High Over Shanghai

In response to difficult design conditions, Shanghai's Jin Mao Tower's structural system harmoniously mixes building materials and strategically places them to resist the combination of gravity and lateral loads applied by natural forces. In late June 1993, the Chicago office of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill was commissioned by the China Shanghai Foreign Trade Co., Ltd. to design the Jin Mao Building (translation: building of much gold). Expected to be completed in mid-1998, the $450 million Jin Mao Building consists of a tower and an attached low-rise Podium Building with a total gross building area of approximately three million sq ft. At 1,381 ft in height, the tower will be the tallest building in China, and the third tallest in the world. The building includes 50 stories of office space topped by 36 stories of hotel space with two additional floors for a restaurant and observation deck. Parking for automobiles and bicycles is located below grade. The Podium Building consists of retail spaces as well as auditorium and exposition spaces. The Tower and Podium Buildings will be directly linked to a subway system that will connect the Pudong Area and Shanghai Proper.