Dubai tower reaches 630 m to become world's tallest structure

Burj Dubai, a skyscraper under construction in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates, has reached 630 meters (2,066 feet) to become the world's tallest man-made structure, Al-Ittihad newspaper said on Tuesday.

Mohammed Ali Alabbar, chairman of state-owned development company Emaar - one of the builders of the tower - was quoted by the paper as saying the building is now higher than the 628.8-meter (2,063-foot) television transmission mast in North Dakota, U.S. The mast had held the title of highest structure for 45 years.

Alabbar said the $1 billion tower, designed by the U.S.-based Scidmore, Owings and Merill, already has 160 floors. The planned final height of the building has been kept secret.

When completed, the skyscraper in the heart of Dubai will feature 56 elevators, luxury apartments, boutiques, swimming pools, spas, exclusive corporate suites, a hotel, and an observation platform.

The deadline for the project carried out by a consortium led by South Korea's Samsung, has been postponed by four months from the end of 2008.

Alabbar said Christmas parties would not take place in the tower as was earlier planned. However, next year Burj will meet all criteria to become the world's tallest building, in terms of room space, the highest occupied floor, the roof's top, the spire's tip, antenna length, etc.

Burj will surpass Taiwan's Taipei 101, which has held the record at 508 meters (1,667 feet) since 2004.

Earlier reports said more than 5,000 engineers and laborers are employed in the project. Some 330,000 cubic meters of cement and 39,000 metric tons of reinforced steel will be used in the construction and over 140,000 sq m of glass will be used for the facade.

(taken from: here)