Tall Buildings"The women in my office tell me that I'm interested in tall buildings because I'm a middle-aged man," quipped Ken Shuttleworth of Make Architects at the Changing Skylines, Tall Buildings seminar in the National Gallery, Dublin, last week.
And there is truth in that joke. There are two main reasons why tall buildings are created: one is to make the building financially worthwhile where land values are high - and the other is to make a statement. After all, who had heard of the insurance company Swiss Re before Fosters and Associates' Gherkin pierced the London skyline? And Sears, Roebuck and Company elevated its name with the building of the Sears Tower in Chicago.
As Shuttleworth, who was a partner at Fosters, says, there is no need to build towers in the desert - yet places like Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Riyadh are aiming skywards in a show of confidence.
Contrary to popular belief, then, we don't need tall buildings to address a housing shortage, as it is possible to build at a higher density lower down. Neighbourhoods such as Ranelagh and Rathmines - and Kensington in London - are all being held up as examples of high-density housing.
Engineer Chris Bakkala, of Buro Happold, who organised the seminar, has worked on tall buildings across the world. He suggested tall buildings would add a dynamism to Dublin's skyline, and made the crucial point that tall buildings need good transport links. He also outlined the practical implications of building tall - such as preventing tips of towers from swaying in the wind, and the need for a high-speed lift once you go above a certain amount of storeys.
Dublin City Council planner Dick Gleeson was reassuring about the city's approach to - and framework for - tall buildings. The Georgian centre will stay as it is "and we make no apologies for that", he said. Aesthetics and positioning are of extreme importance to him.
Quantity surveyor Gerard Cook, who is working on tall buildings in the UK, gave a financier's view of building tall. He concluded that "fat is beautiful" (i.e., a wide building) when it came to monetary returns on floor spaces. Yet Paul Keogh's elegant tower at Heuston and Ken Shuttleworth's interestingly shaped edifices show that, happily, cities aren't just opting for the bottom line.
A conference on the future of sustainable design in building services will take place next Thursday, 9th March, at Clontarf Castle, Dublin. Organised by the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers, it is aimed at architects, consultants and contractors, among others. Tel: 01 202 7915.
