The Trend of Constructing Super Tall Buildings



 

 

Continuing in our blog series about building trends of the future, one big trend over the last couple of decades has been the construction of taller and taller skyscrapers. 

Let’s go back to the 1970s.  When the 108-story Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower) in Chicago, Illinois opened in 1973 it held the title of the world’s tallest building for 25 years until the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia opened in 1998.  The Twin Towers held the title of the tallest buildings in the world for just six years, from 1998 to 2004.   

In the last decade, super tall skyscrapers have either been completed or are being built all around the world.  The Taipei 101 in Taiwan replaced the Petronas Twin Towers for a short period as the tallest building before it too was replaced.  The last several years have had many tall buildings constructed including One World Trade Center, which is the tallest building in the U.S. at 1,776 feet.  The world’s tallest building today is the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, UAE at 2,717 feet, but it will be surpassed once a Saudi Arabian building is completed that is twice the height of the Willis Tower.   

As a leading commercial concrete contractor in the Western U.S., The Conco Companies are proud to be involved in building two of the tallest buildings west of the Mississippi River.

The Wilshire Grand Center in Los Angeles is a 1,100 ft skyscraper that is currently under construction in the Financial District of Downtown Los Angeles.  The tower is slated to become the tallest building in Los Angeles as well as the tallest building west of the Mississippi River upon completion.  

The Salesforce Tower is a 1,070 ft skyscraper under construction in the South of Market district in downtown San Francisco. Located next to the Transbay Transit Center site, the Salesforce Tower is a part of the San Francisco Transbay redevelopment plan that contains a mix of office, transportation, and residential uses. The Wilshire Grand Tower will surpass the Salesforce Tower by 30 ft.  

Conco is a leading supplier of concrete services for the Western United States. We got our start in the Bay Area in 1959 by offering clients the best value on a wide range of concrete services and products.  Since that time, we have taken a leading role as one of the top concrete contractors in the region. We have four regional offices serving California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada and Colorado.