Willis Tower (dříve Sears Tower) je 443 metrů vysoký mrakodrap v Chicagu v Illinois. Byl postaven v letech 1970 až 1973 podle návrhu firmy Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. Je nejvyšším mrakodrapem Spojených států amerických. Od svého dokončení až do roku 2004 byl nejvyšší budovou světa; v roce 2004 jej předčil mrakodrap Tchaj-pej 101.
Although Sears' naming rights expired in 2003, the building continued to be called Sears Tower for several years. However, in March 2009 London-based insurance broker Willis Group Holdings, Ltd., agreed to lease a portion of the building and as part of the agreement obtained the building's naming rights. On July 16, 2009, at 10:00 am Central Time, the building was officially renamed Willis Tower.
Hlavním architektem stavby byl Bruce Graham. Budova má 108 poschodí, 108 fungujících výtahů a vlastní směrovací číslo. Pracuje v ní přibližně 10 000 lidí a dalších 50 000 ji denně navštíví. Willis Tower váží celkem 225 500 tun a je celý pokryt sklem.
Neodpustím si poznámku, že „willis“ je slangové označení pánského přirození - jak příznačné, pro mrakodrap! :)
It has been the tallest building in the United States since 1973, surpassing the World Trade Center, which itself had surpassed the Empire State Building only a year earlier. Commissioned by Sears, Roebuck and Company, it was designed by chief architect Bruce Graham and structural engineer Fazlur Khan of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill.
Construction commenced in August 1970 and the building reached its originally anticipated maximum height on May 3, 1973. When completed, the Sears Tower had overtaken the roof of the World Trade Center in New York City as the world's tallest building. The tower has 108 stories as counted by standard methods, though the building owners count the main roof as 109 and the mechanical penthouse roof as 110. The distance to the roof is 1,451 feet (442 m), measured from the east entrance.
In February 1982, two television antennas were added to the structure, increasing its total height to 1,705 feet (520 m). The western antenna was later extended to 1,730 feet (527 m) on June 5, 2000 to improve reception of local NBC station WMAQ-TV.
Black bands appear on the tower around the 29th–32nd, 64th–65th, 88th–89th, and 104th–109th floors. These are louvers which allow ventilation for service equipment and obscure the structure's belt trusses which Sears Roebuck did not want to be visible as on the John Hancock Center.
Oficiální adresa budovy je 233 South Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60606.
On August 12, 2007, the Burj Dubai in Dubai, United Arab Emirates was reported by its developers to have surpassed the Sears Tower in all height categories
Chicago
- Museum of Science and Industry
- Willis Tower
