Skyscrapers and the city: How tall buildings interact with their users and urban environment

Abstract

Tall buildings have become a prevalent typology around the world. They carry benefits for the entrepreneur (profits) and the local authority (municipal taxes), the architect and the tenants (prestige). Yet little is known about the actual needs of the building itself, the fact that its different levels are exposed to different climatic conditions, thus have different energy needs, or the contingencies involved in living high up in, or down around them. This paper presents results of ongoing research, including tall buildings’ microclimatic peculiarities with height and ensuant energy needs; building envelope design and energy efficiency; microclimatic peculiarities created on the pedestrian level; and environmental quality. Specific modules results have been published in several papers, while additional work is ongoing, since this building prototype and its implications are still mostly poorly understood. Such work ties into climate change and the built environment, public health, survivability and resilience under extreme environmental events, which seem to become the norm. Results of parts of this research certainly tie into Covid-related contingencies and the need for usable public open spaces, efficient building ventilation to ensure good Indoor Air Quality (IAQ), and a whole array of other issues.