The Future of Skyscraper Construction

A new project launched in Dubai earlier this month is set to revolutionise the way towers are built forever. The $330 million rotating "Da Vinci Tower" is set to become the first prefabricated skyscraper in the world.

Designed by Italian architect and chairman of Rotating Tower Technology International, David Fisher, The concept poses several benefits to developers under time and cost pressures: with 90% of the 68-storey structure built as modules in a factory, actual construction time will be cut to 18 months, as opposed to the average 30 for a building of similar size. Labour costs will also be reduced, as the project will only need around 90 workers on site.77 wind turbines fixed to the tower, along with solar panels, the project will run off natural energy, as well as produce enough to power five buildings in the vicinity.

The only part of the 313m-tall tower that will be built on site using traditional construction techniques is the central core, which will house lifts, emergency staircases and other utilities. Each floor of the tower will consist of 12 modules that will arrive at the site completely finished, with electrical, plumbing and air conditioning systems ready to use. The modules will then be assembled at the rate of one floor every seven days.

The project will be made up of apartments, offices and a hotel, and will rotate 360° while changing shape. A single rotation will take 90 minutes.

Fisher is confident that prefabricated construction methods are the way of the future stating, "It's very clear, so simple and so obvious…... In the future, nobody will build in the traditional way. They will follow this concept of pre-fabrication. There is no doubt about it."

The team of international consultants that will be involved in carrying out the work include Bovis Lendlease, Viega, Kerakoll, Barker Mohandas, Kriston, and IV Industrie.