Generali Tower: Zaha Hadid's Twisting Skyscraper in Milan

The Generali Tower, designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, stands 170.36 meters tall with 44 floors in Milan's CityLife district. The tower features a twisting helical form, a double glass facade for energy efficiency, and a reinforced concrete structure. It achieved LEED Platinum certification from the US Green Building Council. Construction involved 3,900 workers, 335 companies, 490 machines, 9 cranes, 85,000 cubic meters of concrete, and 12,200 tons of steel over 1,200 days. The tower is part of the 365,000 sqm CityLife masterplan, which includes a 42-acre park, residential areas, offices for 11,000 employees, a shopping center, and a kindergarten. CityLife CEO Armando Borghi noted that of 500 completed homes, fewer than 30 remain unsold. Architect Patrick Schumacher recalled that Zaha Hadid was proud of the project, describing its morphology as simple yet plastic. Francesco Dal Co, involved in the decision-making, emphasized that skyscrapers multiply land value and must harmonize with their context. The tower is now the most Instagrammed building in Milan. Design began in 2004 following an international competition, with completion expected in 2019-20. The project was fully designed in BIM.