Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Tower X

Thyssenkrupp Elevator Architecture Award

Tower X

Intro

The UAE, and Dubai in particular is the land of the icon. Every structure tries to outdo the other in showmanship and sheen. In this atmosphere of competitive architecture the most powerful is also the most subtle: a whisper overwhelms the scream.

Anti-Icon

looking up

Typical iconic towers are emblems of power in either vertical phallic form or biped in nature, with dual bases like an arch – meeting triumphantly in the middle. Think of ceremonial gates to a medieval city or an obelisk magnified.

sillhouette

Tower X is an anti-icon. Devoid of flourishes, its two vectors meet only tangentially, brushing by one another enroute to the sky. Like two graceful hands Tower X frames a subtle gateway to Dubai from Za’abeel Park.

Site

The power of the site is the northern orthogonal band contrasting the organic pattern of the landscaping. Tower X repeats this pattern on the opposite side of the lake, extruding it diagonally to the sky.

Form

Typical towers are diagrams of exiting and servicing requirements extruded linearly, with little consideration of their spaces within: usually two separated stairs, an elevator core and service shafts. Remnant spaces are occupied as is.

The limiting factor, thought freeing in the 20th century, is the vertical elevator: locking forms in upright stasis. Inclined elevators allow one to transverse not only the axial realm of Z, but of X and Y as well.

In Tower X the monolith of a tower that would emerge otherwise is split elegantly into two slender diagonal tubes of polar opposites: one opaque for services, the other transparent for the public.

The transparent public component showcases the UAE’s progressive modern technologies including solar photovoltaic spandrels and inclined elevators while the other represents Dubai’s rich cultural heritage, featuring a finely-tuned windcatcher.

Structure

The solid tube is of high strength concrete construction while the glazed tube is a diagonal braced steel frame. They both lean in towards one another at 70° to the horizontal. Stability is achieved at the interstices of the two forms: one supports the other, balancing energies through the horizontal diaphragm of the café floorplate and its view platform extension.

Windcatcher

A windcatcher is a traditional architectural feature used for centuries to cool and ventilate buildings naturally throughout the Middle East.

It is sealed airtight and its uppermost wind-ports are directed either towards or away from impending winds. By opening the one away from the wind stream, exhaust air is drawn out by suction. Opening the one facing the wind would capture air and flood it down the shaft like a giant flute.

The flowing air’s cooling effect is enhanced when streamed over a shaded body of water, or qanat, via evaporation and convection. The natural stack effect stores this denser cool air below in a chamber. This freshened air is vented to the café, conference rooms and children’s library. Exhaust air, less dense and hotter, escapes out the top allowing the cycle to continue.

Within its thermally insulating concrete the windcatcher is able to naturally cool internal temperatures, reducing the need for external energy sources to power Tower X.

Life Safety

Two distinct stairways separate gradually enroute to the floor from their convergence at the café level (120 m.) Air harnessed from the windcatcher pressurizes these exit-ways, suppressing any smoke. The stored water in the qanat can be used through standpipes to fight fires.

Complete mechanical backup systems and data monitoring equipment ensure and augment as necessary the functioning of these life safety systems.

Afterword

In Tower X modern advances and time-tested technologies support and enhance one another. The powerful, simple form celebrates Dubai’s rich cultural heritage while optimistically looking towards its ever-brighter future as the crossroads between east and west.

Europaconcorsi Beta

Tower X