Petronas Towers

The Petronas Towers

Height: 1,483 ft (452 meters)

Owners: Kuala Lumpur City Centre Holdings Sendirian Berhad

Architects: Cesar Pelli & Associates

Engineers: Thornton-Tomasetti Engineers

Contractors: Mayjus and SKJ Joint Ventures

Topping Out: 1998

Official Opening: August 28, 1999

On April 15, 1996, the Council on Tall Buildings named the Petronas Towers the tallest in the world, passing the torch to a new continent. Although the project's developers, a consortium of private investors in association with the Malaysian government and Petronas, the national oil company, had not originally set out to surpass Chicago's Sears Tower, they did aspire to construct a monument announcing Kuala Lumpur's prominence as a commercial and cultural capital. In the design of American architect Cesar Pelli they found a winning scheme--twin towers of elegant proportions with a slenderness ratio (height to width) of 9.4--that would capture not only the title but the public imagination.

Pelli's design answered the developer's call to express the 'culture and heritage of Malaysia' by evoking Islamic arabesques and employing repetitive geometries characteristic of Muslim architecture. In plan, an 8-point star formed by intersecting squares is an obvious reference to Islamic design; curved and pointed bays create a scalloped facade that suggests temple towers. The identical towers are linked by a bridge at the 41st floor, creating a dramatic gateway to the city.

The structure is high-strength concrete, a material familiar to Asian contractors and twice as effective as steel in sway reduction. Supported by 75-by-75-foot concrete cores and an outer ring of widely-spaced super columns, the towers showcase a sophisticated structural system that accommodates its slender profile and provides from 14,000 to 22,000 square feet of column-free office space per floo

Other features include a curtain wall of glass and stainless steel sun shades to diffuse the intense equatorial light; a double-decker elevator system with a sky lobby transfer point on the 41st floor to accommodate the thousands of people who use the complex daily; and a mixed-use base featuring a concert hall and shopping center enveloped by nearly seventy acres of public parks and plazas.

In both engineering and design, the Petronas Towers succeed at acknowledging Malaysia's past and future, embracing the country's heritage while proclaiming its modernization. The end result, says Pelli, is a monument that is not specifically Malaysian, but will forever be identified with Kuala Lumpur.

8 Dizzying Facts About Petronas Towers You Probably Did Not Know

A signature landmark of Kuala Lumpur, the Petronas Towers are a twin set of skyscrapers synonymous with the nation of Malaysia. The Suria KLCC shopping malls situated at the foot of the towers remains one of the most popular shopping destinations in Malaysia.

1. The 7th Tallest Building In The World Today

When it was built in 1998, the 88-storey Petronas Towers held the top record for the tallest building in the world at a staggering height of 1,483 feet! Although the record was eventually overtaken in 2006 by Taipei 101 at 1,671 feet, it is still worthy to note that the record was held as two entire structures, while most other records stood as one. As such, the Petronas Towers still stands today as the tallest twin towers in the world.

2. Built With 590,000 Square Feet Of Laminated Glass

The Petronas Towers reportedly took a total of 6 years and USD 1.6 billion to construct. The structure consists of 899,000 sq ft of stainless steel extrusions. Since this would naturally attract a lot of heat, 590,000 square feet of laminated glass was installed in order to reflect the harmful UV rays and reduce the heat. Cleaning every single glass panel – the equivalent of 10 football fields – would take almost two months!

3. The Architecture Is Inspired By Malaysian And Islamic Culture

Then-Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir pushed for the design of the twin skyscrapers to not only set a record for the tallest building, but also to resonate a Malaysian identity. Therefore, the shape of its design was designed to be based on the five pillars of the Islamic religion. When viewed from the top of this towering structure, the cross-section of the towers reflects the eight-pointed star symbol of Islamic culture!

4. The Petronas Towers Can Withstand A Hurricane

In order to meet safety construction regulations, the towers had to be able to withstand winds up to a speed of 65 miles per hour – about one-third the wind speed of Hurricane Katrina! The engineers who worked on the project went to extraordinary lengths to test the towers by using a wind tunnel, first by a computer simulation and then by building an actual model of the towers.

5. Someone Has Climbed The Petronas Towers

Famous French climber Alain Robert, nicknamed “The Human Spider” for climbing tall buildings without the use of any equipment, attempted scaling the Petronas Towers twice unsuccessfully in 1997 and 2007. He finally succeeded on his third try in 2009 when he successfully climbed right up to the top of the mast, standing up with his arms widespread – imagine that! Robert was arrested on all three attempts by Malaysian authorities at the end of his climb.

6. Entry To The Petronas Towers Is Fiercely Limited

Free timed tickets are handed out daily although on a very limited basis. The queue starts early in the morning and eager patrons can expect to start queueing as early as 630am for a chance of acquiring a ticket. Guests however, also have an added option to purchase a ticket in advance.

7. The Enormous Skybridge That Connects The Towers

It may look tiny next to the two epic towers from afar within your hotel, but the skybridge that guests can access on the 41st and 42nd level is 192 feet long and weighs a total of 750 tons, acting as a walkway between both towers. The bridge is designed to slide in and out of both towers, acting as a safety device for patrons to cross over in the event of an emergency in one tower.

8. The Masts Of The Towers Defines Petronas Towers

Each one was outsourced to construction companies in Japan and Korea, taking a total of 5 months to build. The mast above each tower alone is 241 feet long and weighed 176 tons, comprising of the spire, mast ball and ring ball. While the pinnacles may act as an aesthetic feature, the masts also have functioning aircraft warning lights. Interestingly, the mast was what allowed Petronas Towers to clinch the tallest building record back when it was built, beating out Chicago’s Willis Tower.

It may no longer be the tallest, but the Petronas Towers today still remains a hot spot for tourists who travel to Malaysia; hosting a wide range of entertainment, hotels and a great nightlife in the vicinity of this extraordinary landmark.