As engineering and construction has advanced, we have built cities from the ground up and buildings that are taller than ever. The Burj Khalifa holds the title of the tallest building in the world which stands at an impressive 828m, almost double the height of the Empire State Building. With such impressive feats, it is only normal that we question the physics behind it all. Read on as the Rhino Piling team explains why skyscrapers manage to stay standing despite their immense height…
The challenge of explaining why skyscrapers and other tall buildings haven’t crumbled to the ground yet is like trying to explain how long a piece of string is. After all, there are a multitude of different components that work together to maintain stability and ensure that the man made structures have the strength to withstand the test of time.
Perhaps one of the most important aspects of structural integrity is the foundation as even skyscrapers need to be stabilized with a high-quality one. In fact, it could even be argued that this is the reason why we are able to build such tall buildings without having them fall over. In these situations, deep foundational solutions are required and piling is an effective yet affordable method because it allows the full weight of the building – which is very heavy for a skyscraper – to be spread over equal points. As a result, the entire structure is equally supported and there should be no areas subjected to higher loads than others, which can cause instability.
With this said, a foundation needs to be regularly inspected for any signs of compromise as they may deteriorate over time and a poorly implemented foundation can exacerbate this. Take the Leaning Tower of Pisa for example; at just 57 metres high, the tourist landmark began to lean in the 1770’s after just three stories were constructed and the problem has been traced back to uneven settling of the foundation on soft ground. In the early 2000’s, work was completed to reconstruct the base as it was considered a safety issue and the tower actually began to straighten itself up until 2008.
The stability of any building can often be traced back to its foundation. It is essential that a building is constructed upon a high-quality foundation in order to provide longevity, and deep foundational solutions like piling are the go-to methods for skyscrapers because their height means that they are very heavy. As such, piling allows this weight to be equality distributed and supported across multiple points. Get in touch with the best piling Manchester has to offer and chat with Rhino Piling today!
