Shanghai World Financial Center

{{Infobox building

| name = Shanghai World Financial Center

| native_name = 上海环球金融中心

| native_name_lang = zh-hans

| image = 上海国际金融中心.jpg

| image_size = 220px

| caption = The Shanghai World Financial Center in March 2017

| location = 100 Century Avenue, Pudong, Shanghai

| status = {{Color|green|Completed}}

| start_date = 27 August {{start date and age|1997}}

| completion_date = {{start date and age|2008}}

| opening = 28 August 2008

| building_type = Office, hotel, museum, observation, parking garage, retail

| architectural = {{convert|492|m|ft|1|abbr=on}}{{Cite web|title=Shanghai World Financial Center - The Skyscraper Center|url=https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/building/shanghai-world-financial-center/131|access-date=2020-07-01|website=skyscrapercenter.com}}

| architectural_style = Neo-Futurism

| tip = {{convert|494.3|m|ft|1|abbr=on}}

| roof = {{convert|487.4|m|ft|1|abbr=on}}

| top_floor = {{convert|474|m|ft|1|abbr=on}}

| observatory = {{convert|474|m|ft|1|abbr=on}}

| floor_count = 101 (3 below ground)

| elevator_count = 91 + 33 escalators

| cost = RMB ¥ 8.17 billion
(USD $ 1.20 billion)

| floor_area = {{convert|381600|m2|sqft|-2|abbr=on}}

| architect = Kohn Pedersen Fox

| structural_engineer = Leslie E. Robertson Associates RLLP

| main_contractor = China State Construction Engineering Corp and Shanghai Construction (Group) General Co.

| developer = Mori Building Co.

| owner = Shanghai World Financial Center Co., Ltd.
{{small|(Mori Building Company)}}

| management =

| public_transit =Lujiazui station

| references = {{cite web |url=http://skyscrapercenter.com/shanghai/shanghai-world-financial-center/ |title=Shanghai World Financial Center – The Skyscraper Center |publisher=Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat |access-date=5 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130729122918/http://skyscrapercenter.com/shanghai/shanghai-world-financial-center/ |archive-date=29 July 2013}}{{cite web

|url = http://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=7609

|title = Shanghai World Financial Center

|publisher=SkyscraperPage.com

|access-date = 10 April 2008

}}{{cite web

|url = http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-09/15/content_6108904.htm

|work = China Daily

|title = Shanghai tops out world's third-tallest building

|date= 15 September 2007

|access-date = 5 August 2013

}}

The Shanghai World Financial Center (SWFC; {{zh|s={{linktext|上海|环球|金融|中心}}|p=Shànghǎi Huánqiú Jīnróng Zhōngxīn}}, Shanghainese: Zånhae Guejieu Cinyon Tsonsin) is a supertall skyscraper located in the Pudong district of Shanghai. It was designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox and developed by the Mori Building Company, with Leslie E. Robertson Associates as its structural engineer and China State Construction Engineering Corp and Shanghai Construction (Group) General Co. as its main contractor. It is a mixed-use skyscraper, consisting of offices, hotels, conference rooms, observation decks, ground-floor shopping malls. Park Hyatt Shanghai is the tower's hotel component, comprising 174 rooms and suites occupying the 79th to the 93rd floors, which at the time of completion was the highest hotel in the world. It is now the third-highest hotel in the world after the Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong, which occupies floors 102 to 118 of the International Commerce Centre.{{cite news | title=Park Hyatt Shanghai To Open In 2008 | url=http://www.chinahospitalitynews.com/2007/11/19/5085-park-hyatt-shanghai-to-open-in-2008/ | date=19 November 2007 | access-date=5 August 2013 | publisher=China Hospitality News | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080911025213/http://www.chinahospitalitynews.com/2007/11/19/5085-park-hyatt-shanghai-to-open-in-2008/ | archive-date=11 September 2008}}

On 14 September 2007, the skyscraper was topped out at {{convert|492|m|ft|1|sp=us}},{{cite web|url=http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=130957 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040512155448/http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=130957 |url-status=usurped |archive-date=12 May 2004 |title= Shanghai World Financial Center |access-date=2 February 2013 |year=2008 |publisher=Emporis }} making it the 2nd tallest building in the world{{Cite news|last=Stern|first=Andrew|date=2008-11-21|title=Shanghai tower named year's best skyscraper|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-skyscraper-idUSTRE4AK10N20081121|access-date=2021-04-18}} on completion (the tallest at the time being Taipei 101), the tallest building in the world by roof height only, and the tallest in China.{{Cite web|title=Final beams in place on tallest building|url=https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-09/15/content_6109677.htm|access-date=2021-04-18|website=www.chinadaily.com.cn}} The SWFC opened to the public on 28 August 2008, with its observation deck opening on 30 August. The observation deck offers views from {{convert|474|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} above ground level.{{cite web|title=China's tallest and timely arrival|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7585913.stm|date=28 August 2008|publisher=BBC|access-date=5 August 2013}}

The SWFC has been lauded for its design, and in 2008 it was named by architects as the year's best-completed skyscraper.[https://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSTRE4AK10N20081121 "Shanghai tower named year's best skyscraper"]. Reuters. 20 November 2008. Retrieved 5 August 2013.[http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/11/21/08/shanghai-tower-named-years-best-skyscraper "Shanghai tower named year's best skyscraper"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090106120747/http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/11/21/08/shanghai-tower-named-years-best-skyscraper |date=6 January 2009 }}. ABS-CBN News. 21 November 2008. Retrieved 5 August 2013. In 2013, the SWFC was exceeded in height by the adjacent Shanghai Tower,{{cite web|url=http://nextbigfuture.com/2013/04/shanghai-tower-construction-continues.html|title=Shanghai Tower Construction Continues Despite Rumors of salt in concrete sand|publisher=NextBigFuture.com|date=25 April 2013|access-date=20 May 2013}} which is China's tallest structure {{as of|2023|lc=on}}. Together, The Shanghai World Financial Center, The Shanghai Tower and The Jin Mao Tower form the world's first adjacent grouping of three supertall skyscrapers.

History

Designed by American architectural firm Kohn Pedersen Fox, the 100-story tower was originally planned for construction in 1997, but work was temporarily interrupted by the 1997 Asian financial crisis, and was later paused to accommodate design changes by the Mori Building Company. The building of the tower was financed by several multinational firms, including Chinese, Japanese, and Hong Kong banks, as well as by the Japanese developer and American and European investors. The American investment bank Morgan Stanley coordinated the tower's financing for Mori Building.

=Construction=

File:SWFC 200602.jpg

The tower's foundation stone was laid on 27 August 1997. In the late 1990s, the Pierre de Smet Building Corporation suffered a funding shortage caused by the 1997 Asian financial crisis, which halted the project after the foundations were completed. On 13 February 2003, the Mori Group increased the building's height to {{convert|492|m|ft|abbr=on}} and 101 stories, from the initial plans for a {{convert|460|m|ft|0|adj=on}}, 94-stories building. The new building used the foundations of the original design, and construction work was resumed on 16 November 2003.{{cite news | title=Construction of Shanghai World Financial Center resumes | date=18 November 2005 | url =http://english.people.com.cn/200511/18/eng20051118_222353.html | work =People's Daily | access-date = 22 May 2008}}

A fire broke out in the incomplete SWFC on 14 August 2007. The fire was first noticed on the 40th floor, around 16:30 (GMT +8), and soon the smoke was clearly seen outside the building. By 17:45, the fire had been extinguished. The damage was reported to be slight, and nobody was injured in the accident.{{cite news | title=Fire breaks out at troubled Shanghai World Financial Center | date=14 August 2007 | work =Forbes| agency=Agence France-Presse| url =https://www.forbes.com/business/feeds/afx/2007/08/14/afx4016900.html | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20071209221608/http://www.forbes.com/business/feeds/afx/2007/08/14/afx4016900.html | url-status =dead | archive-date =9 December 2007 | access-date = 22 May 2008}} The cause of the fire remains unknown, but according to some sources the preliminary investigation suggested workers' electric weldings caused the fire.{{cite news | first=Gao | last=Ying | title=Shanghai World Financial Center catches fire | date=15 August 2007| agency=Xinhua News Agency | url =http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-08/15/content_6534328_2.htm | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20090111091239/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-08/15/content_6534328_2.htm | url-status =dead | archive-date =11 January 2009 | access-date = 22 May 2008 }}

The building reached its full height of {{convert|492|m|ft|abbr=on}} on 14 September 2007 after the installation of the final steel girder.{{cite news |title=China's tallest building rises |date=14 September 2007 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/video/2007/sep/14/china.tallest.building |work=The Guardian |access-date=22 May 2008}} (The video has been removed due to expiry of the copyright). The final cladding panels were installed in mid-June 2008, and elevator installation was finished in mid-July. The Shanghai World Financial Center was declared complete on 17 July 2008, and was officially opened on 28 August. On 30 August 2008, the tower's observation floors were opened to the public.

File:Tallest buildings in Asia.jpg

Architecture

File:Shanghai World Financial Center Far.jpg

{{Infobox Chinese

| t = 上海環球
金融中心

| s = 上海环球
金融中心

| p = Shànghǎi huánqiú jīnróng zhōngxīn

| w = Shanghai huanch'iu chinjung chunghsin

| mi = {{IPAc-cmn|sh|ang|4|h|ai|3|-|h|uan|2|q|iu|2|-|j|in|1|r|ong|2|-|zh|ong|1|x|in|1}}

| wuu = Zaanhe guejjieu jinhhion tsonxin {{IPA|wuu|zɑ̃²³hɛ³⁴ ɡuɛ²³dʑiɤ²³ tɕin⁵³ɦioŋ²³ tsoŋ⁵³ɕin⁵³|}}

| order = st

}}

File:Top of the Shanghai World Financial Center.jpg

The most distinctive feature of the SWFC's design is the trapezoid aperture at the peak. The original design specified a circular aperture, {{convert|46|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} in diameter, to reduce the stresses of wind pressure{{cite news | first=Arthur | last=Lubow | title=The China Syndrome | date=21 May 2006 | url =https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/21/magazine/21bejing.html?pagewanted=all# | work =The New York Times | access-date = 22 May 2008}} and to reference the Chinese mythological depiction of the sky as a circle. It also resembled a Chinese moon gate due to its circular form in Chinese architecture. However, this initial design began facing protests from some Chinese, including the mayor of Shanghai, Chen Liangyu, who considered it too similar to the rising sun design of the Japanese flag. Pedersen then suggested that a bridge be placed at the bottom of the aperture to make it less circular.{{cite web|url=https://www.pbs.org/wnet/innovation/transcript_episode1.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130415165626/http://www.pbs.org/wnet/innovation/transcript_episode1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 April 2013 |title=Innovation - Life, Inspired . About the Episodes . Show Transcript / PBS |access-date=22 May 2008 |year=2004 |publisher=Educational Broadcasting Corporation and Carlton International }} On 18 October 2005, KPF submitted an alternative design to Mori Building and a trapezoidal hole replaced the circle at the top of the tower, which in addition to changing the controversial design, would also be cheaper and easier to implement, according to the architects.{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20070114192336/http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=shanghaiworldfinancialcenter-shanghai-china "Shanghai World Financial Center (facts)"]}}. Emporis.com. Retrieved 29 November 2012. Foreigners and Chinese alike informally refer to the building as "the bottle opener".[https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowUserReviews-g308272-d1196260-r138551688-Shanghai_World_Financial_Center-Shanghai.html "The World's Largest Bottle Opener: Beautiful"]. Shanghai Daily (subscription required). Retrieved 29 November 2012. Metal replicas of the building that function as actual bottle openers are sold in the tower's gift shop.

The tower features three separate observation decks which constitute the floors above and below the aperture opening. The height of the lowest observation deck, located on the 94th floor, is {{convert|423|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}; the second, on the 97th floor, is at a height of {{convert|439|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}; and the highest, on the 100th floor, is {{convert|474|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} high.

The skyscraper's roof height is set at {{convert|492|m|ft|abbr=on}}, and was at one point the highest roof in the world. Before construction on the roof was completed, the SWFC's total height was scheduled to be {{convert|509.2|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} so that it would exceed the height of the Taipei 101, but a height limit was imposed, allowing the roof to reach a maximum height of 492 metres. Architect William Pedersen and developer Minoru Mori resisted suggestions to add a spire that would surpass that of Taipei 101 and perhaps One World Trade Center, calling the SWFC a "broad-shouldered building". The SWFC boasts a gross floor area of more than {{convert|377300|m2|sqft|-2|abbr=on}}, 31 elevators, and 33 escalators.

=Structural efficiency=

The tower's trapezoid aperture is made up of structural steel and reinforced concrete. A large number of forces, such as wind loads, the people in the building and heavy equipment housed in the building, act on the SWFC's structure. These compressive and bending forces are carried down to the ground by the diagonal-braced frame (with added outrigger trusses). The design employs an effective use of material, because it decreases the thickness of the outer core shear walls and the weight of the structural steel in the perimeter.

Tenants

Shanghai World Financial Center hosts the office building for many international financial companies, including those involved in banking, insurance, securities and fund management, such as Ernst & Young, Morgan Stanley, BNP Paribas, Commerzbank, Bank of Yokohama, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and Korea Development Bank.{{cite news|last1=deVry|first1=Erica|title=Ernst & Young Relocates to Shanghai World Financial Center, Tallest Building in China|url=http://www.big4.com/news/ernst-young-relocates-to-shanghai-world-financial-center-tallest-building-in-china/|access-date=3 January 2016|agency=Big4.com|date=18 August 2010|archive-date=19 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619113040/http://www.big4.com/news/ernst-young-relocates-to-shanghai-world-financial-center-tallest-building-in-china/|url-status=dead}}{{cite journal |script-title=zh:上海环球金融中心租掉了大半 |script-journal=zh:21世纪经济报道 |date=18 December 2009|url=http://business.sohu.com/20091218/n269037313.shtml|access-date=3 January 2016}} Google's Shanghai branch is located on the 60th-61st floors."[https://www.google.com/about/company/facts/locations/ Google locations]." Google. Retrieved 25 May 2016. "Google Shanghai 60F, Shanghai World Financial Center 100 Century Avenue, Pudong New Area Shanghai 200120, China"

Transport

Shanghai Metro: Line 2 at Lujiazui Station is a 10-minute walk to the center.{{cite web|title=SWFC Observation Deck|url=http://www.smartshanghai.com/venue/4072/Shanghai_World_Financial_Center_shanghai|website=smartshanghai.com|access-date=3 January 2016}}

Awards

Shanghai World Financial Center was named by architects as the best skyscraper completed in 2008, receiving both the Best Tall Building Overall and Asia & Australasia awards from the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH).{{cite web |url=http://ctbuh.org/Awards/OverviewofPastAwards/2008Awards/tabid/842/language/en-US/Default.aspx |title=CTBUH 2008 Awards |publisher=Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat |access-date=28 April 2012 |archive-date=30 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120430210850/http://ctbuh.org/Awards/OverviewofPastAwards/2008Awards/tabid/842/language/en-US/Default.aspx |url-status=dead }} CTBUH's Carol Willis, head of New York's Skyscraper Museum, stated: "The simplicity of its form as well as its size dramatizes the idea of the skyscraper." Architect Tim Johnson noted its innovative structural design: "Steel trusses guard against the forces of wind and earthquake and made the building lighter, made it use less steel, and contributed to its sustainability." Johnson described the SWFC's structure as "nothing short of genius."

Gallery

File:Shanghaiviewpic1.jpg|Shanghai World Financial Center, visible behind the Oriental Pearl Tower.

File:Observation deck of the Shanghai World Financial Center.jpg|Inside the tower's observation deck.

File:0352 20090626 Shanghai.jpg|Shanghai World Financial Center (left) and the Jin Mao Tower.

File:Shanghai World Financial Center + Jin Mao Tower.jpg|The Shanghai World Financial Center and Jin Mao Tower adjacent to each other.

File:Night shot of the Shanghai World Financial Centre.jpg|At night.

File:Shanghai_world_financial_centre.JPG|Next to the Jin Mao Tower.

File:CWC_9636.jpg|Beside the Shanghai Tower at night.

File:Shanghai_World_Financial_Center_200802.jpg|Under construction.

File:Shanghai_world_financial_center.jpg|Under construction.

File:SWFC_May_2007.jpg|Under construction.

File:Shanghai_scycrapers.jpg|Beside Jin Mao Tower.

File:Shanghai World Financial Center during the night.JPG|Shanghai World Financial Center pictured at night.

File:Shanghai World Financial Center 200802-2.jpg|The aperture under construction at the top of the building.

File:SWFC mural.JPG|Stucco mural depicting the original design.

File:Three Bigs Far.jpg|The SWFC, Jin Mao Tower and incomplete Shanghai Tower (far right) in August 2012.

File:Shanghai Lujiazui Building.jpg|The SWFC, Jin Mao Tower, and the Shanghai Tower near completion in January 2014.

File:View of Jin Mao from SWFC.jpg|View of Jin Mao Tower from the SWFC observation deck.

File:Shanghai_World_Financial_Center_(Top).jpg|Top of the building.

File:Shanghai World Financial Tower seen from Shanghai Tower.jpg|Shanghai World Financial Tower seen from Shanghai Tower, 2016.

File:Shanghai World Financial Center (March 9th 2024).jpg|Shanghai World Financial Center from Lujiazui Central Green Space, March 2024.

=Similar towers=

Kingdom Centre, building in Saudi Arabia

References

External links

[http://swfc-shanghai.com Shanghai WFC official website]{{in lang|zh|en|ja}}
[http://www.swfc-observatory.com/ Shanghai World Financial Center observatory]{{in lang|zh|en|ja}}
[http://www.kpf.com/project.asp?ID=35 Kohn Pedersen Fox Shanghai WFC project page] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150504200608/http://www.kpf.com/project.asp?ID=35 |date=4 May 2015 }}
[https://web.archive.org/web/20100428021203/http://www.mori.co.jp/en/projects/shanghai/ Mori Building Co. Shanghai WFC project page]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20130729122918/http://skyscrapercenter.com/shanghai/shanghai-world-financial-center/ Shanghai WFC] on CTBUH's Skyscraper Center database
[http://www.constructalia.com/en_EN/gallery/galeria_detalle.jsp?idProyec=3701585 The Shanghai WFC: a case study on Constructalia] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110814012050/http://www.constructalia.com/en_EN/gallery/galeria_detalle.jsp?idProyec=3701585 |date=14 August 2011 }}
{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20040512155448/http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=130957 Emporis.com data page on the Shanghai WFC]}}
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyNUFLg1dZ0 Window cleaners at work on the Shanghai WFC (video from the observation deck)]
{{Osmway|10691100}}