http://skyscraperpage.com/gallery/data/500/85detailed.jpg
Is not very clear, its on the left, with the Swissotel as the background, a roofing jacked by 4 towers.
It was used during construction of a block of 40 storey flats in Singapore.

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/photopost/data/3130/2829TPY-145.jpg
The roofing was removed near the 30th floor, but the whole structure was still there, until removed together with the cranes when construction ended.

What's its purpose and can someone show me more pics of similliar machinery?

Honestly, I work in the construction world but I have no idea of what that could be.

It seems like a plataform that lifts up and down suported by the four "structures"

Its probably a Singapourian new technique, does anyone know?

http://www.bca.gov.sg/industry_programmes/coninno/build/bigcanopy.html
hope it helps:)

Oh, thanks! :D

HDB Hub was also built that way, I think...
PWC built by only 25 workers?! :eek:
Or 25 workers operating the canopy thingy?

That's in interesting way to build a tower. Good thing is obviously that it saves on labour costs, which especially in western economies is one big way to get towers built (roughtly 80% consists out of labour costs). Problem is that these methods don't allow for a lot of architectural variation, especially when the building technique is so rigid that the shape of the building tells you how it was build.

This thing is called a "Big Canopy", largely in use now on some buildings in Japan, where this was invented. The Big Canopy is operated by some pretty high-tech machinery and computers, which do much of the work. The one problem I can see with the use of this system is that is can only be used on relatively uniform shape buildings, like boxes.

That's interesting, looks very efficient but kind of funny at the same time. Can't density be a problem when using this type of construction method? The cranes look like they stretch out pretty wide.

AG mentioned it was used in Japan though, so maybe not?

I don't quite understand how it can automatically build...?

I don't quite get it too...
So there's mechanisms below the canopy?:?

This, I think is a simplified version. The real one is where the canopy is literally a factory that rises with the building, fully automated, with a few workers doing the more intricate stuff, mush like a car factory. The factory is to big to dismantle, so ends up becoming the roof of the building itself.

The core of the envisioned Millenium Tower in Tokyo should use this method.

@redstone

with the new blocks at Toa Payoh coming up, we may just get to see this in action again! :carrot:

How come only ONE block was built this way?:?