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SWFC under construction (August 2006)

The Shanghai World Financial Center (Simplified Chinese: 上海环球金融中心; Traditional Chinese: 上海環球金融中心; pinyin: Shànghǎi huánqiú jīnróng zhōngxīn) is a supertall skyscraper that has been intermittently under construction in Shanghai, China. It is a mixed use skyscraper which will consist of office spaces, hotel rooms, conference rooms, observation decks and shops on the ground floors.

It was originally planned for construction in 1997, but work was temporarily interrupted by the Asian Financial Crisis in the late 1990s and later to accommodate design changes by the developer. The 101-story tower was designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox.

The skyscraper's roof height has been set at 492 m (1,614 feet), which is set to be topped out by September 2007 and on final completion in early 2008 is expected to temporarily make it one of the tallest in the world. Although before construction resumed the roof height was set to 510m so that it would take the title of the worlds tallest building away from Taipei 101, but a height limit was imposed alowing the roof to reach a maximum height of 492m. Architect William Pedersen and developer Minoru Mori have resisted suggestions to add a spire that would surpass that on Taipei 101 and perhaps the Freedom Tower, calling the Shanghai WFC a "broad-shouldered building".

Upon completion the SWFC will boast a gross floor area of more than 377,300m² and feature 31 elevators and 33 escalators.

The most distinctive feature in the design of the building is an aperture at the top. This aperture was originally meant to be a circular moon gate, but the intended design began facing protests from Chinese, including the mayor of Shanghai, who considered it too similar to the rising sun design of the Japanese flag. Pedersen then suggested that a bridge be placed at the bottom of the aperture to make it less circular.^[1] In mid-2005, KPF submitted an alternative design to Mori Building and a trapezoidal hole replaced the circle at the top of the tower, which in addition to changing the controversial design, will also be cheaper and easier to implement according to the architects.^[2] An observation deck on the 100th floor is also now part of the final design.

The building of the tower is financed by several multinational firms, including Japanese, Chinese, and Hong Kong banks, as well as by the Japanese developer and as-yet unnamed American and European investors. American investment bank Morgan Stanley is coordinating the financing for Mori Building.

The foundation stone was laid on August 27, 1997. In the late 1990s the Japanese Mori Building Corporation had a fund shortage caused by the Asian financial crisis, which halted the project after the foundations were completed. On February 13, 2003, the Mori Group increased the building's height to 492 meters (1,614 feet) and 101 stories from the initial plans for a 460-meter (1,509 feet), 94-story building. The new building will use the foundation of the original design. The building construction resumed on November 16, 2005.^[3]

As of mid-December 2006, the SWFC had reached a height of over 320 meters (1,050 feet), and was adding an additional floor every 3–4 days.

A comparison of different building versions of the center before construction:

1. Original design, side view.
2. Original design, front view.
3. Final design, currently under construction.

1. ^ PBS - Innovation: Life, Inspired - "Building to Extremes" transcript
2. ^ Shanghai World Financial Center (facts)
3. ^ People's Daily Online - "Construction of Shanghai World Financial Center resumes"

• Skyscrapercity Photos
• Shanghai Hills World Financial Center
• Mori Building Co. Shanghai WFC project page
• Skyscraperpage.com diagram of Shanghai WFC
• Emporis.com data page on the Shanghai WFC
• Burj Dubai & World Financial Center comparison
• Shanghai World Financial Center in 3D on Google Earth