Eckhard Gerber’s Burj al-Taqa Energy Tower

May 14, 2007 · Filed Under Architecture Matters · Comment
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Eckhard Gerber’s Burj al-Taqa Energy Tower
Image Source: Spiegel

Here is a new tower called Burj al-Taqa energy tower, design by Eckhard Gerber architect, this ambitious project in Dubai is believed to be the world’s first zero emissions office building. This would be an interesting project to follow up with, which reminds me of a building back home in Malaysia called LEO (Low Energy Office), which basically has the same concept on conserving energy where else Burj al-Taqa took the idea of conserving to the extreme.

Burj al-Taqa’s cylindrical shape is designed to expose as little surface to the sun, and the facade is to be built from a new generation of vacuum glazing that will only come on the market in 2008. The tower will have a huge (197 foot diameter) wind turbine on its roof, and arrays of solar cells that will total 161,459 square feet in size.

I have much respect for all of the effort and research done by the architect and developer, but does the cost justify the idea of constructing an energy tower? The tower would be a great step towards a better future, but if the construction cost does not justify then this tower could possibly be an ornament, they are just models and only good for whoring awards, which again reminds me of the Manchester Solar Tower.

More research and development should be poured into building inexpensive solar panels; only then energy towers like these would mushroom around the world.

Source: Spiegel.com