The Al Hamra tower is expected to feature Kuwait’s tallest building at 412.5 m when it is completed in January 2010. Offering a massive built-up area of 180,000 sq m, the development is being built at a cost of 372 million US-Dollars in the Sharq area. Kuwait's tallest building will have 75 storeys dedicated for offices. In addition, the Al Hamra and Firdous mixed-use complex will feature a mall with three basements, three shopping floors and a cinema floor containing nine cinema theatres.
Work on the project started in January 2006, and so far the mall has been completed up to the second floor level, the car-park building has been concreted up to the sixth-floor level. Piling work for the tower has been completed and foundation work is under way with verticals under construction for the third basement level.
Leica Geosystems Core Wall Survey Control System
High-rise buildings are subject to strong external tilt effects caused, for instance, by wind pressures, unilateral thermal effects by exposure to sunlight, and unilateral loads. Such effects are a particular challenge in the phase of construction of a high-rise building such as the Al Hamra tower. The strong movements create a number of problems for the correct design of controls. It will be essential at any particular instant in time to exactly know how much the building is off from its design position, and at the same time to know the precise position of the total station. The situation is further complicated by vibrations in the building due to the construction work and by movements of the building making it very difficult, if not impossible, to keep instruments levelled. Leica Geosystems AG has developed an innovative solution for driving the self-climbing formworks of the core walls of the super towers and tallest buildings - the Leica Geosystems Core Wall Survey Control System, used for example in the construction of the Burj Dubai in Dubai, and now also in the Al Hamra tower project.
