KL Tower

Kuala Lumpur Tower

The Kuala Lumpur Tower (officially known as Menara Kuala Lumpur; referred later as KL Tower) is a tall tower located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and was built in 1995. It is used for communication purposes and features an antenna that reaches 421 m (1,381 ft), which currently makes it the fifth tallest tower in the world. The roof of the pod is at 335 m (1,099 ft). The rest of the tower below has a stairwell and an elevator to reach the upper area, which also contains a revolving restaurant, providing diners a beautiful view of the city. Races are organised yearly where participants race up the stairs to the top. The tower also acts as the Islamic falak observatory to look for the crescent moon to mark the beginning of Muslim month of Ramadhan, Syawal, and Zulhijjah, to celebrate fasting month of Ramadhan, Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Aidiladha.

Construction

The construction of the KL Tower which began on October 1991, was a 3-phase process. The first phase was the widening of Jalan Punchak and the excavation of soil from the construction site. This phase went on until 15 August 1992.

On 6 July 1992, the second phase began with the construction of the foundation and basement of the tower. Approximately 50,000 cubic meters of concrete were continuously poured for 31 hours thus setting a record in the Malaysian construction industry. The foundation work, requiring no piling, was completed by 15 April 1993.

The third phase was the construction of the 'superstructure' which began in May 1993. The tedious construction of the tower started with the erection of the tower shaft, then the tower head. As the finishing touches to the tower head were being done, the construction of the touristic building began.

The touristic building is adorned with designs that reflect the Malaysian Islamic culture. The main lobby of the upper ground floor is decorated with exquisite glass-clad domes that sparkle like giant diamonds. These domes were designed and arranged in the form of the Muqarnas by Iranian craftsmen from Isfahan.

On 13 September 1994, Prime Minister, YAB Dato Seri Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad performed the Topping-up Ceremony where the antenna mast was installed, thus marking the final height of the tower, 421 meters above the ground. Lastly installation of the facilities and amenities was executed to ensure comfort and safety.

The KL Tower was officially opened by the Prime Minister on 1 October 1996. Among the distinguished guests to the Tower were the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Jaafar, Raja Permaisuri Agong Tuanku Najihah, the wives of the Sultan of Brunei, DYMM Paduka Seri Baginda Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Hajah Saleha and DYTM Pengiran Isteri Hajah Mariam.

Facts

The KL Tower is the fifth tallest telecommunication tower in the world (after the CN Tower in Canada, the Ostankino Tower in Russia, the Oriental Pearl Tower in China, and the Borj-e Milad in Iran). Built to enhance the quality of telecommunication services and the clarity of broadcasting, KL Tower represents the symbol of Kuala Lumpur.

The structure is divided into 5 basic sections:

The foundation base houses 3 basement floors for safety purposes, storage and maintenance work.
The touristic building bears the administration office, souvenir shops and the 146 meters pedestrian mall with cascading pools.
The tower shaft comprises 22 levels with 4 elevators and flights of stairs with a total of 2,058 steps.
The tower head holds the public observation platform (276 m) and revolving restaurant as well as the telecommunication and broadcasting stations.
The antenna mast crowns the tower and is specially utilized for telecommunication and broadcasting transmissions.

When constructing the KL Tower, the builders took special care to construct a retaining wall around a 100-year-old jelutong tree (Dyera costulata). The tower was moved at a cost of RM430,000 to avoid harming the monumental tree, which is found near the pedestrian mall.

KL Tower is managed by Menara Kuala Lumpur Sdn. Bhd., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Telekom Malaysia Group.

KL Tower is also the first pit-stop in The Amazing Race Asia 1 and fielded a route marker on the final leg of the same race.