Skyscrapers are incredible monuments to human engineering achievement, but today's world does not appreciate them enough. Many take these buildings for granted as an essential part of their cities, but their design is still incredible. Here’s what all goes into constructing a skyscraper.
Site Selection
The first and most essential part of skyscraper construction is choosing the right place to build it. Skyscrapers are enormous projects, so building planners put specific requirements in place to guarantee that the skyscraper fits and doesn’t interfere with other buildings in the area. Part of site selection is examining the soil at the foundation and ensuring that the building does not contribute to pollution in the surrounding area. Other aspects to note include weather conditions, local government policies, and seismic activity.
Planning and Design
After finding the right location, the next phase is planning and engineering. Architects work with civil engineers and designers to put together a plan for the skyscraper that considers all factors. The building has to look nice, be sturdy, and be efficient. An ugly skyscraper with no effective purpose is a failure. These designers and architects also work together to ensure the building will have proper heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, and electricity.
Materials
Once all the designs and blueprints are created, the next step is to gather materials. Skyscrapers require a lot of materials—including concrete, glass, and metal—because they are so massive. To support that weight and ensure they do not fall, skyscrapers are full of metal beams. Metal fabricators use beam drilling and coping machines to construct these beams. Even the slightest imperfection can be detrimental to the building’s structural integrity. Planning a building is an exact science, and acquiring suitable materials can be even more challenging.
Construction
Once the team plans everything and gathers all the materials, the final and most crucial step begins—construction. Each part of the meticulous process guarantees the skyscraper follows the proper regulations, and will stand the test of time. Skyscrapers require many workers moving together simultaneously, each doing a different part of the construction: laying the foundation, installing and welding beams, monitoring weather conditions, and even redirecting traffic. It is a complicated process that they need to do very carefully, and the result is a magnificent building that will stand for years to come.
A skyscraper has many behind-the-scenes factors that go into its construction, and if any person in the process doesn’t give their full attention, the building would not exist. It’s a careful process, but it is still a team effort, and everyone’s work is extremely valuable to bringing that building into existence.
