Shanghai Tower: A Vertical City of China's Tallest Building
Overview
Shanghai Tower is located in the core area of Lujiazui Financial and Trade Zone, Pudong New District, Shanghai. It is bordered by Yincheng Middle Road to the east, Dongtai Road to the south, Huayuan Shiqiao Road to the west, and Lujiazui Ring Road to the north. The tower has a total height of 632 meters, with 127 floors above ground and 5 floors underground, and a total construction area of approximately 578,000 square meters. It was fully operational in 2016. As the tallest building in China and the third tallest in the world (after the Burj Khalifa in Dubai and the Tokyo Skytree in Japan), Shanghai Tower is not only a masterpiece of supertall building technology but also a 'vertical city' integrating office, commercial, hotel, cultural, and observation functions. Its unique spiraling form and green sustainable design concept make it an iconic symbol of Shanghai's and China's modernization.
Historical Development
I. Planning Background
In the 1990s, with the development and opening of Pudong, the Lujiazui Financial and Trade Zone planned a cluster of three supertall buildings: Jin Mao Tower, Shanghai World Financial Center, and Shanghai Tower. In 2005, the Shanghai municipal government officially launched the Shanghai Tower project, aiming to create a supertall landmark representing China's 21st-century architectural level. The project was jointly invested by Shanghai Chengtou (Group) Co., Ltd., Shanghai Lujiazui Financial and Trade Zone United Development Co., Ltd., and Shanghai Construction Group Co., Ltd.
