Taipei 101 – the iconic paradigm

Taipei 101 is the iconic paradigm for the architectural marvel in the world. Taipei 101 (formerly known as Taipei World Financial Centre) is the prestigious landmark of the Taipei, Taiwan. Upon its completion, Taipei 101 was the worlds tallest building, as well as the worlds tallest inhabited building with a height of 508 meters or 1,667 feet before the construction of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai completed. The Taipei 101 represents the number eight in a series of eight segments of eight floors each. In Chinese culture, the number eight is associated with abundance, prosperity and good fortune.

Taipei Financial Centre Corporation is the owner of this stunning skyscraper. C.Y. Lee is the chief architect for Taipei 101 and the tower is based on the postmodern architectural style. After two years of planning, the construction on the Taipei 101 tower began in 1999 and brought to fruition in 2004. On 31st December 2004, the supertall skyscraper was witnessed by the world.

Taipei 101 transcended the Twin Towers in Malaysia to fetch the title of “tallest inhabited skyscraper.” In the same fashion, the skyscraper attributed the record for “highest inhabited floor” from the Chicago’s Willis Tower. There are around 116 stories in the tower Taipei 101. Whilst 101 stories are above the ground, the tower has only five stories beneath the ground. A whopping sum of 1.9 billion USD was used to make this dream tower a reality.

A calibrated mass damper of 660-metric-ton (730 tons) is held at the 87th floor which strengthens the tower to withstand wind, typhoons, and even earthquakes. The tuned mass damper can revoke the tower’s movements up to 40 percent. The skyscraper is coupled with 61 elevators including two double-decker elevators with a top speed of 1010 metres per minute. ?All elevators are configured with an aerodynamic body, pressurization and emergency braking systems, and the world’s first triple-stage anti-overshooting system which cost around 2 million USD for each elevator.

The Gross Floor Area of the Taipei 101 is 412,500 square meters or 4,440,100 square feet. The massive skyscraper has both indoor and outdoor observation decks. Visitors can enjoy a 360-degree view of Taipei 101 with both observation decks. The indoor observation deck is at a height of 383.4 meters or 1,258 feet and the outdoor deck albeit the former by standing even higher at 391.8 meters or 1,285 feet.

The Supertall Taipei 101 held the following records:

• World’s tallest building with the tallest structural top.
• World’s tallest building with the tallest roof.
• World’s tallest building with the highest occupied floor.
• World’s tallest building equipped with double-deck elevators.