Each year, high-rise building experts from the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) release their predictions for the worldwide skyscraper industry. They also recap the top tall-building news from the previous year (see "2013: The year of the super-tall skyscraper").
Looking ahead to 2014, CTBUH's Daniel Safarik and Antony Wood predict that between 65 and 90 buildings of 200 meters or more will completed by the end of the year, with as many as 13 projects exceeding the 300-meter barrier. If they're right, 2014 will be a record-setting year for skyscraper construction.
In their report, Safarik and Wood highlight eight major trends and developments in 2014:
1. The Torre Costanera, at 300 meters, will be South America’s tallest building and its first in the 'supertall' category (300 to 399 meters)
More on the Torre Costanera project via CTBUH
2. Twisting towers will continue to enter the vanguard of tall in 2014.
The KKR2 Tower of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (pictired), and the Spine Tower of Istanbul, Turkey, lead the list of new twisting towers.
3. A typically curvaceous Zaha Hadid-designed tower, the Wangjing SOHO T1, will open in Beijing this year.
This building was the subject of piracy rumors early last year when a highly similar tower group, the Meiquan 22nd Century in Chongqing, was revealed. The race is on in earnest to see if the original finishes before the “copy.”
4. The Shanghai Tower finished its concrete core in 2013.
The 632-meter tower, originally set to complete in 2014, will boast the world’s fastest elevators, as well as innovative use of double skins and sky lobbies. Its construction has been and will continue to be one of the most closely watched spectacles in the tall-building universe. Even if the completion date slips into 2015, as now seems likely, Shanghai Tower will likely be China’s tallest building for at least a period of time, depending on the progress of rivals Ping An Finance Center (660 meters), Wuhan Greenland Center (636 meters), and possibly Sky City J220.
5. The China Broad Group’s Sky City J220, an 828-meter, 220-story building to be constructed entirely of prefabricated modules, may or may not have gotten underway, according to conflicting reports, and may or may not complete in 2014.
Either way, the world will be watching. Unshaken by skeptical peers and media and bureaucratic hurdles, Broad Group Chairman Zhang Yue has vowed the project – aiming to become the world’s tallest before Kingdom Tower takes the title – will continue.
6. Kingdom Tower, set to become the world’s next-tallest building at 1,000 meters, broke ground in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in 2013.
The industry will be closely watching its out-of-ground progress in 2014. Intended to evoke a bundle of leaves shooting up from the ground, the faceted three-wing tower will cost $1.2 billion to construct and contain 167 floors.
7. When completed in 2014 at its intended, symbolic 1,776 feet (541 meters), One World Trade Center in New York will gain status as North America’s tallest building.
The announcement of CTBUH’s ratification of this height in 2013 drew commentary from the global press, Chicago mayor Rahm Emmanuel, and television comedian Jon Stewart—so a little more buzz when we “make it official” in 2014 can be expected.
8. The first of the crop of “superslim” towers in Midtown Manhattan, the 306-meter One57, will be completed, upping the ante for its even-slimmer rivals along 57th Street.
More on the One57 project via CTBUH
Read CTBUH's full report: "Year in Review: Tall Trends of 2013"
Related Stories
Multifamily Housing | Sep 22, 2021
11 notable multifamily projects to debut in 2021
A residence for older LGBTQ+ persons, a P3 student housing building, and a converted masonic lodge highlight the multifamily developments to debut this year.
Data Centers | Sep 22, 2021
Wasted energy from data centers could power nearby buildings
A Canadian architecture firm comes up with a concept for a community that’s part of a direct-current microgrid.
Hotel Facilities | Sep 22, 2021
Will hotel developers finally embrace modular construction?
Last May, MiTek, a construction software and building services company that’s part of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate, formed a partnership with Danny Forster & Architecture to promote modular design and construction.
Arenas | Sep 20, 2021
LA Clippers unveil $1.8 billion Intuit Dome
AECOM is the lead designer for the project.
University Buildings | Sep 7, 2021
Gateway to the West: Kansas City University Center for Medical Education Innovation
Kansas City University Center for Medical Education Innovation uses GKD Omega 1520 metal fabric.
Architects | Sep 2, 2021
Remembering architect and author Lance Hosey: 1964 - 2021
Architect, sustainability expert, author, and public speaker Lance Hosey passed away unexpectedly on August 27.
Multifamily Housing | Sep 1, 2021
Top 10 outdoor amenities at multifamily housing developments for 2021
Fire pits, lounge areas, and covered parking are the most common outdoor amenities at multifamily housing developments, according to new research from Multifamily Design+Construction.
Architects | Sep 1, 2021
Design unveiled for Copia Vineyards Winery and Tasting Room
Clayton Korte designed the project.
Giants 400 | Aug 30, 2021
2021 Giants 400 Report: Ranking the largest architecture, engineering, and construction firms in the U.S.
The 2021 Giants 400 Report includes more than 130 rankings across 25 building sectors and specialty categories.
Laboratories | Aug 30, 2021
Science in the sky: Designing high-rise research labs
Recognizing the inherent socioeconomic and environmental benefits of high-density design, research corporations have boldly embraced high-rise research labs.
