DESCRIPTION
• Architects:
Norman
Foster
and
Ken
Shu5leworth
• Year
completed:
2003
• Nickname:
The
Gherkin.
• The
building
stands
on
the
former
site
of
the
BalEc
Exchange
which
was
bombed
in
a
terrorist
a5ack
by
the
IRA
in
1992,
damaging
the
building
badly.
• The
building
stands
at
180
meters
and
has
41
stories.
• Floor
area:
500,000
sf
• It
is
one
of
London’s
most
recognizable
pieces
of
contemporary
architecture.
POLITICALLY
• The
Gherkin
played
a
key
role
in
the
recent
evoluEon
of
the
City
of
London,
an
independent
city–state
within
Greater
London
which
follows
the
lines
of
the
ancient
Roman
walls.
• The
City
is
the
world's
leading
center
of
internaEonal
finance.
The
local
authority
is
the
City
of
London
CorporaEon
and
the
chief
posiEon
is
the
Lord
Mayor.
• Prior
to
this
building,
construcEon
in
“The
Square
Mile”
had
kept
to
a
height
limit
so
as
not
to
compete
with
the
dome
of
St.
Paul’s
on
the
skyline.
• This
building
was
a
departure
from
that
rule
and
ushered
in
a
plethora
of
new
skyscrapers
in
the
area.
• This
building
projected
the
power
of
the
internaEonal
financial
corporaEons
to
dominate
the
civic
and
spiritual
life
of
the
City.
ECONOMICALLY
• The
cost
of
the
project
was
around
£138
million
plus
land
costs
of
£90.6
million.
• The
project
was
privately
funded
by
Swiss
Re,
(short
for
Swiss
Reinsurance
Company
Ltd)
based
in
Zurich,
Switzerland.
It
is
the
world’s
second-‐ largest
reinsurer.
The
current
owner,
billionaire
• Reinsurance
is
when
mulEple
insurance
companies
share
risk
by
purchasing
Joseph
Safra,
has
been
insurance
policies
from
other
insurers
to
charged
with
bribery
and
limit
the
total
loss
the
original
insurer
corrupEon
in
Brazil.
would
experience
in
case
of
disaster.
• The
reinsurance
business
is
part
of
Wholesale
Financial
Services,
and
the
company’s
size
represents
a
convergence
in
that
economic
sector,
consistent
with
globalizaEon
and
financialisaEon
trends.
• The
building
was
purchased
in
2006
for
£600
million
giving
the
original
proprietors
a
profit
of
more
than
£300
million
and
making
it
the
most
expensive
office
building
in
Britain.
SOCIALLY
• The
Gherkin
is
within
walking
distance
of
many
key
Underground
staEons.
It
is
in
an
old,
dense
part
of
London
mostly
occupied
by
financial
services.
• The
ground
level
has
a
few
shops
where
everyday
people
which
pass
the
structure
can
buy
coffee,
have
a
glass
of
wine,
etc.
• The
footprint
is
round,
creaEng
some
plaza
space
around
the
building
to
gather,
unlike
the
Eghtly
spaced
older
buildings.
• The
building
serves
the
corporate
employees
that
work
in
the
offices.
It
is
not
a
public
building
that
everyone
can
enter,
except
to
eat
at
the
39th
floor
restaurant,
go
to
the
40th
floor
bar
or
for
special
events
such
as
Open
House
London.
Advance
bookings
are
required
and
security
is
strict.
• The
top
floor,
once
a
restaurant
open
to
the
public,
now
caters
only
for
private
events.
TECHNOLOGICALLY
• The
Gherkin
has
a
steel
exoskeleton
which
carries
the
load
on
the
outside
of
the
building.
It
does
not
require
any
interior
supporEng
columns.
Wind
loads
are
diffused
by
the
curved
diagonal
spiral
shape.
•
In
order
to
compensate
for
the
lack
of
space
on
the
top
floor
for
elevator
equipment,
the
building
has
elevators
which
go
up
to
the
34th
floor
and
then
another
set
which
conEnue
up
to
the
39th
floor
using
a
push
from
below
system.
The
Exoskeleton
ENVIRONMENTALLY
• The
building,
uses
many
forms
of
technology
such
as
passive
solar
heaEng
for
the
winters,
double
glazing
on
windows,
and
lighEng
shams
to
reduce
energy
costs.
• Inspired
by
the
sea
sponge,
engineers
were
able
to
dramaEcally
increase
structural
strength
and
reduce
energy
requirements
by
construcEng
open
shams
between
each
floor
to
venElate
the
building
and
allow
passive
heat
and
sunlight
to
penetrate
deep
into
the
building.
The
building
consumes
just
half
the
energy
of
a
tradiEonally-‐built
tower
of
similar
size.
• The
Gherkin
can
adjust
to
London’s
weather
by
the
use
of
a
computerized
system
that
opens
and
closes
the
blinds
depending
on
the
temperature
and
where
the
sun
is.