World's first rotating tower for Dubai

Designed by Italian architect David Fisher for developers Rotating Tower Dubai Development Ltd, construction of the US$ 700 million Dynamic Tower is expected to start later this year, with completion due for 2010.

The 420 m high tower will feature 80 pre-fabricated apartments that spin 360°, by voice command, around a central column. Power will come from 79 wind turbines, one between each floor, making the building energy self-sufficient.

The turbines will not only produce enough electricity to power the entire building but feed extra power back into the national grid.

Each floor will rotate independently, so the Dynamic Tower will constantly change its profile. "It's the first building that rotates, moves, and changes shape," said Mr Fisher. "This building never looks the same, not once in a lifetime."

The apartments, which are expected to take between one and three hours to make a complete rotation, will cost from US$ 3.7 to US$ 36 million. The skyscraper will cost an estimated $700m to build and should be up and running in Dubai in 2010.

Russian developer Mirax Group plans to build a similar, 70-story tower in Moscow.

Images and video courtesy: Dynamic Architecture.