Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) is an American architectural and engineering firm.

It was formed in Chicago in 1936 by Louis Skidmore and Nathaniel Owings; in 1939 they were joined by John O. Merrill. They opened their first branch in New York City, New York in 1937. SOM is one of the largest architectural firms in the world. Their primary expertise is in highend commercial buildings, as it was SOM that led the way to the widespread use of the modern international-style or "glass box" skyscraper. They have built several of the tallest buildings in the world, including the John Hancock Center (1969, second tallest in the world when built), Sears Tower (1973, tallest in the world for over twenty years), and Burj Khalifa (2010, current world's tallest building).Notable SOM architects include: Gordon Bunshaft, Natalie de Blois, Adrian Smith.

Louis Skidmore

Nathaniel Owings

John O Merrill

SOM

SOM believes that in order for communities to survive, urban development should preserve social, economic and ecological sustainability.

The use of intelligent and integrated building technologies such as wind turbines and doubleskin walls all aim towards developing a highly-sustainable structure.

 SOM architects, engineers, and interior designers focus on selecting materials for durability, function on creating spaces that leave a minimal environmental footprint through maximized efficiency and flexibility for growth.
SOM uses a variety of tools and strategies to minimize energy use and environmental impact, including advanced building control systems, climatically responsive planning, waste reduction principles, natural day lighting, building orientation, urban redevelopment, thermal massing, intelligent building systems, building simulation, and building performance rating.

Quotes
In each project, the objective is to use the latest sustainable design methods to create buildings that are sensitive to the environment, yet fully compatible with each clients schedule, budget, and functional needs

To provide meaningful architecture is not to parody history but to articulate it. -Neltsch "It would be difficult to say with words or music what I feel I can say best with building. -Bruce Graham

Burj Khalifa

BURJ KHALIFA

LOCATION DUBAI , UNITED STATES OF EMIRATES. AREA 464,511 m^2 COST US$ 1.5 BILLION CLIENTS- EMMAR CONSTRUCTIONS and Samsung

THE TALLEST BUILDING OF THE WORLD ITS 808m TALL. IT HAS 160 HABITABLE FLOOR, WITH NEXT 46 MAINTAINACNE

FLOORS .
THE UPWARDS SETBACKS PROVIDED IN THE STRUCTURE OF THE

BUILDING GIVE IT A SPIRAL FEEL .

IT CONSISTS OF A TOTAL OF 27 TERRACES. AT THE TOP OF THE CENTRAL CORE IS AN OBSERVATION TOWER. TO SUPPORT SUCH A MASSIVE STRUCTURE THERE IS A CENTRAL

HEXAGONAL CORE FROM WHICH PROTRUDE 3 BUTRESSES WHICH MAKE THE Y SHAPE OF THE BUILDING .

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The design of Burj Khalifa is derived from patterning systems embodied in Islamic architecture. The design architect Adrian Smith has said the triple-lobed footprint of the building was inspired by the flower Hymenocallis.
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The tower is composed of three elements arranged around a central core. As the tower rises from the flat desert base, setbacks occur at each element in an upward spiralling pattern, decreasing the cross section of the tower as it reaches toward the sky.

There are 27 terraces in Burj Khalifa. At the top, the central core emerges and is sculpted to form a finishing spire.

A Y-shaped floor plan maximizes views of the Persian Gulf. Viewed from above or from the base, the form also evokes the onion domes of Islamic architecture.

The exterior cladding of Burj Khalifa consists of 142,000 m2 of reflective glazing, and aluminium and textured stainless steel spandrel panels with vertical tubular fins. The cladding system is designed to withstand Dubais extreme summer temperatures. Additionally, at its projected height the exterior temperature at the top of the building will be 6C cooler than at its base.

Over 26,000 glass panels were used in the exterior cladding of Burj Khalifa. Over 300 cladding specialists from China were brought in for the cladding work on the tower.

During the design process, engineers rotated the building 120 degrees from its original layout to reduce stress from prevailing winds. At its tallest point, the tower sways a total of 1.5 m.

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THE BUILDING REFLECTS THE CHRACTERISTIC OF A S.O.M BUILDING WITH A STEEL AND GLASS FASCADE . THE SORROUNDING AREA OF THE BUILDING IS VERY WELL LANDSCAPED WITH A GOOD PIAZA PROVIDED NEXT TO THE BUILDING WITH GATHERING SPACES FOR SPECIAL OCCASIONS. ITS GOT A 27 ACRES PARK INTEGRATED WITHIN THE COMPLEX . It is a part of the 2km sq. downtown development.

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Burj Khalifa is expected to hold up to 25,000 people at any one time. A total of 57 elevators and 8 escalators are installed, the fastest rising and descending at up to 10 m/s.
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INTERIORS OF THE BUILDING

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The visitors in this lobby will be able to hear a distinct timbre as the cymbals, plated with 18-carat gold, are struck by dripping water, intended to mimic the sound of water falling on leaves.

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The spire of Burj Khalifa is composed of more than 4,000 tonnes of structural steel. The central pinnacle pipe weighing 350 tonnes.The spire also houses communications equipment.

Comparison

Air Force Chapel

The structure is a tubular steel frame of 100 identical tetrahedrons, each 75 feet (23 m) long, weighing five tons, and enclosed with clear aluminum panels. The tetrahedrons are spaced a foot apart, creating gaps in the framework that are filled with 1-inch-thick (25 mm) colored glass.

Cadet Chapel has become a classic and highly regarded example of modernist architecture

Catholic

Protestent

The Cadet Chapel was designed specifically to house three distinct worship areas under a single roof.
Jewish

Catholic

Jewish

Catholic

Protestent

Jewish

Willis Tower(formally known as Sears)

Completion Year: 1974Site Area: 3 acresProject Area: 4,455,844 ft2Building Height: 1,450 ftNumber of Stories: 110

This building is subdivided internally by a cruciform arrangement of walls of closely spaced columns which enhance its resistence to wind loading. This structural layout is expressed in the exterior form.

Team of architect Bruce Graham and structural engineer Fazlur Khan designed the building as nine square "tubes", each essentially a separate building, clustered in a 33 matrix forming a square base with 225-foot (75 m) sides.[6] All nine tubes would rise up to the 50th floor of the building.

4th Floor small office space

40th floor plan

At the 50th floor, the northwest and southeast tubes end, and the remaining seven continue up. At the 66th floor, the northeast and the southwest tubes end. At the 90th floor, the north, east, and south tubes end. The remaining west and center tubes continue up to the 108th floor. The building was the first to utilize Khan's bundled tube structure.

50th floor plan


The edge


The edge


The edge


The edge


The edge

The Sears Tower observation deck, called the Skydeck, opened on June 22, 1974. Located on the 103rd floor of the tower, it is 1,353 feet (412 m) above ground and is one of the most famous tourist attractions in Chicago.

Jin Mao, Shanghai

Built around an octagonal concrete core surrounded by eight main superframe columns and eight exterior columns, the pagoda-like form rises in mathematical increments of eight. SOM Design Partner Adrian Smith took inspiration from the segmented geometry of the pagoda, creating a form derived from multiples and fractions of eight.

This geometric progression begins with the 16-story base segment, which decreases by one-eighth increments until one reaches the final, singlestory segment at the 88th floor. The composite columns are interconnected to the central core by eight structural steel outrigger trusses at three two-story levels. Creating these levels with a minimal number of structural elements provided maximum efficiency, minimal obstructions to interior space, and a safe design.

The first two floors are a capacious and bright lobby. From the third to the 50th floor are spacious offices, which are open-plan (column-free) with a floor-to-floor height of 4 meters and a floor-to-ceiling height of 2.7m. The 51st and 52nd floors are mechanical rooms. The Grand Hyatt Shanghai hotel occupies floors from 53 to 87. It's the world's tallest five-star hotel in terms of distance from the ground, which boasts a 152m barrelvaulted atrium that is lined with 28 annular wellilluminated corridors and staircases arrayed in a spiral. The 88th floor houses the Skywalk, a 1,520-square-meter indoor observation deck, which is the tallest and biggest one of its kind in the Chinese mainland.Its 88 stories reflect the symbolic "lucky eights" that signify prosperity.

The tower exterior employs an advanced glass curtain wall, which is crisscrossed by complex latticework cladding to remove the light pollution. Its fire and life systems are different from many other skyscrapers for their design to allow people to rescue themselves rather than waiting for others to come to their rescue. The building is also equipped with an excellent vertical transport system, with features like less than 35second time for people to wait for an elevator and direct access to the office sections, etc. All functional equipments and facilities in the building are most advanced, making it a milestone in architectural history.