It wasn't that long ago when Dubai's ambitions — as well as its fortunes — seemed limitless, particularly to those at the center of it.
The wealthy Persian Gulf city-state, fueled by the region's oil wealth, was working to transform itself into the business, financial and even tourist capital of a region known mostly for turmoil and conservative, authoritarian rule.
But Dubai's dream ran smack into painful financial reality at the end of November. Officials announced that high-flying Dubai World, the government-owned colossus that is behind some of the most ambitious — some say outlandish — development projects, wants time to delay and restructure payments on some $26 billion in debt.
The news sent a shockwave through a place built on brash salesmanship and bravado. Many businessmen in the region are waiting for additional shoes to drop from several other government-owned development firms that could have massive debt woes of their own.
In the spring of 2008, visitors to Dubai would have seen nothing but confidence for Dubai's future. With oil prices at record highs, money was pouring into the region, and Dubai hungrily gobbled it up.
"If there's one thing you can trust, it's Dubai," Khalid al-Malik, the CEO of Tatweer, a separate government-owned developer behind some of Dubai's most ambitious projects, said during an interview in April 2008. "Just like what the Americans did with their reputation, we are people who can deliver."
Even later, as the global financial crisis gutted the world economy, Dubai continued to act as if it were immune, even though it has almost no oil of its own. But Dubai did enjoy the implicit backing of oil-rich and fabulously wealthy Abu Dhabi, one of the six other emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates.
"International investors were just so taken with this idea of a liberal emirate next to an oil-rich brother that they thought it was a sure bet," says Christopher Davidson, a senior lecturer at Britain's Durham University and author of Dubai: The Vulnerability of Success, a book that foreshadowed Dubai's troubles. "Nobody bothered to clarify just what the rules were or how these companies were backed. No due diligence was done."
Dubai's story is a compelling one. Once a sleepy backwater, Dubai's royal family built a massive port in the 1970s and began to transform the place into a center for commerce.
Throwing its doors open to all nationalities and religions, Dubai's ruler, Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, and his father helped orchestrate an intoxicating buzz about the emirate, building indoor ski slopes and elaborate man-made islands shaped like palm trees.
The competition for glitz and hype was fierce. No sooner did one government-backed developer break ground on the "world's tallest building," then a competing government-owned developer would announce an even taller one.
"Each deal had to be bigger than the last one or it doesn't make it onto the CEO's desk," says T.B. (Mac) McClelland, the chairman of Center House Ltd., a Dubai-based consulting firm. "They hyped these things bigger and bigger and bigger, so it falls down harder."
One such developer was Nakheel, the property arm of Dubai World and ground zero for the company's debt crisis. Nakheel is behind the famous palm-shaped islands, as well as a separate island development, called "The World," built to resemble a map of the world, and another planned one called "The Universe."
Back in April 2008, Nakheel's CEO, Chris O'Donnell, was mostly worried about the limited capacity of Dubai's construction sector to complete all of his projects. At that point, he said Nakheel was responsible for about half of everything being built in Dubai over the next decade.
"We're building a new city," he said at the time. "It will have a sparkle to it. It will be a model, cosmopolitan city that people will continue to envy."
But the company — along with other developers — was taking on lots of debt to fund the boom. The effect was the same kind of real estate bubble that hit Florida and Las Vegas, fueled by speculators, where the financial success of projects depended on prices continuing to go up.
Indeed, to outsiders, the place often seemed to resemble something of a pyramid scheme, where outlandish developments like underwater hotels were announced with elaborate fanfare, often to be quietly abandoned later.
Because the developers were tied to the government and the royal family, few questions were asked about their financial viability. Still, the exact relationship between Dubai World and the government, royal family and other emirates remained deliberately hazy.
"They are always bragging about these companies that are majority-owned by the government of Dubai, which suggests there are sovereign guarantees for these things," says a U.S. businessman with interests in the UAE, who asked for anonymity to avoid retribution from Dubai's government. "Then they pulled out the rug from under everybody."
Over the past year, real estate prices in Dubai have plummeted by half, and construction projects have been halted or abandoned.
Yet it was still a real surprise when Abdulrahman al-Saleh, the director general of Dubai's Department of Finance, went on Dubai TV on Nov. 30 to distance the government from Dubai World.
"It is correct that the government owns Dubai World, but the decision when it was set up was that it should receive financing based on the viability of its projects, not on government guarantees," he said. "It's not correct to assume that Dubai World is part of the government of Dubai. The lenders should bear part of the responsibility."
In an interview aired by al-Jazeera on Monday, al-Saleh said Dubai World may sell off domestic and overseas assets as it struggles to raise cash.
It remains unclear how Abu Dhabi will respond. While Abu Dhabi sits at the head of the UAE's federal government structure, officials there have often viewed Dubai as brash and reckless.
"The signals have come out of Abu Dhabi that they're not going to bail out everything," says Davidson. "They are playing hard to get in that sense. They're not just writing a big check."
For its part, Dubai is putting out a mixture of defiance and optimism.
Sheik Mohammed used his Twitter feed to celebrate the UAE's national day on Dec. 2 by writing, "Ambitions remain ally of our plans, big goals remain our objectives, nobility of our nation remains the compass that guides us." But last month, he told reporters to "shut up" when they asked about the rivalry between Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Dubai has always had a quiet authoritarian streak, where detractors and troublemakers in the past have found themselves summarily deported. Many foreign businessmen were reluctant to speak on the record for fear of angering government officials or the royal family.
"The press has been threatened," says one frequent visitor. "Everyone is being really careful about what they say."
Of course, nobody is counting Dubai out yet either.
It is still a huge transportation and logistics hub, with world-class port and airport facilities. And it remains a safe and comfortable haven in an unstable region.
"If Dubai handles this properly, everybody will give them the benefit of the doubt," says McClelland, the consulting firm chairman. "If they keep up this obfuscation and not tell people what they're doing, it will drag on for years."
Next month, Dubai will ramp up its hype machine again to mark the opening of the world's tallest building, the Burj Dubai.
The question now is whether the rest of the world will see the new skyscraper as another sign of Dubai's towering ambition, or merely an affirmation of its hubris.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=121091517&ps=cprs
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Burj Dubai By The Numbers
When the world’s tallest building is inaugurated on January 4, 2010, by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President & Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, the record books will brace themselves to receive a flood of new entries.
For many, Burj Dubai will be defined by its soaring beauty. Others will marvel at the audacity of its engineering. Countless more will cherish the breathtaking views from At The Top, Burj Dubai, the observation deck on level 124.
But for the compilers of the record books, it will be the statistics that etch the deepest impression.
At over 800 metres and with more than 160 floors, here are some of the essential numbers associated with the world’s tallest building:
• 95 – the distance in kilometres at which Burj Dubai’s spire can still be seen
• 124 – the floor location of ‘At The Top, Burj Dubai’, the world’s highest and only publicly accessible observation deck with an outdoor terrace
• 160 – the number of luxury hotel rooms and suites
• 605 – the vertical height in metres to which concrete was pumped in the construction of Burj Dubai, a world record for concrete pumping
• 504 – the distance traveled, or ‘rise’ in metres of Burj Dubai’s main service lift, the most of any elevator
• 49 – the number of office floors, including the 12-floor annexure
• 57 – the number of elevators
• 1,044 – the total number of residential apartments inside Burj Dubai
• 3,000 – the number of underground parking spaces
• 5,500 – the capacity in kilograms of the tower’s service lift
• 31,400 – the amount of steel rebar in metric tonnes used in the structure of Burj Dubai
• 28,261– the number of glass cladding panels making up the exterior of tower and
its two annexes
• 15,000 – the amount of water in litres collected from the tower’s cooling equipment that will be used for landscaping irrigation
• 900 – the length in the feet of the world’s tallest performing fountain, The Dubai Fountain, that lies at the foot of the tower
• 19 – the number of hectares of lush green landscaping that envelops the foot of the tower
• 12,000 – the numbers of workers on site during peak of construction
http://www.dubaicityguide.com/site/news/news-details.asp?newsid=27404
For many, Burj Dubai will be defined by its soaring beauty. Others will marvel at the audacity of its engineering. Countless more will cherish the breathtaking views from At The Top, Burj Dubai, the observation deck on level 124.
But for the compilers of the record books, it will be the statistics that etch the deepest impression.
At over 800 metres and with more than 160 floors, here are some of the essential numbers associated with the world’s tallest building:
• 95 – the distance in kilometres at which Burj Dubai’s spire can still be seen
• 124 – the floor location of ‘At The Top, Burj Dubai’, the world’s highest and only publicly accessible observation deck with an outdoor terrace
• 160 – the number of luxury hotel rooms and suites
• 605 – the vertical height in metres to which concrete was pumped in the construction of Burj Dubai, a world record for concrete pumping
• 504 – the distance traveled, or ‘rise’ in metres of Burj Dubai’s main service lift, the most of any elevator
• 49 – the number of office floors, including the 12-floor annexure
• 57 – the number of elevators
• 1,044 – the total number of residential apartments inside Burj Dubai
• 3,000 – the number of underground parking spaces
• 5,500 – the capacity in kilograms of the tower’s service lift
• 31,400 – the amount of steel rebar in metric tonnes used in the structure of Burj Dubai
• 28,261– the number of glass cladding panels making up the exterior of tower and
its two annexes
• 15,000 – the amount of water in litres collected from the tower’s cooling equipment that will be used for landscaping irrigation
• 900 – the length in the feet of the world’s tallest performing fountain, The Dubai Fountain, that lies at the foot of the tower
• 19 – the number of hectares of lush green landscaping that envelops the foot of the tower
• 12,000 – the numbers of workers on site during peak of construction
http://www.dubaicityguide.com/site/news/news-details.asp?newsid=27404
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Inside the Burj Dubai Tower
The world's tallest building is set to open in early 2010. Amid Dubai's financial crisis, is it a symbol of megalomania—or a stroke of genius?
The view is clear, the air is soft and silky, and only a thick strip of red separates the sky and the sea at sundown. The boundary between grandeur and kitsch becomes blurred here, halfway up the Burj Dubai, the world's tallest tower.
It smells of paint, varnish and new leather, and the steps of female visitors on parquet and marble produce an elegant-sounding echo that suddenly disappears when they step onto soft carpets. An artificial island in the shape of a palm tree is visible to the southwest, and farther to the north is a man-made archipelago that looks like a map of the world.
But only the furniture, the carpets, the smells and the sounds are real. The rest is an illusion. The visitor isn't gazing out at the Persian Gulf from 400 meters (1,312 feet) up in the air; in fact, he or she is standing at ground level—in a model apartment with an enormous mural stretched outside its floor-to-ceiling windows—at the foot of a hermetically sealed building.
The model apartment is located at the recently closed sales office of Emaar Properties, the real estate development company behind the Burj Dubai, which has over-extended itself—with projects from India to Morocco—and is now selling some of its condominiums at half the list price. After falling by 32 percent in last two weeks, Emaar's stock price gained 15 percentage points again last Thursday. Emaar, like the entire city, is on the brink of ruin, and yet it behaves as if nothing has happened.
Dubai, like no other place in the world, epitomizes globalization, "innovation" and "astonishing progress," as US President Barack Obama said admiringly in his speech to the Muslim world in Cairo in June. But it also stands for mind-boggling excess. In Dubai, utopias almost feel real sometimes, and reality is sometimes nothing but a mirage.
The tower, at any rate, is real. With its 160 habitable stories, it juts 818 meters (2,683 feet) into the sky. Tourists have to kneel down on the sidewalk to photograph the building in its entirety, from base to tip.
The Burj Dubai is so tall that Bedouins can see it from their oases 100 kilometers (63 miles) inland and sailors can see it from their supertankers, 50 nautical miles out in the Gulf—at least on the few winter days when the air is as clear as it's portrayed on the mural in front of the model apartment window.
The tower is so enormous that the air temperature at the top is up to 8 degrees Celsius (14 degrees Fahrenheit) lower than at the base. If anyone ever hit upon the idea of opening a door at the top and a door at the bottom, as well as the airlocks in between, a storm would rush through the air-conditioned building that would destroy most everything in its wake, except perhaps the heavy marble tiles in the luxury apartments. The phenomenon is called the "chimney effect."
An Army of Immigrant Workers
An army of immigrant workers from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, who make up about two-thirds of Dubai's residents, built the Burj. Only one in five residents is considered a "local" entitled to a United Arab Emirates passport. Scores of marketing strategists take steps to ensure that no one scrapes away at the silver varnish of this architectural marvel.
Security guards quickly remind anyone who comes too close to the construction site of the meaning of the word "unauthorized." Those who are invited to tour the building, or even just the grounds, are required to sign a non-disclosure agreement, the terms of which are to be obey "finally, irrevocably and unconditionally." Anyone who violates the terms can expect to face a judge in Dubai.
All of this will apply for only a little more than two weeks, until Jan. 4, 2010, the official opening date—already rescheduled several times—when the developers hope that the tower will begin serving its purpose as a magnet for a two-square-kilometer new development zone, where the wind was still blowing empty plastic bags across the desert sand only five years ago. And when the Burj Dubai opens, it will likely be one of the last major projects for some time in a city that has risen to dizzying heights and now faces the prospect of a precipitous fall.
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/dec2009/gb20091217_059534.htm
The view is clear, the air is soft and silky, and only a thick strip of red separates the sky and the sea at sundown. The boundary between grandeur and kitsch becomes blurred here, halfway up the Burj Dubai, the world's tallest tower.
It smells of paint, varnish and new leather, and the steps of female visitors on parquet and marble produce an elegant-sounding echo that suddenly disappears when they step onto soft carpets. An artificial island in the shape of a palm tree is visible to the southwest, and farther to the north is a man-made archipelago that looks like a map of the world.
But only the furniture, the carpets, the smells and the sounds are real. The rest is an illusion. The visitor isn't gazing out at the Persian Gulf from 400 meters (1,312 feet) up in the air; in fact, he or she is standing at ground level—in a model apartment with an enormous mural stretched outside its floor-to-ceiling windows—at the foot of a hermetically sealed building.
The model apartment is located at the recently closed sales office of Emaar Properties, the real estate development company behind the Burj Dubai, which has over-extended itself—with projects from India to Morocco—and is now selling some of its condominiums at half the list price. After falling by 32 percent in last two weeks, Emaar's stock price gained 15 percentage points again last Thursday. Emaar, like the entire city, is on the brink of ruin, and yet it behaves as if nothing has happened.
Dubai, like no other place in the world, epitomizes globalization, "innovation" and "astonishing progress," as US President Barack Obama said admiringly in his speech to the Muslim world in Cairo in June. But it also stands for mind-boggling excess. In Dubai, utopias almost feel real sometimes, and reality is sometimes nothing but a mirage.
The tower, at any rate, is real. With its 160 habitable stories, it juts 818 meters (2,683 feet) into the sky. Tourists have to kneel down on the sidewalk to photograph the building in its entirety, from base to tip.
The Burj Dubai is so tall that Bedouins can see it from their oases 100 kilometers (63 miles) inland and sailors can see it from their supertankers, 50 nautical miles out in the Gulf—at least on the few winter days when the air is as clear as it's portrayed on the mural in front of the model apartment window.
The tower is so enormous that the air temperature at the top is up to 8 degrees Celsius (14 degrees Fahrenheit) lower than at the base. If anyone ever hit upon the idea of opening a door at the top and a door at the bottom, as well as the airlocks in between, a storm would rush through the air-conditioned building that would destroy most everything in its wake, except perhaps the heavy marble tiles in the luxury apartments. The phenomenon is called the "chimney effect."
An Army of Immigrant Workers
An army of immigrant workers from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, who make up about two-thirds of Dubai's residents, built the Burj. Only one in five residents is considered a "local" entitled to a United Arab Emirates passport. Scores of marketing strategists take steps to ensure that no one scrapes away at the silver varnish of this architectural marvel.
Security guards quickly remind anyone who comes too close to the construction site of the meaning of the word "unauthorized." Those who are invited to tour the building, or even just the grounds, are required to sign a non-disclosure agreement, the terms of which are to be obey "finally, irrevocably and unconditionally." Anyone who violates the terms can expect to face a judge in Dubai.
All of this will apply for only a little more than two weeks, until Jan. 4, 2010, the official opening date—already rescheduled several times—when the developers hope that the tower will begin serving its purpose as a magnet for a two-square-kilometer new development zone, where the wind was still blowing empty plastic bags across the desert sand only five years ago. And when the Burj Dubai opens, it will likely be one of the last major projects for some time in a city that has risen to dizzying heights and now faces the prospect of a precipitous fall.
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/dec2009/gb20091217_059534.htm
Monday, December 21, 2009
Burj Dubai has become one of the most recognisable developments in the world
Burj Dubai has become one of the most recognisable developments in the world and is widely regarded as an architectural masterpiece.
While Burj Dubai, world’s tallest building and man-made structure being developed by Emaar Properties, represents today’s Dubai and its ability and ambition to realise dreams, Shindagha highlights the city’s humble beginning much like Dubai Refreshments when it began operations as a modest bottling plant in 1959.
Today, Dubai Refreshments packages and distributes some of the best known international brands to the Northern Emirates including Pepsi, Pepsi Max, Diet Pepsi, 7Up, Mirinda and Mountain Dew. Since operations began, DRC’s annual capacity has increased from 180,000 cases to 30 million cases.
Mana Al Mulla, DRC Managing director said: “Dubai provides a unique opportunity for business. The support we have received throughout our fifty years has allowed us to reach our potential and also helped us to put something back into the community.”
Since its inception, DRC has been a main participant in some of the city’s biggest events; the company has been recognized on many occasions for its contributions to various Dubai initiatives.
“We wanted to celebrate the diversity of Dubai and the unrivalled progress that has been made over the last fifty years. From a small pearl fishing port to one of the most famous and attractive destinations in the world is an incredible feat and we are enormously proud to be a part of that.”
“Shindagha is one of the traditional parts of Dubai that has seen the city go through this wonderful transformation and seemed a natural choice to represent the past on our cans,” Mr. Al Mulla added.
“A symbol of new Dubai, to me, it couldn’t be anything else but Burj Dubai,” said Mr Al Mulla. “This is a monument to all the effort, vision and success that represents Dubai. With Burj Dubai and the Downtown Burj Dubai that surrounds it, our city has a greater heart and our people have a greater pride.”
Burj Dubai, world’s tallest building
While Burj Dubai, world’s tallest building and man-made structure being developed by Emaar Properties, represents today’s Dubai and its ability and ambition to realise dreams, Shindagha highlights the city’s humble beginning much like Dubai Refreshments when it began operations as a modest bottling plant in 1959.
Today, Dubai Refreshments packages and distributes some of the best known international brands to the Northern Emirates including Pepsi, Pepsi Max, Diet Pepsi, 7Up, Mirinda and Mountain Dew. Since operations began, DRC’s annual capacity has increased from 180,000 cases to 30 million cases.
Mana Al Mulla, DRC Managing director said: “Dubai provides a unique opportunity for business. The support we have received throughout our fifty years has allowed us to reach our potential and also helped us to put something back into the community.”
Since its inception, DRC has been a main participant in some of the city’s biggest events; the company has been recognized on many occasions for its contributions to various Dubai initiatives.
“We wanted to celebrate the diversity of Dubai and the unrivalled progress that has been made over the last fifty years. From a small pearl fishing port to one of the most famous and attractive destinations in the world is an incredible feat and we are enormously proud to be a part of that.”
“Shindagha is one of the traditional parts of Dubai that has seen the city go through this wonderful transformation and seemed a natural choice to represent the past on our cans,” Mr. Al Mulla added.
“A symbol of new Dubai, to me, it couldn’t be anything else but Burj Dubai,” said Mr Al Mulla. “This is a monument to all the effort, vision and success that represents Dubai. With Burj Dubai and the Downtown Burj Dubai that surrounds it, our city has a greater heart and our people have a greater pride.”
Burj Dubai, world’s tallest building
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Burj Dubai, Dubai World and pride going before a fall
Burj Dubai, Dubai World and pride going before a fall
Dubai has no oil. What does have is a huge free-trade zone and harbor, many banks and, until now, a considerable amount of money...and an inclination to build it on big and expensive projects. The Emirates Towers, 12th and 24th tallest buildings in the world; the Jumeriah Palm, the world's largest man-made island and, waiting in the wings, the Burj Dubai, which will be the tallest building in the world when complete.
However, as those who followed the stock markets on Friday know, Dubai World, the emirate state-owned holding company, announced that it was having problems paying its $60 billion debt. This seems very reminiscent of the real estate-based overextension that the US has had. In fact, the biggest problem is with its real-estate subsidiary, Nakheel, which owes $3.5 billion and is cash-poor at the moment; a process not helped by the halving of property prices in Dubai in the last year or so. Unlike US agencies like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which whose implied backing by the US government became actual backing, Dubai World may not get a rescue package from the emirate.
The has led to a resurrection of the image of financial problems that had been hidden by an opaque process. One has to wonder if Burj Dubai well ever be anything more than an example of hubris meeting nemesis. The Tower of Babel led to a mixing of languages; however, overextension, default and financial panic are a universal tongue.
Burj Dubai, Dubai World and pride going before a fall
Dubai has no oil. What does have is a huge free-trade zone and harbor, many banks and, until now, a considerable amount of money...and an inclination to build it on big and expensive projects. The Emirates Towers, 12th and 24th tallest buildings in the world; the Jumeriah Palm, the world's largest man-made island and, waiting in the wings, the Burj Dubai, which will be the tallest building in the world when complete.
However, as those who followed the stock markets on Friday know, Dubai World, the emirate state-owned holding company, announced that it was having problems paying its $60 billion debt. This seems very reminiscent of the real estate-based overextension that the US has had. In fact, the biggest problem is with its real-estate subsidiary, Nakheel, which owes $3.5 billion and is cash-poor at the moment; a process not helped by the halving of property prices in Dubai in the last year or so. Unlike US agencies like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which whose implied backing by the US government became actual backing, Dubai World may not get a rescue package from the emirate.
The has led to a resurrection of the image of financial problems that had been hidden by an opaque process. One has to wonder if Burj Dubai well ever be anything more than an example of hubris meeting nemesis. The Tower of Babel led to a mixing of languages; however, overextension, default and financial panic are a universal tongue.
Burj Dubai, Dubai World and pride going before a fall
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Frost Design set to work on Armani Hotel, housed in the tallest building in the world
Frost Design set to work on Armani Hotel, housed in the tallest building in the world
Frost Design has been tipped to handle the advertising account for Armani Hotel Dubai, situated inside the tallest building in the world, Burj Dubai.
Still to be opened, the luxury hotel will have 160 guest rooms located on several levels of the Burj Dubai. It also includes eight restaurants, a lounge, spa, sweet store and flower shop.
In other wins, Frost was recently appointed to help brand one of the biggest urban redevelopment schemes in Sydney’s history.
The agency beat Moon, Stop.Edit and Holcam Creative to the creative account for the $2bn redevelopment of the former Carlton United Brewery site on Broadway in Sydney by Frasers Property Australia.
Vince Frost, founder of the agency, was last month appointed creative director of Woolworths South Africa to oversee a major rebrand.
The agency declined to comment on the rumoured win
Housed in the tallest building in the world
Frost Design has been tipped to handle the advertising account for Armani Hotel Dubai, situated inside the tallest building in the world, Burj Dubai.
Still to be opened, the luxury hotel will have 160 guest rooms located on several levels of the Burj Dubai. It also includes eight restaurants, a lounge, spa, sweet store and flower shop.
In other wins, Frost was recently appointed to help brand one of the biggest urban redevelopment schemes in Sydney’s history.
The agency beat Moon, Stop.Edit and Holcam Creative to the creative account for the $2bn redevelopment of the former Carlton United Brewery site on Broadway in Sydney by Frasers Property Australia.
Vince Frost, founder of the agency, was last month appointed creative director of Woolworths South Africa to oversee a major rebrand.
The agency declined to comment on the rumoured win
Housed in the tallest building in the world
Friday, December 18, 2009
Seawings provides unsurpassed views of the Burj Dubai
Seawings provides unsurpassed views of the Burj Dubai
History is in the making as Seawings is flying high, ensuring that every glass clad meter of the tallest building in the world can be witnessed through the eyes of the public.
According to sources at Gulf News Online, “The Burj Dubai will be opened on January 4, 2010, coinciding with the accession to power of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
The 160-plus storey structure is considered the world’s tallest building.
Mohammad Ali Al Abbar, Chairman of Emaar real estate company said the company decided to launch the tower on this date as a gesture of gratitude towards Shaikh Mohammad, who is considered the builder of modern Dubai.”
Seawings has been flying guests around the Burj Dubai, located in the ever expanding and sought after location of Downtown Burj Dubai, since its infancy in 2007, watching and waiting in awe of the speed at which this majestic building has been built. With the last reported height at 818 meters tall, this iconic structure hopes to raise the bar in international architecture and increase the pride of UAE residents and locals alike.
With the expected launch of the Armani hotel also imminent, Seawings has stated; “We have worked hard to position ourselves as the number one way to see Dubai, and on the occasion of these long awaited and prestigious openings, we will continue to support all who come to us for unsurpassed views of what has already become a world class structure.”
Views of the Burj Dubai
History is in the making as Seawings is flying high, ensuring that every glass clad meter of the tallest building in the world can be witnessed through the eyes of the public.
According to sources at Gulf News Online, “The Burj Dubai will be opened on January 4, 2010, coinciding with the accession to power of His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
The 160-plus storey structure is considered the world’s tallest building.
Mohammad Ali Al Abbar, Chairman of Emaar real estate company said the company decided to launch the tower on this date as a gesture of gratitude towards Shaikh Mohammad, who is considered the builder of modern Dubai.”
Seawings has been flying guests around the Burj Dubai, located in the ever expanding and sought after location of Downtown Burj Dubai, since its infancy in 2007, watching and waiting in awe of the speed at which this majestic building has been built. With the last reported height at 818 meters tall, this iconic structure hopes to raise the bar in international architecture and increase the pride of UAE residents and locals alike.
With the expected launch of the Armani hotel also imminent, Seawings has stated; “We have worked hard to position ourselves as the number one way to see Dubai, and on the occasion of these long awaited and prestigious openings, we will continue to support all who come to us for unsurpassed views of what has already become a world class structure.”
Views of the Burj Dubai
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Burj dubai the tallest building in the world
Burj dubai the tallest building in the world
Burj Dubai, the world's tallest tower, is a spire of superlatives.
The 160-story skyscraper will open on January 4, the fourth anniversary of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashed al-Maktoum's rule in Dubai.
Under the Sheikh, Dubai has seen a boom in record breakers, impressive firsts, and baffling spectacles. For example, the city is or will be home to the world's first refrigerated beach, a twirling tower, the world's largest arch-supported bridge, and artificial islands in the shape of the world map.
And Burj Dubai boasts more surprising bullet points than simply being the world's tallest tower:
• At 2,700 feet tall, the skyscraper can be seen from 10 miles away.
• The building will sport the fastest elevators in the world, traveling at 10 meters per second (22 miles per hour). They will also be double-decker elevators, with each deck supporting up to 21 people.
• To keep out the desert heat, 10,000 tons of coolant with flow through the tower every hour.
• 230,000 cubic meters of concrete form the building's core, enough to pave 1,180 miles of sidewalk.
• Dubai Tower will be the highlight of the worlds' largest indoor shopping center, with space for 1,200 shops nestled among 30,000 apartments.
But Dubai is a very different place this month than it was in 2004 when construction began on the tower. As AFP reports:
Plunging property prices and weak demand had already put a dampener on new schemes even before last week's shock announcement by state-owned giant Dubai World that it wants to halt debt payments for six months.
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Burj Dubai the tallest building in the world is the greatest building today.
Tallest Building
Burj Dubai, the world's tallest tower, is a spire of superlatives.
The 160-story skyscraper will open on January 4, the fourth anniversary of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashed al-Maktoum's rule in Dubai.
Under the Sheikh, Dubai has seen a boom in record breakers, impressive firsts, and baffling spectacles. For example, the city is or will be home to the world's first refrigerated beach, a twirling tower, the world's largest arch-supported bridge, and artificial islands in the shape of the world map.
And Burj Dubai boasts more surprising bullet points than simply being the world's tallest tower:
• At 2,700 feet tall, the skyscraper can be seen from 10 miles away.
• The building will sport the fastest elevators in the world, traveling at 10 meters per second (22 miles per hour). They will also be double-decker elevators, with each deck supporting up to 21 people.
• To keep out the desert heat, 10,000 tons of coolant with flow through the tower every hour.
• 230,000 cubic meters of concrete form the building's core, enough to pave 1,180 miles of sidewalk.
• Dubai Tower will be the highlight of the worlds' largest indoor shopping center, with space for 1,200 shops nestled among 30,000 apartments.
But Dubai is a very different place this month than it was in 2004 when construction began on the tower. As AFP reports:
Plunging property prices and weak demand had already put a dampener on new schemes even before last week's shock announcement by state-owned giant Dubai World that it wants to halt debt payments for six months.
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Burj Dubai the tallest building in the world is the greatest building today.
Tallest Building
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