Burj Khalifa vs. Beijing National Stadium

Comparison of Two Buildings Student Name Subject Teacher Name Date When we hear the word architecture, it quickly reminds us of some building. It is considered a form of art that involves multiples stages such as design, planning and constructing the building itself. Each stage has numerous sub-stages to go through before the actual body of work is ready to be used. In the material form of buildings, architectural works are perceived as works of art and as traditional and cultural symbols. A significant number of buildings have been built in the recent years, and a lot more are being built in different parts of the worlds such as the United States, Canada, England, Saudi Arabia, Japan, and China. Commercial buildings and skyscrapers built in the 19th and 20th century had been designed uniquely to attract more and more visitors from all parts of the world. To fulfill the requirement of this essay, I am going to select two buildings (Burj Khalifa and Beijing Olympic Stadium). I will be presenting a comparative analysis of these two structures of art. However, before we delve for those details let us look at the brief introduction of both buildings. Burj Khalifa Burj Khalifa stands at 2,601 feet and is an earthquake resistant building. It is also known for its extraordinarily special power-generating elevators and a centralized cooling solution. It is believed that the air-conditioning system of Burj Khalifa is one of the best in the world and equivalent of melting over 11,000 tons of ice on a daily basis. Dubai has no short of such buildings. In fact, the entire United Arab Emirates has many skyscrapers, but nothing could beat the architecture, beauty, and success of Burj Khalifa. Beijing National Stadium Just like Burj Khalifa, Beijing National Stadium is unique and marvelous when it comes to design and structure. This stadium has two independent structures: an outer steel frame and an inner seating bowl. The two parts have been beautified using different metals and colorful concrete. From the depths of the tracks to the location and size of high and long jump pits, everything is par the international standards as well as the requirements of IAAF (International Amateur Athletics Federation) and ICO (International Olympic Committee). Technology has played a significant role in the construction of these two buildings. Burj Khalifa’s lighting and air-conditioning systems are well-equipped, and Beijing National Stadium’s seating is well-organized. We would have to admit that engineers and architects have done everything to provide people with more flexibility. A lot of attention has been paid on their architecture and structure so that the two buildings withstand natural disasters without any damage. Architecture and Design of Burj Khalifa Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill (SOM) designed the tower of this building. Previously, they had worked on projects like the One World Trade Center in New York and the Willis Tower in Chicago. For Burj Khalifa, they used a comprehensive bundle tube design, and its inspiration had come from the Willis Tower. This design was first introduced by Fazlur Rahman Khan. Because of its marvelous tabular system, roughly half the amount of concrete or steel was used for constructing this building. It may not be possible for us to find such an incredible piece of work in terms of engineering and architecture, and Khan’s contribution to the design of the tall building cannot be ignored in this regard. Those who have visited Burj Khalifa might be familiar with the fact that the design is the result of Frank Lloyd Wright's vision for The Illinois, which is a Chicago-based skyscraper. Initially, Burj Khalifa was designed on the basis of the 73 floor Tower Palace Three, which is an all-residential building in Seoul. However, its structure was then transformed to make it suitable for commercial purposes. The design of Burj Khalifa has been derived from Islamic architecture. The tower rises from a flat desert base, and we can see up to twenty-seven setbacks in the spiral pattern. All of them decrease the cross section of this tower while creating several outdoor terraces and going upward smoothly and nicely. The setbacks have been aligned and arranged in a unique way, reducing the chances of vibration due to overloading or winds as well as earthquakes. At the top, the central core seems to be emerging and sculpting in order to form the finishing spire. The tallest point is where a tower of 1.4 m height sways decently. Architecture and Design of Beijing National Stadium The project of Beijing National Stadium (BNS) was handled by architects Pierre de Meuron, Jacques Herzog, Stefan Marbach, CADG and Ai Weiwei. In 2003, the first meeting was held at Basel in this regard. Over there, the group decided to come up with an extraordinarily special design and architecture. The group also decided that they would do something different from what de Meuron and Herzog had previously designed. China was in the constant lookout for something better than other skyscrapers in the world. So initiatives were taken in this regard, and early design of the stadium was then presented. For many years, the team had to study Chinese ceramics as they were going to be used in the manufacturing of Beijing National Stadium. Then the group came up with the nest scheme in which it was clarified that the stadium should consist of two independent structures. Both of them would stand fifty feet apart. One of the structures would be made from red concrete while the outlet frame would b constructed with solid and genuine steel. It was concluded that the steel support would remain hidden with a retractable roof, which was required in the building process. The group soon developed the random-looking additional steel in order to blend the support into the other parts of the stadium. Up to twenty-three trussed columns encased the inner bowl, and the weight of every trussed column was 1,000 tons. When Charles de Gaulle Airport collapsed, the news went viral in no time, and Beijing had to review all of the architectural projects. It was then decided that the retractable roof would be eliminated; this was the actual inspiration for the nest design. Soon all of these and other similar elements were removed which deemed to be unnecessary, and this helped bring the project under a reduced construction budget of $260 million. The original budget was $500 million. One of the most significant things we should remember is that by removing the retractable roof, the total weight of the building was reduced to an extent. Doing so, the building started looking more beautiful and stood up to seismic activity. In the meantime, the roof’s upper section was altered a little in order to protect fans from severe climatic conditions. Enerpac was the person who was given the contract. He had to bring down the stadium roof during the construction and had to perform the stage lifting. The construction of Beijing National Stadium was completed in a number of phases or stages. The first stage involved the construction of the concrete supporting structure, which was ...