Higher and Higher: The Evolution of the Buttressed Core

The development of the buttressed core structural system led to a paradigm shift in tall building design that brought a dramatic increase in the height of buildings. In the 32 years between the completion of 1 World Trade Center (1972) and Taipei 101 (2004), there was only a 22 percent increase in the height of the world’s tallest building. In 2010, the Burj Khalifa claimed the title at 828 m, eclipsing Taipei 101 by more than 60 percent. With its innovative buttressed core, the tower represents a major leap in structural design, elicited by a change in the approach to the tall building problem through an examination of scale.