Building under construction
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Post-construction
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Sunday, January 31, 2010
Base Jumping
The building has been used by several experienced BASE jumpers for both authorized and unauthorized BASE jumping:
- In May 2008, Hervé Le Gallou and an unnamed British man, dressed as engineers, illegally infiltrated Burj Khalifa (around 650 m at the time), and jumped off a balcony situated a couple of floors below the 160th floor.[88][89]
- On 8th January 2010, with permission of the authorities, Nasr Al Niyadi and Omar Al Hegelan, from the Emirates Aviation Society, broke the world record for the highest BASE jump from a building after they leapt from a crane suspended platform attached to the 160th floor at 672 m (2,200 ft). The two men descended the vertical drop at a speed of up to 220 km/h (140 mph), with enough time to open their parachutes 10 seconds into the 90 second jump.[90][91]
Purpose...
Burj Khalifa has been designed to be the centrepiece of a large-scale, mixed-use development that will include 30,000 homes, nine hotels such as The Address Downtown Burj Khalifa, 3 hectares (7.4 acres) of parkland, at least 19 residential towers, the Dubai Mall, and the 12-hectare (30-acre) man-made Burj Khalifa Lake.
The building has returned the location of Earth's tallest free-standing structure to the Middle East — where the Great Pyramid of Giza claimed this achievement for almost four millennia before being surpassed in 1311 by Lincoln Cathedral in England.
The decision to build Burj Khalifa is reportedly based on the government's decision to diversify from an oil-based economy to one that is service- and tourism-oriented. According to officials, it is necessary for projects like Burj Khalifa to be built in the city to garner more international recognition, and hence investment. "He (Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum) wanted to put Dubai on the map with something really sensational," said Jacqui Josephson, a tourism and VIP delegations executive atNakheel Properties.[87]
Opening Ceramony...
The opening ceremony of Burj Khalifa was held on 4 January 2010.[84] The ceremony featured a display of 10,000 fireworks, light beams projected on and around the tower, and further sound, light and water effects.[85] Using the 868 powerful stroboscope lights that are integrated into the facade and spire of the tower, different lighting sequences were choreographed, together with more than 50 different combinations of the other effects.
The event began with a short film which depicted the story of Dubai and the evolution of Burj Khalifa. The displays of sound, light, water and fireworks followed.[85] The portion of the show consisting of the various pyrotechnic, lighting, water and sound effects was divided into three. The first part was primarily a light and sound show, which took as its theme the link between desert flowers and the new tower, and was co-ordinated with the Dubai Fountain and pyrotechnics. The second portion, called 'Heart Beat', represented the construction of the tower in a dynamic light show with the help of 300 projectors which generated a shadow-like image of the tower. In the third act, sky tracers and space cannons enveloped the tower in a halo of white light, which expanded as the lighting rig on the spire activated.[85]
The ceremony was relayed live on a giant screen on Burj Park Island, as well as several television screens placed across the Downtown Burj Khalifa development. Hundreds of media outlets from around the world reported live from the scene.[85] In addition to the media presence, 6,000 guests were expected.[86]
Floor plan
The following is a breakdown of floors
| Floors | Use |
|---|---|
| 160 and above | Mechanical |
| 156-159 | Communication and broadcast |
| 155 | Mechanical |
| 139–154 | Corporate suites |
| 136–138 | Mechanical |
| 125–135 | Corporate suites |
| 124 | At the Top observatory |
| 123 | Sky lobby |
| 122 | At.mosphere restaurant |
| 111–121 | Corporate suites |
| 109–110 | Mechanical |
| 77–108 | Residential |
| 76 | Sky lobby |
| 73–75 | Mechanical |
| 44–72 | Residential |
| 43 | Sky lobby |
| 40–42 | Mechanical |
| 38–39 | Armani Hotel suites |
| 19–37 | Armani Residences |
| 17–18 | Mechanical |
| 9–16 | Armani Residences |
| 1–8 | Armani Hotel |
| Ground | Armani Hotel |
| Concourse | Armani Hotel |
| B1–B2 | Parking, mechanical |
Mile Stones...
- January 2004: Excavation commences.[28]
- February 2004: Piling starts.[28]
- 21 September 2004: Emaar contractors begin construction.[75]
- March 2005: Structure of Burj Khalifa starts rising.[28]
- June 2006: Level 50 is reached.[28]
- February 2007: Surpasses the Sears Tower as the building with the most floors.
- 13 May 2007: Sets record for vertical concrete pumping on any building at 452 m (1,483 ft), surpassing the 449.2 m (1,474 ft) to which concrete was pumped during the construction of Taipei 101, while Burj Khalifa reached 130 floor.[28][76]
- 21 July 2007: Surpasses Taipei 101, whose height of 509.2 m (1,671 ft) made it the world's tallest building, and level 141 reached.[28][77]
- 12 August 2007: Surpasses the Sears Tower antenna, which stands 527.3 m (1,730 ft).
- 12 September 2007: At 555.3 m (1,822 ft), becomes the world's tallest freestanding structure, surpassing the CN Tower in Toronto, and level 150 reached.[28][78]
- 7 April 2008: At 629 m (2,064 ft), surpasses the KVLY-TV Mast to become the tallest man-made structure, level 160 reached.[28][79]
- 17 June 2008: Emaar announces that Burj Khalifa's height is over 636 m (2,087 ft) and that its final height will not be given until it is completed in September 2009.[32]
- 1 September 2008: Height tops 688 m (2,257 ft), making it the tallest man-made structure ever built, surpassing the previous record-holder, the Warsaw Radio Mast in Konstantynów, Poland.[80]
- 17 January 2009: Topped out at 828 m (2,717 ft).[81]
- 1 October 2009: Emaar announces that the exterior of the building is completed.[82]
- 4 January 2010: Burj Khalifa's official launch ceremony is held and Burj Khalifa is opened. Burj Dubai renamed Burj Khalifa in honour of the current President of the UAE and ruler of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al Nahyan.[2]
Labour Contraversy
Burj Khalifa was built primarily by workers from South Asia.[72][73] Press reports indicated in 2006 that skilled carpenters at the site earned UK£4.34 a day, and labourers earned UK£2.84.[72] According to a BBC investigation and a Human Rights Watch report, the workers were housed in abysmal conditions, their pay was often withheld, their passports were confiscated by their employers, and they were working in hazardous conditions that resulted in an apparently high number of deaths and injuries on site.[74]
On 21 March 2006, about 2,500 workers, who were upset over buses that were delayed for the end of their shifts, protested, damaging cars, offices, computers, and construction equipment.[72] A Dubai Interior Ministry official said the rioters caused almost UK£500,000 in damage.[72] Most of the workers involved in the riot returned the following day but refused to work.[72]
On 17 June 2008, there were 7,500 skilled workers employed in the construction of Burj Khalifa.[32]
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