In my opinion this is one of the most impressive looking skyscraper I’ve ever seen and it has the most interesting name “Flame Towers” as soon as you hear it’s name you immediately want to know the story behind it!

 Flame towers is the tallest skyscraper in Baku, Azerbaijan with a height of 190 m (620 ft) and area of 234500.0 m2.

 The Flame Towers consist of three buildings; south, east and west. The facades of the three Flame Towers are turned into gigantic display screens with the use of more than 10,000 high-power LED luminaires, supplied by the Osram subsidiary Traxon Technologies and Vetas Electric Lighting.

Function:   The buildings consist of apartments, a hotel and office blocks.The complex consists of three towers that share a common podium that acts as an anchor for the entire project, providing shopping and leisure facilities for residents and visitors.

• Tower 1 Residential : 33 floors, 190m high

• Tower 2, Hotel: 30 floors, 160 m high

• Tower 3 offices : 28 floors, 140 m high

• Podium : retail and leisure space, 78m in height

 Cost: The estimated cost of Flame Towers is around US$350 million. Construction began in 2007, with completion in 2012. HOK was the architect for the project, DIA Holdings served as the design-build contractor, and Hill International provided project management.

Awards: The Flame Towers, which have become a symbol of modern Baku, have received the MIPIM 2013 International Award for the best hotel and resort, this led to  increase the investment in the area. the lighting designed by HOK for the towers is considered as one of the newest and most accomplished.

Challenges:  The team of architects HOK International was presented with many challenges during construction. in addition to being an innovative design ,the design also had to be resistant to earthquakes and potential construction parts made ​​without the use of cranes, due to the strong winds in the area. The construction had to stop several times, due to frequent winds of Baku.

Concept : The design was inspired by The history of Baku, with its cult of fire worship. the design consists of three flame-shaped towers, each with a different function, set in a triangular shape and are  visible from many parts of the city. Baku Flame Towers are a symbol of the historic past, the future strength and potential of Azerbaijan. The design was conceived as a set of flames, driven from the ground up one of the main hills of Baku. Fire symbolizes energy and eternity, and also goes back to the ancient worship of this element.

 

Structure: The main structural systems of the three towers are erected with reinforced concrete. By contrast, the upper floors of the towers were built with steel frames filigree creating a spacious place for special use. The main materials used for the structure were reinforced concrete and steel pipe 6.10 cm in diameter. In response to the tradition of the place in their fire worship, the facades of the towers are completely covered with LED screens, with more than 10,000 lights, showing the gentle movement of the flames visible from the outermost points of the city. This lighting creates the effect of giant flares emphasizing the main idea of the towers built in the name (Flame Towers Baku). At night, its exterior LED lights represent the flames, a waving flag of Azerbaijan and other moving images.