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Arts & Culture

SUPER SKYSCRAPERS: Building The Future

Leadenhall Building in London.
Courtesy of Blink Films UK
Leadenhall Building in London.

Airs Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2018 at 11 p.m. on KPBS TV

As urban space shrinks, we build higher and faster than ever before, creating a new generation of skyscrapers. Super skyscrapers are pushing the limits of engineering, technology and design to become greener, stronger, smarter and more luxurious than their predecessors.

This four-part series: "The Vertical City" (repeats Feb 7); "The Billionaire Building" (repeats Feb. 14); "One World Trade Center" (repeats Feb. 21); and "Building The Future" (repeats Feb. 28), follows the creation of four extraordinary buildings, showcasing how they will revolutionize the way we live, work and protect ourselves from potential threats.

Construction worker at the Leadenhall Building in London.
Courtesy of Blink Films UK
Construction worker at the Leadenhall Building in London.

Commonly known as “the cheese grater,” the Leadenhall Building is the pinnacle of London’s avant-garde architecture.

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Designed as a tapered tower with a steel exoskeleton, it’s the tallest skyscraper in the City of London and the most innovative.

Leadenhall Building while under construction in London.
Courtesy of Blink Films UK
Leadenhall Building while under construction in London.

The teams behind the Leadenhall project had to radically rethink every aspect of the traditional building model.

Leadenhall Building in London at night.
Courtesy of Blink Films UK
Leadenhall Building in London at night.

"Building The Future" follows the monumental challenges that come with erecting this super skyscraper: it will be constructed off-site, delivered to location, and stacked and bolted together like a giant Lego set.

Building the Future - Preview

"View a tower constructed off-site

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Visit the Leadenhall Building on Pinterest.

“It’s clear that a new generation of buildings is rising around the world,” said Dan Oliver, executive producer at Blink Films. “They are extraordinarily complex, strong, tall and safer than ever. It was an amazing project to get behind the scenes in various stages of their development. We got an inside look at how today’s ever-improving technology is literally changing the game in construction, and the way global citizens are living their lives.”

This series originally aired in 2014.

The series was produced by Blink Films UK. The series is executive produced by Dan Oliver and Dan Chambers.