![]() The Willis Tower would retain the title of the world’s tallest building for 25 years until it was eventually surpassed by the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 1998. Notably, it was the first building to surpass the height of New York City’s North Tower of the World Trade Center. ![]() At the base, all nine tubes reached up to the 50th floor, while fewer tubes continued to rise with increasing height, resulting in the building’s distinctive tiered silhouette.Īt the time of its completion in 1973, the Willis Tower was the tallest building in the world, standing at an impressive 1,450 feet (443.2 meters) and offering 108 stories of usable office space. The Willis Tower was composed of nine square tubes, bundled together to form a unified structure. This system was not only incredibly efficient-allowing for less steel to be used compared to other building methods-but it also gave the tower its distinct, stacked appearance. The chief architectural engineer for the project, Fazlur Rahman Khan, devised a novel “bundled tube” structural system for the tower. Location: Chicago, Illinois, United States.This marked the genesis of the iconic Willis Tower, a remarkable blend of architectural innovation and practical functionality. ![]() Responding to this daunting task, SOM crafted a design that was not only revolutionary but also impeccably suited to the company’s needs. The challenge lay in creating a structure that could comfortably house its burgeoning workforce. The inception of the Willis Tower traces back to the late 1960s when Sears, Roebuck and Company, then the world’s largest retailer, required a new headquarters. Rising above the Chicago skyline, this iconic edifice symbolizes American architectural innovation, testifying to SOM’s unwavering commitment to progressive construction methodologies and pioneering design principles. Completed in 1974 by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), the Willis Tower, formerly known as the Sears Tower, stands as a spectacular achievement in modern engineering and design.
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