Capital Gate
Skyscraper in Abu Dhabi
title: "Capital Gate" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["inclined-towers", "2011-establishments-in-the-united-arab-emirates", "hotel-buildings-completed-in-2011", "office-buildings-completed-in-2011", "skyscraper-office-buildings-in-abu-dhabi", "skyscraper-hotels-in-abu-dhabi"] description: "Skyscraper in Abu Dhabi" topic_path: "general/inclined-towers" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_Gate" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Skyscraper in Abu Dhabi ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox building"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Capital Gate |
| image | Capital Gate.jpg |
| caption | Capital Gate in 2013 |
| image_alt | photo of a tall, glass, somewhat cylindrical building that starts out straight and leans to the left |
| topped_out_date | 2010 |
| location | Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates |
| coordinates | |
| start_date | September 2007 |
| completion_date | 2011 |
| building_type | commercial, hotel |
| roof | 160 m |
| floor_count | 35 |
| floor_area | 53,100 m2 |
| architectural_style | Deconstructivism |
| architect | RMJM |
| structural_engineer | TJEG |
| main_contractor | Al Habtoor Engineering Enterprises |
| owner | Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company |
| references |
| ::
| name = Capital Gate | image = Capital Gate.jpg | image_size = | caption = Capital Gate in 2013 | image_alt = photo of a tall, glass, somewhat cylindrical building that starts out straight and leans to the left | topped_out_date = 2010 | location = Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | coordinates = | start_date = September 2007 | completion_date = 2011 | est_completion = | building_type = commercial, hotel | antenna_spire = | roof = 160 m | top_floor = | floor_count = 35 | elevator_count = | cost = | floor_area = 53,100 m2 |architectural_style = Deconstructivism | architect = RMJM | structural_engineer= TJEG | main_contractor = Al Habtoor Engineering Enterprises | developer = | owner = Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company | management = | references =
Capital Gate, also known as the Leaning Tower of Abu Dhabi, is a skyscraper in Abu Dhabi that is over 160 m tall, 35 stories high, with over 16,000 m2 of usable office space. Capital Gate is one of the tallest buildings in the city and was designed to incline 18° west, more than four times the lean of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. The building is owned and was developed by the Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company. The tower is the focal point of Capital Centre.
Construction
Project timeline
Foundation
The structure rests on a foundation of 490 pilings that have been drilled 30 m below ground. The deep pilings provide stability against strong winds, gravitational pull, and seismic pressures that arise due to the incline of the building. Of the 490 pilings, 287 are 1 m in diameter and 20 to deep, and 203 are 60 cm in diameter and 20 m deep. All 490 piles are capped together using a densely reinforced concrete mat footing nearly 2 m deep. Some of the piles were only initially compressed during construction to support the lower floors of the building. Now they are in tension as additional stress caused by the overhang has been applied.
Core of the structure
The core of the Capital Gate was built using jumping formwork, also known as climbing formwork. The center concrete core had to be specially designed to account for the immense forces created by the building's angle of elevation, or camber. The core contains 15,000 m3 of concrete reinforced with 10,000 metric tons of steel and uses vertical post-tension and was constructed with a vertical pre-camber. This pre-camber means the core was constructed with a slight opposite lean. As each floor was installed, the weight of the floors and diagonal grid, or diagrid, system pulled the core and slowly straightened it out. The core contains 146 vertical steel tendons, each 20 m long, which are used for post-tension.
Superstructure
Given the 18° lean of the building, the construction required two diagrid systems: an external diagrid defining the tower's shape and an internal diagrid linked to the central core by eight unique, pin-jointed structural members. The external diagrid comprises 720 sections of varying shapes, as it is based on the direction in which the tower leans. The external grid carries the weight of the floor while the internal diagrid connects with the external and transfers the load to the core, thereby eliminating the need for columns in the floor.
World record
In June 2010, Guinness World Records recognized Capital Gate tower as the world's "farthest manmade leaning building". The new record shows that the Capital Gate tower has been built to lean 18° west, which is more than four times that of the Leaning Tower of Suurhusen. The recognition was given following a thorough evaluation by a Guinness-appointed awards committee, which began in January 2010, when the exterior was completed.
Architecture and design
The building has a diagrid specially designed to absorb and channel the forces created by wind and seismic loading, as well as the gradient of Capital Gate. Capital Gate is one of only a handful of diagrid buildings in the world. Others include London's 30 St Mary Axe (Gherkin), New York's Hearst Tower, and Beijing's National Stadium. The Capital Gate project was able to achieve its inclination through an engineering technique, known as pre-cambering, that allows floor plates to be stacked vertically up to the 12th story and staggered, one over another, between 300 to. The gravitational pressure caused by the 18° incline is countered by the pre-cambering, using a core of concrete reinforced with steel, with the core deliberately built slightly off-center. It is also anchored to the ground by 490 piles which are drilled 20 to underground.
Capital Gate was designed by architectural firm RMJM and was completed in 2011. The tower includes 16,000 m2 of office space and the Andaz Hotel on floors 18 through 33.
References
References
- (2018-04-28). "Capital Gate / RMJM". ArchDaily.
- (2010). "Capital Gate". Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company (ADNEC).
- Amanda Goh. (2022). "The Leaning Tower of Pisa might be the most famous leaning building in the world — but it's nothing compared to this Abu Dhabi skyscraper". The Insider.
- "Know about".
- (January 2010). "Farthest man-made leaning building".
- Graaf, Reinier de. (2023). "Architect, verb: the new language of building". Verso.
- (June 6, 2010). "World Record: Capital Gate beats Leaning Tower". Construction Week Online.
- Mace Group, http://www.macegroup.com/media-centre/advanced-diagrid-technology-gives-shape-to-capital-gate {{Webarchive. link. (2015-10-01)
- Laura Salmi. (28 October 2008). "Capital Gate, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates". World Architecture News.
- "Backgrounder - Capital Gate Abu Dhabi".
- [https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/capital-gate Capital Gate] [[Atlas Obscura]] (www.atlasosbcura.com). Retrieved on 2019-08-04.
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