The designer of Sears Tower?
It was really a great pleasure to know a Muslim man was the designer of the Sears Tower the tallest building in U.S, its amazing that a lot of people ignore this kind of information and have stereotype about Muslims. Muslims are like all other people who came to U.S for better life, and contributed and still contributing to this country in every way.
So who is the designer for Sears Towers ?
Dr. Fazlur Rahman Khan, the legendary Bangladesh-born structural engineer. His achievements are hailed by men of science all over the world, obituary references to him were made even in leading magazines like Time and Newsweek (perhaps the only Bangladeshi non-political personality to be so honoured), he was acclaimed the 'Construction Man of the Year' and accorded Alfred E. Lindau Award (considered to be the most precious award in the world of architecture), he headed the prestigious Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat for years (till the end of his days), and yet very few in our country are aware of his monumental contribution, world-wide fame and recognition. No organizations worth its name in Bangladesh even bother to pay tribute to this great son of the soil
Fazlur Rahman Khan (1929 — 1982) ushered in a renaissance in skyscraper construction during the second half of the 20th century. Fazlur Khan was a pragmatic visionary: the series of progressive ideas that he brought forth for efficient high-rise construction in the 1960s and ‘70s were validated in his own work, notably his efficient designs for Chicago’s 100-story John Hancock Center and 110-story Sears Tower (the tallest building in the United States since its completion in 1974).
R. Khan was an outstanding civil engineer who was hailed all over the globe for innovations in high-rise building construction, especially tubular design. He earned international fame for inventing the "bundled tube" system, a structural network consisting of narrow cylinders clustered together to form a thick tower, which minimised the amount of structural steel needed for high towers and eliminated the need for internal wind bracing (since the perimeter columns carry wind loadings). He was born in Dhaka on April 3, 1929 and obtained his Bachelor of Engineering degree from Shibpur Engineering College, University of Calcutta in 1950 at the top of his class. He worked as assistant engineer for the India Highway Department, and then taught at the University of Dhaka. Qualifying for a Fulbright scholarship in 1952, he enrolled at the University of Illinois in Urbana, where he completed enough credits for two Master of Science degrees, one in applied mechanics and the other in structural engineering. He obtained a doctorate in the latter and accepted an engineering position in Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, a leading and world-renowned architectural firm in Chicago
One of the foremost structural engineers of the 20th century, Fazlur Khan epitomized both structural engineering achievement and creative collaborative effort between architect and engineer. Only when architectural design is grounded in structural realities, he believed — thus celebrating architecture's nature as a constructive art, rooted in the earth — can "the resulting aesthetics … have a transcendental value and quality."
His ideas for these sky-scraping towers offered more than economic construction and iconic architectural images; they gave people the opportunity to work and live “in the sky.” Hancock Center residents thrive on the wide expanse of sky and lake before them, the stunning quiet in the
Fazlur Khan was always clear about the purpose of architecture. His characteristic statement to an editor in 1971, having just been selected Construction's Man of the Year by Engineering News-Record, is commemorated in a plaque in Onterie Center (446 E. Ontario, Chicago):
He was born in Dhaka on April 3, 1929 and obtained his Bachelor of Engineering degree from Shibpur Engineering College, University of Calcutta in 1950 at the top of his class. He worked as assistant engineer for the India Highway Department, and then taught at the University of Dhaka. Qualifying for a Fulbright scholarship in 1952, he enrolled at the University of Illinois in Urbana, where he completed enough credits for two Master of Science degrees, one in applied mechanics and the other in structural engineering. He obtained a doctorate in the latter and accepted an engineering position in Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, a leading and world-renowned architectural firm in Chicago.
He returned briefly to his native country (then East Pakistan) and won an important position as Executive Engineer of the Karachi Development Authority. After serving Karachi Development Authority for more than three years (between 1957 and 1960), he came to the painful realisation that the environment in the then Pakistan was in no way congenial to the blossoming of a budding creative genius like him. Although he loved the motherland with all his heart, he was pained to find that the administrative demands in the Karachi Development Authority kept him from design works. He found no way out but to return to the United States where his talent and creativity would have ample opportunities to blossom in their full majesty and splendour. In 1960, he joined Skidmore, Owings and Merrill once again and remained associated with it till his last breath. He shuffled off the mortal coil while on a job-site visit to Jeddah on March 27, 1982.
More innovations followed under his direction, including composite buildings, combining the advantages of the rigidity of a concrete tubular structure and the speed of erection of steel slab systems and interior columns.
Dr. Khan's startling innovations did not, however, go unchallenged. Skeptics and high-brows in many a circle criticised his innovative theories and questioned their feasibility. But the economy and effectiveness of his massive structures (among the world's tallest) silenced the critics once and for all. As a result, most of the ultra-high buildings today are built on principles introduced by him.
F.R. Khan became the master builder of tall structure of the 60s and 70s. His buildings provided an economic answer to the needs of the day, utilising not only advanced technology but the art of engineering as well. Dr. Khan indeed was an architect with a difference. He believed that there is beauty and simplicity in the structural form of a building that is natural to it from an engineering point of view. Instead of going for a preconceived architectural expression, he let the natural structural form be the architectural representation of a building. He was encouraged and supported in this bold effort by Bruce Graham, a dominant architectural figure at Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. Khan and Graham jointly shaped the new skyline of many of the world's larger cities.
In the non-high-rise category as well, a number of very remarkable projects were designed by Dr. Khan. Of these mention may be made of the suspension roof of the Baxter Laboratories buildings near Deerfield, Illinois, the Hajj Terminal of the King Abdul Aziz Airport (fabric suspension roof) in Jeddah, which covers an area of 105 acres; the fabric suspension roof of the Humphrey Memorial in Minneapolis; the University in Makkah; and the engineering designs for the solar telescope at Kitt Peak, Arizona.
The honours received by Fazlur Rahman Khan during his chequered life are too numerous to be mentioned here. In 1972, he was proclaimed "Construction's Man of the Year" by the Engineering News Record for his many accomplishments in the field of ultra high-rise buildings. In 1973, he was the recipient of the Alfred E Lindau Award for his "outstanding contributions in advancing the art of reinforced concrete construction in high buildings". He also received the Wason Medal for Most Meritorious Paper in 1971 for his publication, co-authored with Mark Fintel, on "Shock-absorbing Soft Storey Concept for Multistorey Earthquake Structures." He was honoured with the coveted and prestigious post of the Chairman of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat right from its inception until his death. He was also a member of Committees 118, Use of Computers, and 442, Response of Concrete Buildings to Lateral Forces.
F R Khan had always been both human and humane. Unlike the average run of engineers, he never found himself confined to the dull and stereotyped environment of cut and dried formulae and techniques. He began his professional career as a structural engineer and gradually developed into an engineer architect with a keen perception of aesthetics. Furthermore, his appreciation of the mechanical and electrical aspects of building design gave him an overview of the entire construction process. Even beyond his intimate understanding of the non-structural disciplines and aesthetics and his exceptional intuitive understanding of structural behaviour. Khan had a remarkable perception of the social needs of the millions who live and work in the cities. Engineering and architecture were the media through which he sought to fulfil the needs. In a way, he was a philosopher who defined the role of the architect engineer in society. In the ultimate analysis, it was the urge to respond to human needs and aspirations that enabled Dr. Khan to make the outstanding structures and innovations that brought him recognition and honour by society and profession.
F R Khan was also an exceptional communicator very much at ease with all groups as well as large audiences. He had the remarkable ability to articulate complex concepts in simple, understandable language. In spite of the intense demand of his busy professional life, he found time to regularly teach courses at the Illinois Institute of Technology and supervise graduate students. With his untiring activities, remarkable achievements and pleasant but commanding personality he inspired countless young engineers and set a standard for them to measure up against.
In 1971, when the merciless military junta launched the most heinous atrocity on the innocent unarmed civilian population in Bangladesh, Dr. Khan, in spite of his heavy commitments and preoccupations, found enough time to organise the Bangalees and their friends in the United States into a Defence League which raised enormous funds for relief works. He also organised a strong lobby in Washington for months to urge the US authority to stop shipment of arms to the junta. No wonder, he was the founder-president of both the Bangladesh Foundation, which helped the grassroots non-government development projects, and the Bangladesh Association in the United States.
It was really a great pleasure to know a Muslim man was the designer of the Sears Tower the tallest building in U.S, its amazing that a lot of people ignore this kind of information and have stereotype about Muslims. Muslims are like all other people who came to U.S for better life, and contributed and still contributing to this country in every way.
So who is the designer for Sears Towers ?
Dr. Fazlur Rahman Khan, the legendary Bangladesh-born structural engineer. His achievements are hailed by men of science all over the world, obituary references to him were made even in leading magazines like Time and Newsweek (perhaps the only Bangladeshi non-political personality to be so honoured), he was acclaimed the 'Construction Man of the Year' and accorded Alfred E. Lindau Award (considered to be the most precious award in the world of architecture), he headed the prestigious Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat for years (till the end of his days), and yet very few in our country are aware of his monumental contribution, world-wide fame and recognition. No organizations worth its name in Bangladesh even bother to pay tribute to this great son of the soil
Fazlur Rahman Khan (1929 — 1982) ushered in a renaissance in skyscraper construction during the second half of the 20th century. Fazlur Khan was a pragmatic visionary: the series of progressive ideas that he brought forth for efficient high-rise construction in the 1960s and ‘70s were validated in his own work, notably his efficient designs for Chicago’s 100-story John Hancock Center and 110-story Sears Tower (the tallest building in the United States since its completion in 1974).
R. Khan was an outstanding civil engineer who was hailed all over the globe for innovations in high-rise building construction, especially tubular design. He earned international fame for inventing the "bundled tube" system, a structural network consisting of narrow cylinders clustered together to form a thick tower, which minimised the amount of structural steel needed for high towers and eliminated the need for internal wind bracing (since the perimeter columns carry wind loadings). He was born in Dhaka on April 3, 1929 and obtained his Bachelor of Engineering degree from Shibpur Engineering College, University of Calcutta in 1950 at the top of his class. He worked as assistant engineer for the India Highway Department, and then taught at the University of Dhaka. Qualifying for a Fulbright scholarship in 1952, he enrolled at the University of Illinois in Urbana, where he completed enough credits for two Master of Science degrees, one in applied mechanics and the other in structural engineering. He obtained a doctorate in the latter and accepted an engineering position in Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, a leading and world-renowned architectural firm in Chicago
One of the foremost structural engineers of the 20th century, Fazlur Khan epitomized both structural engineering achievement and creative collaborative effort between architect and engineer. Only when architectural design is grounded in structural realities, he believed — thus celebrating architecture's nature as a constructive art, rooted in the earth — can "the resulting aesthetics … have a transcendental value and quality."
His ideas for these sky-scraping towers offered more than economic construction and iconic architectural images; they gave people the opportunity to work and live “in the sky.” Hancock Center residents thrive on the wide expanse of sky and lake before them, the stunning quiet in the
Fazlur Khan was always clear about the purpose of architecture. His characteristic statement to an editor in 1971, having just been selected Construction's Man of the Year by Engineering News-Record, is commemorated in a plaque in Onterie Center (446 E. Ontario, Chicago):
He was born in Dhaka on April 3, 1929 and obtained his Bachelor of Engineering degree from Shibpur Engineering College, University of Calcutta in 1950 at the top of his class. He worked as assistant engineer for the India Highway Department, and then taught at the University of Dhaka. Qualifying for a Fulbright scholarship in 1952, he enrolled at the University of Illinois in Urbana, where he completed enough credits for two Master of Science degrees, one in applied mechanics and the other in structural engineering. He obtained a doctorate in the latter and accepted an engineering position in Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, a leading and world-renowned architectural firm in Chicago.
He returned briefly to his native country (then East Pakistan) and won an important position as Executive Engineer of the Karachi Development Authority. After serving Karachi Development Authority for more than three years (between 1957 and 1960), he came to the painful realisation that the environment in the then Pakistan was in no way congenial to the blossoming of a budding creative genius like him. Although he loved the motherland with all his heart, he was pained to find that the administrative demands in the Karachi Development Authority kept him from design works. He found no way out but to return to the United States where his talent and creativity would have ample opportunities to blossom in their full majesty and splendour. In 1960, he joined Skidmore, Owings and Merrill once again and remained associated with it till his last breath. He shuffled off the mortal coil while on a job-site visit to Jeddah on March 27, 1982.
More innovations followed under his direction, including composite buildings, combining the advantages of the rigidity of a concrete tubular structure and the speed of erection of steel slab systems and interior columns.
Dr. Khan's startling innovations did not, however, go unchallenged. Skeptics and high-brows in many a circle criticised his innovative theories and questioned their feasibility. But the economy and effectiveness of his massive structures (among the world's tallest) silenced the critics once and for all. As a result, most of the ultra-high buildings today are built on principles introduced by him.
F.R. Khan became the master builder of tall structure of the 60s and 70s. His buildings provided an economic answer to the needs of the day, utilising not only advanced technology but the art of engineering as well. Dr. Khan indeed was an architect with a difference. He believed that there is beauty and simplicity in the structural form of a building that is natural to it from an engineering point of view. Instead of going for a preconceived architectural expression, he let the natural structural form be the architectural representation of a building. He was encouraged and supported in this bold effort by Bruce Graham, a dominant architectural figure at Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. Khan and Graham jointly shaped the new skyline of many of the world's larger cities.
In the non-high-rise category as well, a number of very remarkable projects were designed by Dr. Khan. Of these mention may be made of the suspension roof of the Baxter Laboratories buildings near Deerfield, Illinois, the Hajj Terminal of the King Abdul Aziz Airport (fabric suspension roof) in Jeddah, which covers an area of 105 acres; the fabric suspension roof of the Humphrey Memorial in Minneapolis; the University in Makkah; and the engineering designs for the solar telescope at Kitt Peak, Arizona.
The honours received by Fazlur Rahman Khan during his chequered life are too numerous to be mentioned here. In 1972, he was proclaimed "Construction's Man of the Year" by the Engineering News Record for his many accomplishments in the field of ultra high-rise buildings. In 1973, he was the recipient of the Alfred E Lindau Award for his "outstanding contributions in advancing the art of reinforced concrete construction in high buildings". He also received the Wason Medal for Most Meritorious Paper in 1971 for his publication, co-authored with Mark Fintel, on "Shock-absorbing Soft Storey Concept for Multistorey Earthquake Structures." He was honoured with the coveted and prestigious post of the Chairman of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat right from its inception until his death. He was also a member of Committees 118, Use of Computers, and 442, Response of Concrete Buildings to Lateral Forces.
F R Khan had always been both human and humane. Unlike the average run of engineers, he never found himself confined to the dull and stereotyped environment of cut and dried formulae and techniques. He began his professional career as a structural engineer and gradually developed into an engineer architect with a keen perception of aesthetics. Furthermore, his appreciation of the mechanical and electrical aspects of building design gave him an overview of the entire construction process. Even beyond his intimate understanding of the non-structural disciplines and aesthetics and his exceptional intuitive understanding of structural behaviour. Khan had a remarkable perception of the social needs of the millions who live and work in the cities. Engineering and architecture were the media through which he sought to fulfil the needs. In a way, he was a philosopher who defined the role of the architect engineer in society. In the ultimate analysis, it was the urge to respond to human needs and aspirations that enabled Dr. Khan to make the outstanding structures and innovations that brought him recognition and honour by society and profession.
F R Khan was also an exceptional communicator very much at ease with all groups as well as large audiences. He had the remarkable ability to articulate complex concepts in simple, understandable language. In spite of the intense demand of his busy professional life, he found time to regularly teach courses at the Illinois Institute of Technology and supervise graduate students. With his untiring activities, remarkable achievements and pleasant but commanding personality he inspired countless young engineers and set a standard for them to measure up against.
In 1971, when the merciless military junta launched the most heinous atrocity on the innocent unarmed civilian population in Bangladesh, Dr. Khan, in spite of his heavy commitments and preoccupations, found enough time to organise the Bangalees and their friends in the United States into a Defence League which raised enormous funds for relief works. He also organised a strong lobby in Washington for months to urge the US authority to stop shipment of arms to the junta. No wonder, he was the founder-president of both the Bangladesh Foundation, which helped the grassroots non-government development projects, and the Bangladesh Association in the United States.
for sharing this information. I saw the Sears Tower from a distance..... well actually it was from the road and Lake Michigan.... 
