From October 28 to November 2, 2019 the 10th World Congress of CTBUH (Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat) was held in Chicago. The theme of this year's congress is «50 Forward | 50 Backwards: Recent History and Sustainable Future of Cities Around the World». By 2050, 68% of the population is projected to live in cities. For this reason, Congress considered how to maximize the quality of life in cities through thoughtful approaches to population and housing density, the impact of climate change, and a number of other pressing issues.
The Metropolis company monitors trends in modern technologies for the design and construction of high-rise and unique structures and has been a member of CTBUH since 2013. The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) is the world's leading resource for professionals involved in the creation, design, construction and operation of tall buildings and the cities of the future. The World Congress is not only an opportunity to discuss achievements in the field with colleagues from different countries, but also to share experience in the design and construction of high-rise and unique buildings on different continents. Mohamed Nasser, Commercial Director of Metropolis, took part in the 10th CTBUH congress dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the council.
One of America's most prominent engineers, Sherwin Asrow, also took part in the conference. He participated in the One Prudential Plaza Chicago project as one of the chief engineers and personally performed the calculation of the aerodynamic force acting on a high-rise building. One Prudential Plaza Chicago is a 41-storey steel-framed office building, 183.2 meters high, built in 1955. It was the first high-rise building built since the Great Depression of the 1930s and World War II. The project was unique not only because of its height, but also because it was built over the railway tracks, which continued to work during construction. Prudential Plaza's frame was traditional - it consisted of beams and columns, but the floors were made of steel formwork filled with concrete, which was unusual for that time.
The business program of the event was held at the Radisson-Blu Aqua Chicago Hotel and consisted of discussions, workshops and one-day symposiums. During the convention, two off-site tours were organized, one focusing on Chicago's outstanding high-rise buildings and urban spaces, and the other a trip to North American cities including New York, Seattle, and Toronto.
