of the thousands of labourers. Many of Dubai's construction workers live on starvation wages of £120 a month on average for a six-day week, with shifts of up to 12 hours. Housemaids can endure conditions approaching slavery. Laws exist to regulate working conditions and to prevent employers from seizing workers' passports, but they are not well enforced. Government figures are invariably owners, partners or shareholders in private companies. Providing a residential structure in order to sustain the economy of the city it would be highly unbiasness to not to mention the construction workers' shanty towns to get a sense of what life is like for those who are building Dubai's skyscrapers. But who would waste a day doing that? Scrutinizing the other modern architectural wonders in the site vicinity beside the Burj Dubai would certainly be a way better option for us. Is'nt it?
The construction workers on the Burj Khalifa have rioted on several occasions. Infact a Human Rights Watch survey found a cover-up of deaths from heat, overwork and suicide in the emirate. The Indian consulate recorded 971 deaths of their nationals in 2005, after which they were asked to stop counting.
Undoubtedly, the structure is an output of architectural excellence. Looking vividly into the matter we all know what "every coin has two sides". A building would equally showcase its brilliance as well as its flaws.
"The essence of being human is that one does not seek perfection. "
- George Orwell
Man's built up environment cannot be perfectly flawless. Before being judgemental, we should keep in mind that your flaws will be judged by the way you showcase it. Time has its own need. In order to conclude whether the building has provided justice to itself or injustice, we should keep in account the utility of the building and the era in which it has been built up. Modernization is not a style but a lifestyle choice. A choice to be more aware of the surroundings. It is we who would be a better judge of oneself. Challenge does not lie in creating an extraordinarily massive structure. It depends on how much justice we are doing with your creation to provide maximum utility and catering the needs of the physical environment along with the built up environment maintaing the symbiotic relationship between the two. Thus we are the better judge of ourselves.
" In the beginning there was only a small amount of injustice abroad in the world,
but everyone who came afterwards added there portion,
always think it was very small and unimportant, and look where we have ended up today."
- Paulo Coelho
Rupsha Chakraborty
Qurraatul Ain Maryam
Sadia Khanam
