Posts Tagged ‘the petronas towers design’

The design for the PETRONAS Towers was not a written document or a set of drawings for the contractors to follow when building the structure.  It was instead an evolving process that took place over the course of many years.  This enormous amount of communication and the design considerations that were discussed produced a final result that differs considerably from the plan that won the first Kuala Lumpur City Center design competition held in 1991.

The number of designers, engineers, and building contractor management personnel that took part in the design process is about the same as the number of workers that actually built the towers. About 7,000 construction workers took place in the actual building of the towers, as there was a great concern for the congestion that would occur in the busy Kuala Lumpur city center.  7,000 design workers talking constantly among themselves for five or six years designed the building.  It was certainly an impressive conversation.  Although much of this talk took place directly between individuals, this project probably would not have been possible before the development of the Internet or sophisticated project and communication management software.  Every phase of the process, from the drawings and engineering research down to the daily work orders was accomplished with cutting edge software that was in many cases as technologically innovative as other parts of the project.

The high quality of the PETRONAS Towers is the result of the quality of the design team.  Although César Pelli was the titular designer and he served as the lead visionary, the design contributors included Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir, businessman T. Ananda Krishnan, senior managers of the PETRONAS company, the Kuala Lumpur City Center planning manager Arlida Ariff, and many high ranking national and local politicians. The major engineering and structural design teams were a collection of eminent international companies and consultants including such notables as César Pelli & Associates, Hazama Corporation, Adamson Associates Architects, Solétanche Bachy, RSP Architects Planners & Engineers, Samsung Engineering & Construction, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., Syarikat Jasatera Sdn Bhd., and several dozen other major international firms. Legions of support engineers and designers in an array of specific disciplines contributed over the course of the years.

The design process itself was as much a marvel as are the physical towers visible today.  When construction began the design did not call for the tallest buildings in the world and the entire foundation was moved after excavations had already begun. The parking garage was located up inside the towers in César Pelli’s first drawings and the powerful Skybridge was absent from the original 1990 Klages Carter Vail & Partners plans for the Kuala Lumpur City Center development that first called for two towers.  These and many more features of the project changed as the design for the project evolved continuously over the life of the project and the final result is a testament to the efficiency of the whole multi-year design process.