The dome of the Louvre Abu Dhabi will be 180 metres wide and weigh 7,000 tonnes when complete. Picture courtesy TDIC
The dome of the Louvre Abu Dhabi will be 180 metres wide and weigh 7,000 tonnes when complete. Picture courtesy TDIC

Property

Making concrete progress towards opening day

Abu Dhabi's Louvre art museum came a step closer to completion yesterday when builders poured the first concrete into one of the four piers set to hold up the museum's massive dome.

Lucy Barnard

May 05, 2013

The Louvre Abu Dhabi on Saadiyat Island came a step closer to completion yesterday when builders poured the first concrete into one of the four piers set to hold up the museum's massive dome.
Senior management of the Louvre developer, the Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC), were on hand at the site to witness contractors pouring the first concrete into the structure that will eventually support the 180-metre wide, 7,000-tonne dome.
Eventually the vast laced dome, which will weigh almost the same as Paris's Eiffel Tower, will be supported by four piers nine metres high at the entrance to the museum and reaching a height of 30 metres inside. The dome is designed to allow light to pass through in a so-called "rain of light" reminiscent of palm fronds.
The move marks the first major construction milestone for the long-waited Jean Nouvel-designed 9,200 square metre project.
A temporary platform in the sea, on which the entire building will be constructed, was built in 2009 to allow all works to take place in a dry environment. More than 4,000 steel and reinforced concrete piles - a total volume of 21,000 cubic metres of concrete - were driven into the ground to serve as a base for the Louvre Abu Dhabi building.
However, it was not until January that TDIC awarded the Dh2.4 billion contract to construct the art gallery to an Arabtec-led joint venture.
The concrete frame of the museum is scheduled to be completed by the end of next year and the museum is set to open in 2015. It will be located in Saadiyat's cultural quarter alongside the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, which is expected to open in 2017 and the Zayed National Museum, slated to open in 2016.
Upon completion of the building, 40-metre high temporary concrete walls currently built in the sand will be removed to allow seawater to gradually flow in around it.
"This is an important time for us because it's symbolic of moving into a new construction stage and most importantly getting another step closer towards realising our landmark project," said Mubarak Hamad Al Muhairi, the managing director of TDIC.
 
lbarnard@thenational.ae

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Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.

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How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
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Rasmi Ragy is a senior counsel at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.

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If you are looking to build your long-term wealth in 2021 and beyond, the stock market is still the best place to do it as equities powered on despite the pandemic.

Investing in individual stocks is not for everyone and most private investors should stick to mutual funds and ETFs, but there are some thrilling opportunities for those who understand the risks.

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Install an air filter in your home.

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Shower or bath after being outside.

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