General Information:
Height: 491.9m
Floors: 101
Year (foundation start): August 27, 1997
Year (start): February 13,2003
Year (end): March 23, 2008
GFA: 377,300 m²
Elevators: 31
Escalators: 33
Costs at completion: $850,000,000

Type : Office, hotel, museum, observation, parking garage, retail
Location :100 Century Avenue, Pudong, Shanghai, China
Coordinates : 31°14′12″N 121°30′10″ECoordinates: 31°14′12″N 121°30′10″E


Design and construction
Main contractor : China State Construction Engineering Corp and Shanghai Construction (Group)     General Co.
Architect : Kohn Pedersen Fox
Developer : Mori Building Co.
Structural engineer : Leslie E. Robertson Associates RLLP


Two architect firms is involved in the project, Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates and East China Architectural Design & Research Institute Co. Ltd. The foundation stone was laid on August 27, 1997. In the late 1990s the Japanese Mori Building Corporation (the developer of SWFC) had a fund shortage caused by the Asian financial crisis, which halted the project after the foundations were completed. Construction finally resumed on February 13th, 2003.

The original plan was a 460m, 94 story tall building, and it was supose to be completed in 2001, and become the world tallest building two years before the completion of Taipei 101. But the design was changed in 2003 to a 491.9m and 101 stories tall building with a 50m wide and tall rectangular opening on the top of the building. Mori Building Corporation actually proposed to raise the building up to 510m so it could surpass Taipei 101's 508m as the world's No. 1 skyscraper, but this was declined by local authorities in Shanghai saying the city has a limit to building heights and an overall consideration of the skylines on both sides of the Huangpu River. The design of the opening near the top of the tower was changed in mid-October, 2005; from a circular to a rectangular opening. Architect and developer claim that it is cheaper and easier to implement the new design.

Capacity:
Forum meeting spaces: 20-315m2; Grand Ballroom: 800m2; Sky Arena 94: 760m2 (450 people for a cocktail, 320 people for a banquet).
Events hosted: General Motors’ 100th Anniversary, Heart of City 2008 “The Bund” Award Ceremony, Hermés Fashion Show.

Cost per person: Depends on venue and menu selected. A full-day meeting with room rental, two coffee breaks and lunch costs about RMB800 (US$117) per person.
Wow factor: Designed as a vertical garden city, the Shanghai World Financial Center is a new Shanghai icon. Towering 420m over Pudong, it offers staggering views from every vantage, extensive top-level event spaces and a Park Hyatt hotel. The key event space is the Sky Arena on the 94th floor, with eight metre-high ceilings, full-length windows and a lift capable of hoisting a car. There is also a Forum area from the third to fifth floors with 21 modern meeting and conference spaces, including a grand ballroom and a roof garden. Advanced facilities include wireless Internet, DLP (Digital Light Processing)technology projectors and in-house simultaneous interpretation services. The centre won the 2008 Council on Tall Buildings & Urban Habitat global Best Tall Building award for its design and sustainable awareness, and offers green meetings with energy-saving facilities, toxin-free furnishings and biodegradable amenities.
www.swfc-shanghai.com